You Like Cool Jazz?

Going into this blog I knew that I had to write about something that had to do with jazz. Jazz music is one of those things that absolutely blows my mind and amazes me each time I listen to it, especially live. It evokes emotions that I rarely experience while listening to other genres of music and watching it is like witnessing magic in the flesh. Also, being that the title of my blog for this class is "You Like Jazz?", I thought it would be only fitting to talk about a subgenre of jazz, that subgenre being "Cool Jazz". 

What is Cool Jazz?

Cool Jazz is a style of modern jazz that started in the 1940s in the US after World War II. The style is inspired by bebop but is quite contrasting to that style. The bebop style is fast and loud with a lot of energy and a lot of focus on improvisation, but cool jazz is quite contrasting. This style of jazz got its "cool" name due to journalists reporting on the new relaxed style. Journalists described the music as "cool" since it was more low-key and mellow compared to bebop bands, hard bop, and other upbeat styles of the era that were considered "hot". Cool jazz is also referred to as "college jazz" because many who embraced the style and created the foundation of the subgenre were university-educated formal musicians. Often the musicians attached the music with classical elements and turned from the swing and blues influences that were found in higher-energy forms of jazz. The style is characterized by having lower energy and slower tempos. The aesthetic favors the lower and mid-registers and has far less vibrato than one would find in a higher-energy jazz style. Cool jazz also has smooth and melodic qualities. Compared to other genres of jazz this style feels more lyrical and cool jazz isn't afraid of silence or softness. As I mentioned earlier, this style of jazz also has more classical influences. There's less improvisation and more formal composition. One unique thing about cool jazz is that the style takes advantage of odd time signatures compared to other styles that stick with a classic 4/4 time. 

The Pioneers of Cool Jazz: 

Lester Young 

The creation of the cool jazz sound is credited to two jazz legends. The first of the cool jazz pioneers is Lester Young. Young was a tenor saxophonist and part of the Count Basie Band featured in the video below. 

 Young was a sax player that focused on smooth playing and he also had a tendency to to lag just behind the beat instead of pushing it ahead. Lester Young is also credited with connecting the association between the term "cool" and the merging relaxed feel of the style. He used "cool" to describe a calm state or reduced intensity and his perspective led others to explore that style of playing. 

                                  Miles Davis                                    

The other jazz legend that is really credited to this style is the one and only Miles Davis. Davis is one of the world's most famous trumpeters and was considered to be the founder of cool jazz. When Davis was part of the Bebop style he would often play softer and with more restraint than other Bebop artists, so it's not so surprising that he was drawn to this style. In 1948 Miles Davis formed a nonet (nine-member band) that included jazz pianist Gil Evans, saxophonist and composer Lee Konitz, and saxophonist Gerry Mulligan. The nonet that Davis created didn't last that long, but they did create an album that solidified the genre of cool jazz and it was called Birth of The Cool and was released in 1957. 

Here is a song from the album titled "Boplicity"

In addition to Davis, noteworthy instrumentalists of the cool jazz era include trumpeter Chet Baker, pianist Dave Brubeck, John Coltrane, and the jazz combo The Modern Jazz Quartet, but I'll discuss some of them later on. 

The Emphasis of Cool Jazz: 

The main emphasis of cool jazz that differentiates itself from other styles of jazz is that it is influenced by classical music. Most jazz styles that you run into like bebop for example are heavily reliant on improvisation. Cool jazz on the other hand does not. It emphasizes formal compositions and arrangements over improvisation. Solos are also not common in this style instead it favors a more orchestral-style approach to the music. 

Tonally, cool jazz is also deeper and softer. Even drums are played with a lightness that prevents them from overwhelming the listener. Cool jazz has fewer shrill or overly bright moments because the goal is to remain relaxed while listening. 

Band Sizes and Instrumentation: 

Another unique characteristic of this style of jazz is that the instrumentation used in cool jazz is somewhat different from other styles of jazz. As I've mentioned in this style many things are pulled from the classical genre and instrumentation is one of them. Instruments like flute, French horn, tuba, and vibraphone were often found in cool jazz groups.  

The size of cool jazz bands is a little different compared to other styles of jazz as well. Other styles of jazz like bebop are typically small quartets or quintets with a trumpet and/or saxophone in their rhythm sections. Cool jazz bands on the other hand don't have a standard size and range from trios to nonets. 

"Cool Jazz" Artists: 

Earlier I talked about the two jazz artists who pioneered the cool jazz style, Miles Davis and Lester Young but many artists drove the cool jazz movement. The first is Chet Baker. 

 Chet Baker was an American trumpeter and vocalist. He is known for major innovations in cool jazz that led him to be nicknamed the "Prince of Cool". He earned a lot of attention and praise through the 1950s, particularly for albums featuring his vocals. Baker was part of the well-known Gerry Mulligan quartet where he received a lot of attention. In the quartet, Baker and Mulligan complemented each other with counterpoint, which was popular in the cool jazz style. "My Funny Valentine" with a solo by Baker became a big hit and was associated with Baker for the rest of his career. 

Here is Chet Baker's rendition of "My Funny Valentine". He has a very interesting tone that I think fits the style of cool jazz really well. 

In the video above Chet Baker is playing the great jazz standard "Autumn Leaves" with famous saxophonist and composer Paul Desmond. 

Another artist who is known for being a part of the cool jazz style is vocalist Lillie Mae "Betty Carter" Jones.

Betty Carter studied piano at the Detroit Conservatory, which helped her later on in her career when she began to write original songs. Betty was nicknamed "Betty Bebop", but even though she was a part of the bebop style she also was a big participant in the cool jazz style as well. She collaborated with many cool jazz artists including Miles Davis. She eventually created her own band and her own label Bet-Car in 1971 and was one of the first jazz artists to do so. 

This song above features Ray Charles and Betty Carter singing one of my absolute fav songs "Every Time We Say Goodbye". The song itself demonstrates a lot of the characteristics of the cool jazz style. The relaxed slow tempo, soft dynamics, and smooth melodic melodies are all connected to the cool jazz style. 

The last artist I would like to shed light on for being a part of the cool jazz style is Dave Brubeck and his band the Dave Brubeck Quartet.  

Dave Brubeck 

Dave Brubeck Quartet. 

 

Established in 1951, The Dave Brubeck Quartet consisted of Brubeck on piano, Paul Desmond on alto sax, Joe Morello on drums, and Eugene Wright on Bass. The Dave Brubeck Quartet features the stylings of Dave Brubeck who was the forefront of cool jazz. One of the biggest marks on the genre was his use of odd-time signatures, which gave his music unique qualities. Their album Time Out is one of the bestselling jazz albums of all time and features many amazing tracks. The most popular is "Take Five" which is the leading example of the unique time signatures. 

Here is the quartet playing one of their biggest hits "Take Five"

This is another song from their album Time Out. "Strange Meadow Lark" is another one of my personal favorites. It's very simple, but expressive which matches a lot of the cool jazz character. It has a very wistful and dreamlike sense to it that I adore. 

 Legacy Of Cool Jazz: 

When cool jazz began it was a new style that was quite different from any other style of jazz. It included a new slower tempo that included soft dynamics, new time signatures, and a more legato and relaxed feel that a lot of people fell in love with. It is one of the biggest subgenres of jazz to date and I personally listen to the subgenre quite often. The style influenced later developments like bossa nova, modal jazz, and even free jazz. 

Cool jazz really is one of my favorite styles of jazz so to end the blog here are a few more of my favorite songs that fit into the cool jazz style: 

"Someone To Watch Over Me"- Lee Konitz

"The Girl From Ipanema"- Astrud Gilberto and Stan Getz

"Early Autumn"- Woody Herman and his orchestra

Sources:

Admin. “Cool Jazz.” New Directions in Music, www.newdirectionsinmusic.com/cool-jazz/. Accessed 22 Jan. 2024.

Maultsby, Portia  K. “History of Cool Jazz.” Timeline of African American Music, timeline.carnegiehall.org/genres/cool-jazz. Accessed 22 Jan. 2024.

Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopaedia. "cool jazz." Encyclopedia Britannica, September 16, 2020. https://www.britannica.com/art/cool-jazz.

Study.com, “Cool Jazz: History, Characteristics & Musicians,” study.com, 2020, https://study.com/academy/lesson/cool-jazz-history-characteristics-musicians.html

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