Fugue and improvisation: on the problem of the dialogue between academic and jazz traditions

The subject of the research is the interaction between improvisation and the strict polyphonic form of the fugue in the context of jazz and academic music of the 20th – early 21st centuries. The object of the study is jazz fugues as a phenomenon that emerged at the intersection of academic and jazz traditions. The author examines in detail such aspects of the topic as the historical continuity of jazz fugues from the baroque practice of improvisation, the structural mechanisms of incorporating improvisation into the polyphonic texture, as well as the typology of forms arising from this synthesis. Special attention is given to parallels between the baroque model of the figured bass fugue and jazz improvisation over a harmonic grid. The work analyzes specific compositional techniques: walking bass, comping, transforming interludes into improvisational solos, as well as the influence of jazz stylistic idioms on thematic material and development. The methodological foundation of the research is a comprehensive approach that combines methods of historical-theoretical, structural-functional, and stylistic analysis. The work is based on studies on the theory of the fugue (N. Simakova, A. Milka, V. Frayonov), the history of baroque improvisation (M. Serebrennikov), and the theory of jazz (O. Kovalenko, I. Presnyakov). The scientific novelty lies in the systematic analysis of the impact of improvisational elements on the structure of jazz fugue. For the first time, a typology of its structural principles is substantiated: res facta, oriented towards the Bach model, and standard-fugue – a form suggesting an unlimited number of improvisations. In the standard-fugue, the exposition serves the function of the theme of a jazz standard. A significant contribution of the author is the identification of the mechanisms for incorporating improvisation into counterpoint (walking bass and comping) and interludes (transforming them into written or unwritten improvisations). The main conclusions of the research are as follows: the jazz fugue is not a compromise between rigor and freedom, but rather a logical development of the European tradition of "instant composition," adapted to the rhythmic and harmonic language of jazz. The baroque model of the figured bass fugue reveals a deep kinship with jazz practice, allowing us to view the jazz fugue as an actualization of the historical principle of improvisational polyphonic thinking.