Glossary
Bebop
Glossary
Bebop (also shortened to bop, as in hard bop) refers to a style of jazz music developed in the 1940’s with smaller ensembles of virtuoso instrument players trading improvised solos (usually heavily scale-based) over the chord changes of a song, instead of relying on the pre-composed, large-ensemble approach of big band-era swing music.
Since bebop was not intended to be danced to, these musicians were free to explore faster tempos and more complicated song structures, with a more intellectual focus on the music and the musicians.
Bebop (also shortened to bop, as in hard bop) refers to a style of jazz music developed in the 1940’s with smaller ensembles of virtuoso instrument players trading improvised solos (usually heavily scale-based) over the chord changes of a song, instead of relying on the pre-composed, large-ensemble approach of big band-era swing music.
Since bebop was not intended to be danced to, these musicians were free to explore faster tempos and more complicated song structures, with a more intellectual focus on the music and the musicians.