Innovation through Generations of Jazz Vibraphonists: Jackson, Hutcherson, Burton and Locke's Improvisations on Bags' Groove

From its inception, jazz has always been a forward-looking and forward-thinking music. While almost all jazz musicians draw inspiration from the past, every new generation of artists revamp the genre with creative changes. This study focuses on the melodic, harmonic and rhythmic innovations of vibraphonists, including Milt Jackson (1923-1999, MI), Bobby Hutcherson (1941-2016, LA), Gary Burton (b. 1943, IN) and Joe Locke (b. 1959, CA), by analyzing transcriptions of their improvised solos on the same piece of music, Bags' Groove. Following in the footsteps of vibraphonists Lionel Hampton (1908-2002, KY) and Red Norvo (1908-1999, IL), Milt Jackson's performance of this piece is rooted in the blues and bebop. For the purpose of this study, I use Jackson's improvisation style as a foundation for the other soloists' styles. Heavily influenced by Jackson, Hutcherson merges his pentatonic scales with blues inflection and bebop style. Burton blends chromatic elements with bebop. Locke absorbs the knowledge from his predecessors and includes more reharmonization. However, this kind of change in jazz doesn't necessarily mean contemporary musicians are superior to their precursors. In a recent interview with Locke, he concedes that not only was he influenced by Jackson, Hutcherson and Burton, but that they are all great musicians in their own right.

關鍵字

Jazz vibraphone ； Bags' Groove ； Milt Jackson ； Bobby Hutcherson ； Gary Burton ； Joe Locke

並列摘要

從最初開始，爵士樂一直就是向前邁進、思維前瞻的音樂。大部分爵士樂家都會取材自過往，創新和改變在各個新世代都看得見。這份研究藉分析鐵琴家傑克森（Milt Jackson, 1923-1999）、赫卻森（Bobby Hutcherson, 1941-2016）、柏頓（Gary Burton, 1943 生）和拉克（Joe Locke, 1959生）在同一首曲子《袋之律動》（Bags' Groove）上的即興採譜，檢視他們在旋律、和聲及節奏上的革新。跟隨著鐵琴家漢頓（Lionel Hampton, 1908-2002）和挪莫（Red Norvo, 1908-1999）的腳步，傑克森此曲的演奏根植於藍調和咆勃風格。在這份研究中，我以傑克森的即興風格為基礎，來和其他音樂家的演奏做比較。深受傑克森影響的赫卻森，將五聲音階融入藍調和咆勃風格之中。柏頓將半音素材與咆勃音樂結合。拉克吸收前輩的知識並納入更多的和絃重置。然而，這些爵士樂的革新，並不代表後期的音樂家一定就超越他們的前輩。在與拉克的訪談中，他承認自己受到傑克森、赫卻森與柏頓的影響，更讚揚他們各個都是偉大的音樂家。