ABSTRACT
This chapter provides an analysis of Charlie Parker's "Confirmation" as a representative composition from the Bebop Era. A transcription of the solo by the pianist Hank Jones is analyzed and two chord–scale relationships for the tune are provided. As is the case with most compositions from the Bebop period, the harmonic rhythm of "Confirmation" is fast and intricate. The choice of the tonal areas corroborates an interesting fact about the overall tonality of bebop tunes with respect to jazz traditions. The subdominant key area has always had strong blues connotations and the flat submediant was one of the few chromatic regions that ragtime or early jazz tunes allowed in their harmonic structure. The rhythm of "Confirmation" is likewise typical of the Bebop Era. Hank Jones's solo on "Confirmation," is from the album Bebop Redux recorded in 1977. In this solo, Jones shows how two jazz traditions—blues and bebop—can be integrated in a musically convincing manner.
