Case Study on individual songs

Miles Davis So What

Miles Davis' So what starts off in D dorian mode which means it uses the notes of the C major scale but starting on D. After 8 bars it switches to E dorian which has 5 flats and returns to D dorian after 4 bars, this sequence replays throughout the song. Since Miles Davis' Kind of Blue album is mainly improvised, a lot of people doing covers or trying to replicate the song will have to add their own improvisation. Below is the chord sheet of Miles Davis' So What. Many people will say that the riff in So What, is what makes the improvisation so interesting, due to how harmonic it is. I think many people think the riff plays this role so well because between the bass and the rest of the instruments, even though they're not playing at the same time, it's almost like a conversation being led by the bass. So the bass plays what is known as the antecedent phrase, this phrase is followed by the consequent phrase which is played by the rest of the instruments. This is a really interesting aspect that Miles Davis added to the majority of his songs on Kind of Blue, i wish to add this idea to my own work and maybe slightly change the mode it's played in. It was reissue produced by Michael Cuscuna and the remix engineer was Mark Wilder. It is said that So What was recorded in two days and in one take even though the band were given little instructions and we're newly formed. His band for So What consisted of Julian Adderley who played the alto saxophone, John Coltrane who played the tenor saxophone, Bill Evans who played the piano, Paul Chambers on the bass and Jimmy Cobb on drums. 

Nina Simone Feeling Good

Nina Simones feeling good doesn't change key, it plays in G minor as seen below, this pattern is the same throughout the song. I think this is done because the instrumental is fairly simple but the singing is what holds the thickness of the song. The song was written by Anthony Newley and Leslie Bricusse. It was produced by Hal Mooney. Furthermore in my piece which will be influenced by Feeling Good I plan to make sure the vocals play the key part they do in Feeling Good. I think this is important because without the vocals i don't think the song would be as powerful as it is or hold the smooth jazz feel it has. The other sheet of music below is  a look at how other people may try to play feeling good but in D minor which is quite interesting.

Herbie Hancock Cantaloupe Island
Much like Miles Davis, Herbie Hancock's style is very improvised. However whilst Miles Davis uses a modal style of Jazz, Herbie Hancock uses a range between the bebop jazz and electronic fusion. He is said to be one of the most renown artist for electronic fusion as from early in his career he used a Rhodes electronic piano and continued to increase his collection of synthesizers.