Solo II (CL-1812)
This solo (CL-1812) of So What was recorded during a live performance with the musical genius Gil Evans and his 21-piece orchestra. This 1961 improvisation, being some three years later than the solo previously analyzed, is marked by several distinct differences in setting. As noted above, what before was a quintet is now a big band, and the quiet control of a studio setting has been replaced by an audience-charged scene at Carnegie Hall in New York City. Also, the key has been moved down one step from E minor to D minor, and the tempo quickened from = 138 to an almost doubled speed of = 240. All these factors, along with the radically different textural and rhythmic style of the Gil Evans approach, serves to make this a more energetic and intense solo.
Chorus one begins on pick-up notes with an insistent repetition of middle-register tonic D which continues for five measures. Measure 6 gives us the first hint of the chromaticism to come and, consciously or unconsciously, the descending minor third in measure 7, to be heard again in measure 8 and measures 18-20, and which changes to an ascending minor third in measures 25, 51 and 53, becomes the melodic motif that lends cohesiveness to the entire solo. Measures 8-10 make a brief sidestep into C major over D minor polytonality and then, following 6-1/2 beats of rest, launch into an E phyrgian scale run that ends on A.
As holds true throughout this solo, there is an absence of the many obvious key-change anticipations used in the CS-8163 solo. Instead, the final note before a key change tends to become a pivotal-chromatic tone in the new key, as evidenced by the appearance of the above noted A in the B section (measures 22-23). And, in a more ambiguous use of the anticipation, measure 24 uses a chromatic ascending line to approach the E which he employs as the 9th in the return to D dorian at measure 25. As in the first A section of chorus one, Miles' use of the 9th and 11th in measure 25 and his subsequent C major scale run in measure 29-30 establishes a major-over-minor polytonality. However, with the beginning of chorus two, set up by nine beats of silence, there is a return to D tonic.
The second chorus, as was the case in the CS-8163 solo, is dintinguished at the beginning by its rhythmic change from running eighth note lines to long, sustained-tone phrases. Measures 41-46 are similar in nature to measures 13-16, which seem to utilize an E phrygian scale to chromatically set up the key change to Eb dorian at the B section. Measures 49-50 see a return to the chromaticism evidenced in chorus one's B section. This continued chromaticism adds its own sense of daring to the overall intense nature of this solo. Note again the continuity attained by the repeated use of the minor third in measure 50 (descending) and measures 51 and 53 (ascending). The C common tone between the two keys could be considered the transitional one that anticipates a return to D dorian for the last A section of chorus two. The C ascends to E which begins a descending then ascending scale pattern that concludes the chorus on the minor seventh of the key (C major). The solo continues for four more choruses for a total of six choruses.
Conclusion
Although there are notable differences between the setting and character of the 1959 and 1961 solos, there exists a remarkable number of similarities between the two. Both solos use repetition of the tonic note to state the improvised line and to establish the key center. Both are contained within a two-octave range (CS-8163, Bb-Bb; CS-1812, E-E), although the 1961 solo maintains a continued higher register throughout. Each solo begins chorus two with a rhythmic change to sustained half and whole notes from the preceding moving eighth note lines. Both evidence Miles' preference for simple lines, with patterns lasting more than one measure. The lines, which are somewhat understated and dotted with large dramatic periods of silence, demonstrate a mastery of melodic and rhythmic cohesion, tension and release. Also noted in the transcriptions by various symbols are the unique Miles devices of using half-valve notes to give a nasal texture to the sound (+), falling off notes at the ends of phrases or measures ( ), and the use of glissandos to approach notes ( ).
Miles Davis, the author of the Cool Period and responsible for the profuse use of modes during that time, demonstrates with these two solos his command of the jazz language and a style that is recognizable and unique despite the difference of setting between the two. In reference to the live 1961 live Carnegie Hall performance, Bill Coss of Down Beat magazine wrote in the July 6, 1961 issue, "It was jazz at its finest. As I write this analysis, I can still say without reservation, "Miles Davis, jazz at its finest".
So What
In layman's terms
Understanding the So What analysis requires understanding music theory. To start with, most music is defined as being either in a major key (such as C major) or a minor key (C minor). The notes between these two scales vary (C minor contains an Eb, while C major uses E ). The first note of the scale in each of these keys is referred to as the tonic. Distance between notes is an interval. An ascending minor third interval, such as C to Eb, has three upward half-steps. An ascending eleventh, such as C to F in the next octave, contains an octave plus a fourth. Chromaticism refers to the prominent use of half-step intervals (C-C#-D-D#-etc.). Our ears have become accustomed to hearing music in only one key (or tonality) at a time, such as C major. However, sometimes music can be in two different keys (or tonalities) at the same. This is called polytonality and occurs at different spots in So What.
Another term for scales is modes. Scales are based on a pattern of different intervals. For example, the C major scale consists of the notes C-D-E-F-G-A-B-C and the step interval pattern of whole-whole-half-whole-whole-whole-half. The dorian mode, used in So What, is a scale built on the second note of a major scale. For example, the D dorian mode, based on the second note (D) of a C major scale, consists of the notes D-E-F-G-A-B-C-D in the step interval pattern of whole-half-whole-whole-whole-half-whole. The phyrgian mode, also used in So What, is built on the third note of a major scale. For example, the E phyrgian mode, based on the third note (E) of a C major scale, consists of the notes E-F-G-A-B-C-D-E in the step interval pattern of half-whole-whole-whole-half-whole-whole.
