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RE: Jazz -- Getting started--K.I.S.S.

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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