Benny, Artie, and Woody

I've got an 8-10 page paper to write, so I thought I'd test out my ideas on you, my dear readers.  Hopefully, you are not too sick of hearing about jazz musicians, but that is all that's been on my mind lately...

My paper is a comparison and contrast of the performance and playing styles of Benny Goodman, Artie Shaw, and Woody Herman.  Three great clarinet-playing bandleaders of the Swing era. 

These are the main points:

Tone:  Benny had more formal training, played sax when necessary, and therefore had a clean, focused sound.  He was playing professionally by age 12, so he was basically a clarinet prodigy.  Artie had almost no formal training, and played saxophone primarily.  His sound is a bit thinner, with a bit less body, or fullness.  Woody had some formal training, started on sax, and learned clarinet as a double.  His clarinet sound is enormous, like he's trying to shout through the clarinet.  It's a rough, raw sound, that lacks clarity and focus. 

Phrasing:  Artie shines in this respect.  His playing is lyrical, melodic, and always in good taste.  Benny, being more analytical, played around the chord changes, using the structure as a basis to apply his soloing.  His playing is restrained, but not rigid.  Woody is more visceral in his soloing style.  He grew up in the vaudeville circuit, first as a child singer/dancer, then as a sax soloist.  He plays a phrase the way a singer would sing it.

Technique:  All three had full command of the clarinet.  Benny may have had an edge with regard to sheer technical playing, with his formal background.  Artie's playing is very natural.  He plays top C's like it's nothing, and hits them every single time.  Woody also tends to stay in the high range, sometimes venturing into the low range.  Benny uses the full range, very low to very high, always with good tone and even sound.

Of course, these are generalizations.  These are things that I've noticed that happen most often while listening to them these past weeks.  Though Benny is a clean, "proper" player, he is also capable of growling into the clarinet if it serves the music.  Woody plays rough, but he's still in control. 

Hopefully, all of this listening and analyzing will rub off onto my own playing.  The best, I've noticed, never stop learning.