Counterpoint In John Lewis Compositions
Counterpoint in John Lewis’ Compositions
John Lewis (1920-2001), in contrast to Gerry Mulligan, was a pianist trained in the classical tradition, who received a master degree from The Manhattan School of Music. He openly acknowledged his influence of Western art music and the implementation of classical compositional techniques in his writing for the Modern Jazz Quartet. Much of the structural aspects in Lewis’ arrangements and compositions were derived from the integration of classical compositional techniques, like baroque counterpoint (especially cannon and fugue) and carefully organized sections for improvisation. It is not unusual to hear in one of his arrangements over a standard like “Love Walked In” canonical imitations between the
John Lewis (1920-2001), in contrast to Gerry Mulligan, was a pianist trained in the classical tradition, who received a master degree from The Manhattan School of Music. He openly acknowledged his influence of Western art music and the implementation of classical compositional techniques in his writing for the Modern Jazz Quartet. Much of the structural aspects in Lewis’ arrangements and compositions were derived from the integration of classical compositional techniques, like baroque counterpoint (especially cannon and fugue) and carefully organized sections for improvisation. It is not unusual to hear in one of his arrangements over a standard like “Love Walked In” canonical imitations between the