During the 1930s and 1940s, swing music had swept all Americans off their feet. While bandleaders are like Duke Ellington and Benny Goodman created history with their musical arrangements, vocalists such as Louis Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald, and Frank Sinatra amazed people with their talent. Serving as a way of emancipation from hardships and belligerence, swing music helped people find solace within its fold. However, with the end of World War II, this music genre suffered a setback for several reasons. Out of all theories surrounding the downfall of swing and big band music in the USA, the rise of bebop had a considerable role to play. In the 1940s, many musicians twisted and improvised swing to create more technically-advanced bebop. With new generations developing new listening habits, swing took a backseat and gave way to this new and fresh music style. So, in this blog, we highlight the differences between swing and bebop. Are you ready for an exciting discussion? Let us get started then.
Greater Improvisation – Compromising composed sections, the swing was noted for its rhythmic flow focusing on drums, bass, and woodwind instruments playing. Although swing offered great scope for improvisations, bebop just took it to another level. Gearing towards greater technicalities, this new music genre consisted of frantic tempos, odd structures, and complicated time signatures. Higher sounds and tempo of bebop were a drastic departure from the authentic swing style that was built on sweet-sounding saxophones. So, the simplicity of swing music was missing in the new technically-upgraded bebop genre.
Suited for Listening – When it came to swing, dance and music were married to each other. After all, who could stop themselves from grooving to the rhythmic beats of swing music? However, with the advent of bebop, this form of jazz remained no more suitable for dancing. Even though bebop was faster than swing, the former contained complex and unpredictable harmonies that were not adequate for dancing. In other words, bebop emerged as classical music against the dance music of the swing genre. But, do not think swing music is lost today. It is still remembered and played extensively on swing music radio. Simply tune into the station and travel back to the good old times.
Scat Singing Popularised – So, it was in the 1920s Louis Armstrong first introduced the art of scat singing in ‘Heebie Jeebies’. And during the bebop era, the focus once again shifted to this art form wherein the virtuosity of instrumentalists is applied and expressed through the human voice. Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, and Betty Carter individualized scat singing to suit their unique style. Moreover, the expanded rhythmic section allowed the instrumentalists to interact with soloists who would improvise world-less vocables for increasing engagement with the audience. Although not all jazz enthusiasts were acceptable and appreciable of scat singing, it cannot be denied that this style did allow musicians to showcase their musical prowess and vocal artistry before the world.
Upheld African-American Tradition – While swing was known to ease racial tension, bebop emerged to preserve what African-American claimed to be theirs. Many black artists were infuriated with how the white people wrongfully capitalized on their creations. To break away from the white influence, bebop altered the style of swing to suit the authentic African-American art form. As a result, bebop bands were reduced to smaller combos against the big band swing music bands. Intricate and unpredictable harmonies removed the dance elements and reinforced the musical artistry in the bebop genre.
Wrapping it up – As you can see, both swing and bebop had their uniqueness and their contribution to the development of music cannot be downplayed. So, are you a swing lover? Do you want to enjoy the dance music on the loop? Listen to authentic American music only on Swing Street Radio. Tune in to the internet radio station or simply download its app now!
