12253 / 18210 · Workshop 98 — The Flexible Arrangement: Fixed Landmarks, Improvised Connective Tissue, Real-Time Decisions, and Playing the Same Arrangement Differently Every Time← prev⊞ allnext →
98.169Apply conceptually to “Mack the Knife”
A good flexible architecture might be:
Opening: fixed two-beat character.
Early chorus: variable simple swing.
Second: walking mandatory, comping flexible.
Transition: fixed modulation cue.
Final chorus: fixed high-register/block climax region.
Tag: variable number of repeats.
Final cadence: fixed.
This lets repeated choruses evolve without memorizing every bar.