What is the melody of Take the A train?
What is the melody of Take the A train?
Take the A Train features the use of a G note (as a held note) for the first pitch of the piece, followed by another rather long G# note in bars 3 and 4. You might be wondering what that G# has to do with the key of C major. There are several explanations.
What style of music is take the A train?
jazz
“Take the ‘A’ Train” is a jazz standard by Billy Strayhorn that was the signature tune of the Duke Ellington orchestra.
What instruments are in the song Take the A train?
Besides Strayhorn’s “Take The ‘A’ Train and “After All” there was Mercer’s “Jumpin’ Punkins,” “John Hardy’s Wife,” and “Blue Serge.” The personnel included Rex Stewart (cornet), Wallace Jones, Ray Nance (trumpet), Lawrence Brown and Joe Nanton (trombone), Juan Tizol (valve trombone), Barney Bigard (clarinet), Johnny …
What is the tempo of take the A train?
Take The ‘A’ Train is played at 154 Beats Per Minute (Allegro), or 39 Measures/Bars Per Minute. Use our Online Metronome to practice at a tempo of 154BPM.
What scale is take the A train?
“A Train” in Minor: “Bernie’s Tune” The tonality of the song is established as C minor. A darker version of A Train’s C major. This chord could be written out more fully as an Ab13(#11), which takes the lydian dominant scale.
Did Duke Ellington write take the A train?
Duke Ellington’s signature composition was “Take the A Train,” written by his frequent collaborator Billy Strayhorn.
Who actually composed take the A train?
Duke Ellington
Billy Strayhorn
The the ,a’ Train/Composers
Which instruments do Duke Ellington and Ray Nance play the solos on in Take the A Train Strayhorn Take the A train0 00?
Duke Ellington, piano, directing: Wallace Jones, first trumpet; Ray Nance, trumpet; Rex Stewart, cornet; Lawrence Brown, first trombone; Joseph Nanton, trombone; Juan Tizol, valve trombone; Otto Hardwick, first alto saxophone; Johnny Hodges, alto saxophone; Ben Webster and Barney Bigard, tenor saxophones; Harry Carney.
How many bars in Take the A train?
Take the “A” Train starts with two bars of C major (on bar 5 in the sheet music below, after the 4-bar intro), before going to two bars of D7#11 (the #11 is in the melody), which functions as a II7.
What is the message in the song Take the A train?
The title of the song refers to the A line of New York’s subway train service. At the time of the song’s conception, this line ran from Brooklyn, up into Harlem, and then northern Manhattan where it used the express rails.
Why was Take The A Train important?
The song brought Ellington and his band financial success, became his “theme” song that he would perform regularly for the rest of his life, and is still one of the most important compositions in all of jazz.
What is the song take the a train about?
Take the A Train. Take The A Train was written in 1939 by Billy Strayhorn for the Duke Ellington Orchestra. The title refers to the, at the time, new A train service in New York City. Ellington’s son, Mercer, recalled that he found A Train in the trash. Strayhorn originally thought it sounded too much like a Fletcher Henderson arrangement.
Who wrote take the a train Duke Ellington?
Genre: Jazz Composer: Billy Strayhorn, Duke Ellington Take the ‘A’ Train is a Billy Strayhorn composition that became a signature tune of the Duke Ellington Orchestra and is one of the most famous compositions of the swing era. In 1939, Ellington offered Strayhorn work and sent him money to make the trip to New York City from Pittsburgh.
What song has the same chord changes as take the train?
“Take The A Train” Chord Changes. Billy Strayhorn’s “Take The A Train” was the signature song of the Duke Ellington Orchestra and remains a hugely popular jazz standard. Musicians often notice that Antonio Carlos Jobim’s classic “The Girl from Ipanema” has the same chord changes.
Why did Billy Strayhorn write take the a train?
Take The A Train was written in 1939 by Billy Strayhorn for the Duke Ellington Orchestra. The title refers to the, at the time, new A train service in New York City. Ellington’s son, Mercer, recalled that he found A Train in the trash. Strayhorn originally thought it sounded too much like a Fletcher Henderson arrangement.