09.19.08
Awareness test
09.07.08
Transcribing (for musicians)
One of the best ways to improve your jazz playing is learning other people’s solos or songs. Different people have different ideas about this. Some people think that you must learn them by ear and memorize them as you go. Others say it is okay to write them down as you go. Try starting off writing them down and as it becomes easier, do it exclusively by ear and memorize as you go. Eventually, you may not even need an instrument!
There are many benefits to transcribing. First, it is a great way to improve your ear. Second, you have a chance to learn directly from a master or someone you really enjoy listening to. You can find out exactly what they would do over a certain chord, type of harmony or over the tune you are learning.
Don’t feel obligated to start off learning an entire solo. Start off with just one chorus, a 4 or 8 bar section, the melody to a tune or even just a lick.
How to transcribe:
1. Pick a solo or melody that you really like, preferably a song with a familiar chord progression or one you have been meaning to learn. This is important so that you understand the soloist’s note choices in relation to the chords and you are able to recreate those sounds yourself on your own solos. I recommend starting with a blues or rhythm changes tune since they are so common. At first, pick and learn solos played on your instrument. As transcribing becomes easier for you, try learning solos by other instruments.
2. Listen to your selection over and over again until you are really familiar with it. The more you get it in your head, the easier it will be to figure out the notes.
3. Learn it one section or phrase at a time, just as you would a classical piece. Depending on the difficulty of the solo, this may be four measures, one measure, or even two notes.
4. Write it down. If you are learning the solo by memory, take the time later to write down the solo for reference and analysis. Sometimes, this helps you figure out something you may not have heard or noticed as you were playing it by memory.
5. Try to incorporate these ideas into your own solos or playing. If you hear a particular idea or lick that you really like, learn it in all 12 keys.
Be careful to imitate exactly what the soloist is playing. Listen for inflection, articulation, timing and tone quality. The idea is to be able to sound exactly like the soloist and be able to play the solo along with the recording convincingly.
A few recommended solos (for saxophonists) to transcribe:
Illinois Jacquet, Flyin’ Home
Ben Webster, Cotton Tail (rhythm changes)
Lester Young, I’ve Got Rhythm and Lester Leaps In
Sonny Rollins, Blue 7 and St. Thomas
Benny Goodman, Honeysuckle Rose
Almost anything by Dexter Gordon, earlier Hank Mobley, and Stan Getz are great because there is so much jazz vocabulary, they are fairly easy to hear and understand, and they play a ton of standards. I would avoid Wayne Shorter and later Coltrane for a while (as much as I love that stuff!).
Happy practicing!
David
09.06.08
John Ellis: playing originals vs. standards
John Ellis from New Orleans is one of the great saxophonists around right now. He is soulful, creative and melodic. I love what he has to say about playing his original music in an interview from “All About Jazz” by Jason Crane…
“All About Jazz: You’ve spent so much time playing either your own original music or someone else’s original music, as opposed to mining the standard repertoire. Has that been an intentional choice?
John Ellis: It has been for a variety of reasons. I guess I feel the most at home when I’m playing music either written by me or by friends of mine that we’re interpreting for the first time. I think there’s such a weight of tradition and a burden of tradition in jazz. I love the tradition so much, and I’ve listened to it so much, that to do a half-assed version of it—or like “Look at me, I can play like so-and-so”—has never been something that I was motivated to do. And in many ways, I don’t think I was ready to make a strong statement on the standard material. I still have an ambition to do that in the future, but I feel like the more I can spend time trying to cultivate a perspective and nurture the music I’m interested in, then maybe I’ll have a hope of playing some of that standard material with a personal spin.“
08.12.08
New recording to check out…
Here is a recording I did earlier this year with the band {{{Sunset}}} from their new CD called “Glowing City”. Awesome stuff by Bill Baird, who is formerly of the band Soundteam, and also happens to live in my neighborhood. Bill is super creative and prolific and always has 10 new songs he wants to work on, not to mention all the blogging, videos, and everything else he creates.
Anyway, check out the song “Dear Friend (Failing Domino)”. Listen to the klezmer inspired clarinet part I improvised about two and a half minutes into it. The whole album is cool if you have the time though… You can listen to it in its entirety HERE. There is a splattering of random saxophones, clarinets, flute and maybe accordion that I played on there, so listen carefully…
Enjoy!
David
07.12.08
RIP Esbjorn Svennson
I just found out that Swedish pianist Esbjorn Svennson passed away on June 14th in a diving accident. His playing was beautiful and melodic… It had an interesting blend of classical, jazz and rock styles. His trio had been playing together since 1993. He was the first European jazz musician to grace the cover of Downbeat.
Check out this video of his trio performing his song Viaticum.
And of course, check out my musical tribute to him… Estimated Sonic Transfer,
from my album TWO.
David
07.09.08
Eve’s Organic Granola
For the last couple of years, I have been making homemade granola. I highly recommend it! It is a healthy and tasty breakfast or snack. If you can, use all organic ingredients. People keep asking me for the recipe once they try it, so here it is. I got the recipe from my sister Eve (Certified Aston-Patterning® Practioner, ACE Certified Personal Trainer, massage therapist, Yoga instructor, and a great cook) …
Enjoy,
David
Eve’s Organic Granola
In a large bowl, mix together:
3 cups rolled oats
3 cups rolled kamut
3 cups rolled rye
½ cup sunflower seeds
1 cup slivered almonds
½ cup pumpkin seeds
½ cup shredded unsweetened coconut
½ cup coconut flakes
Add:
½ to ¾ cup canola oil
¾ to 1 cup maple syrup
1 or 2 tbsp vanilla or almond extract
Stir until evenly blended.
Place mixture in 1 or more casserole dishes. Bake in the oven at 325 degrees for 40 to 45 minutes, or until golden. (more time may be needed in glass pans vs. metal) Stir every 10 to 15 minutes while baking for even browning.
Let cool mixture.
Add:
1 ½ cups raisins or cranberries
Store in refrigerator for a few weeks. Glass jars are best but plastic containers will do.
Serve with milk, fruit and yogurt, or sprinkled on apple sauce.
Tips:
° All quantities can be adjusted according to taste.
° Other nuts or seeds can be used besides the ones listed: sesame seeds, pecans, hazelnuts, cashews, brazil nuts…
° Other dried fruits can be used along with or instead of raisins: apple, dates, currants…
° Spices can be added before baking for taste variations, such as cinnamon or garam masala…
07.08.08
10 Things You Can Like About $4 Gas
There was a great article in TIME magazine this week called “10 Things You Can Like About $4 Gas” that I recommend. I especially like #2, Sprawl Stalls. Maybe my dream not that long ago of suburbs turning into post-apocalyptic wastelands with empty superhighways connecting them isn’t so far off. It’s nice to see that people are finally looking for the positive in this situation. Don’t get me wrong, I am definitely feeling squeezed by gas prices and rising food costs… Plus, I am sick of those forwarded emails telling me which gas stations to boycott so prices will lower. Read the article (especially if you are concerned about gas costs) and let me know what you think…
David
07.01.08
Always check your music…
In the first song of the Charlie Parker Omnibook**, “Confirmation“, I found:
5 wrong notes
2 missing turns
3 notes that they added which didn’t exist
1 missing note
3 wrong rhythms
And that’s just the first song!
I recommend checking with the recording before you assume any transcriptions are correct. Why don’t they hire me to re-edit and re-release it? Anyway, it keeps you on your toes when you learn those solos. Happy practicing…
David
**The Charlie Parker Omnibook is a book of transcribed Charlie Parker solos.
Hang it up
Hang up your clothes to dry. With global warming, it hardly takes any time at all to dry your clothes on a clothesline! It is a lot cheaper than a dryer, doesn’t use electricity (save even more money!) and your clothes last longer because there is less wear and tear on them. Why not? If you have a dryer and don’t want crunchy clothes, you can always throw in the clothes for a couple of minutes once they are done to fluff them up! If you are concerned about lint, then throw them in before hanging them up for a few minutes with the lowest possible heat setting, to save a little extra. If the neighbors don’t like it, I think it is time for them to reevaluate their priorities. Plus, being green is trendy… Also, use a retractable clothesline, so you don’t have it out all of the time. Finally, don’t leave out your clothes over-night if you can, so that animals don’t decide to hang out there…
David
06.30.08
Calling yourself a “musician”
If you want to call yourself a musician, this is the minimum that I ask: Be able to play a few songs at a party without any music. Someone asks you to play and you don’t have to dig out a book of songs and read something from it, you can just pull something out of your head, or make something up on the spot. (I think quite a few college students studying music and classical musicians would be disqualified) I really don’t think that is asking very much at all!
Check this out, I think Bireli Lagrene qualifies (watch this all the way through, you’ll be glad you did!):
David
PS Thanks to Beau Sample for sending me this video…
06.28.08
Quick question…
VERSUS
When someone is out car shopping, what is it that makes them decide that they need a Yukon XL versus the regular Yukon??
“I was really hoping I could find an SUV that seats 15…”
I am so happy to see that these vehicles are slowly coming out of style. I know I live in TX, the world of big trucks and big SUVs, but I think gas prices are finally forcing these things off of the road.
David
PS Nothing personal to all you yukon drivers… It could have been suburbans or tahoes or denalis or escalades or hummers or anything else…