Kansas City Music History - Kansas City Jazz

Kansas City Music History - Kansas City Jazz

Kansas City jazz is a style of jazz that established in Kansas City, Missouri during the 1920s and 1930s, which marked the transition from the structured huge band style to the musical improvisation style of Bebop. The hard-swinging, bluesy transition design is bracketed by Count Basie who in 1929 signed with the Bennie Moten's Kansas City Orchestra and Kansas City native Charlie Parker who introduced the Bebop style in America. "While New Orleans was the birthplace of jazz, America's music matured in Kansas City". [1] Kansas City is understood as one of the most popular "cradles of jazz". Other cities consist of New Orleans, Chicago, St. Louis, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, and New York City. [2] Kansas City was known for the arranged artists of the Local 627 A.F.M., which managed a number of locations in the city.

 

The first band from Kansas City to get a nationwide reputation was the Coon-Sanders Original Nighthawk Orchestra, a white group which relayed nationally in the 1920s. Nevertheless, the Kansas City jazz school is related to the black bands of the 1920s and 1930s, including bands led by Bennie Moten, Andy Kirk, Harlan Leonard, George E. Lee, William "Count" Basie, and Jay McShann.

Kansas City in the 1930s was really much the crossroads of the United States resulting in a mix of cultures. Transcontinental trips at the time whether by plane or train frequently needed a stop in the city. Kansas City was a broad open town with alcohol laws and hours absolutely disregarded and was called the new Storyville.

Jay McShann informed the Associated Press in 2003:

It was Kansas City Style. They knew it up North and they knew it down South."

Claude "Fiddler" Williams explained the scene:

Due to the fact that we 'd be jamming all night, Kansas City was different from all other places. And [, if] you come up here ... playing the incorrect thing, we 'd straighten you out.
Clubs were scattered throughout city however the most fertile location was the inner city community of 18th Street and Vine.

Among the clubs were the Amos 'n' Andy, Boulevard Lounge, Cherry Blossom, Chesterfield Club, Chocolate Bar, Dante's Inferno, Elk's Rest, Hawaiian Gardens, Hell's Kitchen, the Hi Hat, the Hey Hay Club, Lone Star, Old Kentucky Bar-B-Que, Paseo Ballroom, Pla-Mor Ballroom, Reno Club, Spinning Wheel, Street's Blue Room, Subway, and Sunsetx.

Design:

Kansas City jazz is identified by the following musical aspects:

A preference for a 4 feel (walking) over the 2 beat feel found in other jazz designs of the time. As a result, Kansas city jazz had a more unwinded, fluid noise than other jazz designs.
Prolonged soloing. Sustained by the non-stop night life under political boss Tom Pendergast, Kansas City jam sessions went on well past sunrise, fostering an extremely competitive atmosphere and a special jazz culture in which the objective was to "say something" with one's instrument, instead of just show off one's method. It was not unusual for one "tune" to be carried out for a number of hours, with the best artists typically soloing for dozens of choruses at a time.

So-called "head arrangements". The KC big bands typically played by memory, composing and setting up the music collectively, rather than sight-reading as other big bands of the time did. This more contributed to the loose, spontaneous Kansas City sound.

A heavy blues affect, with KC tunes often based around a 12-bar blues structure, instead of the 32 bar AABA requirement, although Moten Swing remains in this AABA format.
One of the most recognizable attributes of Kansas City jazz is regular, sophisticated riffing by the different areas. Glenn Miller's famous swing anthem "In the Mood" closely follows the Kansas City pattern of riffing areas, and is a good example of the Kansas City design after it had been exported to the rest of the world.

Kansas City jazz is a design of jazz that developed in Kansas City, Missouri throughout the 1920s and 1930s, which marked the shift from the structured big band design to the musical improvisation design of Bebop. The hard-swinging, bluesy transition style is bracketed by Count Basie who in 1929 signed with the Bennie Moten's Kansas City Orchestra and Kansas City native Charlie Parker who ushered in the Bebop design in America. Other cities consist of New Orleans, Chicago, St. Louis, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, and New York City. Kansas City was known for the arranged artists of the Local 627 A.F.M., which controlled a number of locations in the city.

Glenn Miller's popular swing anthem "In the Mood" carefully follows the Kansas City pattern of riffing sections, and is a good example of the Kansas City design after it had been exported to the rest of the world.