TRANSCRIPT:
Hi, I’m Mark Rapp, and this is Rapp on Jazz.
If you’re learning jazz—or want to know the tunes musicians call at every jam session—these are the Top 10 Jazz Standards everyone should know:
1. Autumn Leaves
2. All the Things You Are
3. Blue Bossa
4. There Will Never Be Another You
5. Misty
6. Take the A Train
7. My Funny Valentine
8. So What
9. Stella by Starlight
10. Blue Monk
These tunes cover the range, from swing to ballads, bebop to modal jazz. They’re part of the jazz musician’s shared language—used to practice improvisation, develop style, and connect with others on the bandstand.
Each standard is a doorway into deeper exploration, becoming new every time it’s played.
This has been Rapp on Jazz, a co-production of ColaJazz and South Carolina Public Radio, made possible by the ETV Endowment of South Carolina.