Dave Brubeck and Polytonal Jazz

Abstract

Dave Brubeck has incorporated polytonality into his jazz compositions throughout his long career. Like his composition teacher Darius Milhaud, Brubeck defines polytonality as the combination of distinct triads, and this technique forms the definition of the term as used in this article. This approach avoids the insoluble problems of chord spelling and perception inherent in polytonality; it also allows for a grey area between simple polychords and the projection of multiple tonal centers (and Brubeck exploits both procedures in his compositions). This article introduces a method to compare the relative dissonance between polychords in order to reveal the logic behind Brubeck’s incorporation of polytonality into the standard jazz vocabulary. Brubeck’s use of polytonality helps to project a general decrease or increase in relative dissonance, thereby clarifying the formal structure on both the small‐ and large‐scale. The comparison with tonal theory extends to include pivot chords; with Brubeck, such chords simultaneously serve as the final chord in a polychordal passage and as the first and most exotic chord in a tonal passage. The final goal of this article is to trace Brubeck’s influences. Milhaud is the most obvious of these, but certain Stravinskian features are also found in Brubeck’s music, including rhythmic practices first identified by the theorist Pieter van den Toorn.