Exciting Sounds of the Big Band Era: Guitar Book

Energy and sophistication wrapped together. These arrangements swing hard, with that unmistakable blend of loose rhythmic ease and precise harmonic awareness that defined the era. The guitar lives in the background, shaping the groove and coloring the sound.

Guitarists in a jazz ensemble or lab band who have basic comping skills and read chord charts fluidly. This book works well for high school big band guitarists and adult jazz students ready to tackle authentic big band repertoire.

• Lock into the rhythm section's pocket early. These tunes demand steady time and clear articulation; the guitar drives the harmonic foundation, so nail your chord placement on beat one.
• Use the recorded accompaniment as a learning tool first, then as a rehearsal partner. Listen for how the original guitar voices these standards and how the comp rhythm interacts with the horns.
• Shape phrases with dynamics, not just picking. Swing era guitar requires breathing space between figures; let silence serve as part of your phrasing.

Build a full big band concert around these charts, mixing them with original compositions and newer jazz standards to show the lineage of the form. They also anchor small combo performances when drawn from this collection, giving students a working repertoire for casual performance settings.

• Comping within a swing rhythm section
• Reading chord changes and navigating harmonic complexity
• Responding to horn lines and matching articulation and phrasing
• Developing time feel specific to the big band idiom
• Substituting chords and finding pocket voicings that sit behind ensemble writing