"Black Pearls" is an anthology of black women singers who made major contributions to American music. The word anthology derives from the Greek language meaning "gathering of flowers." In this collection, Josephine Qualls has described the evolution of Jazz music and its' related musical forms as embodied in the careers of these women ranging from Bessie Smith through Ma Rainey, Memphis Minnie, Pearl Bailey, Ethel Waters, Aretha Franklin, Mahalia Jackson (mother of pearls) and many others. Also included are descriptions of several early venues in which black women developed their talents. The musical art forms of Jazz, Blues, Gospel, Ragtime and Dixieland highlights the descriptions of the births, early years and lifelong careers of these African/American women. Spanning the years from 1895 to the present, this is an engaging and informative book leaving the reader fascinated by the amazing variety in this "collection of flowers." "Black Pearls" belongs in the library of any fan or historian of African/American music.

"Among the many books on the history of jazz. . . an implicit division of labor has solidified, whereby black artists play and invent while white writers provide the commentary. . . . Eric Porter's brilliant book seeks to trace the ways in which black jazz musicians have made verbal sense of their accomplishments, demonstrating the profound self-awareness of the artists themselves as they engaged in discourse about their enterprise."--Susan McClary, author of "Conventional Wisdom: The Content of Musical Form

"With What Is This Thing Called Jazz Eric Porter has given us an original portrait of black musicians as creators, thinkers and politically conscious individuals. This well-written, thoroughly researched work is a model of a new kind of scholarship about African American musicians: one that shows them as people who are both shaped by and actively shaping their political and social context. One of the book's most important contributions is that it takes seriously what the musicians themselves say about the music and allows their voices to join that of critics and musicologists in helping to construct a critical and philosophical framework for analyzing the music. Professor Porter's work is rare in it's balanced attention to the formal qualities of the music, historical interpretation and theoretical reflection. His is a work that will certainly shape the direction of future studies. "What Is This Thing Called Jazz? is an extraordinary work."--Farah Jasmine Griffin, author of "If You Can't Be Free, Be a Mystery: In Search of Billie Holiday

"A major contribution to American Studies in music, Eric Porter's lucidly written book is the first to thoroughly analyze and contextualizethe critical, historical and aesthetic writings of some of today's most innovative composer-performers. Placing the vital concerns of artists at the center, this work provides academic and lay readers alike with important new insights on how African-American musicians sought to realize ambitious dreams and concrete goals through direct action--not only in sound, but through building alternative institutions that emphasized the importance of community involvement."--George E. Lewis, Professor of Music, Critical Studies/Experimental Practices Area University of California, San Diego

Your guitar becomes the ultimate jazz solo instrument when you master the techniques and concepts in this book. Picking up where the harmony lessons in Intermediate Jazz Guitar leave off, topics include melody and harmony integration, bass line development, chord enhancement, quartal harmonies, and how to arrange a guitar solo. Learn to simultaneously play the harmony, melody, rhythm, and bass parts of any song! Concepts are illustrated with lots of examples to practice, including arrangements of some traditional melodies. All music is shown in standard notation and TAB, and the CD demonstrates the examples in the book. 64 pages.

Women performers played a vital role in the development of American and transatlantic entertainment, celebrity culture, and gender ideology. Sara E. Lampert examines the lives, careers, and fame of overlooked figures from Europe and the United States whose work in melodrama, ballet, and other stage shows shocked and excited early U.S. audiences. These women lived and performed the tensions and contradictions of nineteenth-century gender roles, sparking debates about women's place in public life. Yet even their unprecedented wealth and prominence failed to break the patriarchal family structures that governed their lives and conditioned their careers. Inevitable contradictions arose. The burgeoning celebrity culture of the time forced women stage stars to don the costumes of domestic femininity even as the unsettled nature of life in the theater defied these ideals.A revealing foray into a lost time, Starring Women returns a generation of performers to their central place in the early history of American theater.

"Practical Jazz Theory for Improvisation" is a jazz theory text with an emphasis on improvisation. Originally conceived as the Jazz Theory/Improvisation text and curriculum for the 2014 National Jazz Workshop, it has already been adopted by several university jazz programs. This book begins at a level accessible by students just beginning in jazz, with reference appendices to fill any fundamental music theory knowledge, yet progresses systematically in technical and conceptual content well beyond all but the most advanced college improvisation classes. With notated examples and exercises demonstrating all concepts as well free downloadable play-along tracks for all exercises, this book will have students playing the material almost immediately. While not required, the available 300+ page companion book, "Practical Jazz Theory for Improvisation Exercise Workbook" (available in treble and bass clef) has all exercises notated in all keys to allow for quicker technical and aural advancement.

A collection of anecdotes and reminiscences by local musicians and others of the Hastings jazz and social scene in the 50's and 60's. Together with photos and press clippings, it provides a trip down memory lane back to those fabulous years.

This work provides an in-depth look at the role of black music within the Harlem Renaissance movement, suggesting its primacy to Renaissance philosophy and practice. Floyd holds that the music of this period was also the source of certain ambivalent attitudes on the part of the black leadership. The book features essays on various subjects including musical theatre, Duke Ellington, black music and musicians in England, concert singers and the interrelationships between black painters and music. It also includes a music bibliography of works composed during the period.

This is a book for students and seasoned performers who want to know more about the thought processes for improvising Jazz. It is also for teachers who wish to control the subject in graduated steps. It shows promising students that it won't do to play just anything at any time, and that there is a difference between mere self-gratification and really connecting with a much larger audience. If, as a movement, Jazz has lost its way, this book shows the way back.

Those who have lived - not just witnessed - the efflorescence of a pivotal culture moment never see the world through veiled eyes again. Jimmy Lyons was there, devising wholly original inventions of words and music while the Beats, the neo-folk troubadours, the post-bop jazz shooting stars, and the tie-dyed psychedelic rockers were scorching through the underbrush and opening new paths of creativity as alternatives to the increasingly bottom line-driven mainstream. Lyons, though, wasn't content to find a niche in one countercultural movement or another. He kept moving, observing, and writing new poems, stories, and songs. But he never gave up on the wry sophistication of the classic American popular song. Indeed, he has dedicated himself to infusing the same hallowed forms perfected by Irving Berlin, George and Ira Gershwin, Cole Porter, Harold Arlen, and others, with his singular fantasias of ingeniously colored and textured wordplay.

These plays have a subtext only Lyons can provide, derived from what he calls the "rituals of the road" and the "the circular rhythms" of the race track, the beats and pulses of everyday American life that rarely raise a ripple on the surface of American culture. Lyons hears the screams and dreams of his countrymen and woman; from them he creates new modes of expression. He has been changed by each of his open-hearted an open-eared encounters, and this body of work is his way of making those changes sing and swing. - Derk Richardson

As a thesaurus of chordal options available to the comping jazz guitarist, this book is an in-depth study of optimum voice leading motions using drop-2 and drop-3 voicings for the variations on the ubiquitous major and minor II-V-I progressions - yielding fluid and cohesive accompaniments.

Jazz rock flourished from 1968 to 1974, offering a distinctively cool and innovative hybrid sound that captivated a generation-and beyond. Superstar bands like Blood, Sweat and Tears and Chicago have earned their place in popular consciousness, but the movement included many other powerful, innovative groups such as Tower of Power and Malo. Author Mike Baron explores the history of this music fusion, its rise and fall in popularity. He offers highlights-and his own unique insights from a front-row seat in jazz rock-into what made the era so special. A Brief History of Jazz Rock is a sax-meets-Strat bible that dares to inspire a Renaissance-to cultivate a new generation of musicians who might mix brass with bass, and help return forgotten bands like If and Dreams to their place on the main stage.

"A must-read for all dancers as the invaluable historical references and in-depth coverage of the different jazz forms cannot be found in such detail in any other book on the market today."--Debra McWaters, author of "Musical Theatre Training" "Artfully weaves history and professional perspectives to reveal the boundaries of the jazz dance world. It invites the reader to develop a more complicated definition of jazz dance for the twenty-first century."--Susan A. Lee, Northwestern University The history of jazz dance is best understood by thinking of it as a tree. The roots of jazz dance are African. Its trunk is vernacular, shaped by European influence, and exemplified by the Charleston and the Lindy Hop. From the vernacular have grown many and varied branches, including tap, Broadway, funk, hip-hop, Afro-Caribbean, Latin, pop, club jazz, popping, B-boying, party dances, and more.
Unique in its focus on history rather than technique, "Jazz Dance" offers the only overview of trends and developments since 1960. Editors Lindsay Guarino and Wendy Oliver have assembled an array of seasoned practitioners and scholars who trace the numerous histories of jazz dance and examine various aspects of the field, including trends, influences, training, race, aesthetics, international appeal, and its relationship to tap, rock, indie, black concert dance, and Latin dance.Featuring discussions of such dancers and choreographers as Bob Fosse and Katherine Dunham, as well as analyses of how the form's vocabulary differs from ballet, this complex and compelling history captures the very essence of jazz dance.

"Modern Jazz Guitar Ensemble" Vol. 1 is a collection of four original compositions arranged for five guitars, bass, and drums. The arrangements range in style from swing, rock, 3/4, and straight eighth. The arrangements feature chromatic melodies and modern chord voicings that create a contemporary new sound for the jazz guitar ensemble. Each chart provides many opportunities for all the players in the ensemble to solo. The arrangements in this book are ideally suited for the intermediate/advanced level guitar ensemble. For audio and video samples of the charts visit www.nickfryermusic.com

There are three fundamentals to any great solo: Chords, Scales, and Tone Selection. Learn to use the fundamentals as your three-step approach to jazz improvisation. Over 80 images for Treble and Bass Clef. This book is perfect for beginners, struggling intermediates, and jazz instructors requiring a concise method for students. Simple enough for immediate results, this method can be applied to any style, from the easiest inside harmonies, to the most advanced outside substitutions. While other methods teach patterns and riffs, this book reveals how those patterns and riffs get created in the first place. All images in this edition are monochrome (black and white).

Thelonius Monk, Billy Taylor, and Maceo Parker--famous jazz artists who have shared the unique sounds of North Carolina with the world--are but a few of the dynamic African American artists from eastern North Carolina featured in The African American Music Trails of Eastern North Carolina. This first-of-its-kind travel guide will take you on a fascinating journey to music venues, events, and museums that illuminate the lives of the musicians and reveal the deep ties between music and community. Interviews with more than 90 artists open doors to a world of music, especially jazz, rhythm and blues, funk, gospel and church music, blues, rap, marching band music, and beach music. New and historical photographs enliven the narrative, and maps and travel information help you plan your trip. Included is a CD with 17 recordings performed by some of the region's outstanding artists.