Count Basie was a famous bandleader that helped define the big-band sound.
Count Basie’s orchestra was known for their head arragements, which meant that members of the orchestra know the riff by heart and improvizes the rest, as compared to the more notated performances by their peers (e.g. Duke Ellington, Fletcher Henderson). Another feature of Basie’s orchestra was the dueling tenor saxes.
Features
- Kansas City-style light beat
- use of riff for head arrangements, with call and response between members
- sudden dynamics changes