Music Notes

 
Ain’t Misbehavin’ from Ain’t Misbehavin’ (page 1) In this zippy tune, one senses Fats Waller’s pert sense of humor and we can almost see him wink as he says the title. This sauciness can come out with a spry tempo and clear articulation. The recapitulated theme is reconstructed in meter, one beat less than the rest of the arrangement. Jazzers don’t like to be bored. All of Me (page 4) Several tempos are possible for this piece, often performed at a gently swinging but lyrical pace of around ♩ = 120, as in Russ Columbo’s 1931 recording. Benny Goodman’s 1937 recording picks up the pace to approximately ♩ = 160, better for dancing and reflective of the “swing era.” The present version could probably go as fast as ♩ = 176. Blue Moon (page 6) This arrangement definitely transcends the lounge music genre. Chromatic reharmonizations (mm. 1–8), an intensely reflective and lyrical bridge (mm. 63–72), and a bitonal recapitulation reflect a sophistication not associated with background music. It is perhaps more a “Fantasy on Blue Moon” than a standard jazz setting of the song. The dark chords at the end (mm. 99–102) could reflect the Great Depression, still going strong for many people in 1934, the date of the song’s composition. But measures 103–105 provide resolution. Deep Purple (page 9) Another love song like “Blue Moon” that provided distraction during the hard times of the Depression, “Deep Purple” starts out with a sweet tenderness that gradually morphs into a hard-swinging big-band number. Measures 58–65 sound like the wailing brass and reed sections from Jimmie Lunceford’s band or another one of the great Swing Era ensembles. I’m in the Mood for Love (page 12) Unlike the brash big-band sonorities in “Deep Purple,” this arrangement of “I’m in the Mood for Love” retains an understated lyricism, perhaps recalling the intimate way crooner Dean Martin sang this ballad. There is an innocence and purity to this song (“I’m in the mood for love simply because you’re near me”), reflected in the diatonic arpeggiations and quotation of Bach’s C Major Prelude. Laura (page 14) Perhaps I was already anticipating the meter of “Take Five” when I came up with this version of “Laura.” But while the Dave Brubeck Quartet versions of “Take Five” focused on rhythm, with an inevitably featured drum solo, my version of “Laura” almost obscures the exotic meter and emphasizes flowing lyricism, at least for the first 32 bars. The reference eventually becomes explicit and the hat gets tipped to Desmond and Brubeck in measures 89–90, when an incipit of the famous melody comes forth. Misty (easier, page 17 - harder, page 20) Even though there are only 7 measures that differ between the “easier” and “harder” versions of “Misty” (mm. 19 and 33–38), my copyist/engraver David Botwinik and I decided it would be best to print both arrangements in totality rather than include ossia bars. The “harder” rendition requires a bit more digital dexterity, to navigate the rapid passagework, and rhythmic control, such as in the 14-note fioritura in bar 34 spread out over two beats. But the “easier” version is just as effective, simply underscoring lyricism over virtuosity. Mood Indigo (page 23) Fans of cowboy music may wonder if the loping bass means we’re at a rodeo, to which I respond, “Maybe!” Arthur Houle’s witty collection of piano pieces, Cowboy Jazz, may have been a subliminal inspiration to me here. But it is worth remembering that the history of popular music is a richly transmigratory narrative, with various styles belonging to various traditions, such as the left-hand figure of measure 1 which derives from tropes used by boogie-woogie pianists in the 1920s. Duke Ellington probably did not conceive of this piece as having anything to do with Texas but some Lone Star musicians could certainly merge stride, blues, and honky-tonk with ease (for example, William Ezell, 1892–1963) (or yours truly!). Over the Rainbow (page 26) It is difficult to think of this piece without recalling Judy Garland’s interpretation — so innocent, so full of hope, made all the more poignant by the outbreak of World War II, almost simultaneous with the 1939 release of The Wizard of Oz. Like many Americans born in the 1950s, I used to watch that film every year on television although I never appreciated then the irony of its popularity coming at one of the darkest moments in modern history. The lyrics must have given hope to millions of Americans and foreigners embroiled in the war’s nastiness: “Somewhere over the rainbow way up high, there’s a land that I heard of once in a lullaby. Somewhere over the rainbow skies are blue, and the dreams that you dare to dream really do come true.” My arrangement, while reharmonizing the melody, retains the lyricism and ingenuousness of Judy Garland’s original interpretation. The Shadow of Your Smile - Love theme from The Sandpiper (page 28) I have cast the first statement of the theme in the style of one of Johann Sebastian Bach’s Two-Part Inventions, replete with contrapuntal imitation, before a bossa-nova statement comes in measure 21. Although this and the other arrangements in this volume were conceived for a solo pianist, there is the possibility of collaboration with a drummer and (intrepid!) bassist. In this piece, the bassist could play measures 1–15 as written, with a few range accommodations, producing the sound of a rapid walking bass, while the drummer offered a blazing swing ( ♩ = 320!) with brushes. After measure 21, a typical bossa nova emerges where the bassist could emphasize chord roots on beats 1 and 3 and the drummer could provide the two-bar rhythmic pattern associated with bossa nova. Take Five (page 30) It is my hope that pianists will feel free, in the spirit of jazz musicians, to add and embellish each of my arrangements. It is possible that “Take Five” provides the easiest springboard for classical pianists to begin improvisation. Given the relatively easy harmonic progression or, in reality, lack thereof (basically anything having to do with E♭ minor), pianists can focus on rhythm. The ideas I give on page 34, based on the Dorian mode, constitute but one path toward creating an original improvisation within “Take Five.” There are many possible avenues, including bitonality (what if the right hand played licks in A major while the left hand kept E♭ minor chords?), change of modality (what if we suddenly went into E♭ major?), and the addition of new progressions (what if the pianist played a cycle of G7-C7-F7-B♭7?). As long as the rhythm remains steady, anything can happen. Take a chance with “Take Five”! Stardust (page 35) Alphabetically, “Stardust” should be the penultimate selection in this volume, but for pagination reasons my engraver David Botwinik suggested putting it last. I feel there is a certain cosmic logic in this decision since “Stardust,” especially this arrangement, has a kind of all-encompassing conclusiveness. Composed in 1927, it is the earliest of the compositions in this book. Written after World War I but before the Great Depression, there is a naive nostalgia in the music and the lyrics about lost innocent love (“Though I dream in vain, in my heart it will remain my stardust melody, the memory of love’s refrain”). I have created a musical narrative that begins with simple lyricism. Then, at measure 49, we enter the jazz age with a lightly swinging groove — want to dance? In the final bars with the return to the theme (bar 69), a chromaticism redolent of late nineteenth-century Romanticism and its attendant anxiety imposes new meaning to those pure sentiments, as if fin de siècle angst (or a 20th-century prognostication of disaster) wereunderneath any pure sentiments. But, in the last measure, we end on a C major triad. What could give us any more assurance? — John Salmon Greensboro, North Carolina September 19, 2016

--== Navigation menu to samples of each piece: ==--

Ain’t Misbehavin’  |  All of Me  |  Blue Moon  |  Deep Purple  |  I’m in the Mood for Love  |  Laura  |  Misty (easier)

Misty (harder)  |  Mood Indigo  |  Over the Rainbow  |  The Shadow of Your Smile  |  Take Five  |  Stardust

--== Navigation menu to samples of each piece: ==--

Ain’t Misbehavin’  |  All of Me  |  Blue Moon  |  Deep Purple  |  I’m in the Mood for Love  |  Laura  |  Misty (easier)

Misty (harder)  |  Mood Indigo  |  Over the Rainbow  |  The Shadow of Your Smile  |  Take Five  |  Stardust