Bebop

Roughly: 1940-50

"Technically, bebop was characterized by fast tempos, complex harmonies, intricate melodies, and rhythm sections that laid down a steady beat only on the bass and the drummer's ride cymbal. Bebop tunes were often labyrinthine, full of surprising twists and turns. All these factors - plus the predominance of small combos in bebop - set the music apart from the Swing bands of the 1930s."

- from David H. Rosenthal's book, Hard Bop, published by Oxford Paperbacks, New York, 1992

And coming out of bebop, with the assistance of Miles Davis, and a few other cats, came Cool, and, following closely on its heels and borrowing the suffix, Hard Bop.

Bassists

Ray Brown, Charles Mingus

Composers

Tadd Dameron

Drummers

Art Blakey, Max Roach, and Kenny Clarke

Pianists

Theloniou= s Monk and Bud Powell

Saxophonists

Charlie Parker, Jackie McLean, Sonny Stitt, and Dexter Gordon

Trombonists

J.J. Johnston

Trumpeters

"Dizzy" Gillespie, Fats Navarro, Miles Davis, and Kenny Dorham

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