Concise Guide to Jazz

by Mark C. Gridley

The author tells what jazz is, how it originated, and how it is made. He emphasizes effective strategies to get the most out of listening to jazz. Focusing on 46 of the most historically significant musicians, Gridley offers a basic, first-time orientation to jazz.

Special Features NEW TO THIS EDITION is a chapter entitled NOW which considers recent developments in contemporary jazz and discusses such players as: John Zorn, Kenny G, Dave Sanborn, Joe Henderson, and Wayne Shorter. EASY-TO-FOLLOW LISTENING GUIDES are keyed to 99 track numbers, chorus-by-chorus, on the 76-minute Classics CD (ISBN 0-13--142497-1): 21 historic recordings by Louis Armstrong, Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Bill Evans, and many more. The 72-minute Demonstration CD (ISBN 0-13-142496-3): 157 narrated illustrations of instruments and methods that jazz musicians use to make their music. The text is available at a discounted package price combined with the 2 accompanying CDs (ISBN 0-13-183979-9), or with just the Classics CD (ISBN 0-13-183980-2), or with just the Demonstration CD (ISBN 0-13-142519-6). Both CDs and a videocassette version of the Demonstration CD (Listening to jazz by Steve Gryb; ISBN 0-13-532$624) can be ordered by phoning $00-947-7700. 104 STUNNING PHOTOS of top musicians at work, with captions summarizing their contributions. ELEMENTS OF MUSIC APPENDIX offers an illustrated short course in the basics of music: rhythm, scales, blue notes, chord progressions, songforms, and tone color. ALBUM BUYING STRATEGIES APPENDIX gives handy pointers for quickly selecting and locating the best albums.

Genres: Nonfiction, Music

272 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 1991

Reviews

[My work is never done · Rating 5 out of 5]

Its a good book to learn the history of Jazz and how modern music relates to it. I learned for instance, that Jazz can trace its linage to military brass bands from the Civil War. So it's literally a musical phenomena that has been going on for centuries.

But it is a tad boring at first for someone who is not particularly into music or already knows the history well.

In either case, its a good read and comes with its sound track of Jazz music.