Jazz Music, how do u tell??? Options

[pianokeys]

for the last test in aural, how do u tell if a piece of music is jazz? it was in a mock exam yesterday and I thought it was a romantic piece... :blink: :rolleyes: what should I listen for?

[pianoforte]

I find that the things common in jazz music are:
Chromatic harmonies/chords (e.g. g7, fsharp7, f7)
Syncopation
Crushed notes
Swing rhythms
Improvisation (but not really sure if this will come up in an exam context)

I always feel like when I'm listening to jazz, there's a kind of "easy" feel to it, it sounds real laid back. Have you listened to any jamie cullum?? Might be a good idea to listen to some.

[saxlover]

ye listen to Jamie Cullum, i think he is so great!

[Violinia]

QUOTE

Improvisation (but not really sure if this will come up in an exam context)

If there's nothing in the exerpt that sounds like improvisation then it probably won't be jazz! Jazz isn't jazz without improvisation.

As for Jamie Cullum being jazz - well, a big hmm to that. Great if enjoying Jamie Cullum leads you to an appreciation of jazz, but for goodness sake don't stop there and think he's a good example of jazz - he aint.

There's a current vogue for "jazzy" singers, but that's what I'd call them - jazzy but not really jazz. And believe me, I'm not being purist about this - I enjoyed (some of) a concert by Louis Sclavis last week, who's pushing the boundaries of jazz out to God knows where, but you can still call it jazz - just about!

Jamie Cullum and his ilk are what you'd call "easy-listening jazzy", which is something else really.