Jazz arranging · Early Jazz & Dance Bands
DonRedman
1900–1964 arranger · composer · orchestrator
Redman pioneered the call-and-response pattern between brass and reed sections that became fundamental to swing arranging.
- Predominant era
- Early Jazz & Dance Bands
- Lifespan
- 1900–1964
- Signature
- iridescent color
Bio · 36 words
Don Redman was born in Piedmont, West Virginia, and was a child prodigy who played multiple instruments by age 12. He studied at Storer's College and the Boston Conservatory before joining Fletcher Henderson's orchestra in 1923.
01
Musical style
Sound DNA
Five shared dimensions make the arranger’s musical priorities visible at a glance.
Iridescent
Instrumental color leads the design.
Balanced
Space and activity stay in balance.
Layered
Registers work as distinct layers.
Transparent
Individual lines stay easy to follow.
Elastic
The rhythmic feel expands and contracts.
02
Orchestration
At the
arranging desk
“Small Hours,” orchestrated in the style of Don Redman. Hear the parts, follow the score, and examine the decisions inside each chord.
Original miniature
Small Hours
8 bars · C major · 4/4 Swing eighths · 2:1
Sectional call and response gives this small ensemble the outline of an early big band. This eight-bar setting uses a root-and-fifth two-beat bass beneath alto sax.
Choose Play to hear the recorded ensemble.
The passage
Read what you hear
All parts at sounding pitch · middle C = C4 · eighth notes follow the selected feel. Select a bar to inspect or replay it.
Inside the ensemble
Listen by part
Combine Solo buttons to hear a voicing or a doubling. Mute removes a part from the mix.
Downloads include every part at concert pitch. MIDI includes the selected tempo and swing feel.
Bar 01 · I · tonic
Cmaj9
Follow the change from moving reeds to clipped replies; the melody stays continuous across the sectional exchange.
Sounding pitches
High to low · muted parts are dimmed · note releases can leave a rest between attacks.
| Part | Pitch | Chord role |
|---|
From the arranging bookshelf Sebesky · Nestico
This original Don Redman study applies the books’ approach of examining voicings, registers and instrumental combinations. It illustrates one facet of the artist’s work in a reduced ensemble; it is not a transcription or a reproduction of a book example. The melody and eight-bar progression remain the same throughout the artist collection.
- Don Sebesky, The Contemporary Arranger: “Combining the Woodwinds,” printed pp. 69–70 (PDF pp. 78–79), compares balance at different registers. “Voicing the Strings,” beginning on printed p. 124 (PDF p. 133), discusses distributing string voices. “Combining Strings with Winds,” printed p. 155 (PDF p. 164), demonstrates how a flute changes the color and balance of a string line.
- Sammy Nestico, The Complete Arranger: “Close [Block] Voicing” and “Semi-Open Voicing,” printed p. 24 (PDF p. 26), contrast a compact moving saxophone block with a voice dropped an octave. The part scores and pitch inspector let you examine the spacing used in this artist’s study.
Each artist’s arrangement uses separately recorded parts, so Solo and Mute reveal the same performance heard in the full ensemble. Winds, piano and supported orchestral instruments use MuseSounds; upright bass uses Karoryfer recordings. Other colors retain the credited libraries below. Tempo changes preserve concert pitch.
Performances rendered with free MuseSounds and the libraries below. Recording credits and instrument coverage.
Recordings: VSCO 2 CE (CC0), MTG Solo Saxophones (CC BY 4.0), and Karoryfer Meatbass (CC0). Additional sounds: FluidR3 GM (CC BY 3.0). Full credits and sample changes.
03
Music first
Scores & orchestras
Switch recordings to compare how this arranger’s musical priorities shape each orchestral profile.
The Fletcher Henderson Story
Copenhagen,
This compilation showcases Redman's groundbreaking arrangements from his time with Henderson, including "Copenhagen," "Sugar Foot Stomp," and "The Stampede." What's particularly interesting…
Listen forNotice how color shapes the orchestral profile.
Find listening example on YouTubeProfile derived from the arranger’s documented style and recording notes; exact instrumentation is not asserted.
The Band Don Redman Built · 1928-1929
Gee Baby, Ain't I Good to You
Redman transformed McKinney's Cotton Pickers into one of the finest bands of the late 1920s.
Listen forNotice how color shapes the orchestral profile.
Profile derived from the arranger’s documented style and recording notes; exact instrumentation is not asserted.
Doin' What I Please · 1931-1933
Chant of the Weed
Leading his own orchestra, Redman created some of his most adventurous arrangements.
Listen forNotice how color shapes the orchestral profile.
Profile derived from the arranger’s documented style and recording notes; exact instrumentation is not asserted.
04
Start here
Three essential albums
One line each—enough context to choose the next listen.
- 01 — The Fletcher Henderson StoryFletcher Henderson This compilation showcases Redman's groundbreaking arrangements from his time with Henderson, including "Copenhagen," "Sugar Foot Stomp," and "The Stampede." What's particularly interesting…
- 02 1928-1929 The Band Don Redman BuiltMcKinney's Cotton Pickers Redman transformed McKinney's Cotton Pickers into one of the finest bands of the late 1920s.
- 03 1931-1933 Doin' What I PleaseDon Redman and His Orchestra Leading his own orchestra, Redman created some of his most adventurous arrangements.
Voicing & register
At the section’s first attack (beat 1), the voicing is: Clarinet E5 (3); Tenor sax D5 (9); Trumpet B4 (maj7); Trombone G4 (5). Bass path: C2–G2.
Timbral combination
The background follows the melody’s attacks, so the harmony moves as a block. Trumpet · answer rests here, leaving the lead color exposed.
Voice leading & harmony
The opening E is the third. G–A–G makes the sixth a brief neighbor before the melody lands on D, the ninth.