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Koko is a jazz song that was composed and recorded by Charlie ‘Bird’ Parker in 1945, and ‘Almost Blue’ was composed by Elvis Costello in October 1981, but was recorded by Chet Baker in 1987. Charlie Parker played a massive role in defining jazz music during the Bebop era and is seen as a highly renowned musician because of his contribution to this era. Chet Baker is also seen in high regard due to the role that he played in the development of Cool Jazz. The differences and similarities of these tasks will be analysed and explored in this task, and a further understanding of the impact that these pieces had on the genre of Jazz as a whole will be investigated. Style Koko Koko is a Bebop song, and is seen as one …show more content…
It is common knowledge that Bebop music was very technical and hard on the ears, and was made for sophisticated listeners and musicians. The bebop genre owes its development to the musicians who wanted to challenge commercial music of its time, and wanted to make music based on tunes that nobody knew in order to determine who was musically intelligent. it was music that was made for people who wanted to listen, instead of dancing. Almost Blue Almost Blue is a song that was originally written and composed by Elvis Costello in 1981 as an original pop song. This song was inspired by ‘The Thrill Is Gone’, which was originally composed by Chet Baker, and is based on reminiscence of a dying love, and is a comparison of two relationships, being a past and a present one. However, the version that will be analysed and investigated, is the one recorded and performed by Chet Baker, due to the fact that Chet Baker pioneered Cool Jazz, and the version that he performed was in a Cool Jazz genre, which is very different to Bebop, because it is easier on the ears, and is more laidback on the listener. ‘Almost Blue’ has a very slow tempo, and has a darker, heavier and sadder tone than Koko. Almost Blue is more structured and has less …show more content…
These elements have a strong role, in showing how the two pieces contrasted each other, with Koko being light and lovely, and Almost Blue being dark and heavy in comparison. Melody The melody line of Koko is very fast and detached. It moves in 16ths, and is also light. The instrumentation in both songs is also different, which ultimately determines the mood of the song. The melody of Almost Blue on the other hand is very hearty and breathy, and makes the song seem very smooth, in comparison to that of Koko’s. Almost blues melody also alternates between the voice and trumpet, while the voice still uses the articulation of the Trumpet. It also has a slow and solemn sound. The melody of Koko is inspired by ‘Cherokee.’ It is also very fast and complex, while Almost Blue’s melody is inspired by ‘The Thrill Is Gone’ Harmony In Koko, it should be noted there is dissonance between the melody and the harmony. Non chordal harmonies and chords are made, due to the complexity of the melody. The Harmony is also not as present due to the focus being solely on the soloist or melody. It could be deduced that due to the enharmonic notes of the melody, it would be very difficult to have a set harmony. On the other hand however, Almost Blue has a very stable and consonant harmony,