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Bop (also known as Bebop) developed in the early forties and was a rebellion against the structure and regimentation of the Swing bands. A primary difference between Bop and Swing is that in Bop, the soloists created chordal (rather than melodic) improvisation, often discarding the melody altogether after the first chorus and using the chords as the basis for the solo. Another difference is that most combos were under seven pieces and the soloists were allowed to be more adventurous in improvisation because of the smaller size of the group. The melody of a song became less recognizable and the tempos were often very fast. Through Bop, Jazz became an art music but the departure from the dance tempos of swing and the absence of strong melodies cut deeply into its potential commercial success.
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