Big bands came into existence around the late 1920’s until the early 1940’s. They are made up of four sections, which consist of the rhythm section, the woodwind section, the trombone section, and lastly the trumpet section. The trumpet and trombone section together combine to form a larger section known as the brass section. Some musicians associated with big bands are Louis Armstrong, Paul Whiteman, and Count Basie. While music by these bands was unique, they did have some similarities to those that had already existed in the past such as creole music and cries. Similarities can be seen between big bands and creole music because of their beats. In 4/4 jazz, the beat is emphasized on two and four, as is done through the use of the high hat on the drum set. The same emphasis on the second and fourth beat can also be seen with creole music where the musicians stomp their feet on those beats while singing. Such can be seen in the demonstration of the song “The Jurer, Rock-a-way” by Clinvin Jones and friends. This same feel on the second and fourth beat can also be felt in more instrumental creole music, as can be seen in Zydeco, where there almost seems to be an accent on the second and fourth beat. There is also a connection between big bands and cries. The plain, florid, and coloratura cries (the three different types of cries), can bear a resemblance to the style of music that can often be heard within jazz solos due to some of the repetition and dips that occur throughout the phrase. While in cries, this admittedly occurs at a much slower tempo, once sped up can almost feel like a jazz solo. Many one or two bar phrases are often repeated while switching between registers with the occasional holding out of a note for the length of a half or whole note, as is also done within a jazz solo occasionally.
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