Joe Garland In The Mood

“Dance always relies on music, and the two are complimentary but the whole is greater than the sum of the parts” (Margie Gillis, Music Meets Dance). This quote by Margie Gillis epitomizes the dependability that dance has on music and visa versa. “In The Mood” by Joe Garland displays this deep connection between music and dance, manipulating the swing genre and its compositional features to create a danceable tune to last the ages. Joe Garland and Glenn Millers manipulation of musical elements such as instrumentation, texture, timbre, rhythm, articulation, harmony and melody are successfully utilized to make “In The Mood” a definitive example of dance music.

Glenn Miller’s 1939 big band recording of “In The Mood” made National Public Radio’s …show more content…
“In the mood” has syncopated and strong driving rhythms that are consistent throughout. This driving rhythm is achieved through the copious use of semiquavers and quavers that push the song forward and create a danceable atmosphere. As well as using driving rhythms “in the Mood” also incorporates swung or syncopated rhythms. According to e-lr.com.au “swing rhythm is often played on the ride cymbal of the drum kit with the 4/4 rhythm of ta ti-ti ta ti-ti”. This exact rhythm is played by the drum kit throughout “In the Mood” and can be seen in bars 5-7 (Appendix 5). However as “in the mood is played in the swing style, the rhythm of the ti-ti’s are swung, creating a syncopated and danceable rhythm. Miller’s cleaver manipulation of dynamics helps add colour and excitement to the piece. The in most renowned use of dynamics seen in “In the Mood” is in the famous fade away section (bars 99-111)(Appendix 6) where all instruments fade out to ppp before exploding into a dramatic crescendo (ff) to finish off the last motif. These extremes in dynamics keep the piece lively and …show more content…
The saxophones and brass section hold the main motif/riff of “In the Mood,” creating a call and response throughout the song. The saxophone section is the call and the brass the response, as can be seen in bar 10, 12 and 14 (Appendix 7) as well as throughout the piece. The main melody of “In the Mood” is rather intricate; the melody line ascends and descends in small intervals creating a conjunct melody. As well as this, the repetitive nature of the main motif creates a catchy tune that is sure to get many onto the dance floor. The harmonies that make up the beginning of in “In the Mood” create the chord progression known as the 12 bar blues. The twelve bar blues used cords one (dominant), four (subdominant) and five (dominant) or better known as the primary triad. This cord progression helps to create a major tone that sounds light, lively and exuberant. The melodic structure of “In the Mood” is complicated, ornamented and repetitive making it a brilliant piece of dance

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