Music Appreciation: The Charleston
[Ken Burns Jazz: The Story of America's Music, Vol. 1] James P. Johnson, "The Charleston" (James P. Johnson), New York, June 1925. James P. Johnson, piano.
Topic 1: "The Charleston" is an early example of James P. Johnson's stride piano style. Listen to the piece. The form of this piece has several sections beginning at 00:10 after a short introduction. How would you label them if you used letters to designate each section? Do any of the sections repeat? Now specifically listen to two sections: 00:30 to 00:49 and 01:10 to 01:30. Does the section at 01:10 sound like a variation of the section at 00:30? Describe. Briefly compare and contrast the overall form and sections of "The Charleston" with the form and sections of Joplin's "The Entertainer" on the Lesson 3 Supplementary Recordings. Describe the differences in their melodies.
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Music Appreciation
“The Charleston,” a jazz composition, was written to accompany the Charleston dance and was composed by James P. Johnson. If I were to label using letters to designate each section, I would label the sections as ABAC due to the repetition. The song’s key signatures are two flats, F, F#, and G. Section C comes after A has been repeated hence bringing the song to a close.
The quotient of repetition is repeated at the one-measure motifs and the recurring phrases. A telegraphic quadruple rhyme characterizes section B. “The Charleston,” section A of the song is repeated right after section B.
Listening to the two sections, 00:30 to 00:49 and 01:10 to 01:30, one can notice that there is somewhat a sound variation at 01:10 and 00:30. The rhyme in “The Charles-ton” is on the afte...
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