How is blues different from jazz

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Help us improve. Here are some initial differences. Jazz: A blended mix of African and Auropean musical techniques and traditions from church, home, work. Blues: African American folk music with spiritual origins from African American churches and spiritual songs.

Another key difference is the tone and beat of the music. Jazz music is often much more lively and upbeat than blues music. Jazz is often associated with swinging and swaying movements, lively atmospheres and even abstract, unpredictable noise. Blue however, is melancholic, sharp and slow — and the format of the music can often sound very similar from one song to the next. Unlike in the Delta, slaves had been allowed to get together on weekends and play drums and dance. This preserved the drum rhythms of Africa and the Caribbean, as well as the tradition of embellishments and improvisation.

When African American musicians later played in horn based bands, they carried on this tradition. The blues was also an influence, adding blue notes to the musical scales used.

Any kind of song can be played in a jazz style, including blues songs, therefore there is a lot wider variation in song structure in jazz. After World War II, both genres went through large changes as the instruments became electrically amplified, and African Americans migrated to cities in the Northern US.

A common type of blues you might hear in a post war movie scene would be Chicago blues. It features a three to five piece band with vocalist, guitar, bass, drums, and possibly a harmonica or piano. The music still contains the blues elements of blue notes, the AAB lyric pattern, call and response, and the 12 bar blues pattern.

A common repertoire would consist of the songs of Muddy Waters or Howling Wolf. The music would likely be on the louder driving side, with a somewhat distorted guitar sound, a preview of the rock and roll that followed.

The drumbeat would either be a slow blues beat or a mid tempo shuffle with emphasis on the snare drum. The beat would keep a steady groove.