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Assumptions for Jazz Big Band
by TSgt Ricky Sweum
 INTRODUCTION
These are a set of general yet somewhat subjective jazz phrasing assumptions that I've noticed from playing in professional big bands and listening to recordings over many years. If musicians share the same set of assumptions, they tend to naturally play together and sound "tight". The purpose of writing this is to bring awareness to the many nuances in jazz music and to help the player and/or educator facilitate unity in their ensemble. The best way to learn of course is by listening to recordings and figure out what's going on. Listening to and following your lead players will always result in better sounding groups, but these "assumptions" may help organize and expedite the process of "playing together". Rule #1: make sure everyone in the band is using the same assumptions and that you always follow your lead players.
PART 1: CUTOFFS
DEFINITIONS:
Cutoffs: the way in which you play the ends of held notes; a.k.a. the release.
Markings: these are markings that are handwritten and sometimes printed in by the arranger over a note that indicate where it should be cut off. "-1" means that the note should be cut off on the downbeat of 1. A "-2" means the note should be cut off on the downbeat of 2 and so forth. If you see a "-1½" it means that the note will be cut off on the upbeat of 1. With bands that don't have cutoff assumptions internalized, it is recommended to mark in all releases.
Breath Release: this is a gentle way of ending a note and is most widely used during ballads when the tempo is slow. You will not use your tongue to stop the air. Instead you fade out with the breath into nothing. Downbeat and upbeat releases can be utilized at the ballad tempo. Listen for the non-articulated sound of a breath release with your favorite recordings.
Tongue Stop Release: this is where you end the note by using the tongue to stop the flow of air into the instrument. Reed players will touch their tongue to the reed to stop its vibration. Brass players will touch their tongue to the inside of their front teeth. By using a tongue stop release there will be the sound of a slight accent when ending the note. This will help give rhythm to the horns and make lines sound together.
ASSUMPTIONS FOR TEMPOS FASTER THAN BALLADS:
Cutoffs for tempos faster than ballads: the assumption is to use tongue stop releases for any tempo other than ballads and to always employ a downbeat cutoff. It is the discretion of the director to change this assumption when musically desired, especially to use breath releases on faster tempos. Beware of attempting an upbeat cutoff on faster tempos as they are very difficult to achieve with less experienced band and tend to sound sloppy if not done perfectly.
Cutoffs with at least an eighth rest following: for any note value of a half, dotted half, whole note, or more, the assumption is to release the note on the downbeat of the next beat. In the first example you'll see the first measure with a half note should be cut off on beat 3 and has the marking "-3". The second measure with the dotted half note is cut off on beat 4 and the whole note in the third measure will be cut off on the downbeat of 1 of the next measure.
Here are the same note values occurring in different parts of the measure. There are many variations on these. The important thing to notice is that the assumption stays the same.
Cutoffs of a tied eighth note with at least an eighth rest following: the assumption is to release the note on the downbeat the eighth note occurs on.
Here are the same note values with variations on where they occur in the measure.
SHORT CHANGING: Cutoffs with less than a quarter rest or no rest following: for any note value of: half, dotted half, whole note, or more, the assumption is to cut off the note one beat earlier than the normal assumption. The need to catch a breath between phrases will many times require the section to "short change" the note value in order to have time to breath and not be late on the next entrance. This is usually the case when there is less than a quarter note of rest between the two phrases at a faster tempo. When you notice phrases like this, it is important to make sure everyone is using the same assumptions and to mark your parts. Here are some examples:
Another instance for using the "short changing" assumption is when you have two phrases connected without any rest marked between them. If the first phrase ends in a long note, you will cut it off one beat early in order to breath.
Of course, if the phrase is short and you don't need a breath, the assumption would be to not cut off the held note at all. Make sure everyone is doing the same thing:
Cutoffs of a tied eighth note with no rest following: for any note value that ends in a tied eighth note and is followed by a note instead of a rest, the assumption is to ask the lead players or director what they want to do. The assumption is to not assume. Here are some examples of the possible options:
If the tempo is faster and you don't need a breath because of a shorter phrase, you won't cut off the note at all:
If the tempo is slower and you want a quick breath, cut the note off on the tied eighth note:
Or, you might want to short change the note to catch a breath before the next line. This is a better choice when the tempos are very fast and taking a breath in the space of an eighth note may make your entrance on the next note late:
ASSUMPTIONS FOR BALLADS:
Cutoffs for Ballads: the assumption is to use the breath release, although it can be effective to mark in tongue releases in certain places for dramatic effect. All assumptions used for faster tempos will be the same at ballad tempo with the exception of the following:
Notes Tied to an Eighth Note with at least an Eighth Note of Rest Following: for any note value that ends in a tied eighth note, release the note on the upbeat after the written eighth note.
IN CLOSING:
It is my belief that by spending some time working on your cutoffs, a door may present itself to another level of playing. Have fun playing and listening. Look for further "Jazz Assumptions for Big Band" articles where we will dive into areas of Articulation, Phrasing, Rhythm Section Roles, etc. Feel free to email me with questions and insights.
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