ABSTRACT
In the early 1940s, numerous factors combined to cause the demise of many of the big bands. America's entry into World War II necessitated a military draft that claimed many big band musicians. Others, wanting to do something for their country, enlisted.
At the same time, top jazz soloists continued to seek more artistically rewarding avenues to express themselves beyond the confines of the big band. At after-hours clubs like Minton's Playhouse, where musicians could play music for themselves, rather than for the public, a return to the early jazz ideal emphasizing improvisation fostered a new music—bebop.
Not all of the bebop innovations involved solo styles. Changes took place in the rhythm section to accommodate this new style. Drummers primarily used the ride cymbal to maintain pulse rather than the hi-hat and bass drum since, at some of the fast tempos, it became physically impossible for drummers to maintain a steady pulse with the bass drum.
Bebop continues to be influential. The bebop generation of performers in the 1940s was followed by the hard bop generation of the 1950s, and bebop lives on today, serving as the basis for study and teaching improvisation at jazz schools worldwide.
