Nightingale Incorporated

Isn't the very purpose of Take 5 the fact that it's IN 5/4?

Once, last year, there was a barbershop quartet in my chorus who were assigned to sing "Always" as a part of our Irving Berlin showcase. They got the music, reviewed the parts, and thought that it was SO boring, that they decided to do it FASTER and in 4/4 instead of 3/4. I'm not sure how many of you can imagine what that sounds like, but it raised a big stink in our chorus.

Somethings simply aren't meant to be danced to. Some music is just plain fun to listen to. I think Take 5 is one of those pieces that you really aren't paying attention to all your steps to make sure it lines up with the beat and what not. It's also a piece I've only ever heard done as a combo piece, so the added instrumentation of Vibes and strings were kind of odd to me.

However, all that aside, I agree with Marius in saying that this is a very well written piece. The structure really lends itself for improvisation, and the orchestration could even be flushed out more to incorporate a Big Band (if that's what you wanted to do). Jazz has always been a weakness of mine, so I'm always looking for something that will impress me around here. This piece is probably the best Jazz Band chart I've seen in here so far.

Well done!