Jazz

Jazz

A style of music characterized by improvisation, syncopation, and usually a regular or forceful rhythm. It emerged at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States from a confluence of African and European music traditions.

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Jazz

cross-over music

Music; Jazz

Music which transcends two or more genres or styles, namely a composition written in a jazz style with the cache or flavour of a classical,symphonic style,e.g. Gershwin's Piano Concerto.

boogie-woogie

Music; Jazz

A style of piano playing very popular in the thirties. Blues, with continuous repeated eighth note patterns in the left hand and exciting but often stereotyped blues riffs and figures in the right ...

alteration

Music; Jazz

The raising or lowering of a tone by a half-step, from its diatonic value in a chord. In Jazz usage, the fifth and ninth may be raised (augmented) or lowered (diminished); the fourth (or eleventh) ...

diatonic

Music; Jazz

The contrary of 'chromatic'. Said of melody or harmony using only the unaltered major (or sometimes minor) scale.

chromatic

Music; Jazz

Pertaining to or derived from the chromatic scale, which includes all 12 tones to the octave. Chromatic harmony is a vague term referring either to the use of many altered tones in the chord, or to ...