Big Band

Big band refers to a style of Jazz music that is commonly associated with the golden era of Swing in the 1930s and 1940s. It is performed by the eponymous ensemble line-up, which consists of 10 or more musicians split into various instrument sections. This includes several brass and woodwind aerophones (multiple trumpets, trombones, saxophones and clarinets) and usually a rhythm section of piano, guitar, bass and drums. Other instruments that are often used are French horn, tuba, banjo, flute and vibraphone, as well as a string section being common in pre-swing big band music.