How to Write Bebop Songs

You want a tune that swings hard, surprises the ear, and makes other musicians either nod in respect or pretend they knew it all along. Bebop is that sharp, fast, brainy cousin of jazz that made musicians think faster, play faster, and talk music using tiny, delicious phrases. This guide gives you the tools to write bebop heads, craft intelligent chord movements, and make solos that feel inevitable and dangerous.

Everything here is written for artists who want to actually make music and not just collect theory facts. You will find clear definitions for jazz terms, a practical step by step writing workflow, bite sized exercises, and real life scenarios that show how to go from scribble to head chart to a playable gig version. If you know one thing about bebop it is this. Complexity without direction sounds like noise. Bebop with direction sounds like genius.

What Is Bebop and Why Should You Care

Bebop is a style of jazz that emerged in the early 1940s. It changed jazz from dance music to listening music. The music favored fast tempos, complex harmony, irregular phrase lengths, and improvisation that treated harmony as a puzzle to be solved in real time. Famous names include Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Bud Powell, and Thelonious Monk. If you want to write songs that are smart, rhythmic, and emotionally compact, bebop gives you a language to say more with less.

Here is the practical takeaway. Bebop writing relies on a few core ideas. First, strong, singable melodies that outline the underlying chords. Second, chord movements that move logically but with quick substitutions that create motion. Third, rhythmic phrasing that plays with expectation and accents. Master these three and you can write tunes that both musicians and curious listeners will love.

Key Bebop Terms Explained

Before we get into the studio and the pencil work, here are the essential terms you will see while writing bebop. I explain each one like you are at a jam session and someone just insulted your saxophone tone.

• Head This is the main melody of the tune. It is what the band plays at the beginning and at the end. Think of it as the chorus of a pop song. Keep it memorable.
• Changes Short for chord changes. These are the sequence of chords the tune uses. They guide solos and define harmonic motion.
• ii V I A common chord progression used in jazz. Written here with Roman numerals it means the second chord of the key in minor mode then the dominant chord then the tonic chord. For example in C major ii is D minor, V is G7, and I is C major. ii V I is the backbone of countless jazz phrases.
• Comping Short for accompanying. This is how chordal instruments like piano and guitar play behind soloists. Comping means playing rhythmic and harmonic support not just block chords.
• Guide tone lines The guide tones are the third and seventh of a chord. Moving these voices smoothly connects chords and creates a strong melodic backbone for harmony.
• Turnaround A short chord sequence that leads you back to the top of the form. The classic turnaround in jazz often involves I VI II V changes. It gets the form moving and creates tension that resolves.
• Trading fours When the soloist and rhythm section alternate four measure segments. It is a call and response tool used in performances to create energy.
• Walking bass A bass line that moves mostly stepwise and outlines the harmony. It creates forward motion and a pulse that soloists can rely on.
• Rhythm changes A chord progression derived from the tune Body and Soul. It is used as a harmonic template for many bebop heads. Learning rhythm changes is essential.

What Makes a Bebop Song Work

Bebop songs have a personality. They feel like a clever conversation. Here are the pillars that make a bebop head work.

• Short clear motifs A motif is a tiny musical idea. Bebop melodies often string several motifs together so a single idea can mutate across the form.
• Harmonic clarity The harmony must be set up so the soloist can tell where they are at any moment. Even with substitutions the guide tone motion should remain logical.
• Rhythmic tension Bebop plays with syncopation and unexpected accents. Phrasing often pushes and pulls around the beat.
• Space for improvisation The arrangement gives soloists clear sections. The head is concise so solos can do the talking.
• Singability The head should be memorable enough to hum in the bathroom later. It should also outline the changes so soloists can use it as an anchor.

Step One Write a Strong Head

Your head is the central idea. It needs to work on the stand and on paper. Here is a method to write a head that feels like bebop right away.

1. Choose a key and a form. Common forms are 12 bar blues and 32 bar AABA. If you are new pick 32 bar AABA or 12 bar blues to learn common jazz motion.
2. Pick a short rhythmic motif. This could be three eighth notes with rests around them or a syncopated quarter note figure. Play it until it becomes a habit.
3. Create a motive contour. Decide if your motif will move up, down, or stay static. Bebop often uses small leaps like minor thirds or major sixths to create bite.
4. Build the head phrase by phrase. Keep the phrases short. Aim for motives that recur with slight variation. Repeat with variation instead of inventing new ideas in every bar.
5. Sing it. If you cannot sing it, it will not stick in players heads. Sing at performance tempo. If it is too awkward vocally, simplify the rhythm or adjust intervals.

Real life scenario. You are at a jam that has a guitarist who will comp anything. You hum a short motif and the drummer nods. That nod means your head is playable. If the drummer looks confused, you will need to simplify. The practical test is whether musicians can latch on in one pass.

Step Two Nail the Form and the Changes

Before you get clever with substitutions lock the form and the changes. Bebop uses two common templates. Learn both and you will cover a lot of ground.

12 Bar Blues

Start with a standard blues form. It is flexible and forgiving. Even Charlie Parker wrote blues with wild chord movements. Once you have the form, you can reharmonize some measures with ii V sequences to create motion.

32 Bar A A B A

This is the classic song form used in many standards. Each A section is typically eight bars. The B section is the bridge. Bridges are where you can place surprising harmonic motion because the listener expects contrast.

Pro tip. Write a simple version of the changes first. Use diatonic chords to map the skeleton. Once the skeleton feels right, add bebop style substitutions such as secondary dominants and tritone substitutions. Tritone substitution means you replace a dominant chord with another dominant chord whose root is a tritone away. For example replacing D7 with Ab7 creates chromatic bass motion and new guide tone connections.

Harmony Tools for Bebop Writing

Now you play chess with the changes. The goal is motion and clarity. Here are the palette pieces you will use.

• Secondary dominants These are dominants that lead to a chord other than the tonic. If you want the listener to feel a move to D minor in C major, you might add A7 before the D minor. A7 is the V of D minor. Secondary dominants create expectation and release in small doses.
• Tritone substitutions A tritone substitution replaces a dominant chord with another dominant chord that is a tritone away. It creates chromatic bass lines and fresh guide tone motion. Use it as color not as a replacement for every dominant.
• Chromatic passing chords These chords fill small harmonic space between two diatonic chords. They often last one beat and create smooth bass motion.
• Minor ii V ii V in minor mode is a powerful device. Using the minor version of the ii V before a minor tonic gives a different shade than the major ii V sequence.
• Turnarounds Turnarounds send the form back to the top. Craft them to be interesting. A classic move is I VI II V. Replace the VI with VI7 altered or turn it into a minor ii V for motion.

Writing a Guide Tone Line

If you make nothing else, write a guide tone line. Guide tones are the third and seventh of each chord. A smooth line that connects those notes will make your head sound intentional even when the comp players change voicings.

How to write one. Take your changes. On each chord place the third or the seventh on a strong beat and then move by small intervals to the next guide tone. This creates voice leading. The result is a linear bass or inner voice that a soloist can use as a roadmap.

Real life scene. You hand a chart to a pianist and a saxophonist in the green room before a gig. The pianist's comping suddenly becomes a conversation because they follow the guide tone line. Your tune now sounds like it was rehearsed for months even though you wrote it on the subway.

Melodic Vocabulary and Bebop Language

Bebop lines use certain melodic secrets. These are not rules they are tendencies that make solos sound like Parker and Monk without copying them outright.

• Chromatic approach notes Approach a chord tone by a half step from above or below. It creates the classic bebop sound where the line wraps around chord tones like fish around coral.
• Enclosures Surround a target note by playing notes above and below it quickly before landing. Enclosures make simple chord tones sound like revelations.
• Octave displacement Move a motif up or down an octave for surprise. The ear recognizes the shape even when the register changes.
• Syncopated phrase endings End phrases on off beats to create forward motion and surprise. Bebop loves to leave the bar line behind and then catch up with it.
• Small leaps followed by scalar motion Use a small leap such as a minor third then sweep through a scale. The leap grabs attention and the scale fills it in.

Rhythmic Phrasing That Sways the Pocket

Bebop phrasing is rhythmic thinking. Players often displace phrases by an eighth note or add rests that break up predictable lines. Here are practical ways to write rhythmic interest.

• Write motifs with tied notes that start before the beat. This creates a feeling of urgency.
• Use rhythmic cells of two or three notes and repeat them with accents on different beats. Repetition with shifted accents is addictive.
• Balance busy runs with empty space. Space is as important as notes. Leave a bar where the rhythm section opens for the soloist to breathe.
• Think of speech. Sing a line as if you are answering a question. The natural speech rhythm often maps well onto good bebop phrasing.

Practical Writing Workflow

Here is a step by step workflow to go from idea to a playable chart. Use it as a template and adapt it to your temperament.

1. Pick form and key. Decide whether you want blues or AABA. Choose a key that suits your instrument and your players.
2. Write a 4 bar motif. This will be the seed. Keep it rhythmically interesting and singable.
3. Expand to 8 bars. Repeat the motif with a variation. Add a resolution at the end.
4. Set the A section. Make sure each A is coherent but not identical. Slight variation keeps the listener engaged.
5. Write the B section. Create contrast. Modulate or use a quick sequence of dominants to move the ear.
6. Map the changes. Write diatonic changes and then apply substitutions where they serve motion.
7. Write a guide tone line. Smooth voice leading now. This is your internal skeleton.
8. Finalize the head. Sing it over the changes at performance tempo. If it trips you up lower the tempo and rewrite until it sings.
9. Notate and create a chart. Include melody, chord symbols, form and tempo. Add performance notes like feel and any special hits.
10. Test it. Play with a rhythm section or a backing track. Make small changes after seeing how players react.

Writing for Small Combos and for Big Bands

Bebop started in small clubs but the language scales up. Your approach changes depending on the ensemble.

Small Combo

Leave space. The head is lean. Put the melody on one or two instruments. Provide a simple piano comp behind solos. Use trading fours to build energy. Small combos favor freedom so write heads that allow rhythmic interpretation.

Big Band

Arrangements need voice leading in sections and horn writing that is playable. Create little signature hits and short shout sections. Use the head as a motif that can be passed across sections. Keep it tight but energetic. If you write for big band you must notate voicings explicitly and consider range and breathing for wind players.

Writing for Singers

If your bebop tune is for a vocalist make the melody breathe. Singers need lyric phrasing and consonant placement that supports meaning. Bebop vocals can be exciting when the lyric is clever and the melody leaves space for text emphasis. Avoid continuous sixteenth note lines without room to articulate words.

Transcription Work That Helps Songwriting

Transcribe solos and heads from classic bebop records. This is not copy and paste. The goal is to internalize language. When you transcribe notice how lines land on chord tones and how they use chromaticism. Transcribe a five phrase motif and then write your own variations on it. The music will begin to speak to you in a new dialect.

Practice Exercises to Build Bebop Muscle

• Target practice Play a simple chord and solo only on the third and seventh notes of the chord for eight bars. Then expand to adding approach notes.
• Chromatic approach drill On a static chord play lines that approach chord tones from half step above and below in different rhythmic placements.
• Motif development Take a two note motif and write eight variations that change rhythm only. Then write eight variations that change interval content but keep rhythm.
• Guide tone walking Create a walking inner voice using only thirds and sevenths across a ii V I progression. Sing it and then solo on top of it.

Recording and Production Tips for Bebop Heads

Bebop loves rawness but clarity matters. Record heads with clean takes. Capture the energy by setting performance tempo and recording full takes. For modern releases add minimal production like light room reverb and subtle stereo placement. Avoid heavy processing that masks articulation and swing feel. Let the piano percussive attacks and the drums speak.

Common Mistakes and How to Fix Them

• Too busy melodies Fix by removing notes until the motive sings. If a player cannot sing it at tempo you have overwritten.
• Harmonic clutter If substitutions confuse players return to a simple skeleton and reintroduce color chords one at a time.
• Phrasing that is only scales Fix by inserting enclosures and approach notes. Make sure there is an ear catching interval in each phrase.
• No breathing space Fix by writing rests and small pauses. Space gives tension and makes lines meaningful.

Real World Example Walkthrough

Imagine you are on a train with a notebook. You hum a two bar rhythm. The motif is three eighth notes then a rest then a syncopated quarter. You expand it to four bars and repeat with a slightly different highest note in bar four. You make the A section. The B section you decide to move up a minor third and use a sequence of dominants that come back with a turnaround in the last four bars. You map diatonic changes then add a tritone substitution to create chromatic bass motion. You write a guide tone line and sing the head over a metronome at 220 bpm. It is awkward at first. You slow to 180 and it breathes. You notate and run it with a pianist friend. The pianist adds comp hits and the drummer squares the pocket. The tune breathes and the band looks like they knew each other for years. That is the process. It can happen in a subway and it does not require a conservatory degree. It requires listening and iteration.

Action Plan You Can Use Tonight

1. Pick either 12 bar blues or 32 bar A A B A and set a metronome to an uptempo swing tempo you can still hum at.
2. Hum or sing a two bar rhythmic motif for five minutes. Record your phone so you do not forget it.
3. Expand the motif into an 8 bar phrase and then into your A section. Repeat with variation for the second A.
4. Write a contrasting B section. Use dominants to create motion and a turnaround to return to the top.
5. Draft simple changes and then apply one tritone substitution and one secondary dominant to spice up the motion.
6. Write a guide tone line and sing it along with the melody. Adjust until guide tone motion feels smooth.
7. Write a lead sheet with melody and chords. Play with a pianist or a backing track to refine.
8. Transcribe a bar from Parker or Monk to get a feel for rhythmic or melodic phrasing. Use one idea from the transcription in your tune and then twist it.

Bebop Songwriting FAQ

What tempo should my bebop tune be

Bebop often uses fast tempos but that is not required. Pick a tempo that tests phrasing without sacrificing clarity. Many bebop standards sit around 180 to 240 beats per minute. If you are new to the style start slower. The music will still sound like bebop if the phrasing, harmony, and language are present.

Do I need to be able to improvise to write bebop heads

Improvisation helps but it is not mandatory for writing. Writing heads that make sense for improvisers requires understanding how soloists will navigate the changes. Collaborate with improvising musicians to test your head early. Their feedback will show you where the changes feel confusing or where the head trips players up.

How do I make my head singable for horns and voice

Sing it first. If a horn can hum the line it will be playable. Keep large intervals sparse and use repetitive motifs. Allow breathing space and avoid continuous runs without rhythmic punctuation. Adjust range to fit the instrument and consider transposing if necessary.

What chords should I use for a bebop turnaround

A classic turnaround uses I VI II V motion. You can vary the VI to be VI7 altered or use a ii V to approach the I. Adding chromatic passing chords creates motion. Use the turnaround to create a clear path back to the top of the form.

How do I learn bebop vocabulary quickly

Transcribe small phrases from masters. Copy the phrase exactly until you can play it in your fingers and sing it in your head. Then write variations. Repeat this daily. Ten minutes a day of targeted transcription yields quick results.

Can bebop work with lyrics

Yes. Vocal bebop requires lyric clarity and room for breath. Lyrics that are witty and conversational fit well. The vocal should be treated like an instrument that swings. Think of vocalists like Ella Fitzgerald who used instrumental phrasing with clear diction.

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