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The Stylistic Integration of Classical Music andJazz in Dave Brubeck’s Two-Piano Suite Points onJazz (1961): A Performance Guide for ClassicalPianistsZhang, Yudihttps://scholarship.miami.edu/discovery/delivery/01UOML_INST:ResearchRepository/12402857430002976?l#13402857420002976

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UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI

THE STYLISTIC INTEGRATION OF CLASSICAL MUSIC AND JAZZ IN DAVE BRUBECK’S TWO-PIANO BALLET SUITE POINTS ON JAZZ (1961): A

PERFORMANCE GUIDE FOR CLASSICAL PIANISTS

By

Yudi Zhang

A DOCTORAL ESSAY

Submitted to the Faculty of the University of Miami

in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Musical Arts

Coral Gables, Florida

May 2022

UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI

A doctoral essay submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of

Doctor of Musical Arts

THE STYLISTIC INTEGRATION OF CLASSICAL MUSIC AND JAZZ IN DAVE BRUBECK’S TWO-PIANO BALLET SUITE POINTS ON JAZZ (1961): A

PERFORMANCE GUIDE FOR CLASSICAL PIANISTS

Yudi Zhang

Approved: ________________ ________________ Tian Ying, M.M. Santiago Rodriguez, M.M. Associate Professor of Keyboard Performance Professor and Chair of Keyboard

Performance ________________ _________________ Kevin Kenner M.M. Guillermo Prado, Ph.D. Associate Professor of Keyboard Performance Dean of the Graduate School Performance ________________ Matteo Magarotto, Ph.D. Lecturer in Musicology

ZHANG, YUDI (D.M.A., Keyboard Performance)

(May 2022)

The Stylistic Integration of Classical Music and Jazz in Dave Brubeck’s Two-Piano Suite Points on Jazz (1961): A Performance Guide for Classical Pianists

Abstract of a doctoral essay at the University of Miami. Doctoral essay supervised by Professor Tian Ying. No. of pages in text. (120)

The worlds of classical music and jazz often remain separate. However, classical

pianists can expand their repertoire and develop musically and technically by learning

works in the jazz tradition. This D.M.A. dissertation examines stylistic parallels between

classical and jazz piano music through the lens of Dave Brubeck’s two-piano suite Points

on Jazz (1961). Classical pianists are familiar with stylistic and generic differences

because they study and play music from several periods of mostly Western music history,

spanning from Baroque to Contemporary. However, this Western focus excludes

traditions such as jazz, which deserves detailed exploration. Dave Brubeck’s Points on

Jazz offers an especially suitable bridge between the two worlds. While the American

jazz pianist and composer Dave Brubeck (1920–2012) is highly acclaimed for his Dave

Brubeck Quartet, his composition for piano is less well-known. These works often exhibit

similarities with classical music instructure, style, and compositional approach. The two-

piano work Points on Jazz in particular shows the influence of styles from the Baroque

period, Romantic period, and twentieth century, including references to Johann Sebastian

Bach, Frédéric Chopin, Béla Bartók, and others. This study explores these similarities

and parallels, offering a guide to performance of Points on Jazz for classical pianists who

are interested in jazz music. I discuss the specific difficulties of the piece, with the goal of

preparing performers and expanding their aesthetic range. This dissertation also aims to

provide an accessible introduction to help classical pianists better understand the

interaction of classical and jazz styles while appreciating the possibility of their

confluence.

iii

Acknowledgements

First, I would like to express my special thanks to the faculty of the University of

Miami Frost School of Music, who guided me in doing this project. The essay would not

have been possible without the help and support of my committee members: Dr. Matteo

Magarotto, Professor Santiago Rodriguez, Professor Kevin Kenner, and my committee

chair and advisor Professor Tian Ying.

Second, I would like to thank my friends who have been extremely supportive

through this undertaking: the wonderful jazz composer Gary Kaiji Wang, who helped me

analyze this project; and the amazing pianist Wenzhe Li, who enthusiastically rehearsed

and performed this music with me. I learned so many new things from each of them

during the time we worked together.

Third, I would like to thank my dearest mother Changmei Wang who has always

been there in my life despite the great distance that separates us. Your unconditional love

and support to me make me a better woman, I am deeply grateful.

iv

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

List of Music Examples ............................................................................................... v

CHAPTERS

1 INTRODUCTION .......................................................................................... 1

Dave Brubeck: Biographical Skecth ......................................................... 1

Points on Jazz: Overview ........................................................................... 3

Points on Jazz: The ballet version ............................................................ 5

Literature review ........................................................................................ 7

2 ANALYSIS OF POINTS ON JAZZ WITH A GUIDE TO PERFORMANCE 14

General compositional background of Points on Jazz ............................... 14

Movement I: Prelude .................................................................................. 16

Movement II: Scherzo ................................................................................ 29

Movement III: Blues .................................................................................. 34

Movement IV: Fugue ................................................................................. 51

Movement V: Rag ...................................................................................... 67

Movement VI: Chorale .............................................................................. 79

Movement VII: Waltz ................................................................................ 84

Movement VIII: A La Turk ....................................................................... 94

3 CONCLUSIONS ............................................................................................. 115

BIBLIOGRAPHY ........................................................................................................ 118

v

List of Music Examples

Example 1. Dave Brubeck, “Prelude,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 1-4 .................... 17

Example 2. Frédéric Chopin, Mazurka Op.24 No.4 (1834-1835), mm. 1-4 ............... 18



Example 5. Eighth notes and Swing eighth notes ....................................................... 21

Example 6. Dave Brubeck, “Prelude,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 11-16 ................ 22




Example 10. Dave Brubeck, “Prelude,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 62-66 .............. 26

Example 11. Dave Brubeck, “Prelude,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 81-82 .............. 28

Example 12. Dave Brubeck, “Scherzo,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 1-2 .................. 30


Example 14. Dave Brubeck, “Scherzo,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 21-23 .............. 31

Example 15. Dave Brubeck, “Scherzo,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 41-45 .............. 33

Example 16. Dave Brubeck, “Blues,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 1-6 ..................... 36

Example 17. Dave Brubeck, “Blues,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 7-8 ..................... 37

Example 18. Dave Brubeck, “Blues,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 17-21 ................. 39


Example 20. Béla Bartók, Movement VI, No. 153 “6 Dances in Bulgarian Rhythm”

from Mikrokosmos Sz. 107 (1940), mm. 1-44 ............................................................. 41

vi


Example 22. Henry Purcell, “Dido's Lament”, Dido and Aeneas (1689), mm. 14-19 43





Example 27. Bill Evans, Transcription of On Green Dolphin Street (1977), mm. 1-6 48

Example 28. Maurice Ravel, La Valse (1919-20), mm. 105-110 ............................... 48

Example 29. Dave Brubeck, “Blues,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 109-111 ............. 49

Example 30. Dave Brubeck, “Fugue,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 1-12 .................. 53

Example 31. J. S. Bach, “Contrapunctus XII: Forma inversa and Forma recta” in

Bach’s In the Art of the Fugue, BWV 1080/12,1, mm. 1-7 ......................................... 54

Example 32. Dave Brubeck, “Fugue,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 17-20 ................. 56




Example 36. Dave Brubeck, “Fugue,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 1-4 ..................... 61




Example 40. Dave Brubeck, “Fugue,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 101-108 ............. 66

Example 41. Dave Brubeck, “Fugue,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 116-119 ............. 67

Example 42. Dave Brubeck, “Rag,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 1-4 ........................ 69

vii

Example 43. Dave Brubeck, “Fugue,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 5-12 ................... 70

Example 44. Ludwig van Beethoven, Symphony No. 5 (1807-08), mm. 14-26 ........ 71

Example 45. Dave Brubeck, “Rag,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 13-16 .................... 72



Example 48. Wolfgang Mozart, Fantaisie, No. 1, K385 (1961), mm. 89-109 ........... 76

Example 49. Frédéric Chopin, Mazurka in F-sharp minor, Op 6, no. 1(1830), mm. 5-8 77


Example 51. Dave Brubeck, “Chorale,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 1-7 .................. 80

Example 52. Dave Brubeck, “Chorale,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 1-7 .................. 80

Example 53. Dave Brubeck, “Chorale,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 8-25 ................ 83

Example 54. Darius Milhaud “iv. Copacabana”, Saudades do Brasil (1920), mm. 1-6 84

Example 55. Frédéric Chopin, Waltz, Op. 64, No. 2 (1846-47), mm. 1-11 ............... 85

Example 56. Richard Rodgers, Piano arr. Joy Ondra Hirokawa,

“My Favorite Things”, The Sound of Music (1956), mm. 1-4 ..................................... 85


Example 58. Dave Brubeck, “Waltz,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 1-10 ................... 87

Example 59. Dave Brubeck, “Waltz,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 41-45 ................. 88






viii

Example 65. Dave Brubeck, “A La Turk,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 1-6 .............. 97

Example 66. Movement V, no. 152 6 Dances in Bulgarian Rhythm

from Mikrokosmos Sz. 107 (1940), mm. 1-7 ............................................................... 98

Example 67. Dave Brubeck, “A La Turk,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 19-21 .......... 99



Example 70. Dave Brubeck, “A La Turk,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 46-48. ......... 102

Example 71. Swing eighth note rhythm ...................................................................... 102



Example 74. Dave Brubeck, “A La Turk,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 97-102 ........ 106

Example 75. Comparison of the theme in movement III Blues, mm. 1-2

And the third variation on the theme in movement VIII A La Turk, mm. 106-108 .... 107

Example 76. Comparison of the theme in movement I Prelude, mm. 1-5

And the first variation on the theme in movement VIII A La Turk, mm. 43-45 ......... 108

Example 77. Comparison of the theme in movement II Scherzo, mm. 1-2

And the second variation on the theme in movement VIII A La Turk, mm. 73-75 .... 109

Example 78. Dave Brubeck, “A La Turk,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 172-173 ...... 111




1

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

Dave Brubeck: Biographical Sketch

The American jazz pianist and composer Dave Brubeck (1920–2012) was one of

the most active and popular musicians exploring the intersection of classical music and

jazz. Born in Concord, California on Decenmber 6, Brubeck was raised in a family with a

deep reverence for classical music. Brubeck’s mother Elizabeth Ivey Brubeck was a

classical-oriented pianist and the most significant and influential figure in Brubeck’s

early chilhood; she was also the teacher for her two other older brothers Henry and

Howard.1 Brubeck started piano lessons with his mother at age of 4 while she held a

position as a member of the choir in the church; and would bring the young Dave with

her to listen to Baroque music.2 By being exposed to this environment, Brubeck was

influenced by the classical tradition and developed his musicality. As his mother stated,

Brubeck’s talents can be seen from his ability to play the music he heard by heart on the

piano; he alo enjoyed improvising on it.3

Brubeck’s early career path was in limbo because his father wanted him to

become a cowboy after the family had moved to the Sierras, California in 1934. Two

years later, Brubeck enrolled at the College of the Pacific with the major in veterinary

medicine.4 However, Brubeck’s real interest was music. In his own words, “I think my

mind was always on music, whether I was riding a horse, or what.”5 While he studied at

1 Ilse Storb and Klaus-Gotthard Fischer, Dave Brubeck, Improvisations and Compositions: The Idea of Cultural Exchange, trans. Bert Thompson (New York: Peter Lang, 1994), 1–2. 2 Ibid., 3. 3 Ibid. 4 Ibid. 5 Fred Hall, It's About Time: The Dave Brubeck Story (Fayetteville: University of Arkansas Press, 1996), 9.

2

the College of the Pacific, he also worked as a pianist in local clubs. Once his college

teacher realized that he was more passionate about music instead of studying vererinary,

he convinced Brubeck to change his major to music and encouranged him to become a

music student.6

After graduation, in 1942 Brubeck joined the Army. He led a racially integrated

band during military service in Europe. In the Army he met his wife, also the strongest

inspiration and surpport of life: Iola Whitlock, a fellow student from the College of the

Pacific; Iola devoted the major of her time to raising the family and facilitating Brubeck

in his career. After Brubeck served four years in the Army, Iola and he enrolled at Mill

College: Brubeck was majoring in composition with the French composer Darius

Milhaud, and Iola studied philosophy and creative writing.7 Milhaud was likely the most

protective and supportive teacher who encouraged Brubeck to infuse his jazz talents into

his classical playing. The music of Milhaud was influenced largely by jazz and Brazilian

music, his love to of jazz can be heard in many of his compositions. When Brubeck came

to Milhaud, with the goal of becoming a classical composer, Milhaud encouraged him to

not give up on jazz that something Brubeck was really good at and become a jazz

musician who incorparated the classical approach. Milhaud whispered, “you know, you're

free. You can go any place in the world, and if there's a piano, you can make a living,

whereas someone like me, I have to teach, and go to these stupid faculty meetings that

drive me crazy. You'll never have to do that. Don't give up what you've got.”8 Although

6 Ibid. 7 Ibid., 4-5. 8 Shan Sutton, “Dave Brubueck on his musical development at Mills College under Darius Milhaud,” interviewed by Shan Sutton, Holt-Atherton Special Collections, University of the Pacific Library in conjunction with the Experience Music Project, 2007, music video, https://scholarlycommons.pacific.edu/bohp/5/.

3

Brubeck had dyslexia which caused difficulties for him to read music and play the piano,

his gifted ears and musical capability were too outstanding to go unnoticed.9

With the help from Milhaud, Brubeck was able to form a octet in the class with

students who also had the same interests in the corporation of classical music and jazz,

which allowed him to gain experiences in performing as a jazz pianist. Later, in 1951 the

musician formed the Dave Brubeck Quartet with his best friend, co-worker, and famous

alto saxophonist Paul Desmond (1924–1977), and the Quartet was extremely popular

during the ‘50s and early ‘60s. The collaboration of Brubeck and Desmond lasted more

than seventeen years; their most famous piece, Take Five (1959), was born during that

cooperation. The other famous piece Blue Rondo à la Turk (1959) and Take Five both

compositions applied a polyrhythmic technique, one of the distinctive features of

Brubeck’s musical style. During Brubeck’s career of performing all over the world, he

developed a series of stylistic compositional techniques such as the use of the odd time

signatures, counterpoint with improvisational elaborations, polyrhythm, polymodality

within classical forms.

Points on Jazz: Overview

Brubeck wrote Points on Jazz in 1961 originally for two pianos as a set of

rhythmic variations on a theme based upon his own Dziekuje composed in 1958, a tribute

to Chopin and the Polish people.10 The piece is part of the collection in the album Jazz

Impressions of Eurasia (1958), and the title “Dziekuje” is the Polish word for “thank

you.” Brubeck drafted the work in March of 1958 after an inspirational trip to Poland

9 Ibid., 8. 10 Storb and Fischer, Dave Brubeck, Improvisations and Compositions, 84.

4

when he visited the Chopin Museum. After his first performance to the Polish people, he

recalled, “I thought I had insulted the audience by linking the memory of Chopin to jazz.

Then came the applause and I realized with relief that the Polish audience had understood

that this was meant as a tribute to their great musical tradition and as an expression of

gratitude.”11 The love Brubeck had to the Polish people and Chopin is touching, this

tribute reveals that the two musical worlds are interwined and influencial to each other,

although it contains such a jazzy approach, but the touch from Chopin can still be heard

and experienced by audiences. Points on Jazz is the title of the two-piano version, the

word “points” can be considered as the touches of applying jazz style into the classical

approach, which imples perfectly that the suite itself is not a complete jazz composition,

it has the jazz elements seasoned into each movement, just like how the original music

Dziekuje is.

The transcription of the two-piano version is notated accurately following the

traditional system of notation by Brubeck’s brother Howard, who also included

Brubeck’s notes on performance in the music score. The piece was not only composed

for jazz-oriented musicians, but also for the benefit of classically trained musicians.12 As

a classical pianist and composer, Howard knew the suitable notation for classical

musicians to read and play, which provides the convenience for those who are not

familiar with jazz notation. The composition consists of eight movements written in

different types of musical forms, but all of them are based on the same theme. The

movements are Prelude, Scherzo, Blues, Fugue, Rag, Chorale, Waltz, and A la Turk.

11 Ibid; Dave Brubeck, “Thank You,” produced by the Smithsonian Institution and Maryland Public TV, “People and Pianos: 300 Years”, December, 2001, music video, https://youtu.be/_Vi7eMdeatw. 12 Dave Brubeck, Points on Jazz: Jazz Ballet for Two Pianos/Four Hands (Van Nuys: Alfred Music, 1993), 3.

5

Parts of these movements are generated with hints of jazz styles and the others are

derived from the typical forms of the Western Classical tradition. Classical musicians

need to determine how the composition is structured first, after which they will be able to

perform each of the movements with the articulations of the related style.

Points on Jazz: The ballet version

The version as a two-piano suite for the ballet was undertaken after the

choreographer Dania Krupska (1921–2011) listened enthusiastically to the original music

Dziekuje for the first time. She asked Brubeck if he would like to develop the music

based on the original theme for the dance movements she was preparing.13 As Brubeck

mentioned in the notes on the music of Points on Jazz, each movement is composed of

one scenario that is given by Krupska.

The first movement is a Prelude, for matching the scenario for the beginning, the

scenario is described as, “The boy is the Theme. He is all alone on the stage — detached.

Gradually movement begins. The girls make their entrances. He tries to reach out and

make contact with them but cannot.” 14 Then, the mood changes to a brighter second

movement, Scherzo. It becomes brighter with fast sixteenth arpeggios in Piano I and the

active rhythmic pulse in Piano II. Brubeck writes the scene down, “Now the girl enters.

She is fresh, gay, bubbling with life.”15 The story of the third movement starts less

intense, it is a slow Blues. Brubeck indicates, “Here comes The Temptress. She entices

the boy, then leaves him to summon other men to gather around her. They fight for her in

13 Ibid. 14 Ibid. 15 Ibid.

6

a primitive dance, and she is tossed wildly from one man to another.”16 When the Blues

speeds up slightly, “Then the Temptress snaps her fingers and walks out on the men.”17

In the fourth movement Fugue, the complex texture of the fugal characters creates a

chasing feeling while the dancers enter with simultaneous musical entrances. Brubeck

demonstrates the story of the fifth movement Rag, “Now the girls and the boys are

happily together again. They are wacky, happy couples.”18 The sixth movement is a calm

Chorale variation with a distant and misty sound which introduces the theme of the boy.

Brubeck interprets, “Their happiness makes the boy feel even more alone.”19 The soft

Chorale is followed by an energetic Waltz; this movement shares the same theme as the

second movement, Scherzo. Brubeck indicates, “The girl reaches out for the boy. She

wants to comfort him. He recognized her as the girl of the Scherzo. They dance a

romantic pas de deux.”20 The last movement borrowed the Turkish aksak time signature

from the famous work Blue Rondo à la Turk, a jazz standard composition by Brubeck. In

the last scene of the dance, Brubeck introduces, “The girl is overjoyed. She must call

everyone to share in her happiness. In the confusion of their celebration, the boy and the

girl are separated. After a climactic search, they find each other, embrace, and walk away

arm in arm.”21

I believe that being aware of the scenarios of the dance behind each movement is

undoubtedly important for obtaining the feel of the ballet story. By disclosing the stories,

16 Ibid. 17 Ibid. 18 Ibid. 19 Ibid. 20 Ibid. 21 Ibid.

7

performers will be able to immerse and engage themselves in the stories and gain a better

understanding of the music to better express the work in a narrative way.

Literature Review

Of all Brubeck's compositions, those influenced by classical music are less well-

known than his straight jazz works. But the significance of this fusion between genres is

the important leading force boosting his music toward greater diversification. The official

Dave Brubeck website provides essential biographical information on the artist, as well

as the history of the origin of his musical works and valuable personal interviews with his

friends and colleagues. I will elaborate on the three books I found useful as principal

resources and other additional articles, dissertations, websites, and authoritative

recordings for this paper.

The biography Dave Brubeck: A Life in Time by the music journalist Philip Clark

relies on interviews with the composer. The biographer gratefully had an opportunity to

shadow the Dave Brubeck Quartet in England for a performing tour over ten days in

2003, which gave him the chance to communicate with Brubeck closely.22 Brubeck

shared his compositional thoughts and the story behind the Dave Brubeck Quartet with

Clark. In this book, Clark demonstrates the reasons that helped Brubeck achieve his goal

as a musician. He also gives examples of the musically infused “coincidences” that

existed in Brubeck and other classical composers’ works, for example, those of twentieth

century. The author mentions Brubeck’s popular work Blue Rondo à la Turk (1959),

which is usually a fresh start to catch classical pianists’ eyes to explore jazz music.23

22 Philip Clark, Dave Brubeck: A Life in Time (New York: Da Capo Press, 2020), ix. 23 Ibid., xiv.

8

Clark also brings up the story from his life as a musician. He was obsessed with Blue

Rondo à la Turk from his early age because his father used to listen to Brubeck’s album

Time Out frequently while working. Once his music teacher John Hastie suggested him to

listen to Béla Bartók’s Sonata for Two Pianos and Percussion Sz. 110, BB 115 (1937),

Clarke was shocked because of the similarity between these pieces.24 As mentioned,

Brubeck loved to infuse different musical styles into one and make improvisations based

on what he heard from reality, for example, the Turkish elements.25 As well as I tried to

relate these two musical examples given by Clark to Points on Jazz, and it provides

evidence of the diversification in Brubeck’s music.

The eighth movement of Points on Jazz shares the same title à la Turk with

Brubeck’s Blue Rondo à la Turk. The latter is the original music collected in the album

Time Out (1959). It is composed in 9/8 meter strictly following the compound meter (2 +

2 + 2 + 3), which is the feature of the classic Turkish aksak rhythmic technique he

observed during a trip to Turkey.26 The same application of this Turkish traditional meter

was also captured in Bartók’s Sonata for Two Pianos and Percussion and 6 Dances in

Bulgarian Rhythm from Mikrokosmos Sz. 107, BB 105 (1926–1939). From this similarity,

it can be convincing that Brubeck was likely influenced by Bartók’s music, and the

different cultural impressions he gained during his performance tour in Turkey.

Additionally, the idea of cultural exchange and the fusion of other musical elements from

24 Ibid. 25 Ibid., 16, 29; Storb, Fischer, Dave Brubeck, Improvisations and Compositions: The Idea of Cultural Exchange: With Discography, 3. 26 Ibid., 58, 96; Clark, Dave Brubeck: A Life in Time, 49; John Salmon, “The Classical Side of Dave Brubeck,” Music Teachers National Association, February/March 2001, https://www.johnsalmon.com/ewExternalFiles/12-classical-side.pdf.

9

a foreign country are the multifarious features of the composer’s music.27 His openness to

different musical languages is worth exploration. In the book Dave Brubeck: A Life in

Time, Clark vividly presents the life experiences and career developments of Brubeck in

each section. By knowing the interviews and journals recorded in the book, modern

scholars will be able to see the untold stories behind the composer and his classically

flavored compositions, and classical pianists can gain a better understanding to appreciate

and present his music properly.

Another valuable biography is It’s about Time: The Dave Brubeck Story by Fred

M. Hall, with a Foreword by Gene Lees. This book contains several interviews with

Brubeck as in the previously mentioned book. Attention should be paid to the important

and well-organized twelve time periods of the composer. The book enables us to look

more deeply into Brubeck’s life deeply on the developments of how he became a

composer and pianist. The author illustrates Brubeck’s childhood experiences, almost

becoming a cowboy at the cattle ranch and the time that he studied composition early on

with the French classical pianist and composer Darius Milhaud at Mills College after

World War II.28 Brubeck was encouraged deeply by his high school mentor Milhaud,

although he once had difficulties reading and writing music notation. Basically, he was

trained in a period that was full of classical European music.29 His composition teacher

27 Storb, Fischer, Dave Brubeck, Improvisations and Compositions: The Idea of Cultural Exchange: With Discography, 101. 28 Salmon, “The Classical Side.”; Storb, Fischer, Dave Brubeck, Improvisations and Compositions: The Idea of Cultural Exchange: With Discography, 5; Liesa Karen Norman, “The Respective Influence of Jazz and Classical Music on Each Other, The Evolution of Third Stream and Fusion and the Effects Thereof into the 21st Century” (DMA diss., University of British Columbia, Vancouver 2002), 42, Retrospective Theses and Dissertations. 29 Salmon, “The Classical Side.” Storb, Fischer, Dave Brubeck, Improvisations and Compositions: The Idea of Cultural Exchange: With Discography, 3–5; Ethan Loyd Rogers, "Convergent Styles: A Study of Dave Brubeck's Points on Jazz" (DMA diss., Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, 2017). LSU Doctoral

10

Milhaud gave Brubeck lots of support for his piano playing and jazz composing skills.30

Brubeck once said, “I had one or two teachers at the College of the Pacific who were very

encouraging, but Milhaud was by far the most encouraging. Most other teachers were not

interested in jazz, as I was. I was also interested in composition and counterpoint. I never

played classical piano. Almost everything I learned was through osmosis – whether it was

through Milhaud or my mother.”31 Additionally, the book also introduces the musical

relationships between Brubeck and his influential friends from the Quartet and touring

life, such as the famous saxophone player Paul Desmond, bassist Eugene Wright,

drummer Joe Morello, and many more jazz masters.

The third book I found very useful was Improvisation and Compositions: The

Idea of Cultural Exchange by Ilse Storb and Klaus-Gotthard Fischer, translated by Bert

Thompson. This is not only simply a biography of the composer but also a detailed

musical analysis of the wide range of Brubeck’s classical compositions. Storb and

Fischer also mentioned what Clark stated in the first book that Brubeck was influenced

largely by twentieth century harmonies and the rhythmic complexities derived from other

continents in the world, such as Europe, Africa, and Asia.32 Brubeck’s combined use of

polytonality, counterpoint, and polyrhythms with jazz is shown in lots of his classical

compositions, undoubtedly in the work discussed here, Points on Jazz. As indicated in

Clark’s book, Brubeck once remarked: “I was in a period when I was trying not to listen

to much jazz. I was trying to develop an individual style.”33 The book Improvisation, and

Dissertations. 7; John Salmon, “What Brubeck Got from Milhaud,” Music Teachers National Association, February/March 2001, https://libres.uncg.edu/ir/uncg/f/J_Salmon_What_1992.pdf 30 Storb, Fischer, Dave Brubeck, Improvisations and Compositions: The Idea of Cultural Exchange: With Discography, 6. 31 Fred Hall, It's About Time: The Dave Brubeck Story, 33. 32 Ibid., 34. 33 Ibid., 35.

11

Compositions: The Idea of Cultural Exchange delivers the same idea as Clark’s:

“Diversity is the special quality of Brubeck’s playing. Brubeck is a collagist,

impressionist, exoticist, and both classical and jazz musician along with being a

composer and improviser.”34 Storb and Fischer point out that classical influences are

audible and distinct in Brubeck’s music: first, the titles such as Fugue, Prelude, Scherzo,

and Waltz which he used in some works are very European.35 This feature is

convincingly proved in Points on Jazz as well as the titles. Second, the authors organize

the classical approaches in Brubeck’s music into three main categories. The three primary

inspired sources are from the Baroque period and Bach, the Romantic period and Chopin,

and the twentieth century music and its active composers.36 Most importantly, the authors

offer a systematic analysis of the compositional techniques Brubeck preferred, which are

also reflected in Points on Jazz. Sonic and formal structures, block chords, polytonality,

ostinato, parallel harmonies, and metric-rhythmic structures are the preferred

compositional techniques applied in Brubeck’s compositions.37 By exploring this book,

modern scholars can get a systematic sense of the musical styles in Brubeck's music,

especially the ones named classical works. I believe those three biographies will be able

to assist me to flashback to the composer's lifetime from early to late and enable classical

pianists who are interested in jazz music to read his music with proper preparations to

play it in good taste.

34 Rogers, "Convergent Styles,” v. 35 Storb, Fischer, Dave Brubeck, Improvisations and Compositions: The Idea of Cultural Exchange: With Discography, 79. 36 Ibid. 37 Ibid., 39, 45–46, 55.

12

There are also two helpful dissertations on the subject. One is Convergent Styles:

A Study of Dave Brubeck's Points on Jazz by Ethan Loyd Rogers. The other is The

Respective Influence of Jazz and Classical Music on Each Other, the Evolution of Third

Stream and Fusion and the Effects Thereof into the 21st Century by Liesa Karen Norman.

Both authors bring out examples from the repertoire of the classical and jazz fields and

make comparisons on the musical styles, inspirations, and compositional skills among not

only Brubeck’s music, but also other pioneers such as Brubeck’s teacher Milhaud, Miles

Davis, Bill Evans, and others.

For the authoritative recording and informative articles, John Salmon’s efforts on

Brubeck cannot be overlooked. He has published multiple albums of Brubeck’s piano

solo compositions, and the two-piano suite Points on Jazz is also included. Salmon was a

huge support to Brubeck, they worked together and collaborated on recordings.38 I

believe Salmon’s recording will benefit classical pianists significantly to get the sense of

the articulations of “swinging” jazz music. Additionally, articles wrote by Salmon that

record the memories of Salmon and Brubeck are also helpful, they are “What Brubeck

Got From Milhaud” and “The Classical Side of Dave Brubeck”. These writings provide a

personal view of Salmon to introduce Brubeck as a “classical” musician, a life-long

friend, and a music lover.

The significance of this study cannot be overlooked because this paper also aims

to be an accessible introduction to discovering how this piece utilizes classical and jazz

approaches and is therefore intended for pianists of all backgrounds. It does not mean that

classical pianists are likely to perform it as well as jazz pianists would, in terms of

38 Rogers, "Convergent Styles,” 4.

13

playing the music naturally. Additionally, with the support and help from musicians who

are majoring in jazz performance and instruction from jazz pianist Shelton Berg, Dean of

Frost School of Music, I was able to obtain a better understanding in playing this work.

The difficulties encountered by classically trained pianists and attempts for a better

understanding during my own rehearsals will be stated as well.

14

CHAPTER 2: ANALYSIS OF POINTS ON JAZZ WITH A GUIDE TO

PERFORMANCE

General compositional background of Points on Jazz

Points on Jazz has eight movements, variations Brubeck improvised based on the

original theme of Dziekuje. As a work written for pianists of both classical and jazz

training, the movements in Points on Jazz include and mix different but typical styles of

these two genres. As indicated in the notes on the music of Points on Jazz, Brubeck’s

brother Howard wrote that some of the movements are composed in the style of the

classical era, such as Prelude, Scherzo, Fugue, Chorale, Waltz. On the other hand, the rest

of the movements, such as Blues, Rag, A La Turk, are infused with elements from the

jazz standards. However, the boundaries dividing those movements into jazz or classical

style are not strictly clear in the entire suite since there is plenty of interplay between

classical and jazz styles alternating in Piano I and Piano II. The whole suite is suffused

with a jazzy acoustic sound, but the underlying parallels with classical music and the

communication of classical and jazz languages in two pianos are worthy of our

exploration.

Points on Jazz is a series of improvised variations based on the original theme.

Variation is one of the most common compositional techniques, especially in classical

music. A musical idea is stated at the very beginning of a work, after which the idea

becomes varied in multiple configurations, such as changes to the melody, rhythm,

harmony, tonality, counterpoint, time signature, or any other possible improvised

15

combinations.39 Composers used this technique across the periods from Baroque,

Classical, Romantic, 20th century and Contemporary. In the Baroque period, J. S. Bach’s

Goldberg Variations BWV 988 (1741) and George Frederic Handel’s The Harmonious

Blacksmith HWV 430 (1720) are typical and convincing examples of this compositional

technique. In the Classical era, the well-known Twelve Variations on “Ah vous dirai-je,

Maman” (1785) by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart stands as a model of the common

variation techniques. As in the Romantic era, composer Johannes Brahms composed

several variations such as the Variations and Fugue on a Theme by Handel (1861) and

the Variations on a Theme by Haydn (1873); the Russian composer Sergei Rachmaninoff

wrote the Variations on a Theme of Corelli (1931). Composers in the 20th century

include George Gershwin who wrote his variations on “I Got Rhythm” for piano and

orchestra (1934). All the above are paramount examples using variation form. The use of

the variation technique in classical music is important, but it is also noteworthy in jazz

music. Variations often appear as improvisations with ornaments in the melody, melodic

and the rhythmic embellishments, or harmonic changes by jazz musicians which is

similar to the way classical composers vary an original theme. In the following

paragraphs, I conduct an analysis of each movement to demonstrate the structural forms,

parallels to classical and jazz music, as well as how Brubeck infused the different styles

into Points on Jazz to create one harmonious whole.

39 Yasser, Joseph. “The Variation Form and Synthesis of Arts.” The Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism 14, no. 3 (1956): 318–23; Miguel Roig-Francolí, Harmony in Context (New York: McGraw-Hill, 2011), 511.

16

Movement I: Prelude

The first movement of the suite starts with a Prelude introducing the main theme

of “Dziekuje”, then proceeds with varied and improvisational restatements of the theme.

According to the standards of classical music, a prelude frequently comprises the first

movement of a series, and functions as a brief introduction to larger movements or a

piece that follows.40 The fundamental musical idea usually is in the length of at least

eight bars or at the most thirty bars and usually appears in different forms with

elaborations.41 In this movement, Brubeck uses dynamic marks to efficiently divide the

music into 5 parts. They are “Quiet, Calm; Slightly faster; Bright; Brighter; Tempo

Primo.”

The music starts with the dynamic mark “Quiet, Calm”.The 16-bar melody with a

pickup enters distantly and slowly in the part of Piano I. Meanwhile, Piano II introduces a

stable, single melody simultaneously with Piano I to give the melody harmonic support

and richer sound. Even though those notes are located in the same registers on both

pianos, they still provide an echo-like effect to enrich the sound. Surprisingly, I

discovered a way to make the beginning of the movement sound more special by slightly

off settling the entrance of each; the tiny gap between the two parts makes the acoustic

effect more mysterious and explicit. The create of a secretive sound serves to preserve the

surprise of the jazzy entry when the second dynamic mark “Slightly faster” appears.

40 “What is a… Prelude?” BBC Music Magazine,accessed June 9, 2016, https//www.classical-music.com/features/articles/discovering-music-prelude/. 41 Stanley Sadie; John Tyrrell, "Variations," in The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians (2nd ed.), ed. John Tyrrell (London: Macmillan Publishers, 2001); Miguel Roig-Francolí, Harmony in Context, 511.

17

Example 1. Dave Brubeck, “Prelude,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 1-4.

Very interestingly, the inspiration for composing the theme of the Prelude is

likely to be Chopin’s Mazurka Op.24 No.4 in B-flat minor (1834-1835), because of the

music’s key, the chromatic shape of the melody, and the mazurka’s features which are

similar to the main melody in the Prelude.42 As Brubeck said, “I thought I had insulted

the audience by linking the memory of Chopin to jazz. Then came the applause and I

realized with relief that the Polish audience had understood that this was meant as a

tribute to their great musical tradition and as an expression of gratitude.”43 In the 19th

century, many composers including Chopin incorporated national elements into their

music, such as local Slavic features: polonaises, mazurkas.44 Brubeck’s friend John

Salmon, a member of the piano faculty of the University of North Carolina, also pointed

42 John Salmon, “Thank you Dave,” Music Teachers National Association, April/May 2013, https://www.johnsalmon.com/ewExternalFiles/1-brubeck-ThankYouDave.pdf. 43 Storb, Fischer, Dave Brubeck, Improvisations and Compositions: The Idea of Cultural Exchange: With Discography, 84. 44 Ibid.

18

out in his article that “I think you must have heard your mother play that piece when you

were a boy. Because your theme mirrors the first bars of Chopin’s Mazurka.”45

Observing the beginning of Mazurka, one sees the melody with a pickup on F-

natural, which then moves up chromatically to F-sharp, G-natural, G-sharp, and A-natural

in its lower voice. Then the melody lands on B-flat. By comparing with the beginning of

the Prelude in Points on Jazz, Piano 1 initiates the melody with a pickup on the same note

that Mazurka Op.24 No.4 has, F-natural; then the melody chromatically goes up to G-flat

and G-natural. The same approach of this chromatic sequence happens again in the next

four measures in Piano I: it starts with B-flat, B-natural, and C-natural. The selection of

notes and chromatic sequence are similar and coincident; therefore, Brubeck is likely

inspired by Chopin’s Mazurka Op.24 No.4 when he composed the original theme.

Example 2. Frédéric Chopin, Mazurka Op.24 No.4 (1834-1835), mm. 1-4.

45 Salmon, “Thank you Dave.”.

19


In general, from the aspect of the rhythmic features, Mazurka is usually a lively

dance-like musical form; it is written in triple time with a syncopated first beat to begin.46

In the Prelude, Brubeck transformed the Mazurka in quadruple four-four meter with a

syncopation on the second beat of the measure; Chopin followed the traditional rule of

putting the syncopation on the first beat of the measure. Because of the rearranged

syncopation on the second beat in the Prelude, performers are encouraged to create a

fuller sound on the longer beat for making a feeling of the slow dance. Even though the

small details are transformed differently, it is still obvious that Brubeck’s melody is likely

inspired by Chopin’s melody in his Mazurka Op.24 No. 4.

Measures 3 and 7 are written in triplets; they the last measures of these two

slurred sections (measure 1-8, see Example 4). These triplets break the stable increasing

pattern and gives the melody a livelier feel. Starting in the measure 9, the melody begins

46 “Three Mazurkas: Op. 24 No 4 in b flat minor, Op. 56 No. 3 in c minor, Op. 50 No. 3 in c sharp minor,” Los Angeles Philharmonic Association, Last modified 2022, https://www.laphil.com/musicdb/pieces/4248/three-mazurkas-op-24-no-4-in-b-flat-minor-op-56-no-3-in-c-minor-op-50-no-3-in-c-sharp-minor.

20

to swing by starting on an offbeat quarter note in the triplet to the eighth note triplet with

an accent mark on the second beat of the triplet. Brubeck’s brother Howard wrote

anticipations and accent marks on the music; this leads us to think about the way classical

and jazz composers notate. Are they using the same approach to write music? If not, what

are the differences?


The way that classical and jazz composers notate the triplets is not the same.

Composers of the jazz style only use eighth notes to indicate notes that are supposed to

swing. In this music score, Howard notated out the triplets with accents and slurs instead

21

of the regular eighth notes. The example shows the expected sound effect of the actual

performance and notation of eighth notes in the jazz compositions. For classical

composers, triplets and the even eighth notes are clearly written down depending on their

purposes in the music (see Example 4). In Points on Jazz, Howard wrote out all the

swinging eighth notes with accents and anticipations for classical musicians to feel the

swing style.47 Swing style in jazz music has a “bouncy” feel in which a note is not

accentuated on a downbeat as is mostly common in classical music; and anticipation is a

feature of swing melody; it brings a laidback and bluesy feel to the music. 48

Example 5. Eighth notes and Swing eighth notes.

After a four-bar accelerando in Example 5 (measures 13-16), the varied theme is

developed more evidently and clearer in the next dynamic mark “Slightly faster”. In this

part, the main theme comes in as a new and jazzy variation. Piano II begins the melody

with the pickup; the melody is written in swing triplets with accents. Meanwhile, Piano I

gives the harmonic support with chords when Piano II has long notes. These harmonic

chords in Piano I provide the basic harmonic information while the other piano presents

the melody. These chords may be described as “shell voicing” in jazz language, which

means the chord only contains the root, third, and the seventh. 49 The fifth degree of the

chord is usually omitted because it is not important in distinguishing chords’ quality; this

47 Dave Brubeck, Points on Jazz: Jazz Ballet for Two Pianos/four Hands. 48 Shelton Berg, Alfred’s Essentials of Jazz Theory: A Complete Self-Study Course for all Musicians (Van Nuys: Alfred Publishing, 2006), 6–7. 49 “Shell Voicings,” The Jazz Resource, 2001, https://www.thejazzresource.com/shell_voicings.html.

22

is as unnecessary as the fifth is in classical compositional rules. The third and the seventh

are called the guide tones since they can help differentiate the chord’s quality as major or

minor.50 The faster tempo gives the music a dance-like motion akin to the features of the

Mazurka. The swing feel is usually slightly accentuated before or after a downbeat, as we

can see from the varied melody in this part “Slightly faster”. The main melody always

has the accentuated note on the last beat of the triplet. This gives the music a pushing or

laidback feel which is a typical feeling in jazz music.


50 Ibid; Miguel Roig-Francolí, Harmony in Context,112.

23


In the next dynamic mark “Bright” in Example 8 (measure 33), the dialogue

between two pianos becomes more obvious and interactive. Piano I brings out a new

version of the theme with a strong swing rhythmic effect. At the same time, Piano II

plays the accompaniment with eight steady staccato quarter notes; the pattern of these

quarter notes simulates the walking bass line of the double bass that accompanies the

soloist in a jazz trio (see Example 8). After two bars the melody in Piano I is taken over

by Piano II; two pianos now exchange their job to create a dialogue-like effect as is

usually common in classical piano duos. When playing the walking bass line, the

performer should keep the tempo as stable as possible to support the rhythmic framework

24

for the other piano and try to play the notes a little longer than a standard staccato note. It

is not necessary to use too much pedal for this part because the bass is a string

instrument, and it produces a vibrating sound instead of a pedaled piano sound.

Example 8. Dave Brubeck, “Prelude,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 33-36

When the music gets to measure 49 (see Example 9), two pianos produce an echo-

like effect. Piano I starts with broken chords on the downbeat of each measure, the top

line of the Piano I part is the original melody from the very beginning of the Prelude.

Piano II gives a completely different vibe; Piano I has the swing eighth notes in the top

line to echo with the melody in Piano II. This approach with two different styles in both

25

pianos gives listeners two directions to track, one is more classical, the other one relies

more on jazz. When performing this interaction, both pianos should bring out the melody

as indicated in the score, but without sounding the syncopations and dynamics in a too

exaggerated manner in order to avoid creating a turbulent sound by two pianos. The

chordal accompaniment in Piano II gives the music a thick and rich harmonic support just

like the music in Romantic period; pianists can use richer pedaling to add atmosphere to

the sound. The reason I believe is to save the energy for Piano I to show off its jazzy, and

echo-like effect. Piano I can be played livelier, the chords in the left hand can be played

shorter and with less pedal. For the right hand, pianists are recommended to play the

accentuated notes out, and try to follow the dynamics given for Piano I. The

communication between two pianos in this part is most interesting since it gives a great

contrast between classical and jazz styles.


Then, in measure 65 (see Example 10), a new variation is introduced in both

pianos. The music becomes more active and communicative because the downbeats in

26

right hands of Piano I and II start to swing on the offbeat. Piano I enters on the last beat

of the triplet of the second beat in the measure to communicate with Piano II closely. The

order of entrances in both pianos also creates an echo-like sound; therefore, Piano I can

accentuate the offbeat to respond to Piano II in order to enhance the communication.


When playing this part, performers need to keep in mind that the color has

changed. To show the difference, these sharp repeating chords in the left hand of Piano I

possibly imply the style of accompaniment of Freddie Green (1911–1987), who was a

great American jazz guitarist and played rhythm guitar with the Count Basie Orchestra.51

Green’s style of rhythmic guitar is a way of holding down a chord with the left hand and

striking the strings with the right hand on every beat of the tune.52 Thus, performers

should play the chords quickly and directly as does the jazz guitar in the band. And the

rests in the right hand need to be heard to enhance the dryness of the left hand chords.

51 Freddie Green, “Count Basie Quartet,” directed by Ralph Gleason, Jazz Casual, National Educational Television, August 21, 1968, music video, https://youtu.be/Ke3W5DQ6U1U. 52 Ibid.

27

Fisher, the author of one of Brubeck’s biographies indicates that a substantial musical and

communicative factor in Brubeck’s music is that he speaks to the diverse textures of

instruments.53 For example, Brubeck and his saxophonist Paul Desmond usually

interplayed and built dialogues, as well as speaking between the bass and drums as

mentioned earlier.54 In order to project these instrument-like factors performers need to

imitate the sound of other instruments on the piano. Another idea is that both pianos need

to accentuate the entry of the themes because both pianos have the swing feel and the

music becomes more energetic than the last variation. The sound of both pianos can be

louder, and the tempo can go slightly faster to create an exciting moment to connect to

the next section “Brighter”.

In “Brighter” (measures 81-112), the music develops more intensity. As we can

see from the music, when the melody comes in both piano parts, it is played in octave

motion, which gives the sound more weight and energy (see Example 11 measures 81-

82). In the music, Brubeck wrote forte for the melody, but I think that performers can

play the theme more than forte when the accompaniment comes in. After 16 measures,

the first variation of the theme reoccurs in Piano I in octave motion. After the theme is

completely stated, the music reverts to the original statement of the main theme where it

is marked “Tempo Primo”.

53 Storb, Fischer, Dave Brubeck, Improvisations and Compositions: The Idea of Cultural Exchange: With Discography, 83. 54 Ibid.

28


The form of the Prelude shares the similarity between classical music and jazz

because it provides the performers and listeners a sense of the perfect completeness; the

movement starts and ends with the same original theme. Although in the middle of the

movement the music has several variations that are improvised based on the theme

alternating in two pianos and two styles. It still closes with the same idea which is a

compositional technique that is quite common for musicians to catch in classical

repertoire.

It is essential to be careful when properly playing the swing style. Classical

pianists need to articulate the accents to make the melody swing. Usually, classical

pianists can accurately express what is written on the music, but they must take care

when playing in jazz style to not play the music so straight forwardly since it may sound

jerky. There are ways to practice the swing idea. First, it is “all about the ears” which

means that classical musicians need to listen to plenty of jazz music to get the feel. The

same applies to the concept of learning a new pop song – there is no need to look at the

29

lyrics or music of the song, the ears will remember the music after repetitive listening.

Secondly, Shelton Berg recommends me that classical pianist can practice scales with

accents in the swing rhythm, such as playing the scale from two to five notes in a group

with offbeat accents. Once classical pianists are able to play a scale in swing style, they

can easily access music written in so-called “triplets” more naturally.

Movement II: Scherzo

In general, a Scherzo is a short composition in a humorous and lively manner; it is

written traditionally with the triple meter time signature and in the ternary form, but the

second movement of this suite follows a quadruple four-four meter signature and is

composed in a binary form which the movement is evenly divided into two parts with a

repeat for each section. The first part (measures 1-22) tends to be composed in a classical

way since the rhythm is steady and straight instead of sounding swinging and bouncy.

Piano I continues with a broken chord pattern alternating in two hands to function as the

accompaniment for Piano II. The jazzy triplets in the former movement in both pianos

switch back to stable quarter and sixteenth notes. Even though the accents are still

marked on the second and fourth beats instead of the first and third beats, the music

sounds much more stabilized and settled. Piano II starts the main theme in the bass line

while the right hand enters in with ongoing chords on each beat. The chords in the right

hand of Piano II are to be played staccato notes; and are supposed to allude to drums

which support the musical framework. To perform the first part of this movement

appropriately, the theme in the bass line and the constant drumbeats need to be heard

clearly; hence pedaling can be dryer, and the fingers needs to put more weight into the

30

keys to stress the rich sound of the melody. When two pianos play together, Piano I can

be more subtle since it is the accompaniment. The accompaniment can create a sparkling

sound effect to vividly add color around Piano II to make the theme stand out.

In the beginning of Piano I (see Example 12 measures 1-2), one can see that two

hands alternate with repeated figure: the left hand enters first, then the right hand restates

it in a high voice. Performers can consider the alternation in two hands as one longer

phrase. When playing the Piano I part, the right hand can make a small crescendo and

articulate slightly vigorous after the left hand plays; performers can imagine the two

hands are chasing each other with broken chordal motion. Additionally, the accentuated

eighth notes in both pianos can be slightly stressed. Otherwise, the accompaniment will

become mechanical, rigid, and boring. However, there are places where the

accompaniment can stand out more prominently. For example, when Piano II has long

notes such as in measures 3-4 and measures 7-8 (see Example 13), Piano I has the broken

chords overlapped with more intensive accents and a quick crescendo. Piano I can speak

out more to fill in the short rest in Piano II.

Example 12. Dave Brubeck, “Scherzo,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 1-2.

31


At the end of part one, which is in measures 20-22 performers can speed up to

build tension for the second part and put more weight on the descending chromatic half

notes in left hand of Piano II to lead into the second part, as shown in measures 21-22

(see Example 14).


32

The second part (measures 23-44) makes a dramatic contrast to the first part. It

projects a vibrant and percussive mood; Piano I applies the G minor blues scale in the top

line. The fast active passages based on the G minor blues scale in Piano I lead the music

more exciting; therefore, performers are encouraged to play much more agitatedly for a

celebratory sound. As the articulative marks indicate on the score in Piano II, the

articulative mark “percussive” achieves the sound effect needed. In the right hand, the

stable chords convert into a new form of accentuated sixteenth note followed by an eighth

note. Meanwhile, the left hand also carries out the main melody with extended length in

the bass line. When playing these percussive and accentuated chords, the performer can

stress more on the second chord to fashion a sense of dance music. Even though the

second part of this movement proceeds with an explicit jazz language, the writing still

adheres to the style of classical composition. The notes are distributed neatly, there is no

irregular rhythm. The swing feel is expressed with accents. When performers rehearse, if

they follow the analysis above, it should not be difficult for classical pianists to play.

In the coda, at measure 42 (see Example 15), two pianos start to collaborate. The

melodic line of Piano II is reshaped into three quarter notes with an accent on the first

quarter note while Piano I has ten notes as one unit responding to the rhythmic pattern in

the left hand. This approach is a common technique in jazz compositions, it is called

“three beats cross rhythm” which means the fundamental pulse is based on the three

beats in an opposing given meter. It aims to break the original meter and creates new one

in sonority heard by listeners. As shown in the Example 15, two of the group of five

notes make one phrase which is lined up perfectly with Piano II’s downbeat. This

rhythmic pattern is tricky at the beginning for classical pianists to play since it does not

33

follow in a regular way; thus, pianists may feel it a challenge putting them together. A

practical tip for practicing this difficult rhythmic pattern is to stress the accents that a

coincide in both pianos. Once this is unified, both parts will have the same breathing and

pulsing, which is essential for the cooperation of two pianos.


From the dynamic aspect, a dramatic and quick diminuendo may be needed to

create a auditory surprise for listeners because the combination of the quick rhythmic

movement and the sudden diminuendo can produce an unexpected stop in this short

34

ending. When producing the diminuendo, the tempo should not slow down, except

perhaps just before the final chords. By playing in this way, a sense of mystery can be

created, but not because of the tempo change but rather the dynamic change. The second

movement can be a great introduction for classical pianists because both the first part and

the second part demonstrate the style of classical and jazz in variations of rhythm,

dynamics, and accents. For example, in jazz piano playing, usually the right hand leads

the melodic line. In classical music, the melody is more often carried by the right hand.

Also, Brubeck added syncopation, blues scales, which are typical features of jazz music

into the scherzo to create a perfect fusion in contrasts of two big parts of this movement.

This is a useful and practical opportunity for classical musicians to feel the differences

and contrast when they rehearse and play the two parts in a row, they can easily perceive

the indication from the marks that are written down on the music directly; they can also

feel the implication from the musical pulse that is not able to write out on the music.

Even though the rhythm and accents are changed, the fundamental frame of the music

exists still. By exploring this movement, I believe classical musicians can start learning

the music with critical thinking in a way the music needs to be, instead of only simply

playing the notes.

Movement III Blues

The third movement is a new variation in Blues form. Generally, Blues form has a

twelve-bar theme, but sometimes, it appears in various combinations of bars with

extensions.55 The meter that is given on the music is in four-four quadruple meter;

55 Shelton Berg, Alfred’s Essentials of Jazz Theory: A Complete Self-Study Course for all Musicians, 37.

35

however, if we listen to the recording, the music gives us a sense of six eight meter. The

first triplet formed by three eighth notes in the melodic line of Piano I can be considered

as one rhythmic unit; three eighth notes are the subdivisions of the unit. The subdivision

of the new unit applies the use of the compound meter which is also a common rhythmic

technique in classical compositions. It provides the basic pulse for the rhythm of the main

theme. If we think about the main theme in six eight triple meter, the main theme of this

variation will be sixteen measures long instead of eight measures because we divide one

measure into two measures. To be more specific, in these sixteen measures, if we look at

the harmonic chord progression of the main theme in Piano II, it clearly illustrates the

length of the theme. Starting from the first measure, the harmonic chord progressions

show that the theme arrives at the dominant seventh chord which is the last down beat in

measure “twelve” (see Example 16).

36

Example 16. Dave Brubeck, “Blues,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 1-6.

37

If keep thinking about the music as a twelve-measure long blues with a four-

measure extension, the subsequent four measures are called “turn around” in jazz

language. “Turn around” functions as an extension to prolong the phrase harmonically

which is one of the characteristic features in Blues.56 The effect of this use is to break the

expectation of audiences. Additionally, at the measure 7 in Piano I’s right hand, these

repetitive notes are also implying to extend the harmonic function to reach to the

resolution where the new start of the theme reappears (see Example 17).


Starting in the measure marked “Slightly slower”, the music applies a

compositional technique: polymodal. Polymodal means the music is composed in

different modes but within the same tonal center; the most important trait of polymodal is

the adjusted notes that the two modes don’t have in common. In terms of this approach,

56 Ibid., 77.

38

this section becomes a “Modal Blues” in G Dorian mode instead of the classic Blues. As

shown in the Example 18, Piano I has an E natural in the right hand, this is the adjusted

note in the Dorian mode. Meanwhile, in Piano II, the B-flat from the key signature in the

right hand becomes B natural, which implies that the part of Piano II may be composed in

G major or G Mixolydian. It is hard to define if it is G major or G Mixolydian because

the leading tone F-natural is missing in both keys; if considering of the existed notes, the

only tone that is not in common is the B-flat, this explains why it is possible to be G

Mixolydian too, and why G Major melts together well with the other possible key. From

the effect of the sound in these two different modes, G Dorian sounds mysterious and

gloomy; conversely, G major or G Mixolydian sounds brighter. Thus, performers can

create a contrastive color in the alternation of two pianos. For example, in G Dorian

mode, Piano I can be played in a relatively freer tempo with a lighter and less direct

articulation, the gloomy sound can be created with a thicker pedal. When it is in G

major/G Mixolydian, Piano II can be played confidently, slightly, and more directly in a

more stable tempo to respond to Piano I.

39


When the next tempo mark “Slightly faster” appears, the right hand of Piano I

changes the rhythmic pattern into the active triplets and more accents are stressed. In the

fifth bar, counting from the beginning of “Slightly faster”, the right hand of Piano II joins

in with the G Dorian pattern that the right hand of Piano I is playing. The left hand of

Piano II is still playing the G major chords. After the two subsequent measures, the right

hand of Piano I joins in with triplets in G major (see Example 19). The layers of both

pianos draw a thicker texture and a hectic sound. When playing, performers need to build

layers gradually while the music adds more voice lines to create a dramatic development.

40


In the next section “Fast Blues Tempo”, the right hand of Piano I keeps the same

rhythmic pattern brought from the same formal material as the constant accompaniment.

The compositional technique Brubeck applied is “Ostinato”. “Ostinato” is a persistently

repeating figure in the same musical voice. It is common in classical compositions. The

most standard and well-known example of “Ostinato” is Maurice Ravel’s Boléro.

However, for a better illustration, I inserted an example of Movement VI, No. 153 of

Bartók’s “6 Dances in Bulgarian Rhythm” from Mikrokosmos Sz. 107 (1940). As shown

in Example 20, the given rhythmic unit in the sixth movement is one measure long, and it

has 3+3+2 of eighth notes as the fundamental rhythmic pattern that functions as the

accompaniment throughout the entire music. In Brubeck’s use of “Ostinato” (see

Example 21), firstly, performers need to keep the tempo steady because this is the

rhythmic framework of the music which supports the melodic line and other phrasings.

Secondly, these repeating patterns can be played softer than other voices, because they

are also the harmonic support to enhance the harmony.

41

Example 20. Béla Bartók, Movement VI, No. 153 of Bartók’s “6 Dances in Bulgarian

Rhythm” from Mikrokosmos Sz. 107 (1940), mm. 1-4.


Piano II of this section applies compositional skills from jazz music. It offers a

great contrast to Piano I. Piano I has the same repeating pattern in the right hand.

Meanwhile, the left hand applies the blues progression i-ii-V-i, which gives the music a

harmonic support in terms of blues music. Piano II brings out the melody line in the bass,

with a pickup from the former measure. Here, Brubeck transposes the main theme to the

key of G; the theme applies the G blues scale since it has an accentuated D-flat on the

downbeat (see Example 21). The G blues scale consists of notes: G, B-flat, C, D-flat, D-

42

natural, F, G. Subsequently, Brubeck transposes the theme from G Dorian to C Dorian.

He applies the C Blues scale here as well because the G-flat is the stylistic note of the

scale. The C blues scale consists of notes: C, E-flat, F, G-flat, G-natural, B-flat, C. When

performing, classical musicians need to be familiar with the blues scale and its notes, and

they can play the blues notes extra loud to enrich the sonority of blues music.

In measures 44-49 (Example 22), the right hand of Piano I still employs the

“Ostinato” pattern in G Dorian, but the left hand changes the G blues progression to a

descending chromatic octave pattern which is in G Dorian mode. This chromatic descent

is a compositional technique called “Lament bassline” which means the bass note starts

to descend chromatically from tonic to dominant in a minor key (see Example 23).57 In

the original music Dziekuje, its melody descents chromatically, the arrangement of the

melody reflects the similar chromatic feature of the “Lament bassline”. This chromatic

descending line was also a common use of ground bass in composition of the Baroque

and early classical periods; it creates a dissonant tension with minor seconds to the music

and leads the harmonic progression to a consonant resolution. In both classical music and

jazz, the use of the same compositional technique allows composers from both sides to

achieve the same goal of boosting the music to develop, even though the acoustic sounds

created in them are different.

In Baroque music, this use can be found in “Dido's Lament” known as the aria of

"When I am laid in earth" from the opera Dido and Aeneas (1689) by Henry Purcell

(1659-1695) (see Example 22). As shown below, the excerpt is written in G minor, and

57 Timchenette, “Descending Tetrachords: Muse and Handel are both sad,” Music Theory Bridges, posted on November 23, 2014, https://musictheorybridges.wordpress.com/2014/11/23/descending-tetrachords-muse-and-handel-are-both-sad/.

43

the bass line starts to descent from the tonic note G to F-sharp, F-natural, E-natural, E-

flat, and D, the dominant.

Example 22. Henry Purcell, “Dido's Lament”, Dido and Aeneas (1689), mm. 14-19.

44


45

There are two non-chord tones happening in the “Lament bassline” in Piano I:

they are the octaves of F-sharp and E-flat (see Example 24). The suggestion for classical

performers to play more jazzily, is to stress the non-chord tones more than other chord

tones. This is to exaggerate the harmonic conflict and bring a surprise to the listeners.

Starting from measure 66, Piano I takes over the melodic line while Piano II plays

the G Dorian accompaniment. The melody in Piano I uses a jazz stylistic technique called

“pocket playing”, the feature of this technique is to make the music groove. The rhythm

section is locked in and working as a unit.58. As shown in the Example 24, the melodic

line is written with the fundamental rhythmic unit — a group of three eighth notes. In

measures 70-75, the anticipation of the downbeat creates a tension against the even time,

also it produces a laid-back feel to the music. To display this type of feel properly, two

pianos need to consider one measure as one bigger unit to corporate, which means the

octave on the downbeat in the left hand of Piano II needs to be heard and steady to

support Piano I while it is playing “in the pocket”. The melodic line in Piano I applies the

C blues scale; it can be played relaxingly instead of sticking to the triplet unit strictly.

Additionally, classical pianists can accentuate the anticipated note more in order to make

the music swing to break the feeling of even meter. The other way to enhance this swing

feel is to play the anticipated note slightly longer, and the rest of the eighth notes of the

triplet slightly faster. Overall, considering the rearrangement of the rhythm as one bigger

unit gives music more freedom and jazzy feel.

58 Dave Martin, “Playing in the Pocket,” Sweetwater, October 14, 2018, https://www.sweetwater.com/insync/playing-in-the-pocket/.

46


Starting from measure 76 (see Example 25), the rhythmic pattern tends to be

classical, because it turns into sixteenth notes and starts accentuating on downbeats.

Classical musicians need to be careful when the rhythmic pattern changes, they need to

clear their minds and be able to switch quickly in order to match Piano II’s constant

“Osinato” accompaniment.


47

In measures 94-97 (see Example 26), Brubeck applies another compositional

technique in jazz language. It functions as “block chord voicing”, in other ways, it is

called “locked hands double lead”. The top and bottom voices of the harmonic chords are

enclosed within an octave and function as harmonized melody in the texture.59 The

internal notes are not as important as the external ones since they only offer harmonic

support. The top and bottom notes reveal where the harmony falls and the shape of the

melody; in other words, this technique plays the melodic line in chords. In the general

jazz repertories, this technique is commonly used by a huge amount of jazz piano

composers, especially in works of Bill Evans. I inserted an example of his transcription,

On Green Dolphin Street with the marked harmonized top and bottom notes (see

Example 27). Not only in the jazz field, classical composers such as Ravel also employed

this technique. For example, in Ravel’s La Valse (see Example 28).


59 Debbie Denke, “Block Chords (Locked Hands Style) vs Spread Chords: How Pianists Create Them”, Debbie Denke Music, July 9, 2021, https://debbiedenkemusic.com/2021/07/09/block-chords-locked-hands-style-vs-spread-chords-how-pianists-create-them/.

48

Example 27. Bill Evans, Transcription of On Green Dolphin Street (1977), mm. 1-6.

Example 28. Maurice Ravel, La Valse (1919-20), mm. 105-110.

After the climax supported by grand chordal movements, the main theme

reappears in a new section “Gradually slower to…” with a two-measure long G Dorian

49

scale of sixteenth notes (see Example 29). Even though the music is written in groups of

four sixteenth notes, classical pianists should still be aware that these notes are indeed

grouped in unites of three. As marked in Example 29, the first note of each group of three

sixteenths is the scale note of G Dorian mode. Therefore, when playing and practicing,

classical pianists need to put slightly more weight on the scale notes. By stressing the G

Dorian mode, the music leads back to the main theme in the next section, which we can

also call recapitulation, under the tempo mark “Slow Blues Tempo”.


According to the form of this movement, it is composed in ternary form (ABA),

which includes a long section as part B and a short recapitulation as the reiterated A. The

ABA form is one of the most common compositional forms in classical piano, but in jazz

music, it is not usually used in composing songs because it is considered a large sized

form. Here is a great fusion that connects the jazz and classical music. This is convincing

proof that shows why Brubeck used this formal design in this jazzy movement, Blues. It

50

is not hard for us to understand if we know that he had huge influences from the classical

music of his childhood.

Lastly, when we look at the tempo marks in this movement and the changes of

rhythmic texture, we can see the entire movement gradually accelerates. At the very

beginning, the tempo marks start to speed up as in the sequence: “Slow blues”, “Slightly

slower”, “Slightly faster”, “Fast Blues Tempo”. In order to perform these tempo changes

in common practice, the down beat in the bass of Piano II needs to be heard since it is the

important harmonic support. In Piano I, the melodies transform into fast sixteenth notes

from triplets. The texture of two pianos turns out to be complex. The concern for pianists

when building this complexity is to start small and gradually expand the phrasing. For a

thinner and clearer sound, the “Ostinato” accompaniment for both piano parts can be

played lighter; only a few accentuated anticipations need to be stressed to keep the swing

feel, the rest of it can be played as quiet as possible. When Piano I assumes the melody,

the anticipation can be expressed slightly exaggerated; the rest of the running notes can

fade to avoid a feeling of playing classical technical practice. After the “Four-way close

double lead” in measure 97, there are six measures of sequential chords, which increases

in dissonance and reach the climax with a glissando. These chords can be played as loud

as possible to enhance the dissonance and create excitement before the dynamic reverts at

return of the main theme. The significance of phrasing, stressing irregular rhythms and

dissonances can’t be overlooked by the performer. Brubeck applies lots of traits from

Blues, perfectly designed within the framework of classical ABA form. By strengthening

these features, the listeners will have more expectations and the desire for surprises.

51

Section IV: Fugue

This movement is fully written in a classical fugue form. The structural layout of

the movement indeed clearly shows that Brubeck was influenced by Baroque music. His

approaches of infusing jazz vocabularies into the framework of Fugue are unique in his

works. The basic structure of a classical fugue has its specific rules in laying out each

structural part, and they function in different harmonic roles.60 This movement is

designed to be the same as the traditional Fugue form. It has the subject, answer,

countersubject to the answer, episode, additional subject entries (middle section), stretto

and coda.

The home key of this movement is C minor. At the very beginning of the

exposition, the subject is stated on the dominant of C and clearly shown in Piano II

played by the left hand. The subject is a syncopated version of the original melody from

the first movement Prelude. It is three measures long and starts on the offbeat. The

answer to the subject enters in measure four and is written in the home key C minor in

Piano I. In the traditional Fugue, the subject is followed by an answer, and the answer is

usually accompanied by new material called countersubject. When Piano I voices out the

answer, the bass line of Piano II presents the countersubject to the answer contrapuntally.

However, this time the answer is one measure longer than the subject is, because the new

material of an anticipated triplet is added to extend the answer. As marked in Example

30, these fragments in the subject and countersubject play an important role in the

subsequent development. They vary harmonically and rhythmically later in the

60 MasterClass staff, “Fugue Musical Form Explained: Basic Structure of a Fugue”, MasterClass, February 24, 2022, https://www.masterclass.com/articles/fugue-musical-form-explained#a-brief-history-of-the-fugue.

52

movement to make the Fugue rich in texture and sound; thus, we need to be careful when

we encounter them again. An important suggestion for classical pianists to take care is,

when the answer comes in, the eighth rest and the anticipated C in the bass line of Piano

II need to be heard. They create a gap between the ongoing music aiming to weaken the

down beat to swing the melody. This is a common way to add swing to the music in jazz

style; therefore, when we play the broken octave motion, the eighth note should be lighter

in order to emphasize the emptiness.

53

Example 30. Dave Brubeck, “Fugue,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 1-12.

54

When the next subject enters at measure 8, it appears in the right hand of Piano I,

the left hand introduces with another new material called free counterpoint (see Example

30). Very interestingly, the new material is the inversion of the subject. The subject is

based on a descending chromatic line G, G-flat, F, E-flat and D. The free counterpoint

has an ascending line with same degree division: F, F-sharp, G, A-flat, B-flat, and B-

natural. This technique is also common in the Baroque period; I inserted an example of

the Contrapunctus XII in Bach’s In The Art of the Fugue, BWV 1080 to show the subject

and its mirrored inversion (see Example 31).

Example 31. J. S. Bach, “Contrapunctus XII: Forma inversa and Forma recta” in Bach’s

In The Art of the Fugue, BWV 1080/12,1, mm. 1-7.

55

The episode begins in measure 14 in E-flat major, the relative major of C minor.

The function of episodes is to sequence the existing materials and recreate them into a

new section that is written in various new keys.61 In this episode, it starts with an

alternation of the triplet fragment reiterated three times in both pianos. Then it is

proceeds with a rhythmic group that is derived from the main subject. The rhythmic

group prolongs the pattern of the repeating notes and makes a descending sequence.

Surprisingly, Brubeck tricks listeners by the employment of a cross meter, in which the

implied meter of the sequence differs from the actual meter that is written in the score.

The written meter is four-four, but the feel created by the rhythmic group produces a

sense of five notes in one group (see Example 32). It breaks the basic duple meter to

become an odd meter. One practical suggestion for classical performers is to make a

dramatic crescendo on repeated notes and accentuate the quarter note in order to stress

the sequential fragment.

61 Ibid.

56


Brubeck presents and unexpected “failed” resolution in measure 20-21. The music

doesn’t resolve to the tonic. The resolution is followed by a Codetta in the next two

measures before the start of the middle section at measure 24. In Brubeck’s Fugue,

measure 20-21 employs a failed cadence; the harmonic function of measure 20 stands as

a dominant seventh, but it uses a B-natural on the last beat of the measure. This B-natural

gives a tendency towards the resolution in the key of C minor, but it doesn’t go to C

minor; surprisingly, the B-flat is resolved to its relative key, E-flat tonic, on the first beat

of measure 21. This approach breaks the expectations of audiences by faking a cadential

point. To enhance the unexpected arrival point in a distinguishable way, performers can

create a diminuendo from measure 20 and weaken the E-flat in measure 21 to leave room

for the subject to enter on the offbeat where it marks mezzo forte. See Example 33.

57


In measures 22-33, Brubeck employs a “Codetta” as a small tail before the next

section enters, aiming to slightly prolong the ending harmonically.62 The subject in

Codetta is stated by Piano I, and it is an incomplete one since its length is shortened. The

top line in the right hand of Piano I and the right hand of Piano II join each other in

parallel motion with the same fragment that is borrowed from the original subject. When

62 “Sonata form – framing modules (introduction & coda),” Open Music Theory, http://openmusictheory.com/sonataFramingModules.html.

58

playing in parallel motion, both pianos need to be played quietly, because the parallel

motion aims to provide harmonic support; they are holding the melodic line. Brubeck

also employs a cross-meter here too. The outer voice in each piano presents the

“Hemiola” technique, in the way that outlines groups of three beats in length; however,

the music is written in four-four meter, the rhythm offers an equal shift between odd beat

and even beat. These harmonic and rhythmic changes make the music full of unexpected

surprises, stressing the first notes of the group of three notes can magnify the feel of

cross-meter; listeners can perceive a jazzy and swinging sonority. By stressing the last

note of the group of three, the tonal center will be presented clearly because the last notes

of the group of three are the harmonic arrival points; they reveal the direction of the

harmonic progression.

The middle section starts from measure 34 and is written in E-flat major’s parallel

minor E-flat minor. However, just like traditional fugue writing, tonal centers modulate

throughout the middle section. The entire middle section consists of sequences of

transposing material of longer length than the typical middle section. To be specific, the

bass line of Piano I in measure 34 outlines a melody of E-flat, F, G-flat, A-flat, B-flat, C,

D-flat and E-flat. This melodic line last three measures. In the subsequent groups of three

measures, the bass line sequences the first melodic line’s first four notes E-flat, F, G-flat,

A-flat as the beginning note on each sequence. Speaking from the rhythmic aspect, the

music is originally composed in duple four-four meter. However, the hemiola technique

allows notes to be grouped in a triple meter, so it sounds more like a three-four meter.

Brubeck frequently used this rhythmic pattern to break the feel of the original meter to

explore sophisticated in rhythms. See Example 34.

59


In measure 40, the top line of Piano I draws the subject out with an innovative

approach called the rhythmic augmentation. The original subject consists of eighth and

quarter notes. This time the time values of the augmented subject are doubled. I have

inserted the original subject and the augmented subject below to compare for clarity. See

Examples 35 and 36.

60


61


Starting from measure 46, the tonal center is transposed to G-flat major; the bass

line of Piano II brings out another augmented subject on the dominant D-flat.

Simultaneously, both hands of Piano I are playing the sequenced transposed material in

parallel motion to give harmonic support to the subject. In the above passages, Piano I’s

repetitive sequences all move in one direction, but this one descends first, then it ascends

until the next tonal change appears in measure 52. Thus, performers are advised to play

this contrary motion differently from the other similar material by making a diminuendo

when the direction goes down, and a dramatic crescendo when the direction goes up.

Another important tip for enhancing the musical content is to exaggerate the dissonances.

Brubeck purposefully wrote dissonant chords or notes in tonal harmony, not only because

the original subject has a continuous descending chromatic melodic line; but also,

because the dissonances create major tension to the music. Therefore, when performers

encounter a dissonant chord or note in performance of playing, stressing it can make a

monumental, unexpected effect in the music; this would explain why Brubeck often put

crescendo marks where the dissonances happen.

62

The tonal center continuously modulates. In measure 53 the tonal center is in D-

flat major as evidenced by the starting A-flat which is the dominant of the key of D-flat.

In measure 62, the key modulates to G-flat major because the subject in the bass line of

Piano II starts on the dominant note D-flat. At the same time, the subject is extended even

longer than the last time. In measure 71, the tonal center reverts to D-flat major, but this

time the rhythmic sequence changes. In Piano I, the sequence consists of groups of five

quarter notes, yet the effect is five-four meter. At the same time, Piano II changes from

the even division of groups of quarter notes to groups of two dotted quarter notes plus

two quarter notes (1.5+1.5+2). This coincides with the five beats sequence in the Piano

II. The cross rhythms between the two pianos present particular rhythmic challenges for

classical pianists. When practicing, performers need to keep in mind the pattern of five

beats in one group by stressing the down beat of each group. Aesthetically, the note

placed on the offbeat with the slur is the anticipation, it needs to be stressed too to give

the fragment a swing feel. In measure 75, the last two beats are a half cadence in D-flat

major. Both pianos start alternating the fragment in their parts and building a thicker

sound with the continuous crescendos. In measure 81, the fragment appears as octaves to

achieve a greater sound. Interestingly, as marked in the Example 37, the bass line in

Piano II in measures 82-83 makes a chromatic tonal shift, it shifts a step up to D major

and shifts back to D-flat major in measure 84. This is a common feature in jazz music,

the tonal center will be shifted up and down in a certain relationship of keys to create the

tension and nervousness, then eventually lead the music back to a calmer harmony. In

performing, pianists can play extra loud to emphasize the sudden tonal shift to show the

tension and shift the music to a higher point.

63


In the next phrase when Piano II takes the fragment of repeating octaves, Brubeck

applies an E diminished seventh chord in measure 86 as a chromatic decoration; then falls

back to an E-flat minor seventh chord (see Example 38). This approach creates a jazzy

feel by moving chromatically; when pianists play the diminished chord, they can

accentuate it more to let the tension speak out since diminished chords are important in

jazz music.

64


In measures 89-101, Brubeck uses a dominant pedal point, which means there is

one tone that is held while other voices move through different harmonies (see Example

39). In Piano I, the bass line of the left hand is constantly on G. Meanwhile, both pianos

have notes that are composed in a polytonal technique: Piano I is written in C natural

minor, Piano II is written in B-flat major. When these two tonalities encounter each other

within five voices, the resulting sound is messy and hard to track. To avoid this and make

the music distinctive, pianists need to pick out a voice from the chaos. I suggest playing

the overlapped voice line above the pedal note G, because this voice keeps the same

repeating fragment and sequences step by step. By emphasizing this melodic line,

listeners will not lose track when the texture of music becomes very complex. For the

pedal note G, performers should use less pedal to create a dry, drum-like sound and avoid

getting muddy when multiple voices are played simultaneously.

65


Starting from measure 101 to 109, the pedal point G is continued still.

Additionally, Brubeck applies the compositional technique Stretto, Stretto uses the same

pattern from the subject to define phrasing, the phases overlap and build to a climax.63 A

fragment of the subject enters in all voice lines before the former subject finish. As

shown in Example 40, measures 101-104 and 105-109 apply the Stretto in different

voices. The active entrance of each subject leads a feeling of being in hurry; it also

quickly builds up intension and gradually builds the music to its culmination. Therefore,

when playing, the tempo can accelerate, and the dynamics can be expressed more

dramatically.

63 Miguel Roig-Francolí, Harmony in Context, 529.

66


The coda finally appears in measures 110 to 119. In Piano I, the subject is

doubled in octave motion, the pedal note in the bass line of Piano II adds a lower G to

create an even darker and thicker texture. When presenting these octave motions, the

accent marks are especially important in giving the music a jazzy feeling. While sounding

the two outer voices, the top line of Piano II has an ascending line. This line can be

considered a moving force propelling the music to its rousing climax, where the phrases

67

sound enthusiastic. A dramatic crescendo is also needed in building up the music to the

peak.

When the long trill starts, Piano II needs to be played as loud as possible,

especially the lower octave of Gs, not only because this beat is an anticipation, but also

this beat implies the rhythmic fragment borrowed from the subject. In measures 117-119,

the meter changes from two-four to six-eight quickly. This creates a sense of surprise

with its instability while it restates the fundamental rhythm of the subject. Thus, when

performers arrive here, it is advisable to consider these three measures as 2+2+3+3+1 and

play them stably accentuating the downbeat of each group. See Example 41.


Movement V: Rag

The fifth movement is a Ragtime written in classical ternary form. The entire

movement can be divided as a short intro (measures 1-16), A+B+A+C (measures 17-38),

Trio (measures 39-54), and the reappearance of A+B+A+C (measures 55-76). As

68

explained by American composer Tom Turpin (1871–1922), Ragtime can be a

description of musical meter like other compositional genres for pianos, such as waltz to

imply “in waltz-time”.64 Similarly, Ragtime, is generally composed in duple meter with

contrasting sections which are usually 16-32 measures long, and implies “ragged time”

featuring the breaking up of the melody and its stable rhythm into short syncopated parts

against stable bass.65

The introduction to this movement starts with a complex alternation of meters,

with meter changes between five-four and three-four, then settling in four-four meter for

the subsequent “ragging” section (see Examples 42 and 43). The first chord, VII#9

played by Piano I is a typical ninth chord in jazz language. As an opening chord, it

sounds funky and dissonant. When playing, performers need to play this chord with a

sharp projection by striking the key as on a percussion instrument. In measures 1-3,

Brubeck likely applies the use of “son clave”. Clave is a set of rhythmic accents that

repeats as a fundamental pulse for the song, son clave being the most commonly used in

jazz music.66 Clave rhythm is not symmetrical, it usually accents different beats for two

consecutive measures.67 There are two types of son clave, the one in this movement is the

three sides of son clave, it starts with three accented beats in the first measure and two

accented beats in the second measure. As shown in Example 42, the change of five-four

and three-four meter in the first and second measure gives the music a groovy feel. For

64 Tom Turpin, TheRagtime Nightmare. (St. Louis: MO: Robt. DeYoung & Co, 1900), Monographic, Notated Music, https://www.loc.gov/item/ihas.200033227/. 65 Ibid. 66 MasterClass Staff, “Learn About Music: Clave Rhythm Definition and Examples,” MasterClass, November 8, 2020, https://www.masterclass.com/articles/learn-about-music-clave-rhythm-definition-and-examples#what-is-clave-in-music; Mark Levine, The Jazz Theory Book (Petaluma: Sher Music Company, 1995), 461–62. 67 Ibid.

69

classical pianists, it is tricky to change the rhythmic accents of each measure, so a good

way to practice this is to stress the accentuated notes more and repeat the patterns to get

used to the groove. In measure 7, the music settles into four-four meter, with the rhythmic

pattern from the five-four meter reserved for the fundamental pulse, and it is maintained

as two dotted quarter notes plus one quarter note to create the feel of the three-side son

clave 3:3:2. In Piano one, the melody moves in a descending circle of fifth. It starts with

A, then goes down to D, G, C, but meanwhile, the pedal point on the A is kept in the left

hand of Piano II. When playing the pedal points, performers need to keep the beat as

stable as possible and stress the accentuated notes, Piano I can stress the first note of the

entrance to emphasize the change of circle of fifth. See Example 43.

Example 42. Dave Brubeck, “Rag,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 1-4.

70


In measure 11, the pedal point note A takes a step down to become a flattened VI

seventh chord which functions as a dominant seventh chord aiming to resolve to tonic C.

This use is common in jazz compositions, the purpose of the flattened VI chord is to

expand the phrase and prolong the resolution. In classical compositions, German

augmented six chords also have the same function as the flattened VI seventh chord, as

71

they share the same intervallic quality. In Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5, Beethoven

applied this special flattened VI chord to resolve to the cadence too (see Example 44).

Example 44. Ludwig van Beethoven, Symphony No. 5 (1807-08), mm. 14-26.

In measures 15-16, Brubeck approaches chromatic planning by using neighbor

movement on the dominant seventh to create a jazzy and humorous sound. The

accentuated notes are placed on offbeats, in measure 15, the dotted quarter note is played

with Piano II at the same time, but in measure 16, the last eighth note chord which has the

accent mark stands alone and Piano II has two eighth rests. This syncopated placement

produces a sense of ragtime music to a dramatic effect. Thus, when playing, performers

can play the accentuated beat loudly and directly, especially the one in measure 16 that is

by itself, which should be played extra dramatically to lead the music a lively feel. The

rests in Piano II need to be heard as well; less pedaling is helpful to produce a drier and

cleaner sound. See Example 45.

72


The A section starts at measure 17 in C major; Piano II provides the typical

ragtime tempo as the harmonic support, while Piano I varies the main theme from the

Prelude to become a livelier one. The main theme is implied and can be noticed by each

chord in each measure. When playing Piano I, stressing the offbeat accentuated chords is

important to groove the music, the chords on the downbeat can be played quieter in order

to help Piano I. When the music reaches measure 20, the direction of the two pianos

becomes contrary. The harmony in this measure is independent, and the purpose of this

contrary and chromatic motion is to direct the music towards tis resolution linearly. As

marked in the score (Example 46), the crescendo can be expressed exaggeratively with

less pedal. Subsquently, the melody is raised at the next entrance. In measure 24, Brubeck

uses a compositional technique that is frequently found in jazz music, called “walk-up”, it

is an ascending movement based on the interval of a third. As shown in Example 46, the

harmony starts on D and arrives in the next measure on a G dominant seventh chord. This

measure can be expressed in the same way as to measure 20, the dynamic can be

produced dramatically to add a lively feeling to the music.

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In measure 27-36 (see Example 47), the rhythmic style of accompaniment in the

left hand of Piano II quoted from Freddie Green appears again: it is used in this

movement to give harmonic support and add excitement, pianists can play with a fast

touch on the key and less pedal to create a strike-like sound. In measure 32, the phrase

ends on two different cadential chords. Piano I ends on the dominant seventh, Piano II

ends on a ii7. Two cadential chords mix to give a strong tendency towards resolution,

which is the return to the beginning of section A.

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Interestingly, when section A arrives at the second repeat, Brubeck applies a

deceptive cadence. As marked in Example 47, measure 26 has the Dim vii/vi, the chord

resolves to the vi in C major in measure 33. Deceptive cadences are a common cadential

compositional technique for prolonging the progression towards a perfect cadence. In

reference to the deceptive cadence, American music theorist William Caplin gives a

definition about the deceptive cadence: “the failure to realize an implied authentic

cadence by replacing the final tonic with another harmony (usually VI, but possibly I6),

which nonetheless represents the end of the prevailing cadential progression.”68

Deceptive cadence is one of the common cadential techniques of the Baroque and

Classical periods. For example, Mozart used this device in his Fantaisie No. 1, K 385.

See Example 48. The harmonic progression fakes a failed cadence on VI to extend the

cadence and finally resolves on a perfect authentic cadence.

68 William Caplin, “Cadence in Fugue: Modes of Closure in J. S. Bach’s Well-tempered Clavier,” Music Theory & Analysis: International Journal of the Dutch-Flemish Society for Music Theory 7, no.1, (April 2020), 180–239, https://doi.org/10.11116/MTA.7.1.4; Miguel Roig-Francolí, Harmony in Context, 265.

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Example 48. Wolfgang Mozart, Fantaisie, No. 1, K385 (1961), mm. 89-109

However, in measures 33-34, a compositional technique called tonicization is

employed to slow down the resolution. A temporary A minor is used in this measure to

create a new color. The harmonic progression in these two measures is i, V, i6, V/iv,

V/V. Because its quality is a temporary one when processing the music, the color needs

to be adjusted, pianists can make a sudden drop in dynamic, then resume the dynamic for

the final resolution. According to the chromatic movement in the bass, this technique of

voice leading, and chromatic harmony is commonly found in Chopin’s works.69 There’s

an example of Chopin’s Mazurka in F-sharp minor, Op 6, no. 1(1830). As shown in

69 Richard Parks, “Voice Leading and Chromatic Harmony in the Music of Chopin,” Journal of Music Theory 20, no. 2 (Autumn, 1976), 189–214, http://doi:10.2307/843684.

77

Example 49, in measures 5-8, the bass line has a descending motion in half steps starting

from A, G-sharp, G-natural, F-sharp, F-natural, E-natural, E-flat, D, and C-sharp.

Meanwhile, the right hand has neighbor notes moved down stepwise too. When

encountering this kind of device, either as ascending or descending chromatic motion,

pianists can produce a special sound in dynamics to change the color or enhance the

phrasing. Additionally, if looking into the underlying rhythm, in measures 35-36, Piano I

expands the clave rhythm as marked in Example 47.

Example 49. Frédéric Chopin, Mazurka in F-sharp minor, Op 6, no. 1(1830), mm. 5-8

The Trio section applies a standard duple meter of Ragtime in the accompaniment

played by Piano I. Piano II has the syncopated rhythm, which is possibly generated from

the main theme in the Prelude. When producing a humorous sound effect, first, Piano I

can stress the bass note for listeners to catch the chromatic motion, when arriving at

measures such as meausre 42 and 50 where Piano II’s phrase is about to finish, Piano I

can speak out more to fill out the sound and create a dialogue between two pianos.

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Similarly, in measures such as measure 46 in Piano II, the chromatic triplets can express

the crescendo and diminuendo dramatically to contrast Piano II. Secondly, the

syncopated rhythm in the melody of Piano II can be played more obviously by

accentuating the longer notes, pianists even can swing the eighth notes in measure 41 or

45 for a jazzy sound. See Example 50.


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Movement VI: Chorale

The sixth movement is named Chorale. A chorale has four independent voices

which proceed simultaneously, and each voice functions independently in its role as

soprano, alto, tenor, and bass. The musical features of the traditional chorale are the slow,

consonant mood, the long phrasing with repeats, and the synchronous motions of the four

voices. Brubeck applied the texture of chorale as the framework of this movement, while

infusing other compositional devices that have jazz elements that make the chorale very

different from the traditional one. Firstly, Brubeck applied the polymodal approach in

two pianos. The reason I assume this is a polymodal skill instead of a polytonal is that

two different keys in two piano parts are sharing the same tone C as the bass.

Polymodality implies that two keys share one same paralleled tone to create an

improvisational sense, such as C major and c minor. Polytonal can be applied with more

possibilities such as two different keys, relatively or not relatively. From the key

signature of the very beginning, we can see that Piano I is written in C minor and Piano II

is written in C major (see Example 51). The top line of Piano I addresses the original

theme from the Prelude. The theme is varied slightly in the length of notes. It starts the

melody on the downbeats, the first and second beat of the measure with a pickup. The

rhythm of the theme is notated differently in the Chorale, with downbeats giving the

music a stabler pace. The original one has the longer beat placed on the second and third

beats of the complete measure and gives the music an unstable feel. The varied theme in

this movement produces a steady, and calm pace which perfectly matches the mood of a

traditional chorale. Because the theme starts with a pickup, it still somewhat sounds like a

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syncopated rhythm. Thus, when playing, performers can lightly prolong the half notes to

break the feel of syncopation. See Examples 51 and 52.

Example 51. Dave Brubeck, “Chorale,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 1-7.


The blues sonority in this movement is presented in two ways. First, because of

the polymodal effect, E and E-flat appear at the same time in two pianos. This minor

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second interval brings dissonances which are a common trait of blues music.70 The music

itself is not as fast as other movements, the dissonance adds a bit of tension to the

calmness. Secondly, if we look at the music harmonically, the hidden harmonic

progression applies a basic I-IV pattern (see Example 53). The way the harmony

proceeds implies the sonority of blues music.

Brubeck didn’t apply any functional cadences in this movement, which is

distinctively infrequent in the classical chorale. There is only one half cadence that occurs

in measure 16 at the end of the first repeat. The melody of Piano I lands on B-flat, which

implies the first inversion of the V7 in C minor; Piano II ends the phrase on a G natural

which is the fifth degree of the key of C major. From the motion of each voice, Piano I

and II move in parallel motion, unless one has to present the theme. However, there are

places where the parallel motion shifts to contrary motion, and whenever this happens,

there is always a dynamic mark (see Example 53). This suggests two things: first, the

contrary motion aims to emphasize the dissonance to create tension breaking the

calmness of parallel motion; secondly, as observed above about the lack of functional

cadences, the music is phrased by the motion of the voices. When the phrase is about to

close, the parallel motion shifts to a contrary one; this can also be confirmed by the slurs

notated on the music. For classical performers, they need to adjust the dynamic based on

the motion that the voices address. It is important to be concerned about the placement of

the dynamics because this is how Brubeck wanted the music to be phrased; also, because

70 Shelton Berg, Alfred’s Essentials of Jazz Theory: A Complete Self-Study Course for all Musicians, 36–37.

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of the overall feel of a chorale, the musical flow shouldn’t be too active. Identifying

where to apply stress makes the music interesting within a peaceful vibe.

Lastly, the four voices finally reach a unified point of resolution in the last four

measures 22-25. Both pianos land on a C minor chord implying that the voices are

reuniting in the key of C minor (see Example 53). Because this is the only time that all

voices get harmonically unified, performers can slow down and stess the flow of motion

in order to discreetly switch the harmony to a consonance. Overall, this movement is flat,

composed with fewer expression marks and thickness in texture. Unlike the former

movement Fugue and subsequent ones, this movement can be treated as a resting point or

a time for refreshing the brain of listeners and the performer. The tempo and intensity in

harmony slightly slackens to settle down the suite. When performing, performers can

play the voices with a distant sound, and a flat touch to the key by using the pad of the

finger instead of the fingertip. Playing with fewer movements is also needed to create a

plain and less rolling sound.

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Brubeck had a huge impact from his teacher who was a classical pianist and

composer Darius Milhaud. In Milhaud’s piano compositions, he liked to use the polytonal

technique in. Here is an example of his piano work, Saudades do Brasil (1920) iv.

Copacabana (see Example 54). The right hand of this piece is written in B major, and the

left hand is composed in G major. Brubeck’s use of jazz compositional approaches with

classical compositional skills is indeed fused effectively. By analyzing the details of

music, classical pianists can think critically of what the composer wanted to express

through the score when learning this kind of music by analyzing its form, harmony, and

phrasing.

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Example 54. Darius Milhaud “iv. Copacabana”, Saudades do Brasil (1920), mm. 1-6.

Movement VII: Waltz

A Waltz is a type of classical dance music that is generally written in triple meter

and for accompanying dances.71 Its rhythmic feature is usually divided into three stable

parts, the first beat presents the root of the harmonic chord, the second and third beat

have the rest of the notes from the chord. Because the first beat is the root of the

harmony, it is also on the downbeat, and is louder than the second and third beats

dynamically. Additionally, it provides the feel of triple meter to help the music move.

The way to differentiate the jazz waltz and classical waltz is the fundamental pulse. Jazz

waltz is a syncopated three-four meter, it stresses the offbeat of the second beat, classical

waltz keeps a stable three-four meter, usually the first beat is the only beat to be stressed.

There are examples of one of Chopin’s waltzes, and Rodgers and Hammerstein’s

musical. the song “My Favorite Things” (1959), which is a tune in The Sound of Music

(1965). See Examples 55 and 56.

71 MasterClass Staff, “Waltzes in Classical Music: 8 Iconic Waltzes,” MusicClass, November 2020, https://www.masterclass.com/articles/waltz-music-guide#what-is-a-waltz-in-music.

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Example 55. Frédéric Chopin, Waltz, Op. 64, No. 2 (1846-47), mm. 1-11.

Example 56. Richard Rodgers, Piano arr. Joy Ondra Hirokawa, “My Favorite Things”,

The Sound of Music (1956), mm. 1-4.

This movement is composed in a symmetrical binary form; it has two bigger

sections separated by dynamic markings, and each section has a repeat. The first section

“Moderately fast” can be subdivided into ABAC form (measure 1-53), Piano I

accompanies Piano II’s melody. The second section (measure 53-96) follows the idea of

ABAC but is composed in a much more chordal way, it also switches the accompaniment

and melody part between two pianos. The jazz waltz form is applied in this movement

since the accompaniment of Piano II clearly draws on the syncopated rhythmic pattern

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from the beginning. Also, the nine-eight meter illustrates that the subdivision is based on

groups of three small eighth beats, and the purpose of the subdivision is to swing the

music. The right hand comes in on the offbeat of measure 9, and the rhythmic pattern

uses a similar approach as in the scherzo, but with a jazzy swing rhythm (see Example 57

and 58). Because of the swing feel, Piano I tends to sound faster. It is recommended that

to play Piano I lighter, and both pianists only stress each eighth note on the offbeat of the

second beat to create a spark to the accompaniment.


87

Example 58. Dave Brubeck, “Waltz,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 1-10.

Meanwhile, Piano II takes the melody in chordal texture, and the left hand keeps

the syncopated waltz rhythm. When playing, Piano II can voice the top of the chords, the

pinky needs to bring out the melodic line from the middle voice, Brubeck’s brother

Howard wrote accent marks on each note of the melody on the music too (see Example

58). The bass notes in the left hand of Piano II are also important to bring out as it is the

heart pulse of the music.

The stepwise motion in the bass line that aims to develop the music is also

employed in this movement. In measures 41-45, the left hand of Piano II has an

ascending octave bass line starting from B-flat, to C, D-flat, D-natural, and E-flat. This

sequence breaks the stability of tonal harmony and directs the music towards a higher

level of intensity (see Example 59). Thus, pianists are advised to build a longer phrase

and treat the octave sequence as a secondary melody by starting a dramatic crescendo. In

measures 49-52, two pianos start to move in the contrary motion. The bass notes of Piano

II take steps downward chromatically and Piano I takes steps upward chromatically to

introduce the key of C minor (see Example 60). As noted before, Brubeck used lots of

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contrary motion and chromatic movement; when the music has these features, the

dynamics need to be stressed in a way that assists the flow of motion.


89


Starting from the section “Slightly faster”, Piano I speaks out the chordal melody

which enriches the harmonic sonority and the thickness of the color. The chordal melody

follows the standard three-beat rhythm with the swing eighth notes, also the chords are

placed in a higher register to enlarge the range of the piano for a wider sound. For

classical pianists to play, the top notes of the chords can be pointed out loud because it

outlines the phrasing. The most important place is where is marked with two subito

pianos in measures 59 and 67, the music suddenly drops one octave from the higher

register and dynamically in music for a more exciting new start. As shown in Example

61, the chords move up from again with a big crescendo. When playing, producing a

huge and dramatic contrast is significant to bring humor to the melody, even if it is

marked mezzo-piano, a pianissimo can be addressed to enhance the sonority.

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Brubeck approached a rootless voicing skill in this section. As marked in

Example 61, Piano I’s melody begins on the harmonic chord which does not include the

root note, Piano II hits the harmonic root on the downbeat with the accent mark, and

Piano I enters on the offbeat right after Piano II’s downbeat. This technique not only

enables two pianos to interact in the same harmony and melodic materials without being

too thick and loud musically, but it also increases the tension to emphasize the waltz

triple meter in the swing style for a jazzy sound. The technique of rootless voicing in two

pianos inmates the bass sticking the harmonic note for giving space for the piano to

improvise chordal melodies. In Bill Evan’s music, rootless voicing is one of his great

features and is frequently used for a swing and jazzy sound. In order to obtain this feel,

classical pianists are encouraged to listen to Evan’s arrangement of songs such as “My

Foolish Heart” (1949) and “Autumn Leaves” (1945).

Starting in measure 68, the music adopts the chordal motion made by neighboring

notes (see Example 62). Neighboring notes can increase the tension and enhance the

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tendency towards the resolution. Classical pianists need to figure out which chords are in

harmony and the target chords. And which chords function as decorative chords. Piano I

can stress the harmonic chords with more weight and direct attack. Conversely, the

decorative chords can be played much less in dynamics.


The rootless voicing appears again in measure 78 during a long phrasing without

any rest and stopping in the melody. The sudden rest implies a delay attack for increasing

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the intensity reach to the climax in the next few measures. This syncopated rhythmic idea

with the octave displacement expresses a dramatic, tricky sound to the music. Performers

can accentuate the delay attack chord in Piano I, and keep a stable triple meter in Piano II

for intense dialogue. See Example 62.

In measures 80-84 (Example 63), two pianos move in contrary motion again since

this is the climax of the second section. Piano I moves up with a stepwise sequence as

marked in the example, at the same time the right hand of Piano II moves up with Piano I,

the bass octave takes steps down harmonically. When playing, pianists can speed up a

little and keep the music moving with an exaggerated crescendo. A dramatic dynamic

change needs to be stressed. Because this is the turning point of going back to the

beginning of the section, it is important to not slow down, otherwisem the music will

sound dragged and stopped.


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Brubeck employed a dialogue made with chordal sequence moving stepwise in

two pianos from measure 85-96. As marked in Example 64, chords of Piano I enter on the

second beat of each measure and move stepwise to create the sequence of seconds such

as D to C, E-flat to D, F to E-flat, and A-flat to G in the right hand. From measures 88-

91, Piano II copies the same sequence of seconds in the right hand and takes over the

chordal melody to echo and respond to Piano I’s chordal melodic line by playing groups

in a similar sequence of A-flat to G, B-flat to A-flat, D to C, E-flat to D. When playing,

two pianos can phrase a longer sentence to enhance the dialogue by giving more weight

on the accentuated second beat in the part of Piano II. The music finalizes by applying

the polymodal technique in the last four measures 93-96, Piano I lands on C major, keys

in the key signature are all natural; Piano II ends on C Lydian mode which has a raised

fourth scale degree F-sharp. The ending of this movement is very dramatic, it has a

constant and continuous crescendo created by responding to each other in two pianos.

Pianists can play as loud as possible to bring out the dissonance between C major and C

Lydian mode for a dramatic ending since this is the special feature that is different from a

harmonious cadence in classical music writing. The tempo should not be slowed down in

order to avoid a dragging feel, the stable or even slightly speeding up may help the music

increase its intensity for a great ending. When practicing, classical pianists can analyze

and observe the changes between modes and tonality for better arranging the use of

dynamics and phrasing. Also, the rhythmic changes such as swing eighth notes,

suspensions, delay attach, anticipation, rootless voicing in both parts are essential to think

about critically too, they are the key to helping musicians appreciate the music in a

creative and proper way.

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Movement VIII: A La Turk

Brubeck loved to employ musical elements absorbed from foreign cultural into

his music. As analyzed earlier, the original music Dziekuje shadows features of Chopin’s

Mazurka; the use of arpeggios, chromatic motions, ornamented decorations in Dziekuje

are suggestive of Chopin’s music.72 In the fourth and sixth movements Fugue and

72 Storb, Fischer, Dave Brubeck, Improvisations and Compositions: The Idea of Cultural Exchange: With Discography, 95.

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Chorale, Brubeck uses contrapuntal technique which displays the main compositional

skill in the Baroque period, he also presents the theme in a traditional four-voice

arrangement following the rules of the classical chorale. In this movement A La Turk,

Brubeck applied the Turkish rhythmic idea borrowed from his famous work in jazz

standard: Blue Rondo A La Turk (1959). A story needed to be told before analyzing this

movement.

Before Blue Rondo A La Turk was born, Brubeck heard this distinctive rhythm

played by Turkish musicians on the street when he toured in Turkey. He named it “Blue

Rondo” is because the Turkish musicians said, “This rhythm is to us what the blues is to

you."73 The feature of the Turkish meters is called aksak, it is an irregular rhythmic

pattern consisting of different subdivisions of beats — 2+2+2+3 in nine-eight meter.74

Blue Rondo A La Turk is composed in F major, in this movement Brubeck employs the

same aksak rhythm in nine-eight meter and composed the melody in B-flat minor which

shares similar intervallic relationship with Blue Rondo A La Turk’ key F major. As

marked in Example 65 measures 1-6, Piano II presents the aksak rhythmic pattern

constantly in the left hand with Ostinato technique. Meanwhile, Piano I enters in octave

motion presenting short motives from the theme of Blue Rondo A La Turk to foreshadow

the melody (shown in measure 3 and measure 8). In measures 4-6, Piano I has chords in

E-flat Mixolydian since those chords contain the flattened seventh, third and fourth scale

degrees; therefore, the music presents modality instead of tonality with a sense of jazzy

sound. Additionally, in the second beat in measure 6, the chord uses a blues note B-flat

73 Ilana Kalish, “Dave Brubeck - Blue Rondo A La Turk Live,” Skip to this… Music brings Life alive, August 18, 2016, http://www.skiptothis.com/songs/2016/8/18/dave-brubeck-blue-rondo-a-la-turk-live. 74 Storb, Fischer, Dave Brubeck, Improvisations and Compositions: The Idea of Cultural Exchange: With Discography, 96.

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and G-flat from E-flat blues scale (E-flat, G-flat, A-flat, A-natural, B-flat, D-flat). The

music becomes jazzy and uplifting because of the changes in rhythmic character and

harmony. Classical pianists are advised to emphasize the accentuated downbeat of the

aksak rhythm and the chords to enrich the sound for an exciting beginning. Coincidently,

this rhythmic pattern is observed in Movement V, no. 152 of Bartók’s “6 Dances in

Bulgarian Rhythm” from Mikrokosmos Sz. 107 too. The meter in music features the same

2+2+2+3 pattern. It is hard to say if Brubeck was influenced by Bartók or they were

influenced by the same origin, but they did parallel with the same idea of the asaka

rhythmic material. See Example 66.

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Example 65. Dave Brubeck, “A La Turk,” Points on Jazz (1961), mm. 1-6.

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Example 66. Movement V, no. 152 of Bartók’s “6 Dances in Bulgarian Rhythm” from

Mikrokosmos Sz. 107 (1940), mm. 1-7.

The melody appears completely with the rhythmic idea for the first time is in

meausres 12-14. Thus, the melodic line in octave in Piano I needs to be played clearly

and underlined. Starting from measure 16, the chords appear with swing eighth notes, and

a strong cadential tendency from the dominant chord (see Example 67) tonicizes to B-flat

major in measure 20. In the same measure, the accentuated notes help rearrange the

original rhythmic pattern to 2+3+4 in Piano II. The downbeats of both pianos overlap and

appear at the same time. When playing, pianists are recommended to follow the accent

marks in the bass line to accommodate Piano I’s chords in order to push the music toward

to the next level where the melody starts and is marked fortissimo.

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The accompaniment in Piano II has four measures as one group to repeat. The

complete group consists of three measures of 2+2+2+3 pattern and one measure of 3+3+3

pattern. Piano I parallels Piano II with the same rhythmic arrangement while presenting

the theme from Blue Rondo A La Turk. There are contrary motions aiming to enhance the

music with dissonance and intensity in measures 24 and 28 where Piano I and Piano II

move in opposite directions. Although the motion doesn’t make sense harmonically but

emotionally functions well to add color to the music. It is interesting that Brubeck

embeds a tritone sequence in the bass of Piano II to create a jazzy sound. As marked in

Example 68, sequences of G-flat to C, F to C-flat, and B-flat to E-natural highlight the

unexpected sound. When playing, it is suggested to play more on the dotted quarter notes

to strengthen the dissonance of tritone chords.

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After the four measures of tritone sequence, Piano I points out the main theme

from the Prelude, the real melodic line reveals from the mist suffused by Blue Rondo A

La Turk. The first section ending in measure 43 after the second repeat, is an introductory

statement of the original theme. In the rest of the movement, the theme is varied three

times differently in rhythm and phrasing before the finale enters. The first variation starts

in measure 43 (see Example 69). Two pianos shift their functions: Piano I plays the role

of the accompaniment and keeps the rhythmic pattern of 2+2+2+3; at the same time,

Piano II states the melody in the swing style and is strict to the rhythmic pattern of

3+3+3.

101


Both pianos apply a compositional technique that is employed frequently in

former movements, which is called cross-rhythm. This technique is considered one of

potential difficulties that classical pianists may encounter, because it breaks the

synchronous feeling of the cooperation created by two pianos. During practicing, it is

necessary for Piano II to be aware of the swing feel hidden behind the chords, such as in

measures 47-48 in Example 70. Examples 70 and 70 present a sample of the typical

swing eighth note rhythm, and displays the proper way of counting the beats when

playing. In order to help Piano II to catch the swing feel and to melt two pianos together,

Piano I is suggested to divide the 2+2+2+3 pattern into groups of 3+3+3 by accentuating

the downbeat of each group. Once two pianos familirize with the rhythm, Piano I can

split the rhythm from three to two.

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Example 71. Swing eighth note rhythm.

In Example 72 below, the melody in Piano II applies the cross-rhythm technique

to break the fundamental three-beat rhythm. Classical pianists are recommended to look

at the bigger picture of the phrasing instead of just counting the subdivision of eighth

notes in each measure as one group. The bigger picture, in other words, is a longer

phrasing rearranged as four measures and twelve beats long. The rhythmic division is

advised to consider as 1+2+3+4+1+2+3+1+2+3+1+2 (see Example 72 measures 59-62).

Dividing beats in this way aims to help classical pianists sense the anticipation of swing

rhythm and make the music sound improvisational. For example, the second beat of

measure 61 sounds like an entry with standard swing style, the beat can be treated as the

beginning beat of a new rhythmic group. In measure 64, the melodic chords turn back to

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the standard triple meter, so this measure can also be considered as a reunited point to

check if both pianos are on the same page.


The cross-rhythm technique continuously takes place in Piano II of the next

phrase in an even more complex texture. Later, Brubeck places the rhythmic technique

such as hemiola against two eighth notes into the music; when classical musicians

encounter the rhythmic changes, they are encouraged to think about the placement of

swing eighth notes again. In measure 69, the rhythmic pattern of three against two

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appears. The tip to help classical musicians is to listen to the downbeat octave of Piano I.

In measures 71-72, the rhythmic pattern shifts to three against four, listening to the octave

of the first downbeat in the measure in Piano I helps put two pianos together. A lyrical

phrasing and crescendo to the F minor chord are suggested too. The rhythmic pattern

changes three times in only two lines, which means the peak of the theme arrives and is

about to end soon. Thus, dramatic dynamic effects are strongly encouraged to phrasing

the music. Classical musicians need to be able to jump out from the given rhythm and

take the brainstorm to switch to new rhythmic changes. See Example 73.


105

The second variation of the theme is brought out after three measures with the

arpeggio of the B-flat minor chord. The rhythmic division reverts to the original triple

meter in the swing style. The rhythmic change in the second varied theme occurs in

measure 99 in Example 74. Two pianos present hemiola rhythm again. To be specific,

Piano II groups two measures as one cycle, and each of the cycles divides into three,

which is directed by the accent marks in Piano II. As marked in Example 74, two pianos

are played together on same downbeats of every two measures. The suggestion for

classical pianists to play is to keep the pulse as stable as possible and emphasize

coincided downbeats more in order to track each other.

106


The third variation of the theme starts in measure 107. While Piano II preserves

the hemiola pattern, the right hand of Piano I presents the melody and the left hand joins

in with the rhythmic idead of 2+2+2+3. Brubeck likely quoted the melody from the third

movement Blues to here as the third variation since both of them share the exact same

harmony and notes (see Example 75). When playing, Piano I’s left hand’s downbeats can

be stressed for catching the rhythmic idea, as well as the intensity created by the tritone

sequence. Piano II slightly is recommended to calm the dynamics down to leave more

room for Piano I to express.

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Example 75. Comparison of the theme in movement III Blues, mm. 1-2 and the third

variation on the theme in movement VIII A La Turk, mm. 106-108.

Surprisingly, the first and second variations on the theme respond to the first

movement and second movement, Prelude and Scherzo too. The first variation of the

theme retains the same swing style as it happens in the theme of the Prelude, and the

second variation of the theme states the same B-flat minor chord as it happens in the

accompaniment made by sixteenth notes in Piano I. It is special that Brubeck applies this

variation technique to conclude and shadow the first three movements in the last one.

When playing, both pianists are advised to recall the particular feelings and emotions in

related movements for reminding audiences of former movements. I inserted another two

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comparisons of the varied themes and the original ones from related movements below,

see Examples 76 and 77.

Example 76. Comparison of themes in movement I and VIII.

Movement I, mm. 1-5.

Movement VIII, mm. 43-45.

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Example 77. Comparison of the theme in movement II and VIII.

Movement II Scherzo, mm. 1-2.

Movement VIII A La Turk, mm. 73-75.

After three variations of themes, the melody from Blue Rondo A La Turk

reappears again with a fortissimo mark and brings us to the Finale. Pianists are

encouraged to play with more excitement by emphasizing downbeats of the rhythmic idea

and melodies in octive motion. The Finale is composed in meter of four-four, which

enables the pulse to be broader. The range of registers on the keyboard is enlarged too.

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Piano I employs the doubled chords in both hands to present the melodic line in a deep,

loud, and round sound. Meanwhile, Piano II fashions fast arpeggios of sixteenth notes as

the harmonic support, which enriches the sound of the music. The arrangement for two

pianos shadows traditional features from classical music, such as works in the romantic

period that has large running arpeggios and chordal melody, clean tonal harmony, and

less decorative ornamentations. When performing, the accompaniment in Piano II can be

presented with rich pedals to add color to the harmony; Piano I needs to outline the top

notes of chords and phrase them lyrically.

Staring from measure 172, the left hand of Piano II has a chordal sequence

(marked in Example 78 measure 172-173) continuously repeating for 14 measures long in

the left hand for increasing the tense of the music. If presenting the bass line of those

chords individually, a sequence of same intervallic relationships in each measure

emerges. By singing out the bass line pianists are able to voice better and sense the

direction of phrasings. As shown in Example 78, a longer phrase needs to be created by

expressing the bass note sequence and producing a gradual and dramatic crescendo.

Additionally, downbeats in octaves in each measure of Piano I can be stressed powerfully

for building up the excitement while the right hand is singing the melodic line. The

harmony and texture in the Finale interpret music in a classical way since there are less

decorative ornamentations added into melodies; and there are mainly simpler choices of

notes originated from the harmony, as well as less changes in rhythmic and musical

textures. The harmonic structure is relatively clean, and the sound tends to be less

dissonant.

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The music fully cools down after two small phrases (see Example 79 in measure

185-188) with a dramatic reduction in dynamic. The decrescendo starts where the first

phrase enters with the dynamic mark fortissimo; then it produces a poco ritardando to a

mezzo piano for the second echoed phrase. The left hand of Piano II foreshadows the

basic triplet rhythmic pattern for the coda, and two pianos express a septuplet and a

nonuplet at the same time to respond to the former arpeggio patterns. When performing,

classical musicians are suggested to create a sudden drop on the repeated one (the second

one) and keep left hand’s triplet rhythmic pattern as stable and calm as possible. Besides

these, the quarter notes ending the septuplet and nonuplet in both pianos need to sustain

longer simultaneously on the key in order to fade the excitement. Fingers can stay on the

key longer after playing it for a fuller sound, a short touch on the key is not recommended

since it breaks the mood of settling down, also it will cause a feeling of rushing, which is

not suitable for reducing the dynamics for the coda. See Example 79 measure 186.

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The coda officially starts in measure 189. It maintains the rhythmic pattern of

triplets in the bass line in both pianos. The special feature to notice is that two pianos

move in the contrary motion. Pianists are recommended to express the bass line in a way

that employs the same articulation of the flat touch on the key. As marked in the music in

Example 80, there are no dynamic changes, everything is flat and calm. By producing a

simple sound, listeners can hear an echo-like in two pianos and it makes a perfect

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underlying accompaniment for the theme played in the top lines in both pianos.

Additionally, the top melodies in two pianos correspond to each other in a contrapuntal

way. The style of echoing between the top and bottom lines is the unique feature of the

coda, it adds colors to the music with a distant and sighing sound. The lament bassline

technique is employed again in the bottom line of Piano II. Bringing out the descending

downbeats of the lament bassline slightly is considered as the last call to the previous

dramatic story (see Example 80).


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From measures 195-198, a B-flat minor blues scale is featured to give a reinder to

the jazzy feel, as marked in Example 81. Pianists are encouraged to divide the top line of

Piano II into groups as marked in the example instead of the written down groups in the

music. Projecting an accelerando and a crescendo for the blues phrase is suggested.


1 115

CHAPTER 3: CONCLUSIONS

Although there are plenty of different compositional techniques and terms in jazz

and classical music, the similarity between them can still be appreciated. The connection

of the two genres can be observed by exploring the background of the composers and

their compositions. The nature of Brubeck’s music depends on a diverse range of

experiences. This includes the classical training received from his mother Ivey, the

inspiration he obtained from composers ranging from the Baroque to the contemporary

period, and Milhaud’s powerful encouragement in supporting his jazz interests. Also,

Brubeck’s open-minded and multi-cultural experiences enabled him to take a deep look

into different cultures. Furthermore, his ability to infuse foreign musical elements into his

own compositions is distinctive. Brubeck’s brother Howard helped him considerably and

his transcriptions allowed Brubeck’s music to be preserved. The records provide an

accessible chance for classical pianists to benefit greatly from jazz music because the

written-out music is easier for them to learn.

Points on Jazz can be a suitable piece for classical pianists to begin the journey in

playing jazz. The music itself is a series of variations based on one original theme from

Dziekuje. The structure and its components provide a traditional framework as a variation

form, already familiar to classical musicians. Although Brubeck inserted numerous

surprises from jazz language in recreating the original theme into different variations,

classical performers can “discover” and analyze such stylistic details with an

“experimental” approach. These surprises contain dramatic and rapid changes in

dynamics and harmonies; temporary tonicization, blues scale, polymodal technique and

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unexpected resolutions; and irregular rhythmic ideas such as the cross-rhythm technique,

swing eighth notes, Turkish rhythm, and compound meters. Additionally, compositional

techniques commonly used in classical music such as symmetrical structures,

counterpoint, chordal accompaniment, and arpeggio passages also help enhance diversify

the musical content.

The way this piece is written for pianists of all backgrounds, including classical,

is worth exploring. It combines inspirations from composers in the Baroque, Classical,

Romantic, and 20th-century periods. Moreover, the shadow of Bach, Purcell, Mozart,

Beethoven, Chopin, Rachmaninoff, Bartók, and others who also influenced Brubeck, can

be sensed in Points on Jazz. For example, the contrapuntal technique in the fourth

movement, Fugue, and the Baroque chorale placement in voices in the sixth movement,

Chorale, can be strongly perceived; the use of cadential points, the sequential pattern in

accompaniment and the symmetrical form structures are presented in movements like the

Prelude, Scherzo, Blues and Waltz. In addition, the irregular rhythmic device that relates

to features of Bartók’s music characterizes the last movement, A La Turk; and the

polymodal technique is applied in movements such as Blues and Chorale. The various

details come together producing a veritable integration of classical music and jazz in this

suite.

When classical musicians play this work, they should perform naturally rather

than in a forced manner: one should not expect classical pianists to perform at the same

level as jazz pianists do. Staying curious and observant and thinking critically when

learning jazz are key for classical musicians to acquire the sense of the proper jazz feel.

Classical musicians usually do not participate largely in a jazz environment; therefore,

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the additional practice is needed to make up for the lack of jazz surroundings. There are

practical suggestions for classical musicians to keep in mind when learning the piece.

First, listening to a large amount of jazz recordings intentionally and repeatedly is helpful

to perceive the natural feel of jazz. Second, challenging traditional rules subtly and

flexibly, in order to adjust the given music in an innovative way, can help classical

musicians to understand the musical content better. Finally, staying imaginative by

looking at the bigger picture of the music is more effective in familiarizing oneself with

jazz than always practicing the small details in the learning progress. The feature of

comprehensively infusing styles from classical and jazz languages in Brubeck’s Points on

Jazz provides such a great opportunity for classical pianists to step into a new world. This

dissertation aims to offer an accessible introduction for classical musicians to play jazz

music through my analysis of the work and the practical experience of my own rehearsals

and performance. In conclusion, I expect the paper to help classical pianists understand

the indications of jazz musical elements in Points on Jazz and become familiar with them

in order to play this music effectively.

1 118

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