A biographical and musicological exploration of the first significant small group in jazz history to operate without a chordal instrument
This research places Gerry Mulligan’s 1950s quartet in historical and musical context through detailed examination of its recordings. Mulligan’s early arrangements for bandleaders Elliot Lawrence and Gene Krupa are explored, and his writing for Miles Davis’s Birth of the Cool nonet. Mulligan arranged for Stan Kenton on the West Coast, then formed his pianoless quartet in Los Angeles with trumpeter Chet Baker. The recordings influenced Mulligan’s subsequent small-group work for the rest of the decade. The quartet’s harmonic innovation is explored through detailed transcription. Mulligan’s reworking of his compositions for larger ensembles is also examined, culminating in his Concert Jazz Band.
Researcher: Alyn Shipton
Using oral history interviews conducted in collaboration with BBC Radio 3 in 2002 to underpin a thorough analysis of one of the most celebrated groups in jazz history, this project employs a research methodology outlined in Shipton’s paper New Jazz Histories (Jazz Research Journal, Vol. 3 No. 2, Equinox, Sheffield, 2009, pp. 127-144) to reconcile widely differing source material, and create a fuller understanding of a period of musical innovation.
The aim was to explore the origins and evolution of Mulligan’s “chordless” ensembles through detailed study of his recordings and scores, a close examination of coverage of his work in the U.S. press throughout the period from 1945-1962, and transcriptions of interviews with all the surviving participants of the relevant groups, as well as his record producers. The beneficiaries of this work will be any scholars exploring Mulligan’s work, West Coast jazz, and the social and racial milieu of 1950s American jazz.
The project began in 2021, and the research was published in the Oxford Studies in Recorded Jazz volume The Gerry Mulligan 1950s Quartets in May 2023. Although the book is now published, the research continues. A fuller exploration of Mulligan’s movie appearances was undertaken in October 2023 for Free Radio Brooklyn’s cinematic series Screen Sounds, and is preserved as a podcast Screen Sounds - Gerry Mulligan.
A progress report on the research was given at an Academy Public Research Event on Friday 2 February 2024, and this was followed by the formation of a quartet (with Shipton playing the double bass) to play this music at various events in the UK in 2024. A concert in Oxfordshire in June was followed by a talk and concert at the Swanage Jazz Festival in July. There will be a lecture recital at the Guildford Book Festival on 9 October 2024 at Guildford Pavilion, in collaboration with Guildford Jazz, and the quartet is already booked for further appearances in 2025.
Acknowledgements
The research was undertaken as part of Dr. Shipton’s research fellowship at the Academy, supported by an Academy Small Research Grant for extensive use of copyrighted musical material and images. Additional funding was provided by Oxford University Press.