Jazz Arrangement und Komposition: Book & CD

This book moves beyond generic harmonization rules to show you exactly how Ellington, Strayhorn, Evans, and Fischer solved real compositional problems. The included concert scores and CD recordings let you study arrangements at professional level while hearing them performed, making abstract techniques concrete and immediately applicable to your own writing.

The writing has the clarity of a master class where an experienced arranger walks you through their thinking. You encounter real choices made by giants of the form, analyzed methodically, then get to hear those choices realized in recordings that demonstrate why each technique matters.

Composers and arrangers studying jazz orchestration at an intermediate to advanced level, and musicians preparing to write for small ensembles or big band. This book serves instructors teaching jazz composition and arrangers seeking a systematic study of professional techniques grounded in historical examples.

• Work through the melody harmonization chapter sequentially before attempting the advanced horn writing sections; each technique builds on previous concepts, and skipping ahead will leave gaps in your understanding of how voicings function across different ensemble sizes.
• Use the six complete scores as reference models when composing your own arrangements; analyze one score fully (marking chord substitutions, voice leading choices, and rhythmic approaches) before moving to the next rather than passively reading through all of them.
• Listen to the CD while following the concert key scores, then play the horn parts at the piano to internalize voice leading and hear how linear writing creates harmonic momentum.
• Return to the rhythm section chapter repeatedly as you compose; the techniques covered there fundamentally shape how your horn writing will sit in an actual ensemble context.

Assign this as a year-long study text in a jazz composition or arranging course, working through one chapter per week and using the provided scores as weekly analysis assignments. Alternatively, use specific chapters as focused workshops: pull the harmony chapter for a semester focused on voicing, or the rhythm section chapter when students begin their first full-ensemble arrangement.

• Melody harmonization using multiple approaches (basic, linear, and jazz-specific techniques)
• Voice leading and counterpoint across 2-, 3-, 4-, and 5-horn combinations
• Rhythm section writing and orchestration (comp figures, bass lines, and drum interaction)
• Analysis of extended compositional forms and development techniques in jazz
• Recognition and application of arranging techniques from Duke Ellington, Billy Strayhorn, Oliver Nelson, Gil Evans, and Clare Fischer
• Reading and understanding concert key scores in professional contexts