By Jatziri Gallegos M.
In his explorations about the origins and development of jazz, author J.E. Berendt establishes a dilemma of jazz grounded in the following paradox: while jazz music has its origins in vocal music, jazz singing actually comes from instrumental music.
Over the years I’ve wondered about the characteristics that defined a jazz singer and the challenges it entails. In fact, there have been debates over whether some artists such as Frank Sinatra were truly jazz singers or rather interpreters of the American Songbook in an era when jazz was very popular. So, what exactly does it mean to be a jazz singer? A straightforward answer would be that a jazz singer should improvise, period. While true, understanding jazz vocal improvisation involves exploring its various forms.
Most people relate jazz vocal improvisation with scat singing — a technique where singers use syllables (doo-ba-doo-dn-dah) to create spontaneous improvised melodies over the harmony of a song. Scat is the most famous way of improvising in the jazz vocal world and legends like Louis Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald, Betty Carter, Mel Torme, and contemporary idols such as Dianne Reeves, Kurt Elling, JD Walter, and others have demonstrated mastery in scatting. It demands significant vocal skills, ear training, and musicianship to demonstrate it, just like any other instrumentalist develops their improvisation skills. There are many recordings on which scat singing serves as the primary technique which vocalists use to improvise and engage in musical conversations with other musicians in live performances and recordings.
On the other side, there is a legacy of jazz singers who rarely or never scat, yet are still considered an important part of the development and history of jazz. They rather innovate by spontaneously reinterpreting melodies and rhythms using the song’s original lyrics; this practice of paraphrasing on the spot is sometimes referred to as second chorus. To give a better idea, imagine that you sing your favorite song over a backing track and while using its lyrics, you take the chance to move around different melodic and rhythmic ideas that are created on the spot; it is almost like using the harmonic movement and the essence of the original song as a foundation to create a new way of saying the same story with the same lyrics but in a completely different way.
In order to acquire such a level of freedom, the singer needs great musical skills just like it is needed for scat improvisation. Singers like Billie Holiday, Sarah Vaughan, Carmen McRae, Nina Simone, Dinah Washington, Chris Connor, Little Jimmy Scot, and many more are examples of the great use of this ability.
Moreover, vocalese is the practice where singers add lyrics to improvised instrumental solos and this practice has played a significant role in jazz vocal history. Eddie Jefferson’s vocalese over the improvised solo of trumpet player Miles Davis on the jazz standard “So What” exemplifies this technique. This iconic version is a great example of how singers approached the language of jazz in an organic way while performing sophisticated melodic and rhythmic transcriptions while using lyrics to tell a story. Even though this is not considered actual improvisation because it does not include spontaneity, it is for sure a common practice that allowed singers to relate to the musical aspects of the genre. Icons like John Hendricks, Annie Ross, Dave Lambert, King Pleasure, Bob Dorough and so others contributed significantly to its development.
It is crucial for aspiring jazz singers to not only master vocal and jazz singing techniques but also to develop a profound sense of listening and understanding the historical and sociological contexts that this genre involves. Improvisation is directly influenced by the repertoire, the musical style, its context and the language of each musician that accompanies the performances, therefore, the ability to engage in spontaneous musical conversations with fellow musicians is vital to the jazz singer’s artistic path.
It is true that it takes years of preparation to get to the point on which improvising becomes natural and enjoyable but it is also true that when it happens there is no greater sensation for a jazz singer to experience. Next time you attend a jazz singer performance or when you watch the next video of a jazz singer improvising, make sure you pay attention to the musical dialogues that happen during the improvisation; see if you can feel a bit of what the artist is experiencing in a live setting.
At the end, the lifetime preparation allows the jazz singer to express a feeling or a thought with absolute freedom and spontaneity, aiming to connect with an audience ready to hear good stories through music and improvisation.