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    Jazz transcription for non-jazzers

    Hello, everyone!

    [Short version]

    I'm seeking recommendations of a short (approx. 1:00 long) jazz solo that sophomores with minimal jazz experience could reasonably transcribe at home in a week. A link to what we've used in previous years can be found below, and ideally, we're looking for something that's roughly "the same" in terms of difficulty.

     

    [Long version]

    Every year, our Theory/Aural IV students are engaged in simultaneous three-week units on jazz harmony. Though there are many things gained from this experience, the PRIMARY goal is being able to "work" from a lead sheet -- whether that is improvising guide-tone-like vocal accompaniments, or experimenting with added tensions on top of basic 7th chords, or (in the case of many of our students) just figuring out what notes are in the chords printed on a lead sheet. Most (and soon, all) of the students in these classes have little to no experience in jazz music.

    In the Aural Skills class, part of this unit involves a take-home transcription project, where they are asked to notate a fairly simple jazz solo.  For the last several years, we've been using the introduction and first chorus of Chet Baker's 1955 "Summertime" recording (0:00-0:55 in this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fu4RCvO1o1k ).  But, it's time to change that up for academic integrity concerns: (1) too many existing copies in the hands of upper-classpeople, and (2) there's even a transcription of the whole thing on YouTube.

    So, I'm seeking recommendations from any of you for a similar kind of solo for transcription.  Similar length, similar difficulty (vaguely defined!), and so forth.  (When we picked this recording, Chet's clarity of pitch throughout was a major deciding factor -- which ruled out a lot of heavily "stylized" options.)

    Thank you very much for any suggestions you might have!

    Zac

     

     

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