 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Gary
Date: 2001-09-25 20:30
Howdy,
I'm interested in playing jazz. Well, not only playing jazz, but improv and structure and all that fun stuff that goes along with it. I've got some jazz sheet music that I can play, but I don't just want to play, I want to know how and why it's put together. I know that's a massive huge question so I'm just trying to start at the begining right now. I've done some searches on jazz and found very little. I searched this web page and found a letter posted a while ago. Here is an excert from that letter.
(in regards to knowing scales)
>>As a starting point that means not only Major...but also Dorian Minor and >>Dominant. So, if you can rip through thirty-six scales almost without >>thinking...and be able to arpeggiate them too... you've got a good foundation for >>starting to improvize jazz.
>>
>>On this "technical point" please keep in mind that these modes are only the >>beginning. Ultimately you have to be equally proficient with Lydian b7
>>scales, Locrian #2s, Super Locrians, Pentatonics, Blues Scales, several
>>types of Diminished...
That was the best lead I found and from what clarinet experience I do have I know he is absolutely correct. My question is, where can I find lists of Dorian Minors & Dominants and Lydian b7s and Locrian #2s etc. My clarinet instruction consisted of Majors & Minors only. Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.
Sincerely Gary,
monkeyfreek@hotmail.com
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Author: jmcaulay
Date: 2001-09-25 21:59
There are a few leads on the www for learning modal music. One that may help is at
http://www.standingstones.com/theorcnr.html
Remember also that jazz is harmonic as well as melodic, and virtually all (some would insist *all*) jazz harmonies go beyond ordinary triads to seventh chords (at least). You must accustom yourself to playing in agreement with the structure of the harmony that exists within the selection at any given moment. To me, this is the basis of improvisation. Once you can do that well, then you should expand your personal style as you would have it.
Please don't think of this as advice, a recommendation, or even a suggestion -- just my opinion of how I'd do it if I were starting all over. You will almost certainly receive other, and conflicting, information.
And remember, it's skill that does it. Otherwise I'd wish you good luck.
Regards,
John
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Author: John Gould
Date: 2001-09-25 22:31
Here are some excellent books to aid in your search:
The Jazz Theory book (Sher publishers)
A great hanon -for- clarinet book by Buddy DeFranco (sorry, don't know exact title),
Phil Woods masterclass CD and software,
Anything by Aebersold,
Jazz Conception by Jim Snidero (advance music, order # 14725) which features Ken Peplowski on cl. on a play-along CD.
Charlie Parker Omnibook,
Technique Develpment in Fourths for Jazz Improvisation by Ramon Ricker
Eric Marienthal's Comprehensive Jazz Studies and Exercises, (which covers all of the scales mentioned) Warner Bros. publisher.
That being said, there is simply no substitute for studying with a good teacher. And, while play-along CDs are good, they are no substitute for actual playing with a live group. Transcribing tunes/solos will go a long way towards developing your ears. You can transcribe stuff right off the record, and I've used the TR-1000 by Reed Kotler, which is a digital music study recorder. Slows it down and keeps the pitch. It's a great time saver, and you can check stuff you have a question on and verify if something's accurate. Good luck.
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Author: Allen Cole
Date: 2001-09-27 08:14
Ignore all that talk of specialized scales for the time being. If you know your major scales and arpeggios, START PLAYING. Get any Benny Goodman record and find a solo to imitate that isn't too technically difficult. (small group recordings of Moonglow and Avalon come to mind...) Don't look for transcribed solos. Learn them by ear. Write them down if you can.
If you want to do something technical with loads of instant gratification, learn the Pentatonic Scale. These are notes 1, 2, 3, 5 & 6 of any major scale. In C, it would be C-D-E-G-A-C. You can improvise over many simpler, older songs (and even the blues) using just one of these scales over the entire form of the piece. You can also play some nice sounding things unaccompanied a la Lisa Simpson. It is a very forgiving scale with many uses, and an ancestor of the blues scale.
Probably the best beginning jazz book would be "How To Play Jazz and Improvise", Vol.1 in the Jamey Aebersold series. This book appears a bit scale-crazy, but READ ALL THE TEXT and you'll find a lot of wisdom in it. Most music stores will carry it. If not, visit http://www.jajazz.com.
As far as theory and playing by ear, I have activities online that are available to the public at http://www.jamschool.net. These are good starting points for playing by ear.
I also have online help for the Master Theory Workbook at http://allencole.tripod.com/mt_help.htm
I also have some reference sheets available for download at http://allencole.tripod.com/st_instr.htm
I hope that some of this helps you. Have fun!
Allen
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Author: Jeff Forman
Date: 2001-09-27 18:19
I think I have the same question as Gary, but I'd like to phrase it differently. As an example, I listen to Tim Laughlin play Farewell Blues on his New Orleans Rhythm CD. It starts with a very crisp rendition of the melody (as do most jazz pieces I listen to). And then when the listener's mind has the melody line, the jazz artist branches into what sounds like an improvisational interpretation around the melody. If you hum or whistle the melody while the second (or later) breaks are taken, you will undoubtedly intersect a melody note or two in that impov.
So my question is what is the thought process of the construct of that "second" break. Does the jazz artist start with a melody note and arpegiate it up and down, does he play thirds under the melody, does he go chromatically? And while the answer to each of these is probably yes, I am looking for the methodology of how and why the seleections are made.
And perhaps most importantly ---- is the jazz artist just drawing from a pocketful of licks that go along with C noise or D noise or F Sharp noise? Because even where I have been able to transcribe (a tedious but rewarding process, to a degree) I'm not really getting a sense of the thought process that went into formulating that break. So on the few I've been able to work up, it's just painting by the numbers.
I really would like to know how to use scales. Then I would find the task of learning the scales less painful.
Thanks.
Jeff
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Author: Allen Cole
Date: 2001-09-29 06:37
Most older-style playing contains at least some acknowledgement of the original melody. After all, much of this evolved from the ornamentation of the melody itself. Since the late 1930's, though, the primary practice has been to make up something and play it by ear using the song's chord structure as the primary basis.
ORIGINAL IDEAS vs. A COLLECTION OF PRE-EXISTING LICKS
Most players start a solo based on their own ideas, and suppliment these with a 'trick bag' of various licks and runs that can fill in the holes while the next new idea is being conceived.
THE USE OF SCALES
As with any other music, scales are a means of preorganizing notes to fit within a certain tonality. When you have command of a scale, you can think more abstractly, and just let your fingers run over its notes. You can experience this by using your major scale to play songs by ear.
There are two approaches to scale-based improv. One is to play a certain scale for each chord. (Dm7-G7-C would mean D dorian, G mixolydian, and then C major) The other approach is to play around a certain scale that matches the tonal center for a given section of the song. (Dm7-G7-C would be recognized as a ii-V-I in C, and a C scale would be applied throughout) Most players find the latter approach more desirable.
Why? Because the three scales used in the first method all contain the exact same notes. If that's the case, why not just think a C scale and use your ear?
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