5761 / 18210 · Workshop 40 — “The Sidewinder”: Hard Bop Groove, Dominant-Blues Harmony, Riff Layering, and How to Make a Vamp Feel Like a Full Arrangement← prev⊞ allnext →
40.92A useful style-diagnosis question
When your arrangement sounds “generic jazz” rather than the intended style, ask:
Is the problem really the chords?
Often it is not.
It may be:
- wrong subdivision
- wrong articulation
- too much pedal
- wrong bass role
- overly continuous comping
- insufficient repetition
- inappropriate phrase length
These are often more important than chord substitutions.