Edition: Jazz Big Band Arrangement

Description: Latin/Swing - Difficult

Publisher: Jazz Lines Publications

Ad Lib on Nippon was composed by Ellington and tenor sax/clarinetist Jimmy Hamilton after the band's 1964 visit to Japan. This movement consists of four sections: Fugi, Igoo, Nagoya, and Tokyo. Fugi and Nagoya, largely piano pieces, showcase Ellington. Igoo was composed originally for an American Airlines short advertising film entitled Astrofreight. Hamilton's playing and his oral history comments on the Tokyo section strongly suggest that this was his composition. Ad Lib has a distinct Eastern feel, perhaps due to the legacy of Ellington’s many visits to Japan; his piano solo is especially moving.

For this publication the piano part is a largely a transcription of what Duke Ellington played. The Nagoya section (the middle piano interlude) is based on a copyright deposit sheet and Ellington's sketch score. This is presented as-written by Ellington; though the piano player is encouraged to interpret these sections freely.

Full Score
Alto Saxophone
Clarinet
2 Tenor Saxophones
Baritone Saxophone
4 Trumpets
3 Trombones
Piano
Bass
Drums