The Big Band Swing Era: The Glenn Miller Orchestra

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The Big Band Swing EraThe Glenn Miller Orchestra

• Ms. Purcells
• High School Jazz Band

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Big Band Swing

• During the late 1930s and early 1940s, Big Band
  swing was the most popular music in America.

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Big Band Swing

• The Big Bands of the 1930s and 1940s brought a
  new sound to jazz, one that was much louder,
  faster, raucous than its predecessor. Improvised
  melodies became an important element of this kind
  of music.

• The instrumentation of these ensembles included
  clarinets, saxophones, trumpets, trombones,
  piano, double bass, and drums.
• Swing music is known for its strong rhythm
  section.

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Swing Style

• Swing style is most defined by its unmistakable
  swinging rhythm.
• Eighth notes are swung. In other words, eighth
  notes in swing music are played instead as a
  dotted eighth-sixteenth rhythm.

• For example, in swing music, the rhythm
• would be played ?
• ??

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Swing Style

• Special emphasis is also placed on the and of
  the beat in swing. While the downbeat of any
  eighth note pattern is elongated, the upbeats are
  accented.

• Vibrato is also used widely in Big Band Swing
  repertoire.

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Bandleaders

• Some famous bandleaders of the Big Band Swing Era
  include
• Benny Goodman
• The Dorsey Brothers
• Count Basie
• Duke Ellington
• Woody Herman
• Cab Calloway
• Glenn Miller

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The Glenn Miller Orchestra

• During the years 1938 through 1941, The Glenn
  Miller Orchestra was the most popular band in the
  United States.

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The Glenn Miller Orchestra

• Led by bandleader Alton Glenn Miller, the band
  included many swing greats such as
• Tex Beneke
• Jimmy Henderson
• Henry Mancini

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In the Mood

• The song In the Mood, which topped the charts
  in 1940, is now one of the best-known
  arrangements of the big band era.

• The piece was first recorded by bandleader Wingy
  Manone in 1929 and 1930. Millers band, however,
  was the one that made this song so popular.

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In the Mood

• The saxophone section begins the piece with a
  soli. This part is very well-known.
• Next the trumpets and trombones are added in bar
  4.

Soloists include two tenor saxes with opposing
parts and a 16 measure trumpet solo.
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Question 1

• Name at least 3 bandleaders that were part of the
  Big Band Swing Era.

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Answer 1

• Your list could include
• Benny Goodman
• The Dorsey Brothers
• Count Basie
• Duke Ellington
• Woody Herman
• Cab Calloway
• Glenn Miller

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Question 2

• Swing music is characterized by
• A loud, fast-moving wind section
• A strong rhythm section
• swung eighth notes
• All of the above
• None of the above

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Question 3

• In swing music, how would the following rhythm be
  played? Notate the rhythm as it would sound.
  Then sing the rhythm using proper accents.

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Answer 3
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Question 4

• In swing music, what part of the beat is
  emphasized or accented?
• The downbeat
• The upbeat or the and of the beat
• All downbeats and upbeats
• Only the first downbeat of every measure

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Answer 4

• The upbeat or the and of the beat is always
  emphasized in swing music.

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Question 5

• Which of these bandleaders was famous for
  popularizing In the Mood?
• Cab Calloway
• Count Basie
• Glenn Miller
• Benny Goodman

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Answer 5

• C) Glenn Miller and the Glenn Miller Orchestra

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References

• Shenkle, Kathryn. Historical Information Glenn
  Miller. Nov. 4, 2007, from http//www.arlin
  gtoncemetery.org/text/glenn_miller_text.html..
• Swing Era Photos. Nov. 4, 2007, from
  http//www.swingmusic.net/Swing_Era_Pics.html.
  
• Wikipedia. (Nov. 4, 2007). In the Mood. Nov. 5,
  2007, from http//en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?tit
  leIn_the_Moodprintableyes.
• Wikipedia. (Oct. 31, 2007). Swing Music. Nov. 4,
  2007, from http//en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?ti
  tleSwing_musicprintableyes