Java Jive (arr. Ed Lojeski): SSAA Choral Octavo

Ed Lojeski's arrangement captures the infectious energy of the Manhattan Transfer version while remaining practical for high school and community choirs. The SSAA voicing balances accessibility with genuine jazz harmony, and the rhythmic drive keeps singers engaged without requiring extensive jazz experience. Programming this alongside more traditional standards gives your concert a personality that audiences remember.

Smooth, sophisticated fun. The arrangement swings with the ease of people who genuinely enjoy the music they are singing, delivering bright jazz voicings that sit comfortably in the voice while maintaining harmonic complexity. This is the sound of a good jazz standard captured in four-part harmony, playful without being trivial.

Intermediate to advanced high school choirs and community ensembles with some jazz experience or willingness to build it. Smaller college a cappella groups and professional choruses also program this regularly for its crowd appeal and solid musicianship.

• Establish the swing feel early in rehearsals by having the group listen to the Manhattan Transfer recording; the shuffled eighth-note pulse is the foundation everything else rests on.
• Shape the dynamics around the text: the playful lyrical content invites bright, forward energy, but Lojeski's writing includes moments where the harmony deepens and deserves more space.
• Treat the rhythmic figures in the inner voices as active participants, not filler. These lines contain the jazz vocabulary of the arrangement and should speak clearly in the mix.
• Lock the final sections early; the closer harmonic movement and tighter rhythmic figures require precision, especially in the ending tag.

Use this as a centerpiece for a concert section on American popular song or mid-century jazz standards. It pairs naturally with other swing-era repertoire and provides the kind of program breather that refreshes an audience without sacrificing musical substance. Late in the concert year, this arrangement rewards the rhythmic precision and ensemble balance your singers have developed.

• Jazz phrasing and swing feel in choral context
• Reading syncopated rhythmic figures across four parts
• Balancing choral blend with jazz articulation and rhythmic clarity
• Interpreting jazz harmony and voice leading in SSA/SSAA voicing
• Sustaining rhythmic independence in upper voices while anchoring harmonic movement