Edition: Jazz Nonet Arrangement

Description: Swing - Medium Difficult

Publisher: Jazz Lines Publications

In Stockholm, in 1964, I played on a recording and television broadcast with the Bill Evans Trio and the fine Swedish singer, Monica Zetterlund. Monica had chosen demanding standards for some of the repertoire, but she’d also asked Bill to arrange some simple Swedish folk songs. The folk songs worked well for everyone. Monica sang them beautifully, and the trio found ways to draw personal expression from the simple forms. I remember Bartok had said something about how using familiar music as a basis for creative development could allow listeners to more easily understand a composer’s musical exploration. I later followed up on this idea, writing several piano/vocal arrangements of American folk songs. A couple of them turned out well orchestrated for a small band.

Another folk song — a Swedish one, originally called 'Ack Värmeland, du sköna,' has been played and recorded by many jazz musicians — Stan Getz and Miles Davis among them. Miles used the harmonic scheme for his remarkable improvised duet with Barney Wilen “Au Bar du Bac” for the soundtrack of the film l'Ascenseur pour l'échafaud. This arrangement uses the bass clarinet to support the bass part and the interludes — used between solos, are helpful in keeping the form varied and interesting.

-Chuck Israels

Full Score
Alto Saxophone
Tenor Saxophone
Bass Clarinet
Trumpet
Trombone
Guitar
Piano
Bass
Drums

Trumpet 1: B5