Little Rootie Tootie

Thelonious Monk’s “Little Rootie Tootie” is an energetic, upbeat song that cleverly and uniquely incorporates dissonant chords as part of its chorus. Monk composed the piece for his son and modeled the music around the sounds of a train. The fairly quick tempo helps create an optimistic and playful mood that is enhanced by solos on the tenor sax, the trumpet, and, of course, Monk’s piano.

The introduction is typical Monk, a short set of single notes that make more use of space and silence than chords. As the drums, tenor sax, and trumpet come in, the song quickly gains an upbeat feel, with Monk complementing the other instruments on his piano. This part of the piece has a strict form that includes repeating verses and choruses, marked by three dissonant chords on the piano. After a couple minutes, the tenor sax has a solo marked a by a melodic, relaxed pace. Immediately following the tenor sax is a trumpet solo, but this one is at quicker tempo. Halfway through the solo, Monk’s comping turns into his part for the chorus, blending well with the trumpet. Monk has a solo afterward, which slows the tempo back down, characterized by his unorthodox way of making dissonant chords and clashing notes audibly pleasing despite their unattractive nature. This feeds back into the chorus, followed by another relaxed tenor sax solo. However, when the trumpet comes back in, the tempo speeds up and reaches a frantic pace at times, contrasting nicely with the more laid back atmosphere of the rest of the song, before slowing back down towards the end of the piece.

Monk modeled “Little Rootie Tootie” after the various sounds of the train, the most obvious being the whistle, which he represents by the three rapid dissonant chords during each chorus. The entire song has a methodical, marching feel that Monk probably intended it to have, and yet it simultaneously conveys an aura of playfulness. The tempo of the song is a key contributor to the train metaphor that Monk sets up. When it is at a medium pace, I envision a train moving along through the countryside, not traveling too slowly or too quickly. The points in the song when the tempo speeds up symbolize the train accelerating or traveling through a big city, where life moves much faster. The tenor sax adds an element of lightheartedness with its medium pitch and easy-going pace, and the trumpet does the same at times with its higher pitch, suggesting that Monk had a toy train in mind rather than a real one, a conjecture supported by the title. The atmosphere throughout the song remains light and playful, which makes sense because Monk composed the song for his son, and the tune has a swing-feel to it at times.

Overall, Monk masterfully combines the various elements of “Little Rootie Tootie” to achieve his goal with this piece. It superficially seems to be a lighthearted song about trains but is filled with intricate dissonant chords and varying tempos that convey and allow for its lightheartedness. Monk comps the medium and higher pitches of the tenor sax and trumpet, respectively, extremely well. In conclusion, the entire piece embodies the title by bringing to mind images of “Little Rootie Tootie.”

Brilliant Corners

Thelonious Monk features a variety of instruments and experiments with tempo in his song “Brilliant Corners.” The song starts off at a slow pace with a simple introduction on the piano. After the introduction, the drums and brass instruments are added to the mix. The two saxophones play in unison for a minute but in different octaves, giving the music a soulful and deep sound yet simultaneously keeping it high and light. Shortly thereafter, the tempo quickens and the lower sax drops out, leaving the tenor sax (I believe), which makes for an upbeat, higher-pitched sound. The mood of this part of the song is very optimistic and lighthearted, due mainly to the faster tempo and the tenor sax. This part of the song gives way to an extended drum solo, marking a changing point in the song and connects the music to the conclusion, which lasts the last minute of the piece. By the end of the song, the upbeat atmosphere returns with the tenor sax playing a large role once again.

Though the song is by Thelonious Monk, the piano is oddly not the main instrument, as is the case with most of his other pieces. Though the piano is part of the instrumental medley most of the time, it is never the focus except for the introduction and a small portion about halfway through the song. Overall, “Brilliant Corners” is an upbeat piece that showcases the tenor sax throughout. Monk employs higher-pitched tones and a quick tempo to create an optimistic mood for the song. Though the tempo varies, it usually returns to a fast pace, perhaps symbolizing the concept of resilience because though the beat slows down at times, it always returns to a quick, optimistic tempo.