I wish I had a database where I could look up, for example, 3/4 jazz standards in G or a list of objectively "easy", "medium" or "hard" jazz tunes without just using my own subjective recollection. I know of no such database, which is why I chose it as a research topic. Of course, if you know someone else who has already started this project, please let me know. But if not, and if you'd like to have such a tool too, please read on...
The Criteria
Here are the quantifiable characteristics I'm using to determine the difficulty of a song. While we'll eventually be able to exapand it to other instruments and most of the characteristics apply to all instruments, we're primarily focused for now on the piano. Let me know what else contributes to song difficulty that I've missed (or just other characteristics that would be nice to be able to search):
*Key
*Tempo
*2-5's
*2-5-1's
*minor 2-5's
*minor 2-5-1's
*major turn-arounds
*minor turn-arounds
*harmonic frequency
*avg chords per measure
*unique chords
*unique upper structure chords
*minor major chords
*diminished major chords
*augmented major chords
*slash chords
*fully diminished chords
*Odd meter
*5 or 7 time
*Melody range
*Subjective syncopation evaluation from 1-5
*Composer
The Songs
Through the power of crowd sourcing, I eventually want to add all "Real Book" standards to the database. I'm starting with the song list from the jazz piano class taught at CSUS by Steve Roach:
Afternoon in Paris
Airegin
All Blues
All of Me
All of You
All the Things You Are
Alone Together
Along Came Betty
Angel Eyes
Anthropology
Au Privave
Autumn Leaves
Back Home Again in Indiana
Bag’s Groove
Beatrice
Beautiful Love
Bessie’s Blues
Black Orpheus
Blue Bossa
Blue Monk
Blues for Alice
Blues in a Closet
Bluesette
Body and Soul
But Beautiful
But Not For Me
Bye Bye Blackbird
Cantaloupe Island
Caravan
Ceora
Chelsea Bridge
Cherokee
Come Rain or Come Shine
Con Alma
Confirmation
Corcovado (Quiet Night of Quiet Stars)
Countdown
Daahoud
Darn That Dream
Days of Wine and Roses
Desafinado
Dolphin Dance
Don’t Get Around Much Anymore
Donna Lee
Doxy
Dream
E.S.P.
Embraceable You
Emily
Equinox
Fee Fi Fo Fum
Foggy Day
Footprints
Four
Four in One
Freddie Freeloader
Freedom Jazz Dance
Georgia on My Mind
Giant Steps
Girl from Ipanema
Good Bait
Groovin’ High
Half Nelson
Have You Met Miss Jones
Here’s that Rainy Day
Honeysuckle Rose
Hot House
How Deep is the Ocean
How High The Moon
How Insensitive
I Can’t Get Started
I Could Write a Book
I Got Rhythm
I Hear a Rhapsody
I Love You
I Mean You
I Remember You
I Should Care
I Thought About You
I’ll Remember You
If I Were a Bell
Impressions
In A Mellow Tone
In a Sentimental Mood
In Your Own Sweet Way
Inner Urge
Invitation
It Could Happen to You
It Don’t Mean a Thing
It Had to Be You
It Might as Well Be Spring
It’s You or No One
Joy Spring
Just Friends
Killer Joe
Lady Bird
Laura
Lazy Bird
Like Someone in Love
Little Sunflower
Love for Sale
Lover Man
Lullaby of Birdland
Lush Life
Maiden Voyage
Meditation
Milestones
Misty
Moment’s Notice
Moonlight in Vermont
Mr. P.C.
My Favorite Things
My Foolish Heart
My Funny Valentine
My One and Only Love
My Romance
My Secret Love
My Shining Hour
Naima
Nardis Nica’s
Nearness of You
Nica’s Dream
Night and Day
Night Has a Thousand Eyes
Night in Tunisia
Now’s the Time
Nowhere
Oleo
On Green Dolphin Street
Once I Loved
Over the Rainbow
Peace
Perdido
Polkadots And Moonbeams
Prelude to a Kiss
Recordame
Round Midnight
Satin Doll
Scrapple from the Apple
Seven Steps from Heaven
Seven Steps to Heaven
Shadow of Your Smile
Skylark
So What
Softly as in a Morning Sunrise
Solar
Some Day My Prince Will Come
Someone To Watch Over Me
Song for My Father
Song is You
Sonnymoon for Two
Sophisticated Lady
Speak Low
Speak No Evil
St. James Infirmary
St. Louis Blues
St. Thomas
Stablemates
Star Eyes
Stardust
Stella by Starlight
Stolen Moments
Stompin’ at the Savoy
Straight No Chaser
Sugar
Summertime
Sweet Georgia Brown
Take 5
Take the ‘A’ Train
Tenderly
Tenor Madness
There is No Greater Love
There Will Never Be Another You
Things Ain’t What They Used to Be
Triste
Tune Up
Walkin’
Waltz for Debbie
Watch What Happens
Watermelon Man
Wave
Way You Look Tonight
Well You Needn’t
What is This Thing Called Love
What’s New
When I Fall in Love
Whisper Not
Willow Weep for Me
Witch Hunt
Witchcraft
Yardbird Suite
Yes or No
Yesterdays
You Don’t Know What Love Is
You Stepped Out of a Dream
You’d be so Nice to Come Home To
Your Involvement
*Anything you can do to help out is appreciated - your ideas and song analysis. And certainly, if you know someone else who has already started this project, please let me know. Thanks!