Small-ensemble Swing

Refer to “swing” music in conversation, and most people will assume you’re talking about big-band jazz from the 1930s, music made by orchestras led by the likes of Benny Goodman, Artie Shaw, Tommy Dorsey, and Glen Miller. Such bands were so popular and had such a hold on the popular music market during that decade that it can be easy to forget that swing music had existed in small-ensemble formats before the big-band era and continued to be made at smaller scale during that period and afterwards. From the traditional and “hot” sounds emerging from 1920s New Orleans and Kansas City to the Gypsy jazz of Django Reinhardt and his Hot Club de France bands, small-ensemble swing was well established before the big bands exploded in popularity and continued to be made after their decline.

Even during the big-band era, some of the biggest names in that genre were producing small-combo recordings as well. Benny Goodman’s trio and sextet recordings are classic examples of the genre, and Artie Shaw, Tommy Dorsey, and Johnny Hodges recorded outstanding small-ensemble releases during the 1930s. When bebop, a style that strongly favored small groups, exploded on the scene in the 1940s and effectively ushered big-band swing off of the popular stage, some of the more established swing bandleaders continued to record and perform in smaller configurations, and the swing genre has never fully gone away. Contemporary artists like drummer and bandleader Jeff Hamilton, pianist Dick Hyman, guitarist/singer John Pizzarelli, and bassist/singer Nicki Parrott have kept the swing torch lit in the context of smaller groups even as they play bebop, cool, and other jazz styles as well.

Rick Anderson