What is the significance of charlie parkers developments in bebop

What is bebop? Molten melodic lines poured out of him in a rapid-fire torrent of improvisation that took virtuosity to a new level. Together, their sonic explorations, which developed rapidly during the next three years, would sow the seeds for what became known as bebop.

In bebop, though, the rhythmic emphasis was switched from the bass drum to the more subtle hi-hat and ride cymbal, which allowed greater rhythmic fluidity drummers Kenny Clarke and Max Roach were the chief instigators of this new approach. In the hands of bebop musicians, jazz became more blues-oriented and riff-based too; and because Parker and Gillespie were able to marry their supreme technical ability with their knowledge of advanced music theory, what resulted was a new type of jazz defined by extended solos and whose harmonic language was denser and richer than ever before.

This meant that soloists really had to be sharp-witted, well-prepared, and know their scales inside out, especially when the chord changes came thick and fast as was the norm with bebop.

It proved to be a profoundly influential recording for aspiring saxophonists. Indeed, bebop, with its improvisatory ethos and demand for virtuosity, insisted upon being perceived as an art form. But the elitist, self-conscious artiness, and cerebral aspect of what is bebop alienated many listeners. Jazz was no longer carefree, happy-faced, radio-friendly music functioning as an escapist soundtrack, but had become something deeper and almost visceral.

The latter, though initially deemed a bebopper, quickly established his own unique style that defied easy categorization. But by then, bebop, like all music forms, was evolving and changing. Miles Davis, at 22, was already bored by bop and wanted to try his hand at something else. Miles put together an ensemble that was larger than the customary bebop small group and made music that was less aggressive than what Parker and Gillespie were doing.

He also played at a slower tempo — and, crucially, he reduced the intensity and temperature a few degrees. This became the blueprint for West Coast cool jazz, which would be popular in the 50s. Even as his addictions deepened, his fame rose, culminating in the opening, in , of the New York jazz club Birdland.

He had no financial stake in it; it borrowed his name and fame without paying him for it, though he played there often—until he was banned, on the grounds of his erratic behavior. The fans and revellers who surrounded Parker included unofficial musical amanuenses, who followed him from gig to gig, recording his every note.

There's a playlist below. By , he was reportedly seeking a new musical pathway out of the style that he already exemplified, and that was already widely emulated by the best of younger musicians many of whom, of course, would enter musical history in their own right. He suffered from depression, attempted suicide, and was again hospitalized.

His alcoholism worsened, his health deteriorated, and he had premonitions of his death—even as he was forging advances on his style, with ever wider harmonic extremes, ever more fragmentary phrases, ever more daring effacements of the regularly pulsating beat. It was common for bebop musicians to compose new, complex melodies over well-known chord progressions. With a focus on improvisation, bebop allowed for an explosion of innovation.

While many aspects of swing were imported, such as the triplet-based swing feel and a proclivity for the blues, bebop musicians played tunes at much faster tempos. Inspired by the more harmonically and rhythmically experimental players from the swing era—like Coleman Hawkins, Lester Young, Art Tatum, and Roy Eldridge—bebop musicians expanded the palette of musical devices.

Soloists no longer concerned themselves with lyricism and emphasized rhythmic unpredictability and harmonic complexity instead. The advent of bebop marked an expansion of the roles of the rhythm section. In bebop, rhythm section players were no longer simply time-keepers, but interacted with the soloist and added their own embellishments. Actively scan device characteristics for identification. Use precise geolocation data.

Most of this is in Bird Lives by Ross Russell. Dizzy Gillespie loved Charlie Parker and said so on many occasions. They would play out of those books forwards and backwards. This is like a high-school essay, with poor grammar and punctuation, and several serious factual inaccuracies. All of the facts are extremely well-known and easily available elsewhere. It would be a kindness to erase this article. Your email address will not be published. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

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