video: Caravan
My version of the Juan Tizol/Duke Ellington classic. Since we’re talking diminished scales lately, I thought I’d bring this out.
My notes:
Be sure you also check out the Duke Ellington version from 1952 that’s up on YouTube. JuanTizol plays valve trombone. Anyhow, this tune is 32 bar AABA where the A section is made up of a prolonged dominant (C7b9) that resolves to Fmi only in the last bar. Awesome! The idea of prolonging the dominant 7 bars of an 8 bar phrase is why this tune is singular. I enhance the tension by adding a #11 to the b9, and my voicing amounts to F# triad over C7. Again, lacking a rhythm section, I play a swing feel throughout. The melody is mostly built from the dim scale, but the walk down to the minor tonic at the end of the phrase adds chromatic passing tones.
