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![]() At the same time, they allow the performer the flexibility and freedom to create new melodic material in each performance, since they can be elaborated in different ways. These frameworks provide specific ways of navigating the voice-leading strands of a tune, often referred to as guide tones in the study of jazz harmony. Analyses show that Evans utilized the same melodic frameworks in different performances, but used them to create new melodic lines. The present study mediates between these two levels of structure by codifying specific melodic frameworks at the level of the phrase in the solos of jazz pianist Bill Evans. On top of these tonal plans, players may draw from a set of memorized licks. Jazz musicians often use the tonal frameworks of tunes from the Great American Songbook as plans for their improvisations. vi Abstract ! Patterns have a long and deep history in the tradition of improvisation. ! For her immeasurable support, strength, and love, I am eternally grateful to my wife, Jaclyn. Having a lifelong musical companion and friend as a kind of birthright is a wonderful way to go through life. v ! My sister, Ellen, has been my musical counterpart and friend for as long as I can remember. ![]() ![]() Their endless support and unswerving devotion have filled me with a sense of meaningful place, purpose, and direction. ! My mom and dad, Charlotte and Jeffrey, have served and continue to serve as wonderful parents. His sensitivity as a reader helped to bring the work to its present form, and I am also thankful to him for his generosity in proofreading my transcriptions. His model and inspiration in this area helped to shape the essence of this work. ! Dariusz Terefenko’s classes on keyboard techniques helped to stimulate an interest in the bridge between performance and theoretical ideas, where understanding is achieved in part by working toward a true fluency in the language of music, not only by making statements about it, but by speaking it as well. I will always look back fondly on our many conversations together. His method of inquiry into musical processes have left their mark on me as well as on this work, and his thoughtful support has always been a welcome constant. He provided crucial support while I worked to frame the theoretical issues. ! I am also grateful to have had Matthew Brown as a teacher and advisor. I have appreciated his keen insights and his encouragement along the way. As an advisor, his comments both early on in the project as well as in its final stages have helped shape my understanding of the relationship between jazz theory and practice. Some of the ideas for this study were first fostered during my time in Robert Wason’s seminar on Bill Evans. iv Acknowledgements ! It is a pleasure to be able to thank three mentors who have shaped my perspective, initially in classes and later in my work on this project. During the 2010-2011 academic year, he taught at Franklin & Marshall College in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. He earned a Master of Arts in Theory at the Eastman School of Music in 2007. He attended West Chester University from 2000 to 2004 as a member of the Honors Program, graduating summa cum laude and earning a Bachelor of Music with a double major in Music Education and Music Theory and Composition. Bill Evans and the Craft of Improvisation Volume I by Austin Andrew Gross Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy Supervised by Professor Robert Wason and Professor Matthew Brown Department of Music Theory Eastman School of Music University of Rochester Rochester, New York 2011 ii Copyright © 2011 Austin Andrew Gross iii Curriculum Vitae ! Austin Gross was born in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, and grew up in Emmaus, Pennsylvania.
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