So What?

After searching random videos on youtube, I came across one video of Miles Davis and John Coltrane that inspired me to write of one of the most important part of “jazz” as we know it. This video is of the song “So What” by Miles Davis, performed live with the great saxophonist, John Coltrane. (I would recommend speakers with a good amount of bass for the full effect of the song.)



“So What” starts out with a bass melody that, in a way, calls to the rest of the band, which then responds to the bassist with their own, two note “melody”. The entire melody sequence is known as the “head” of a song. (I’ll be referring to this word numerous times.) The head is the most recognizable and concrete part of any jazz chart. A whole song commonly consists of a head, a solo/improvisation section, followed by a repeat of the head. Many other songs choose to mix up the order and throw in a few extras, but essentially this is the skeleton of any jazz tune. It’s the solo/improvisation section that I’m mainly concerned with, as of now.

Improvisation is, hands down, the most critical element of jazz that I can think of. Improvisation is what qualifies music as jazz. Improvising is much different from playing music in any other genre. In the head, a musician plays exactly what is written on his music, but in improvisation, the musician is required to “improvise” (or invent) everything he plays, which is much more difficult than being told every note to play.

A general improvisation section would normally consist of this: the rhythm section lays down a groove to give the soloist ideas to play off of, which the soloist listens to the rhythm section and creates and composes a solo of his own, right there on the spot. The bassist will give a distinct set of notes confined to the key that the song is in. The pianist will do the same, while throwing over chords that follow the same rules. The drummer will usually keep a straight beat while adding in his own short, light bursts of improvised playing. Whichever musician is soloing must listen to each one of these and listen to the guidelines they are giving for the solo that is to be played. This is necessary because a soloist simply cannot play whatever he/she feels like playing. It must be something that fits in with the song being played in order to produce a decent song.

Improvisation is so impressive because it calls upon a musician to be able to create music while the song is in motion. There is almost zero room for error, since all of it is live and happening right in the present. The musician must have a lot of experience with improvisation, a decent sized repertory of music to pull ideas from, and a lot of creativity to be a great soloist.

I posted the “So What” video because it perfectly demonstrates improvisation and how it interacts with the band and the song structure itself. The song opens with the “head”, placing a melody in the minds of the listeners, and the soloists who will call upon it later for their improvisations. Almost immediately, Miles Davis enters with his solo. He listens to the rhythm section, pulls ideas out of thin air, and produces a beautiful sound. John Coltrane follows later on with the same thing. After they are finished, the bassist sets up the head, which repeats the melody and closes the song. This is the basis of almost every jazz song you will hear.