Cool Jazz

Cool jazz typically features more complex arrangements than bebop, and less emphasis is placed on virtuosity. European and Brazilian influence are often seen as well.

A Jazz Improvisation Almanac
Unit: Jazz Styles
Chapter: Mainstream Jazz

Characterization of Cool Jazz
Musicians

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Characterization of Cool Jazz

Cool jazz is a style that is generally described as a reaction of sorts against bebop - one that deemphasises technical virtuosity in favor of lyricism. The term "cool" connotes an emotional detachment. The first recorded examples of this style were by pianist Lennie Tristano and by trumpeter Miles Davis in the late 1940's. Cool jazz tended to feature harmonies and horn arrangements that were more complex than the simple head arrangements of bebop, but the tempos and the pace of the solos were less frantic. The following example is from the Birth Of The Cool session led by Miles Davis:

The brand of cool jazz played by Lennie Tristano did not usually involve such complex arrangements, and was often done at faster tempos, but was still perceived to be more emotionally detached than bebop:

The Modern Jazz Quartet (Copyright © 1998 Lester Levy)

Although Tristano and Davis were both based in New York, cool jazz eventually became associated with West coast musicians, and is therefore sometimes called West coast jazz. To some, this term refers to a specific form of cool jazz in which there is rarely a piano and in which harmonies are stated by the horns arranged in counterpoint - not unlike the music of old New Orleans in this respect, but with a more controlled, even classical sound. The most well-known proponent of this style was baritone saxophonist Gerry Mulligan:

The classical influence eventually led to a more deliberate fusion of classic and jazz that was called third stream music. This music tends to emphasize composition and arrangement over improvisation, although certainly improvisation continued to play a large role in the music. Composers Gil Evans, Gunther Schuller, and George Russell were some of the important figures in this movement. Here is an excerpt from a performance of a third stream composition:

Dave Brubeck (Copyright © 1998 Lester Levy)

Groups such as the Dave Brubeck Quartet and the Modern Jazz Quartet also used third stream elements in a combo setting:

Another influence often seen in cool jazz is the Brazilian-derived sound of the bossa nova and the samba, popularized by saxophonist Stan Getz and composer Antonio Carlos Jobim: