tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23017450869611861932024-03-13T21:24:11.060-07:00Puppy Dog MusicThoughts about music, jazz, music theory, general improvisation, jazz piano, stride piano, solo jazz piano styles both historic and contemporary, research threads. Connections between Classical and Jazz and World Music. Ideas for professional and serious students of music, musical finds and insights.....thoughts about life in the professional music world. Science, tuning theory. And accordion. PLEASE SIGN UP AND FOLLOW THE BLOG!Steve Keenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15451798154189798012noreply@blogger.comBlogger77125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2301745086961186193.post-47886638123534040842014-12-01T19:24:00.003-08:002014-12-01T19:24:52.966-08:00Making the iPad Friendly for the Working Musician - ForScore App Overview<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I recently downloaded iGigBook( $14.99) and ForScore ( $4.99 ) from the App Store expressly for reading music on the iPad. While I don’t have in-depth experience with iGigBook, and I recognize that many people love iGigBook, I abandoned it within a day because of its non-intuitive user interface ( I did spend several hours trying to make sense of it ), it’s limited annotation capability, lack of landscape view and lack of a user-guide ( at least I was never able to find one). On the other hand, <b>ForScore</b> was immediately up and running, easy to use and has all the features I need, except perhaps, searchable fake-book ( aka real-book) index capability. I don’t find that a problem though. If you call up the index and find the page number you wish to view, you can get to that page in just a second with the swipe of a finger along a “seek-bar” at the bottom of the screen while looking at the pop-up preview. The index itself is not searchable, however. ( The manual discusses a feature where ForScore will scan your pdf for a table of contents and import it but I’ve had no luck making that happen ) It is also easy to offset the actual page numbers to match the indexed page-numbers. </div>
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In practice the iPad has been working very well except in direct sunlight. The small size is not a problem given that the image contrast is so much greater than a printed page though, if you wear reading glasses, don't leave them at home. There are numerous online instructional videos for ForScore for those who prefer. </div>
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So here are the features that I like about <b>ForScore</b>, in order of importance, and only a couple I’m not crazy about. I leave it to others to compare feature-by-feature to other music readers and to correct my errors. </div>
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1. The program is set up as a <b>relational database</b>, so you can enter in any number of“keywords” known as "tags", and you can assign a category to each score ( piece of music ) known as “genres”. These are all searchable later - if I want to find a “swing” tune that’s also a “bebop” tune I can search and screen for just those tunes that contain both words in the metadata. Other fields in the database include Composer, Difficulty, Time, and Quality Rating. I get a little confused with having Tags AND Genres, as there is some overlap here. I’m never sure, for example, whether I should call “Musette” a tag or a genre. I’m tempted to just put all my searchable keywords under “tags” and skip using the “genres” field altogether, or vica-versa. If you use the term “Jazz” as both a “tag" and a “genre”. when you search for tunes with that keyword, you will get 2 separate lists of tunes, one that has “jazz” listed as tags and one for genres. Another thing to note is that the search engine is <u>case sensitive, </u> so the “french” songs will be in a different genre than the “French” songs. This is a little annoying, but I just make it a point to capitalize first letter of any genre or tag word. Genres and tags will Auto-fill as you are typing to speed up the entry process, and you can also batch edit a group of tunes if they are all going to get the same tag/genre assignment. </div>
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2. <b>Annotation</b> is the ability to write on the page, erase, make changes and notes, add in missing accidentals, phrase and dynamic markings, using a stylus. The symbols are editable by size and boldness and are accessed in a series of drop down boxes, or you just just draw anything you want in freehand. It’s quite slick and easy to use. Color options are great for highlighting those hard-to-see repeat signs and Coda signs. </div>
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3. <b>Landscape and Portrait</b> mode switchable by just turning the iPad 90 degrees. </div>
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4. <b>Editing the border</b> is easy to do in ForScore if you want the narrow the margins so the music fits the screen better. A permanent cropping tool is available or you can do it on a temporary basis using a scroll bar below a preview window. You can also zoom in using two fingertips. </div>
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5. <b> Page turns</b> are accomplished with a light tap of the screen, forward and backward, or with an accessory page turning pedal. You can also program “links” between repeat signs to jump back to the beginning of the repeated section, wherever it is. </div>
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6. Compatible<b> file formats</b> include pdf, doc, docx, and rtf. I wish jpg were on this list because I do all editing of my scans in Photoshop and save as jpg’s. Thankfully, on the Mac, converting to a pdf is easily done from the Preview menu ( file/export as pdf). In Photoshop I like to resample each scan to 150 ppi at 8.5”x11” and save as a jpg at level 9 jpg compression. Files are coming out at about 300KB (relatively small) and look great on the iPad. Larger files will work just fine but eat up the memory fast. 1000 tunes at 2MB each will eat up 2GB of your iPad memory, which I guess is not a big deal unless you have a lot of other stuff on your iPad. If you’re using the iPad for music and photos, running short on memory is a real possibility. </div>
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I've been loading files into the iPad by way of iTunes. Follow the path iTunes/iPad/Apps/ForScore/Add ( Note that "Add" is way at the bottom of the screen and might be hidden from view until you scroll way down ). After adding tunes to the cache, you clink "sync" to load them into the iPad. </div>
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7. The <b>ForScore User Manual</b> is terrific. Written by actual English-speakers, it spells everything out very clearly. Except maybe that paragraph about importing Table of Contents.</div>
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8. You can create <b>Setlists </b> for tunes that will be played sequentially, and easily change the order, add and delete tunes. When you tap the screen it goes to the next tune in the set. You can navigate backwards if you need to as well. </div>
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9. <b>Merging tunes</b> is the process of taking individual pdf files and turning them into one multi-page document. For example, a 5 page score that was added to ForScore can be turned into 1 file, with one filename, and the pages turn just as they would normally, by tapping the screen.</div>
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10. <b>Other features</b> include email and bluetooth capabilities, linking pages, bookmarking to jump to predetermined locations in the score, creating separate libraries of music, linking iPads, audio and midi playback and wireless printing. There is a tuner, a playable piano keyboard, camera, a pitch pipe, and custom programmable touch features, recording option, backup capability and an online store to purchase pre-formatted pdf’s. </div>
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I think I hit most of the features of ForScore here - hope this is helpful! </div>
Steve Keenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15451798154189798012noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2301745086961186193.post-36414291254005799312012-11-16T13:26:00.001-08:002012-11-16T13:26:28.254-08:00Upside-Down Thinking for the Jazz Pianist EXPLORING AN ADVANCED HARMONIC EXERCISE IN JAZZ-PIANO HARMONY<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-17kqXItEnjk/UKat6WPV4VI/AAAAAAAAATE/O6K1hPxJmV4/s1600/freddieh.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="264" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-17kqXItEnjk/UKat6WPV4VI/AAAAAAAAATE/O6K1hPxJmV4/s320/freddieh.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Legendary Freddie Hubbard</td></tr>
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In Jazz Improvisation, the question that is always asked is " What notes should I play with this Chord?" A whole boat-load of Jazz Theory Books and Minus-One recordings have been marketed to answer this single question, ever since the introduction of Jerry Coker's 1964 book "Improvising Jazz" where an academic framework of modes and scales for improvising was laid out on paper. There is of course, much much more to playing Jazz than mastering scales. Scale study may not be <b>necessary </b>and certainly is not <b>sufficient</b>. Some would say that it is <b>neccesary</b> but not <b>sufficient</b>, but it is definitely not <b>necessary and sufficient</b>. The arguments about teaching Jazz and how to think about it go on, and the wise student would study from a variety of teachers to get different perspectives on how to learn improvising. The one thing I believe is absolutely <b>necessary</b> is being able to play melodically and harmonically by ear in all 12 keys - the study of scales may facilitate that skill, but not necessarily. If that skill is not in play, all the scale study and hours of practice are just rote exercises leading nowhere. This is why I have my students play "EAR" tunes in all keys, like Happy Birthday, Dixie and Jingle Bells. Usually they understand the reason and it is surprisingly challenging to do. The payoff is big, though. But if you can't hear your way through those tunes, how much sense does it make to improvise on a complex tune like Joy Spring and make musical sense of it? But enough of that - in this post I propose an advanced Harmonic exercise that turns the conventional method on its head and goes a long way to developing abilities to hear harmonically and to hear how notes relate to their underlying chord, which I believe is the foundation of improvising lines. <br />
Instead of asking....<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> WHAT NOTES GO WITH THAT CHORD?</span><br />
ask....<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">WHAT CHORD GOES WITH THOSE NOTES?</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">This is a great way to develop the ear, to learn to listen carefull<span style="font-size: small;">y to voicings <span style="font-size: small;">and chord-quality differences</span>, and develop useful arranging skills. </span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span>Let's say we are given t<span style="font-size: small;">wo notes ( Eb and Ab in this example. <span style="font-size: small;">) There is at least one good jazz voicing in every key that will <span style="font-size: small;">incorporate those t<span style="font-size: small;">wo <span style="font-size: small;">notes. There are<span style="font-size: small;"> several</span> possib<span style="font-size: small;">ili<span style="font-size: small;">ties <span style="font-size: small;">i</span>n each<span style="font-size: small;"> key on chord type and voi<span style="font-size: small;">cing configuration. </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span> This can be rework<span style="font-size: small;">ed with <span style="font-size: small;">A<span style="font-size: small;">NY <span style="font-size: small;">t<span style="font-size: small;">wo notes, or <span style="font-size: small;">e<span style="font-size: small;">ven 3<span style="font-size: small;"> notes! Or 1 note. <span style="font-size: small;">Here is a sample s<span style="font-size: small;">olution for the 2 notes <span style="font-size: small;">Eb and Ab, hi<span style="font-size: small;">ghlighted in blue<span style="font-size: small;">:</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"> Clea<span style="font-size: small;">rly this opens up a lifetime of exploration, <span style="font-size: small;">gi<span style="font-size: small;">ven the 1, 2, <span style="font-size: small;">and</span> 3 <span style="font-size: small;">note possibilities in 12 keys. For someone who is focused on harmon<span style="font-size: small;">y and voicing, I think this can be ex<span style="font-size: small;">trem<span style="font-size: small;">el</span>y hel<span style="font-size: small;">pful<span style="font-size: small;">. </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;">Freddie Hubbard p<span style="font-size: small;">e<span style="font-size: small;">rforms Joy Spring here ---</span></span> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span> <br />
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<br />Steve Keenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15451798154189798012noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2301745086961186193.post-62696857121929006302012-11-13T21:37:00.000-08:002012-11-13T21:37:39.287-08:00A Hemiola by Any Other Name The term "<b>Hemiola</b>" has, like many things, evolved. I myself am guilty of using it in ways that stretch the limits of it's many definitions. <br />
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FIRST DEFINITION<br />
The earliest use of the word is simply to describe the conditions that create the Musical Interval of the Perfect Fifth - two notes that have a <u>FREQUENCY</u> ratio of 3:2 - for example:<br />
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<b>E660 : A440 a Perfect Fifth</b><br />
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<b> Simple enough.....then there's the </b><br />
SECOND DEFINITION:<br />
The term evolved to mean a <u>RHYTHMIC</u> Ratio of 3:2 -- <b>3</b> Beats of Equal Value in a space normally occupied by <b>2. This is the traditional dictionary defintion of the HEMIOLA. </b><br />
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<b> </b>This is extremely common in Afro-Cuban music and Jazz and is the essential feel of the Jazz Waltz.<br />
It is so common to those of us that play Jazz, in fact, that it hardly seems worth naming. <br />
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THIRD DEFINITION<br />
Here in the trenches, we use "hemiola" much more loosely, to refer pretty much to anything that has a "whacky" rhythm relative to the bar-line. <br />
This is a use of the word "hemiola" that pushes the envelope - the music below is better described as a "RHYTHMIC DISPLACEMENT" or "Polyrhythm" or even "Cross-rhythm", but many people will just refer to this as a hemiola. Probably not a great way to describe it, but that's language evolution for you. In Zez Confrey's classic solo piano novelty, Kitten on the Keys, there is a 6/8 melodic phrase plastered onto a 4/4 harmonic accompaniment - it is the displacement or polyrhythm that makes it sound like a cat wandering up and down the keyboard with an expected disregard for the underlying music. <br />
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Here is Zez Confrey himself playing the tune - notice the exaggerated "swing-feel" eighth notes unlike most contemporary performances of this piece. <br />
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A FOURTH CURIOSITY<br />
Here's a clever "Note-Sequence Displacement" where a sequence of notes is displaced in the bar by ONE 1/8 beat and the <b>rhythm</b> of those notes is modified as well - on first hearing this, the word "hemiola" comes to mind, but it is really much more curious than just that. Felix Arndt's ear-catching composition, NOLA.<br />
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And just to cement that tune into your psyche, here's the unforgettable version by Liberace:<br />
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A FIFTH CURIOSITY<br />
THE MYSTERIOUS CASE OF THE DISAPPEARING HEMIOLA -<br />
( more correctly "rhythmic displacement" )<br />
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From the 1962 musical, The Music Man, comes this most memorable tune "Gary, Indiana" - look at this melodic line below <u>without the words </u>- it's really not an interesting melodic phrase AT ALL - in fact, it's straight out of Hanon Studies for the Piano ( the main character of the movie was a Music Teacher - nice touch!) BUT, add the 6 syllable Word-Phrase and all of a sudden there's a rhythmic HOOK, completely "lyric-dependent". A 3 beat word-phrase stuck into a 2 beat musical phrase. Take away the words and the "hook" just vanishes! Is this a hemiola in the contemporary use of the word?<br />
Probably not. But just as interesting by any other name, whatever that might be. <br />
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Listen.....<br />
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And just to close, while we're speaking of cats with disregard for the music, I include a special cat, Nora, performing a composition by <a class="yt-uix-contextlink yt-uix-sessionlink yt-uix-tile-link result-item-translation-title" data-sessionlink="ved=CAYQvxs%3D&ei=CJHwoeHbzbMCFWOQRAodZwYtJw%3D%3D" dir="ltr" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cvln92DIJ7A" title="CATcerto Balticum News Nora The Piano Cat Mindaugas Piecaitis">Mindaugas Piecaitis</a> with refreshing <u>regard</u> for music...in fact, she LOVES music....<br />
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Steve Keenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15451798154189798012noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2301745086961186193.post-84276029165314036842012-08-21T22:15:00.000-07:002012-08-21T22:15:41.986-07:00How Not to Hire a Music TeacherAs a college music teacher, my name is listed in a number of directories and websites so I occasionally get inquiries in my email box. Here's one I recently received from none other than "Mr. Elvis":<br />
<br /><span style="color: #073763;">>*Hello, This is Mr Elvis, I want private lessons for my daughter, Mary.</span><br style="color: #073763;" /><span style="color: #073763;">>Mary is a 14 year old girl, home schooled and she is ready to learn Please,</span><br style="color: #073763;" /><span style="color: #073763;">>I will like to know if you will be capable and available for the tutoring</span><br style="color: #073763;" /><span style="color: #073763;">>service because I really wish the tutorial begins First week of September,</span><br style="color: #073763;" /><span style="color: #073763;">>2012 and if you are going for any trip let me know the date you will be</span><br style="color: #073763;" /><span style="color: #073763;">>back (Break Shall be Observed), also do get back to me with the following </span><br />
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details about you:</div>
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<br />>Your Name:<br />>Area of Specialization:<br />>Years of experience:<br />>Your Location:<br />>Your charges per hour $:<br />>Your Phone Number: </div>
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I will be glad to read back from you soon so that i can keep in touch with my daughter about the progress of her tutorial.</div>
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My best regards,*</div>
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*Elvis*</div>
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<span style="color: #0c343d;"><b>Here's some advice to "would-be" scammers</b> - </span><br />
<span style="color: #0c343d;"> 1. Learn English.</span><br />
<span style="color: #0c343d;"> 2. If you find me by name, don't then turn around and ask what my name is.</span><br />
<span style="color: #0c343d;"> 3. When you are clearly a foreign speaker, surely you can assume a foreign name for yourself more convincing than "Mr. Elvis".</span><br />
<span style="color: #0c343d;"> 4. Leave off the asterisk right after "My Best Regards" - it's a dead giveaway. </span><br />
<span style="color: #0c343d;"> 5. Stay out of my email box or I'll track you down and use your body parts for one of my science experiments on fermentation. </span><br />
<span style="color: #0c343d;"><br /></span>
<b><span style="color: #0c343d;">THE SCAM</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: #0c343d;"> Here's How It Works</span></b><br />
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<span style="color: #0c343d;">When the lessons are arranged, the scammer will send a check for a rather large amount of money, maybe even more than you requested, to "pay in advance". When you deposit this check the funds could be available to you even before the check clears. You will then be requested to return some of it, for airfare for the kid, or to correct an "overpayment". When the check finally bounces weeks down the road, you are out the money - it is your responsibility to cover bounced checks, not the bank. </span><br />
<span style="color: #0c343d;"> </span><b><span style="color: #0c343d;"> </span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: #0c343d;"> Here's some advice from the Suzuki Association Website:</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: #0c343d;"><br /></span></b>
<span style="color: #0c343d;">It is sometimes difficult to spot a genuine student inquiry from a scam one especially if you are based in a town where there might be many foreign students.<br />There are patterns to scam emails and one emanating from an overseas source will contain many of the elements below.<br /><br /> 1. Poor English including poor spelling and punctuation<br /> 2. Demands for a ridiculous teaching schedule: “one hour’s lesson every day for 4 weeks”<br /> 3. Strange travel and accommodation conditions usually involving an overseas pupil<br /> 4. The overseas pupil is almost always referred to as a beginner and age 14 or above<br /> 5. Attempts to dictate terms to you rather than asking for YOUR terms<br /> 6. No phone number<br /> 7. Does not use your name anywhere: “hello” instead of “Dear Mr Bloggs”<br /> 8. Discrepancies in their own name<br /> 9. Does not refer to the actual specialism you advertise but a generalisation: “music lessons” instead of “piano lessons”<br /> 1. Uses a hotmail, yahoo, mail or other disposable email account<br />The initial email is unlikely to mention financial arrangements in any detail but subsequent ones certainly will.<br />To make sure you don’t get scammed:<br /><br /> 1. Ignore emails containing most of the above elements<br /> 2. If in doubt speak directly to the sender of the email<br /> 3. Remember that scams always involve money<br /> 4. If you are taking payment in advance you should do it in person<br /> 5. Never take advance payment by cheque or wire transfer from someone you don’t know<br /></span><br />
<span style="color: #0c343d;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #0c343d;"> </span><br />
Steve Keenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15451798154189798012noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2301745086961186193.post-38203288798094914042012-07-15T01:42:00.000-07:002012-07-15T01:42:17.511-07:00What's With Desafinado?<br />
This song, <b>Desafinado</b>, was a huge hit in 1962 for composer <u>Antonio Carlos Jobim</u> with the popularity of the Stan Getz and Charlie Bird versions. With reference to the English lyrics, the tune is sometimes known as "Slightly Out of Tune". The song never grows old and jazzers everywhere still play it - it's got that nice "#11" sound in the melody that sounds "slightly out of tune". ( For you non-musicians, that's a note that is dissonant sounding against the underlying chord, and not normally heard as part of a melody, at least in 1962. ) Unfortunately there are different and conflicting published versions of this song out there, and there is confusion over the number of bars in the B section of the tune. This is a distinctive section of the tune where a surprising 20 bar interlude passes through a couple different keys then cleverly makes its way easily back to the key of F. Point of question is " How long does it stay in the key of A?" <br />
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(I hope to clear up the confusion, and to win a $5 bet in the process.... JD you know who you are ) <br />
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As you can hear below , the answer is: <b>12 bars</b>. Some published leadsheets have omitted 4 bars of this - I suspect it's just a typo. Here is a version of Jobim himself playing guitar and singing where you can hear the 12 bar key change , 4 more in the key of C, then back to F. All of the recorded versions that I have heard do this, including Stan Getz, Joao Gilberto and Dizzy Gillespie. Even <u>more</u> interesting is the clever and beautiful chord progression in the original recording, that has been radically altered and simplified in contemporary fake books ( they do that a lot ). Below the video is a lead-sheet transcription from the actual Jobim recording sampled here. Notice the minor chords with the third-of-the-chord in the bass - a great sound you will not often see notated in fake books - I'm not sure why- it's not like it's a difficult concept and it gives the progression some life. Also notice that each time the 4-bar progression happens in the key of A, it is a little different, AS IS the melody! While I always like the idea of respecting the original composition, I'm certainly not opposed to altering chords and melodies as long as the final product is not LESS interesting than the original. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/--LJBA1qH_lQ/UAJ_uUwwVLI/AAAAAAAAARM/RZqhqAnlJR0/s1600/fiver.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="139" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/--LJBA1qH_lQ/UAJ_uUwwVLI/AAAAAAAAARM/RZqhqAnlJR0/s320/fiver.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A Fiver in My Future</td></tr>
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<br />Steve Keenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15451798154189798012noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2301745086961186193.post-69311081693439979242012-06-18T23:38:00.001-07:002012-06-19T00:44:41.255-07:00Math of Chiming - Wind Chime, that is...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">from Popular Mechanics - hand made Chime plans</td></tr>
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CHIMING<br />
noun 1. to make chimes. 2. to design chimes 3. to be involved in the community of chimers 4. to ring a chime 5. to sell chimes 6. to write about chimes 7. to collect chimes 8. to read this blog-post<br />
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Most Wind Chime plans such as this one pictured above in Pop Mechanics will give you a list of tube lengths ( usually generating a Major Chord or Pentatonic Scale). With a little bit of calculation and knowledge of the Frequency Ratios of Intervals ( <b>that you can get on this blog</b>, links below) it is possible to design a chime to play any manner of weird chord, jazz chord, Scriabin's Mystic Chord, Slonimsky's "Grandmother chord", or just experiment with dissonance and unusual configurations. Granted, on a a windy day your neighbors may hate you for it. My first Chime was a Gm (6,9) chord but that is a rather pleasant sounding chord - happily, the math works out beautifully, though my mechanical design needs a little rethinking. I discovered that the weight of the wind-catcher is very important as is the relative weight of the clapper, but this post is not really about the mechanics of chime-building. There are several suppliers of chime parts on the web but virtually all of it can be homemade using common hardware items and wood, on a small scale. <br />
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To read the rather short Pop Mechanics article Click <a href="http://www.popularmechanics.com/home/how-to-plans/metalworking/how-to-make-your-own-wind-chimes" target="_blank">HERE</a><br />
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Here is an easy system for Custom-Designing tube lengths for a tubular Wind Chime. No need for trial and error, you just need to be familiar with musical Intervals and be handy with a hacksaw. Copper pipe, steel conduit, aluminum tubing, it's all good, though there is plenty of variation in tone and resonance. Conduit is cheap. <br />
You might think that an organ pipe would behave something like a wind-chime tube - not the case, not even close. An organ pipe <u>contains </u>the vibrating air, while a chime tube<i> </i>ITSELF is what vibrates and the air inside it is irrelevant. Cut an organ pipe in half and you kick the sound up ONE octave. Cut a wind chime tube in half and you kick it up 2 octaves! - obviously something different is going on here. <br />
This post is all about designing tube length for Wind Chimes, not about constructing the Chime iteself - there are plenty of resources for that on the web and people like Gregg Payne ( video below) have turned it into a Fine-Art. I will skip to the finish and show you the method and save the explanation and formula for the end.<br />
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<span style="color: #660000;"> DESIGNING THE TUBE-LENGTHS BY MUSICAL INTERVALS</span> ( not frequencies!) Remember that another term for "Musical Interval" is "Frequency-Ratio". That's what an interval IS... (they are all listed below)<br />
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1. Choose a starting length for the lowest ( LONGEST) tube. Pick anything. <br />
2. Choose the desired Musical Interval for Tube #2 and make note of its "Divisor". <br />
(for example, if you want a note that is a fifth above the Reference tube ( #1) choose the Divisor 1.222 )<br />
3. Divide the length of the Reference tube by this number to get the length of Tube #2, always using the same tube material. Tube #2 should sound a 5th above the reference tube. It is the<b> interval</b> that matters more than the actual pitch or frequency. <br />
4. Continue until you have all the musical intervals for the chime design. <br />
5. String 'em up and wait for a hurricane or whack them with a piece of wood.<br />
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<u>INTERVAL</u> <u> DIVISOR</u> <u>FREQUENCY RATIO</u><br />
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(tempered intervals)</div>
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1/4 step 1.014 1.029<br />
1/2 step 1.029 1.059<br />
1 step 1.059 1.121<br />
min 3rd 1.089 1.188<br />
maj 3rd 1.122 1.258<br />
4th 1.154 1.332<br />
b5th 1.188 1.411<br />
5th 1.222 1.494<br />
m 6th 1.258 1.582<br />
maj 6th 1.295 1.676<br />
min 7th 1.332 1.774<br />
maj 7th 1.371 1.879<br />
octave 1.414 2.0<br />
min 9th 1.455 2.118<br />
maj 9th 1.497 2.243<br />
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<span style="color: #990000;">(pure intervals)</span><br />
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min 3rd 1.095 6/5</div>
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maj 3rd 1.118 5/4</div>
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min 6th 1.265 8/5</div>
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maj 6th 1.291 5/3</div>
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7th 1.323 7/4</div>
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Pure intervals don't exist on the piano - even octaves are not quite pure. </div>
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Notice that the pure intervals are slightly different than the same intervals that are tempered - there would be an audible difference and a difference in tube length of 1/8" or 1/16" or so, sometimes more on large pipes. Pure intervals exist in nature, in choirs, in string orchestras, not on pianos, or in general orchestral music or pop music. I did not include pure 4ths and 5ths because they are nearly identical to tempered intervals. The pure 7th is an ODD egg indeed and doesn't really approximate any of the tempered intervals that we use in Western Music. I would like to try this in a wind-chime one of these days...also want to try 1/4 steps. </div>
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To review the meaning of Tempered Intervals AND Understanding Frequency Ratios of Intervals please read my previous blog-posts on the topics: </div>
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Temperament and Ratios <a href="http://puppydogmusic.blogspot.com/2011/06/developing-temperament-temperment.html" target="_blank">CLICK</a></div>
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The Two Most Important Numbers <a href="http://puppydogmusic.blogspot.com/2011/05/two-most-important-musical-numbers.html" target="_blank">CLICK</a></div>
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This shows how to calculate the frequency ratio for any interval. </div>
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THE DIRECT FORMULA FOR COMPUTING WIND CHIME TUBE-LENGTH</div>
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using Musical Intervals ( no actual "frequency" numbers are required )</div>
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Where F2 is the frequency of the tube to be cut.</div>
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FR is the frequency of the reference tube.</div>
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L2 is the length of the tube to be cut.</div>
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LR is the length of the reference tube.</div>
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F2/FR is simply replaced with the ratio of the desired interval in the above chart. Its Square Root is the Divisor that is used to divide into the length of the reference tube. </div>
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Example:</div>
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A 24" steel conduit tube might ring at G below middle C on the piano ( G3) depending on diameter and wall thickness. The exact note or pitch doesn't matter - this is our reference low tone. </div>
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To create a tube that rings a pure 6th above this ( a bit flat of E above middle C, but creating a pure interval of a Maj 6th with the G) Divide 24" by 1.291. Cut a tube to 18.59" and voila.... harmony. </div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Experiments to try:</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d;">A series of quarter steps.</span></div>
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A series of stacked 5ths ( The Outer Limits chord, from the old TV series)</div>
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A complex 5, 6 or 7 note jazz voicing, maybe with a b13 and a #9 and min7 and maj3. </div>
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A series of 3 pure thirds resulting in a dissonant narrow octave.</div>
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A series of 4 pure minor 3rds resulting in a dissonant wide octave. </div>
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Major triads comprised of a pure major third and a pure 5th ( and resultant pure minor third between the upper two notes. .. a very PURE sounding chord. </div>
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A series of minor thirds plus a series of minor thirds up a whole step ( a "diminished scale" ) </div>
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Japanese 4 and 5 note scales.</div>
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Persian and MidEastern scales. </div>
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Dissonant scales using 1/4 steps. </div>
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Open fifths for two octaves: Gregorian Chant--- Fifth, Octave, Octave and a Fifth, Two Octaves </div>
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Major triad plus the 5th below it ( the Joni Mitchell chord, V/I )</div>
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Major triad plus the major triad a b5 above the first triad. </div>
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Whole tone scale 7 notes spanning an octave.</div>
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Whole tone scale for 10 notes</div>
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Chimes where the tubes are at different distances from the clapper so that when the wind pickup up</div>
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speed the chord gets more complex and more dissonant. </div>
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A couple of pure 7ths, an interval that is rarely heard. </div>
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Recalculate frequency ratios using the 31 note tempered scale or the 43 not tempered scale and construct chords from those pitches. ( why stick to twelve? ... )</div>
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A stack of intervals: min6, maj 2nd, major 6 (yielding a 4-part maj 9 chord with the 3rd on bottom)</div>
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(choice of reference tube can change as the tubes are cut)</div>
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<span style="color: black;">Happy Chiming. </span>Enjoy this video of Gregg Payne and his amazing extra-large chimes:</div>
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<br />Steve Keenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15451798154189798012noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2301745086961186193.post-30877210007762605682012-05-04T14:34:00.000-07:002012-05-19T21:09:16.601-07:00Jazz Pianists - Key Fluency is Good <br />
WOULDN'T IT BE NICE IF IT WEREN'T TRUE .... BUT <br />
<b><span style="font-size: large;"> Jazz pianists need to play in all 12 keys - period.</span> </b> If for no other reason, vocalists will be very specific about keys of songs - some have a relatively narrow range, and only one key will work for a given song, so you'd better be able to deal with it. By ear, that is. Other reasons might include being called to play in a Country band, where everything tends to be in A and E, or B, or an Irish band where everything tends to be in D, G and A. Maybe you'll be playing old stocker big band charts which tend to be in Ab, Eb and Db and Gb. Or maybe you'll work with a singer-songwriter-guitarist who has no hesitation about slapping on a Capo and playing in any of the 12 keys. In the Jazz world, tunes tend to be in F, Bb and Eb ( good saxophone keys). And an even more important reason, is that music itself tends to cycle through different keys within the song, a section here in one key, a section there in another, even though there is no official change of key signature. And it's pretty handy to be able to comfortably navigate key modulations on a whim.<br />
So here's a way to start becoming more comfortable with all 12 keys. First of all, remember that the keys that ARE comfortable are that way simply because we play <u><b>more</b></u> in those keys than the others and our visualization skills have had time to become intuitive, while we just feel clumsy and calculating in other keys. The strategy is simply to play in other keys a lot, listen and observe, to make friends with the key. <br />
The first 8 bar section of <u>When I Take My Sugar to Tea</u> happens to include a plethora of harmonic challenges that, through practice, will go a long way to producing a greater 12-key comfort level. This chord progression is taken from the original tune and enhanced a bit to help get us in the habit of using <u>non-root bottom notes</u> in the bass progression and give us a bit of interesting harmonic sophistication to the arrangement. ( As did the early recorded versions, unlike the fake-book versions which are grossly simplified ). <br />
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Just in the first 8 bars you will be hearing and playing and develop skills in these areas, and in all keys as you move the progression chromatically:<br />
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ii - V7 - I in Major<br />
iim7(b5) - V7 - i in Minor<br />
min7(b5) chord voiced with the b5 on the bottom<br />
passing Diminished Seventh chords<br />
major chord voiced with the 5th on the bottom<br />
dominant 7th chord voiced with 5th on the bottom <br />
Tritone Substitution ( Db7 in place of the phantom G7 )<br />
Secondary Dominant7 Chord ( A7 leading to the iim7 chord)<br />
b9 inner motion and resolution<br />
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At the end of the 8 bars simply ( well, it's not so simple...) play it over again a half step higher retaining all the nuances that are spelled out in the leadsheet. I realize this is advanced for many people so I include a simpler version below that would be a good stepping stone to work up to the first version.<br />
This tune can be played in any style - open voicings, closed voicings, stride, lounge-lizard arpeggio, rubato ballad, as long as you use good voicings, making sense of the bottom-note progressing and good voice-leading. <br />
But first, listen to the tune:<br />
( note the catchy descending chromatic harmony right after the vocal chorus... )<br />
<b>Jack Albin and His Pennsylvania Orchestra performing When I Take My sugar To Tea:</b><br />
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N<span style="color: #990000;">otation in RED is the same thing up a half step. Go up a half step every time until you get comfortable in all keys. Hang out in the awkward keys a little longer and get to know it. </span><br />
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And here is a simpler version to get started on the project - <br />
This will cultivate familiarity in 12 keys with:<br />
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I - V7 progression<br />
iv Minor chord ( a simplified version of iim7(b5) )<br />
Secondary Dominant VI 7 chord ( A7 )<br />
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<br />Steve Keenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15451798154189798012noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2301745086961186193.post-29675247764655062492012-05-03T13:53:00.000-07:002012-05-04T13:11:44.124-07:00Evolution of a Tune - Survival of the Fittest? "Begin at the beginning," the King said gravely, "and go on till you come to the end: then stop."<br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>from Alice in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll</i></span><br />
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If you've read the previous blog posts you will recall several <u>Jazz standards</u> that I researched and dissected in order to find some meaning in the music we play all the time and take for granted, and to put the tunes in historical context. Often I discover that we "dumb-down" the tunes and throw out the important stuff for the sake of convenience or just out of laziness and inattention. Here are links to these previous posts that will each open in a separate window so you can read those posts without migrating from this one: <br />
<a href="http://puppydogmusic.blogspot.com/2011/05/dont-get-around-much-anymore-song.html" target="_blank">Don't get Around Much Anymore</a><br />
<a href="http://puppydogmusic.blogspot.com/2011/07/con-alma-dizzy-gillespie.html" target="_blank">Con Alma</a> <br />
<a href="http://puppydogmusic.blogspot.com/2012/01/how-to-be-stella-detective-by-starlight.html" target="_blank">Stella By starlight</a><br />
<a href="http://puppydogmusic.blogspot.com/2011/12/i-heard-version-of-night-train-other.html" target="_blank">Night Train</a><br />
<a href="http://puppydogmusic.blogspot.com/2011/04/infinite-possibilities-as-time-goes-by.html" target="_blank">As Time Goes By</a><br />
<a href="http://puppydogmusic.blogspot.com/2011/05/all-things-you-are-melodic-variations.html" target="_blank">All The Things You Are</a><br />
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This time I look at <span style="font-size: large;"><b>Alice in Wonderland</b> <span style="font-size: small;">by Sammy Fein.</span></span> The tune was written for the 1951 animated Disney film by the same name ( 2 months after I was born ) and was a 4/4 slow Foxtrot type of tune, with an 18 bar A-section, only remotely similar to the version that the Jazz players today all use. <br />
Here is a YouTube link to the title soundtrack and partial transcription of the version from the original film - <br />
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"Be what you would seem to be" or, more simply, <br />
"Never imagine yourself not to be otherwise than what it might appear to others that what you were or might have been was not otherwise than what you had been would have appeared to them to be otherwise." <span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Alice in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll</i></span><br />
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The standard Jazz version of <b>Alice in Wonderland</b> comes directly from the Bill Evans "Sunday at the
Village Vanguard" album, a full 10 years later, in a jazz -3/4 feel, with a truncated A-section to fit into a
more standard 16-bar form, and somewhat different chord progression. AND, a somewhat different melody. Now, who says Evolution is JUST a THEORY? <br />
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Bill Evans, piano Scot LaFaro, bass Paul Motian, drums <br />
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From "RealBook #1":<br />
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YouTube link to the classic Bill Evans recording "Sunday at the Village Vanguard":<br />
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This album was recorded June 25, 1961. Scott LaFaro, the bass player, was killed in a car wreck on July 6. <br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cROgLnPqKDU/T6Lm81PvaLI/AAAAAAAAAPk/SKDhCFqcOho/s1600/billevans1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cROgLnPqKDU/T6Lm81PvaLI/AAAAAAAAAPk/SKDhCFqcOho/s1600/billevans1.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bill Evans</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Paul Motian</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Scott LaFaro</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Alice</td></tr>
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"But I don't want to go among mad people," Alice remarked."Oh, you can't help that," said the Cat: "we're all mad here. I'm mad. You're mad."<br />
"How do you know I'm mad?" said Alice.<br />
"You must be," said the Cat, "or you wouldn't have come here."<br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Alice in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll</i></span><br />
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<br />Steve Keenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15451798154189798012noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2301745086961186193.post-79913545463656181562012-04-27T16:38:00.000-07:002012-05-19T21:01:00.480-07:00Do it and Do it NOW<br />
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Life is short --- </div>
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LIST OF PROMINENT JAZZ MUSICIANS WITH AGE of DEATH</div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: large;">bunny berigan 33</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: large;">chick web 34</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: large;">paul chambers 33</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: large;">charlie christian 25</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: large;">clifford brown 25</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: large;">jaco pastorius 35</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: large;">bix beiderbeck 28</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: large;">charlie parker 34</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: large;">clarence pinetop smith 24</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: large;">john coltrane 40</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: large;">eric dolphy 36</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: large;">django reinhardt 43</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: large;">scott lafaro 27</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: large;">billie holliday 44</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: large;">wes montgomery 45</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: large;">bobby timmons 39</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: large;">sonny clark 31</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: large;">lee morgan 33</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: large;">eddie costa 32</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: large;">don ellis 44</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: large;">james reese europe 38</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: large;">george gershwin 39</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: large;">eddie lang 35</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: large;">glen miller 40</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: large;">oliver nelson 43</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: large;">bud powell 42</span></div>
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Petrucciani 37</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: large;">Roland
Kirk 42</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: large;">woody
shaw 44</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: large;">Fats
Waller 39</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: large;">Dinah
Washington 39</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: large;">Emily
Remler 32</span></span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: large;">Chano Pozo 33</span></span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: large;">Don Grolnick 47</span></span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: large;">Dave Tough 41</span></span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: large;">Bill Chase 39</span></span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: large;">Bessie Smith 43</span></span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: large;">Art Tatum 47 </span></span></div>
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<br /></div>Steve Keenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15451798154189798012noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2301745086961186193.post-5475568990536267292012-04-13T00:54:00.001-07:002012-04-14T00:05:25.012-07:00Performance Anxiety and Beta BlockersIf you are ill-prepared to perform for an audience and dealing with high levels of anxiety because of your incompetence, then it makes sense to hit the practice room and just learn the material. But, if you are like many performers, anxiety reactions can escalate to the point that they seriously interfere with performance, and yet are not underscored by lack of preparation, poorly honed skills, personal insecurities or any other seemingly rational explanation. <br />
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Irrational fears of performing, public speaking, or just being looked at by a bunch of people are extremely common. <u>Fear of public speaking</u> ranks higher on the anxiety scale than <u>fear of death.</u> On second thought, though, being judged and scrutinized for your appearance, demeanor, and your never-perfect performance by possibly hundreds of your friends and peers and critics, being stared at and talked about -- maybe that's <b>not such an "irrational" fear </b>after all! Especially compared with clearly irrational fears like <u>these actual real-life examples</u> of serious phobias:<br />
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whale tails<br />
butterflies<br />
bathtub sharks<br />
mermaids<br />
aliens<br />
windmills<br />
rainbows<br />
mugs<br />
microwaves <br />
walking up stairs at night<br />
blueberry yogurt<br />
music playing backwards<br />
belly buttons<br />
wiggling fingers<br />
Hawaii<br />
calling people on the phone<br />
mushrooms<br />
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Musicians' performance-fears seem perfectly understandable compared to these! In any event, I'm not going to dissect the psychology of performance anxiety and the therapeutic solutions... I'm here to talk about the DRUGS.<br />
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<b style="color: #741b47;"><br />
Beta-Blockers</b> were first marketed in 1967 for heart rhythm issues or angina. These drugs inhibit the sympathetic nervous system, the f<i>ight or flight</i> response, and found their way into the performing-arts communities (music, dance, public speaking, acting) for that reason - though taken in much milder dosages. Back in 1987 studies showed that some 27% of Professional Orchestra Musicians had used beta-blockers, and these are considered conservative estimates! Who knows how many use them now!? I know a bunch, personally. Some use beta-blockers for <b>every</b> performance, more use on special occasions where anxiety is a particular concern, like for an audition or solo performance. They seem to provide a ceiling for the fight-or-flight response that just prevents your adrenaline reaction from going "over the top" to keep you from going in to the dry-mouth, sweaty hands, shaking feet, pounding-heart-phase that can destroy all evidence of your hard-earned skills. Some claim that they dull your senses, but many deny that.<br />
<u><b>The most common Beta-Blocker is propranolol, marketed as Inderal. </b></u><br />
Use of this prescription drug for performance is hotly debated and I'm not advocating for one side or the other. The debate rages about whether the drug inhibits your performance or reduces your emotional connection to the music. Some say you should deal with the Psychology behind the problem, others say<u> that</u> doesn't work or can take years if it works at all. Some say that a reasonable approach is to use the drug to learn to play free of uncomfortable anxiety and it is easy to phase it out later. Plenty of info is available with a Google search. <br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br />
But Beta-Blockers do something else.</span> Oxford University reports that patients using propranolol test with lower <span style="color: blue;">subconscious racial bias</span>. <u>It reduces Racism.</u> As measured by the "Implicit Association Test" developed at Harvard. What that test actually measures is of course, up for grabs, but it is tantalizing to think that "racial bias" can be influenced by something that also has an influence on the brain's "fear center", the amygdala. Fear and racism .... of course! When I first moved to Salt Lake City in 1972, a fellow student who came here to study in the renowned Jazz Program that was here at the time, who was Black, had an impossible time finding an apartment to rent. It was pure fear-based racism, as there were very few non-Whites here at the time and nobody knew what to make of him. I had no problems in this regard. He eventually found a place but it took weeks and was a very sad and disheartening process. <br />
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Please research in detail and consult a physician before embarking on any path that involves drugs!<br />
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Here is a terrific article about the debate about propranolol and performance-anxiety from the New York Times worth reading:<br />
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http://www.nytimes.com/2004/10/17/arts/music/17tind.html<br />
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Steve Keenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15451798154189798012noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2301745086961186193.post-61324336733006829622012-04-12T22:51:00.000-07:002012-04-12T22:51:27.031-07:00Those Pesky Slash ChordsSlashing through the Confusion over Slash Chords<br />
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First. listen to the classic Herbie Hancock "Maiden Voyage" entirely based on Slash Chords ( the easiest way to notate these chords). The first chord is <span style="font-size: large;">C/D</span> --- or in more conventional long-hand notation, <span style="font-size: large;">D9(sus4, no 5)</span><br />
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In Maiden Voyage, the slash chord describes a simple voicing chord-quality that is most easily described with the slash symbol C/D. But <u><b><i>slashing</i></b></u> has a more important function - <br />
The quality of a chord has a lot to do with how it's voiced, how the notes are laid out, spread out, left out and moved around. But even <b>more</b> so, it has to do with the choice of <u>note that is on the bottom</u>. This note defines <i>everything</i> about the chord quality - in fact, many composers of jazz will routinely write a 2 staff lead-sheet just so they can be in control of the bottom note, feeling that a simple chord-symbol is just TOO simplified. Music notation evolved to allow us to specify that <i><u>bottom - note</u></i>, short of actually writing out all of the notes on the staff. We call these chord symbols <b>"slash chords".</b> Slash chords also specify the exact notes that are to be included with the chord, just not exactly how to play them. <br />
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But there always seems to be some confusion about "slash chords".... I know this because I never know what note will come from the Bass Player when I give out charts that contain "slash chords". Back in the 17th Century (and still today!) music notation made use of "Figured Bass" to be very specific about what note to put on the bottom, or more accurately, what inversion of the chord was to be played. It is a very important component of composing and arranging. The bottom note progression defines the quality of each chord in the harmonic progression and allows music to be so much more interesting than when it always just has the root on the bottom. The manner in which the bottom note progresses is one aspect of music that brings it to life. <br />
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For example , this Figured-Bass notation on the left describes a <b>Bb triad in 2nd inversion</b> by laboriously describing the intervals that make up the inversion ( a sixth and a fourth ). <br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zFAUzu-gEmM/T4euTZwhi9I/AAAAAAAAAOU/lZKqK_LVIhE/s1600/FiguredBass.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="187" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zFAUzu-gEmM/T4euTZwhi9I/AAAAAAAAAOU/lZKqK_LVIhE/s400/FiguredBass.jpg" width="400" /></a></div> Nowadays, in the jazz world anyway, we use the some what less specific and less cumbersome Slash System to at least specify the bottom note, since the bottom note is so important to the sound of the chord and is heard as an important countermelody in its own right. We tend to leave the choice of actual voicing to the player, in jazz and pop music. As simple as it seems, there is still confusion about the system, however.<br />
<br />
<br />
The most common form of slash chord is the one on the left - note the diagonal slash to denote the top CHORD, from the bottom NOTE. <br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2mv6dq_Djd0/T4eus-YhmuI/AAAAAAAAAOc/ZeYNavUDnXw/s1600/slash+angle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="273" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2mv6dq_Djd0/T4eus-YhmuI/AAAAAAAAAOc/ZeYNavUDnXw/s400/slash+angle.jpg" width="400" /></a></div> One school of thought recognizes a <u>second</u> kind of slash chord ( on the right ) with a HORIZONTAL slash to denote the top CHORD from the bottom CHORD - a polychord. This is <b style="color: #cc0000;">much less common</b> and I would never assume this notation unless instructed by the arranger.<br />
<br />
Back to the regular diagonal Slash Chords ---<br />
Slash chords fall into 3 categories (examples below use F as the given Low Note)....<br />
_____________________________________________________<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">FIRST Category</span> - simple inversions of an F triad<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> F/F</span> a type of F chord<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">F/A </span> a type of F chord <br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> F/C </span> a type of F chord<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> F/Eb</span> a type of F chord (F7)<br />
<br />
<br />
..... where the bottom note is just one of the chord tones but the <b>root of the chord is still F.</b> <br />
___________________________________________________________________<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">SECOND Category</span><br />
<br />
The bottom note is functioning as the ROOT of the chord. Slash notation here is to specify a chord type or voicing in a simple way. Note that none of these is actually an "F chord" in sound or in function. <br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> F/G </span> a type of G chord, G11(omit 5) or G9(sus4, no 5)<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> F/Bb </span> a type of Bb chord Bbmaj9(omit3)<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> F/Db</span> a type of Db chord Dbmaj7)#5)<br />
__________________________________________________________________<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">THIRD Category</span><br />
<br />
Function is up for grabs on these more dissonant chords, completely dependent on context ( of course the F/D you will recognize as a Dm7, not dissonant, but in certain contexts writing it as a slash chord actually might make some sense). Tonality is ambiguous. <br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">F/Gb F/Ab F/B ( F/D ) F/E</span><br />
_______________________________________________________________________<br />
<br />
<br />
Here is a schematic of all 12 Slash Chords in the Key of F to visualize the 3 categories described above:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-enmJfxbh2fA/T4ey_P4uxxI/AAAAAAAAAOk/e-FX34Qk-ZQ/s1600/slash+chords.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-enmJfxbh2fA/T4ey_P4uxxI/AAAAAAAAAOk/e-FX34Qk-ZQ/s640/slash+chords.jpg" width="403" /></a></div><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
And I just have to mention - in writing Slash-Chord symbols correctly, it is often desirable to use a <span style="font-size: large;">Cb</span> or an<span style="font-size: large;"> Fb</span> in the chord symbol - particularly when writing chords like<span style="font-size: large;"> Fm7(b5)/Cb <span style="font-size: small;">or</span> Bbm7/Fb .</span> I have learned over the years, though, that this is an almost guaranteed way to hear a wrong note coming from the bass. <span style="font-size: small;"><b>Please be advised that <u><span style="color: #741b47;">Cb is B</span></u> and <u><span style="color: #741b47;">Fb is E</span></u>.</b></span> Just for the record, because it is just plain illogical to write Fm7(b5)/B and I hate to do it just to increase the probability that the symbol will be read correctly. <br />
And for an absolutely guaranteed wrong note I would write <span style="font-size: large;">Ebm7(b5)/Bbb - <span style="font-size: small;">pianists tend to read Double-Flats fairly often in Classical Music but this will trip up Jazz Bass players every time - no disrespect to Jazz Bass players! </span></span><br />
<br />
<br />
Now, with that knowledge, let's look at what scales an improviser of Jazz might play over slash chords - understanding what the chords REALLY are can empower some good soloing...<br />
F/A F major<br />
F/C F major<br />
F/Eb F mixolydian ( it's an F7)<br />
F/D D aeolian ( it's a Dm7 chord, the vi chord in F )<br />
F/G G mixolydian ( it's a G7sus chord )<br />
F/Bb Bb lydian or major ( it's a Bb chord )<br />
F/Db Db lydian, #5 ( it's a Db chord with maj7 and augmented-5th )<br />
<br />
... happy slashing.Steve Keenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15451798154189798012noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2301745086961186193.post-18284138131261425272012-04-05T22:53:00.001-07:002012-04-05T22:56:31.087-07:00Mustard, Cognitive Psychology and Pentatonic Scales<span style="font-size: small;"> Take anything ordinary, something that we use everyday and take for granted, something that's always there and pretty much never changes....... something that's part of life, we get it, we know it, it is what it is, we think. <u>Now</u> stand back to <b>really</b> consider how we think about it. Accept the fact that, no matter what it is, we have <b>already chosen</b> a way to think about it, and we're probably not even aware that this choice has been made - by our parents, TV or corporate ads, convenience or just random chance. </span><br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-LlfA13VqVkM/T355JxR5DvI/AAAAAAAAAN0/22CFXbviCpA/s1600/mustard1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="256" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-LlfA13VqVkM/T355JxR5DvI/AAAAAAAAAN0/22CFXbviCpA/s400/mustard1.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">yummy...</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Take mustard -- we think of it as a flavoring, a spread, a condiment to smear onto a pastrami sandwiches ( or in this case, a tuna sandwich), or on a hot pretzel. But, now, let's make a conscious decision to think about mustard in a completely different way. Mustard is also an "emulsifier" - it acts as an agent to enable water-based foods and oil-based foods to mix together, much the way eggs do. Let's agree to think differently about mustard. Think <u>function</u> rather than <u>taste</u>. Just imagine, if every time you reach in the fridge you consciously tell yourself to pull out the mustard, and have a little conversation with yourself like:<br />
"OK, what am I going to do with <u>this</u> stuff? Well let's see... I know it's an emulsifier....hmmm"<br />
<br />
<br />
You will find, through choosing to think a different way about something, that you will begin to USE it a different way. Your habitual ways of thinking will give way to a world with more possibilities. Who knows, maybe you'll make some amazing mustard gravy then clean your greasy bicycle chain with a dijon slurry. Your salad dressings may never be the same after you change your thinking habits and people may start to comment about the yellow tint of your whipped cream toppings. <br />
<br />
(<span style="color: #cc0000;"> Cognitive Psychologists think about how we think about things.) </span><br />
<br />
<br />
So, <u><i>consciously</i></u><i> </i>choosing to think a different way, causes you to behave a different way - what a powerful tool THAT is! <u><b><i>To change behavior, change thinking.</i></b></u> You can change how you act and feel by making a decision to think in a different way. That, of course applies to all of life, but that topic is a little out of my league so, onward to music and improvising music......<br />
<br />
YES, BUT WILL ALL THIS MAKE ME A BETTER JAZZ MUSICIAN?<br />
yes<br />
<br />
<br />
A pentatonic scale is a series of 5 notes - you can think about those 5 notes as a linear series of notes, one higher than the next OR you can consciously CHOOSE to think about those 5 notes in a multitude of other ways. This intentional <b>reprogramming of your attention</b> will have everything to do with how you ultimately use those notes. When you're improvising, this "mental map" will guide you on your way to greater worlds of "melodic interest", if you're one of the rare people who feel that's important. And I assume you are, if you're even reading this blog at all. <br />
<br />
<br />
Here are 8 different ways to think about a C Major pentatonic scale. Anyone who uses this scale ALREADY thinks about it in ONE of these ways - my suggestion is to reprogram thinking to think about it in a <u>different</u> way. And ultimately, this is not really just about the pentatonic scale, this is about Everything - the scale is just one small example to make the point.<br />
<br />
At the end you will see a melodic line that resulted by thinking about the scale as a series of perfect 5ths. <br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> EIGHT WAYS TO VISUALIZE THE PENTATONIC SCALE</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dVCeH4PKeFQ/T356hisJU9I/AAAAAAAAAOE/tY--m1Vm5es/s1600/pentatonic+8ways.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dVCeH4PKeFQ/T356hisJU9I/AAAAAAAAAOE/tY--m1Vm5es/s1600/pentatonic+8ways.jpg" /></a><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
THIS MELODIC LINE SEEMS COMPLETELY NATURAL WHEN THINKING OF THE SCALE AS A SERIES OF 3 PERFECT FIFTHS:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-0ovMXgbQhVw/T357VGVZgMI/AAAAAAAAAOM/2VuNx1KnWJk/s1600/PENTATONIC2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="137" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-0ovMXgbQhVw/T357VGVZgMI/AAAAAAAAAOM/2VuNx1KnWJk/s640/PENTATONIC2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>Steve Keenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15451798154189798012noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2301745086961186193.post-91267765471654501132012-02-27T10:46:00.001-08:002012-02-27T11:01:52.281-08:00Adelle WHO?<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-9PR4BKwkksw/T0vLuEK3w2I/AAAAAAAAANk/VkJCMBoymsw/s1600/adelle1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="335" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-9PR4BKwkksw/T0vLuEK3w2I/AAAAAAAAANk/VkJCMBoymsw/s400/adelle1.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Adelle Adkins</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
Adelle won 6 Grammys this year and 2 Grammys in 2009, and numerous other Billboard and Brit Awards, including such distinctions as <b>Best Female Pop Vocal Performance, Best New Artist, Album of the Year, Best Independent Artist, Critics Choice, Best Song of the Year, Best Pop Solo Performance, Artist of the Year.</b><br />
SOMEONE LIKE YOU<br />
This song in the video below won <b>Best of 2011</b> and has taken the world by storm. It was #1 in <b>Great Britain</b> for 5 weeks and won a Grammy for Best Solo Performance. It topped the charts in <b>Australia, New Zealand, </b>T<b>he United States, Ireland</b> and the <b>U.K.</b>, and #1 for 7 weeks in <b>France</b>. It also hit # 1 in <b>Finland, </b>B<b>razil, Czech Republic, Ireland, Italy, Poland, Scotland, Switzerland and Belgium.</b> In the U.K alone she has sold over 1.2 million copies and over 4 million in the U.S. This YouTube video has nearly 100,000,000 hits! <br />
<br />
Here it is : Someone Like You<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/qemWRToNYJY?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div><br />
<br />
There is a lengthy article about this song on Wikipedia, the inspiration, history, and analysis.<br />
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Someone_Like_You_%28Adele_song%29<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Q79zqe97_W8/T0vO4GBnbKI/AAAAAAAAANs/Mlp_lOlnsQs/s1600/adelle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Q79zqe97_W8/T0vO4GBnbKI/AAAAAAAAANs/Mlp_lOlnsQs/s320/adelle.jpg" width="224" /></a></div>Steve Keenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15451798154189798012noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2301745086961186193.post-62294208946518327812012-02-12T17:49:00.000-08:002012-02-12T17:49:54.633-08:00Just How Many Scales Are There, Anyway?Scales, scales and more scales...<br />
<br />
Phrygian, Hungarian Minor, Blues Pentatonic, Super-Lochrian, Neopolitan Minor, Neutral Pentatonic, Arabian Major, Spanish 8-Tone, Lydian Dominant, - <u><b style="color: #741b47;"> does it ever end</b></u>??!! YES IT DOES - and I'll show you exactly WHERE it ends.<br />
<br />
<b>Assume</b> that all scales contain and start with the note that is included in the NAME of the scale - <u>for example,</u> a C -scale of any kind contains and starts with the note "C". This leaves 11 notes from which to construct the rest of the scale, since there are only 12 notes. <br />
Let's <b>also assume</b> that we will only be creating <u>7-note scales that start with C</u> ( a C-MAJOR or C-HARMONIC MINOR scale would be examples of 7-note scales that start with C, and there are many others ). Every 7-note scale we create is a simply a different "combination" of 6 other notes ( plus C ) chosen from those 11 notes that are not C. <br />
<br />
Just HOW MANY scales are possible, then , from the 12 notes we are given..<br />
<br />
Fortunately, there's an easy way to calculate that number. <br />
First, reframing the question: "How many combinations of "11 items, 6 at a time", <i>expressed a</i>s <i>C(11,6)</i>, are possible?" Using simple Probability Math ( see below), that number turns out to be 462. <br />
<br />
IT IS POSSIBLE TO PLAY <span style="font-size: large;"><b>462</b></span> DIFFERENT 7-NOTE SCALES. ( many of them may not be very useful, but we'll save that investigation for later) <br />
<br />
For fun, let's <b>also</b> include all of the <u>5-note scales, 6-note scales, and 8-note scales</u>, because these are common configurations in Western music and Jazz Music. ( not to be confused with "Country Western Music" which is something else altogether.)<br />
<br />
C(11,4) = 330 5-note scales<br />
<br />
C(11,5) = 462 6-note scales<br />
<br />
C(11,7) = 330 8-note scales<br />
<br />
That adds up to a Grand Total of <span style="font-size: large;"><b>1584 scales</b></span>, 5,6,7 and 8 note scales. And that's just in the key of C. Finally we see an END to the number of scales that are possible from the 12 note Tempered Scale. Better get practicing because many of these scales are pretty interesting and useful. <br />
<br />
Here's one scale, for example, that has a very intriguing quality, a Japanese pentatonic ( 5-note) scale called<br />
<br />
kumoi 1 b2 4 5 b6 <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-eGUQ6JAHfFo/TzhfKx_HqwI/AAAAAAAAANE/mc1oyAu2Ffk/s1600/kumoi.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="125" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-eGUQ6JAHfFo/TzhfKx_HqwI/AAAAAAAAANE/mc1oyAu2Ffk/s400/kumoi.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
There are 1583 more.....<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><u>HOW TO CALCULATE COMBINATIONS of anything</u></span> --- <br />
<br />
<br />
Imagine that you have five fruits<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zacETRWrJGs/TzhfbwR7zOI/AAAAAAAAANM/6b87GgFRT4M/s1600/fruit5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="95" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zacETRWrJGs/TzhfbwR7zOI/AAAAAAAAANM/6b87GgFRT4M/s400/fruit5.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<br />
and that you need to make a fruit salad that only contains 3 fruits. Obviously it doesn't matter what ORDER you put the fruits in the salad, it really only matters <u>which 3 fruits</u> you choose. Every possible fruit salad would be a different "combination". If the order mattered, <b>that</b> would be a "permutation" - there are many more permutations than combinations. <br />
<br />
One possible combination of 3 fruits chosen from 5 fruits might be this fruit salad:<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-z6vBRqM4hRc/Tzhf74s6OaI/AAAAAAAAANU/IorTY9SxNoM/s1600/fruit3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="135" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-z6vBRqM4hRc/Tzhf74s6OaI/AAAAAAAAANU/IorTY9SxNoM/s200/fruit3.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">ONE OF 10 POSSIBLE <b>"3-FRUIT-SALADS"</b> FROM 5 FRUITS</td></tr>
</tbody></table> There are 10 different fruit salads you could make with 5 fruits, i.e. 10 combinations of 5 things, 3 at a time. <br />
<br />
Combinations of 5 fruits, 3 at a time or C(5,3) is calculated using "factorials".<br />
<br />
A <b>factorial</b> is the number that results from multiplying a number by a series of numbers that decrease by 1 each time. The process is denoted with "!".<br />
<br />
for example.....<br />
5! = 5 x 4 x 3 x 2 x 1 = 120<br />
Combinations of "n" things, "r" at a time can be calculated with this formula:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gWysZzX_k_s/Tzhh5AZ-zpI/AAAAAAAAANc/0W8zvsql40Q/s1600/combinations.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="117" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gWysZzX_k_s/Tzhh5AZ-zpI/AAAAAAAAANc/0W8zvsql40Q/s320/combinations.jpg" width="320" /></a></div> or, as applied to the above fruit salad problem,<br />
<br />
C(5,3) = <u>5x4x3x2x1 </u> = 10<br />
3x2x1 (2x1)<br />
<br />
Bon appetit and good luck with the scales.......which 20 scales will you spend YOUR life practicing and why? <br />
Steve Keenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15451798154189798012noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2301745086961186193.post-91436013391691230662012-01-29T20:59:00.000-08:002012-01-31T00:38:18.287-08:00Tracking Down Stella .... By Starlight The 1944 Movie <b>Uninvited</b> introduced Victor Young's classic tune Stella By Starlight. Sixty years later the tune is still considered a fixture in the Jazz Musicians' repertoire and, as is customary in the Jazz World, it has had 60 years of <u>speeding up</u> and 60 years of <u>natural selection</u>, slowly morphing into a totally different animal. The video below, with Ray Milland and Ruth Hussey at the helm, is the movie feature of the tune, and you will notice right off, that the song is a ballad, and if you're a musician, you will notice that it starts of with a <span style="color: #0b5394;">Diminished 7 Chord</span> and not a <span style="color: #b45f06;">min7(b5) Chord</span> as is now customary. Those are 2 pretty different qualities of harmony, even though they differ by only a single note. But I'm not too concerned about that, since the replacement chord comfortably fits the up-tempo style that people have applied to this tune. And, I must say, <b>many</b> people have applied themselves to this tune - about 800 versions pop up in Rhapsody! <br />
<br />
STELLA BY STARLIGHT from UNINVITED 1944 <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/B96ApEvaoBY?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div><br />
<br />
But, I really wanted to do some detective work to figure out the confusion behind the <b>Real Book I</b> published version of this tune and the awkward chord progression that has become defacto Standard on this tune. I remember this tune from the 50's, as a kid, and how I loved the chord progression ( some things I guess you're born with!). What I remember hearing are the several spots in the tune where there's a <b>Suspension</b> in the melody against a <b>Major Chord</b> and, simultaneously a <b>5th in the bass</b>. Yes, most of my friends we outside playing tackle football while I was doing this, and staying safe. At the time I didn't know what that sound really was, but I just remember the sound being absolutely captivating. That wasn't something you heard every day -- neither was hearing a song that STARTED with a Diminished 7th chord. (The other song I remember starting that way was Gershwin's "Our Love is Hear To Stay", but we've also blown off THAT diminished chord in recent times.) <br />
In time, though, that unique "HOOK" that was built into the tune ( major 3 <u>AND</u> sus4 <u>AND</u> 5th in the bass), gradually disappeared. I say "gradually" because I did hear a number of early recordings where the HOOK was still there.. case in point, the Anita O'Day version at the very bottom of this post). In the abbreviated Chord Chart below, those 2 "hook" spots are marked in <span style="color: #c27ba0;">PINK. <span style="color: black;">The original chords, taken from the movie score, clearly show this tension-resolution moment, built into the song. Fake books like "Real Book 1" tend to simplify-down the harmony by <u>leaving out</u> important aspects of original compositions, important aspects such as a Fifth or Third or a Seventh in the bass, and that could explain why one never hears this tune played with much adherence to the original chords - musicians tend to get their chord knowledge from fake books and NOT from old recordings. And can you blame them?... the song is from a totally different era, after all. Someday there should be a discussion about this philosophy of using old movie songs as jazz "standards" and "blowing over changes" and the merits of doing so. But I digress. </span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #c27ba0;"><span style="color: black;"> The SECOND element of confusion on this song happens in bars13-16 (<span style="color: #f1c232;">YELLOW<span style="color: black;">). The original chords have a really nice descending bass line with a SURPRISE Diminished 7 chord along the way. It's exactly what I remember listening to the radio back then when the tune was popular with the mainstream culture. </span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #c27ba0;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="color: #f1c232;"><span style="color: black;"> Here's where some detective-work has paid off. Miles Davis recorded the song in 1958 and 1964, about 15 years after the original movie, and supplanted the original chords with the ones you see below in <span style="color: #38761d;">GREEN<span style="color: black;">. They are actually very effective, as you might expect from Miles, as long as you blow off the Fifth in the Bass on F chord that leads into them. They work really well --- and the Bass progression weaves a nice logical and elegant path. </span></span> The Real Book version ( in BLACK), which came AFTER Miles recorded <u>his</u> version, is a bit of a bastard child of the Miles Davis chord changes and the original chord changes, taking one from one and one from another. It just doesn't work. It goes to the Em7(b5) chord earlier than did the original chords but then it just comes out of it in a really dumb way. The Bass line suffers and the progress of<u> tension and release</u> is ambiguous. I guess that's about as well as I can describe it. Many versions on YouTube are worth hearing if you can sift through the fluff. Check out Anita O'Day at the bottom of the post. Despite all my rantings, Stella By Starlight is still a great tune. </span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #c27ba0;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="color: #f1c232;"><span style="color: black;"> MILES DAVIS <span style="color: #38761d;">GREEN <span style="color: black;">REAL BOOK 1 BLACK ORIGINAL SCORE <span style="color: #cc0000;">RED</span></span></span> </span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="color: #c27ba0;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="color: #f1c232;"><span style="color: black;">(DOUBLE CLICK TO ENLARGE) </span></span></span></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_1FdhGxQDxA/TyYZk7HTRwI/AAAAAAAAAM8/LDa78hpa9_8/s1600/stella.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_1FdhGxQDxA/TyYZk7HTRwI/AAAAAAAAAM8/LDa78hpa9_8/s640/stella.jpg" width="588" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stella By Starlight FIRST 16 BARS</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/8UZ0xqdP2rw?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div><span style="color: #c27ba0;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="color: #f1c232;"><span style="color: black;"> </span></span> </span><span style="background-color: black;"></span></span>Steve Keenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15451798154189798012noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2301745086961186193.post-54858628726376591792012-01-25T20:09:00.000-08:002012-01-25T21:34:07.360-08:00AhavaRaba by Any Other Name would Sound as Sweet...<style>
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<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst"> It's a Jazz Scale, but it's also a Traditional World Music Scale, </div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst"><br />
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</div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ckqlNxymWuk/TyDlo66Z-oI/AAAAAAAAAMw/ZUVVIMEQl4c/s1600/ahavaraba.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="274" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ckqlNxymWuk/TyDlo66Z-oI/AAAAAAAAAMw/ZUVVIMEQl4c/s640/ahavaraba.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">G - AHAVARABA </td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst">Call it what you want (and many people seem to do that ), this scale is derived from the Harmonic Minor Scale and is one of the most useful Jazz scales but is often overlooked in the Jazz texts. It can function a solid foundation scale for improvising against a Dominant 7 (b9) chord, one of the MOST common chords played in Jazz. It easily adapts "Alt chords" with its inclusion of the 5th and the b13th so it works well against complex altered chords that have a b7, which is pretty much every other chord. </div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><br />
</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"> It is simply <u>the scale that results</u> if you start playing a traditional Harmonic Minor scale <u>from the 5<sup>th</sup> note of the scale</u>, i.e. it is the <b>“5<sup>th</sup> Mode of Harmonic Minor"</b> and is particularly useful in a tune where the chord is functioning as the V7 chord in a minor key. BUT, in world music traditions, often the scale just sits there and vegetates and never really resolves as a V chord would, so it becomes the “defacto” I chord. In this case, the scale is derived from C Harmonic Minor, starting on the 5th note of that scale: G. </div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><br />
</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"> To restate that in English, you could just jam on a G7 chord forever and play strictly from this scale. The resultant music in this context would likely have an exotic quality that reflects Jewish, Arab, Turkish, and Flamenco traditional sounds. The first 2 chords in the "Key", in this case the key of G, are Major Chords a 1/2 step apart ( G Major and Ab Major) - this is a really distinctive "hook" that comes out of this scale and is the basis for the compositions like Malaguena ( YouTube video below). One might argue that the two chords are what created the scale and the sound in the first place. A G7 chord and an Ab Major chord, added together, contain every note in the scale! (Keep in mind, that, in Jazz, this scale would likely be functioning in the key of Cm and would be used in a whole different way than it is used in, say, Klezmer or Gypsy Music.) </div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><br />
</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">In some Jazz texts, this scale is called the Spanish Phrygian, or the Dominant b2,b6 Scale. In fact, in scouring other world-music sources, this scale turns up with all sorts of names and descriptions. From playing a lot of Klezmer Music I know it as "AhavaRaba" but it goes by many aliases:</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><br />
</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">Ahava Raba Scale, Ahava Rabboh Scale </div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">Freygish Scale</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast">Spanish Phrygian Scale</div><div class="MsoNormal"> Spanish Gypsy Scale</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst">Phrygian Dominant Scale</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">Altered Phrygian Scale</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">Chromatic Dorian Mode</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">Jazz Dominant b2, b6 Scale</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">5<sup>th</sup> Mode of Harmonic Minor</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">Major Scale with b2, b6, b7</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">Phrygian #3 Scale (“sharp 3”)</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><br />
</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast"> In researching the facts for this post I collected at least 32 other scales from around the world ( in addition to the dozens of Modes and Altered Modes, blues scales and Pentatonics) that will provide some fascinating topics for future articles - I am surprised that it is actually possible to generate well over 60 distinct scales from a mere 12 notes! Stay posted as I sort through these. </div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast"> Here is Stan Kenton's Orchestra playing Malaguena, a Bill Holman arrangement of Ernesto Lecuona's composition that owes it's existence to the AhavaRaba Scale, or whatever you want to call it: </div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/TN9sp6ApX4o?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast"> </div>Steve Keenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15451798154189798012noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2301745086961186193.post-19224418803750372742012-01-17T12:35:00.000-08:002012-01-17T12:42:33.635-08:00Freelance Musicians in Utah - you may want to read this...<style>
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<div class="MsoNormal">More and more often, here in Utah, freelance musicians will be required to show proof of liability insurance, Workers’ Comp or a <u style="color: black;">Workers’ Comp Waiver</u>. I have already run into 4 separate gigs where the employer insisted on it. Here I show you the easy way to get the Workers’ Comp Waiver. Typically, freelance musicians are not set up as licensed businesses, corporations and the like, but even if they were, I think it is much simpler to just push things through as an <b>INDIVIDUAL</b>. There are many ways to skin this cat but I show you an EASY way here. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_lxe9sHmtF4/TxXV0Eev7YI/AAAAAAAAAMg/yxLh8Hhh6l0/s1600/kitten.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="244" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_lxe9sHmtF4/TxXV0Eev7YI/AAAAAAAAAMg/yxLh8Hhh6l0/s320/kitten.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tangling with the new Labor Commission Laws can cause Narcolepsy</td></tr>
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</div>As an <b>individual</b>, after you fill out the application form, which can be done online ( link below) or on the 1 computer at the Labor Commission office ( 160 E. 300 S. 3<sup>rd</sup> floor), you can simply produce the following 3 items to the staff-person to qualify for the 1-year waiver. <br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal">1. Xerox copy of your name and address that is printed in the Phone Directory</div><div class="MsoNormal">2. Recent income tax return proving Income from Music</div><div class="MsoNormal">3. Blank check or account statement in your name proving that you have a bank account. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">If you don’t have all of these items, then you will want to read the requirements using the link below to find another way to qualify, but those other options are less likely to appeal to the average free-lance musician as they involve things like business licenses, liability coverage, printed ads, etc. </div><div class="MsoNormal">Even if you are incorporated you can still push it through as an individual. By the way, the cost for this is $50 with a 3-day delay if you write a check and the Waiver is good for 1 year. Yes, it costs money to NOT have insurance. For information on getting insurance coverage rather than a waiver I suggest contacting Musicians' Local 104 office in Salt Lake City.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Disclaimer – I am not a lawyer and if you get injured on the gig by an exploding generator or collapsing bandstand, I am not responsible for your not having insurance coverage. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">To read about the requirements</div><div class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://laborcommission.utah.gov/IndustrialAccidents/WCCW.html">http://laborcommission.utah.gov/IndustrialAccidents/WCCW.html</a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">To fill out the application online</div><div class="MsoNormal">https://webaccess.laborcommission.utah.gov/wccoveragewaivers/</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Here is some background on the new requirements from the Salt Lake Trib: </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Times;">The Salt Lake Tribune</span> </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Times;">First published Jun 30 2011 12:12PM<br />
Updated Jul 2, 2011 12:06AM </span></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Times;">Businesses that have no employees and operate under rules establishing partnerships, sole proprietors or corporations can get waivers to show they are exempt from maintaining workers compensation insurance.</span></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Times;">Starting Friday, the Industrial Accidents Division of the Utah Labor Commission assumes responsibility for issuing those waivers. Previously, insurance companies did the job.</span></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Times;">In 2010, insurance companies issued 3,800 waivers; the state division anticipates issuing 4,000 during 2011.</span></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Times;">One of the “disturbing” trends the division will be examining is the practice by “some employers to mislabel employees as ‘independent contractors,’ or ‘members’ of limited-liability companies, in order to avoid workers compensation obligations and other employee responsibilities,” according to a statement issued by the Industrial Accidents Division.</span></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Times;">“This trend is particularly noticeable in the construction industry and for non-English-speaking employees,” the statement said.</span></span></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-23OlCsth_7I/TxXShgQ-vBI/AAAAAAAAAMY/kbFQzydW_L8/s1600/herbert.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-23OlCsth_7I/TxXShgQ-vBI/AAAAAAAAAMY/kbFQzydW_L8/s320/herbert.jpg" width="203" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Interim Governor of Utah</td></tr>
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</div><span style="font-size: small;"> </span><br />
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</div>Steve Keenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15451798154189798012noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2301745086961186193.post-28909040615986348832011-12-18T00:26:00.000-08:002011-12-18T00:45:32.361-08:00Night Train takes a Left Turn just out of the Station I heard a version of <b> t</b>he great blues standard<b> - Night Train</b> the other day played by a student at the U. of U. Jazz Juries, and realized that I'm not totally sure how the melody really goes --- so I did a little research. Turns out, no one else is quite sure either ---- even Jimmy Forrest, the composer, comes at it from 2 very different directions. The notes in question are right at the beginning and happen throughout the tune - whether to use Bb or B, and what to put at the end of the phrase. Check out the surprising tempo of the original recording while you're at it... <br />
<br />
Surely, <b><u>Jimmy Forrest's original 1951 release</u></b> is something to use as a guide:<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-47_CPt0qniY/Tu2ZSXSB2YI/AAAAAAAAALI/vhISN3LwZVo/s1600/NightTrain1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="106" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-47_CPt0qniY/Tu2ZSXSB2YI/AAAAAAAAALI/vhISN3LwZVo/s640/NightTrain1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="http://2.gvt0.com/vi/DxqQxJt_LQI/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/DxqQxJt_LQI&fs=1&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/DxqQxJt_LQI&fs=1&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash"></embed></object></div><br />
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But wait, here's a version one and the same Jimmy Forrest playing it with the Count Basie Orchestra - pretty different notes...( notice the 2- B naturals and the E in the 3rd bar ):<br />
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fEEBoQyiucg/Tu2afkBP92I/AAAAAAAAALQ/YGsLUlIaQ9k/s1600/NightTrain5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="106" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fEEBoQyiucg/Tu2afkBP92I/AAAAAAAAALQ/YGsLUlIaQ9k/s640/NightTrain5.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
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<br />
But wait...... here's how James Brown's band played it:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fm0aOKjLRJE/Tu2bccMUrDI/AAAAAAAAALY/XeAvQIuQ7HI/s1600/NightTrain3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="106" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fm0aOKjLRJE/Tu2bccMUrDI/AAAAAAAAALY/XeAvQIuQ7HI/s640/NightTrain3.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/8BVgeEHfuG0?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div><br />
<br />
<br />
But wait...... here's how Oscar Peterson played it ( same notes as Jimmy Forrest's second version but played with a laid-back straight eighth feel )<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-S9tGV1m1_pg/Tu2mPW6hyvI/AAAAAAAAAMQ/vcxU7UX0xuQ/s1600/NightTrain4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="106" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-S9tGV1m1_pg/Tu2mPW6hyvI/AAAAAAAAAMQ/vcxU7UX0xuQ/s640/NightTrain4.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />
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<br />
<br />
But wait..... here's how Buddy Morrow played it: <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-8NBqBkfHmpw/Tu2cI-a6_xI/AAAAAAAAALo/JhmhFrA2Dks/s1600/NightTrain2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="106" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-8NBqBkfHmpw/Tu2cI-a6_xI/AAAAAAAAALo/JhmhFrA2Dks/s640/NightTrain2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/hamup2cGTLU?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div><br />
I think I'm going to go with <b>#1 </b>next time I play this tune, the original 1951 recording - I like having the Maj 3rd and the min 3rd in the same line and I like ending on the 9th of the chord - it's a nice bluesy "jazz-chord" quality to lead into the next chord, the IV chord. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">O.Winston Link, famous Photographer of Trains at Night shot with 4x5 Graflex Camera using up to</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">60 Flash Bulbs, requiring up to 2 days setup. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-N7GEnP4st08/Tu2hpBEiOvI/AAAAAAAAAMA/1f0Kin4ZHsE/s1600/night+train+7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="254" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-N7GEnP4st08/Tu2hpBEiOvI/AAAAAAAAAMA/1f0Kin4ZHsE/s320/night+train+7.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pEKDIyVX75I/Tu2hyj2uFgI/AAAAAAAAAMI/qKmTK9KRGvQ/s1600/night+train+8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pEKDIyVX75I/Tu2hyj2uFgI/AAAAAAAAAMI/qKmTK9KRGvQ/s320/night+train+8.jpg" width="250" /></a></div>More of O. Winston Link's incredible black and white images <a href="http://www.linkmuseum.org/collection.html">HERE</a>.Steve Keenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15451798154189798012noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2301745086961186193.post-1997942586702160362011-12-16T23:33:00.000-08:002012-01-17T16:50:41.962-08:00The Winter Solstice Music PhenomenonGoogle "WINTER SOLSTICE MUSIC" and you will get hundreds and hundreds of <b>current </b>listings for festivals, concerts, recitals and recordings in small and large towns everywhere. For some, I'm sure, it's just an excuse to throw a concert or party, but....<br />
... <b>Winter Solstice</b> actually is a BIG deal all over the world and has been for thousands of years. Concerts and celebrations have been going long before Christmas was placed onto December 25 back in the Fourth Century, assigned to that date expressly to COMPETE with Solstice celebrations. When you consider that 2/3 of the world population is non-Christian AND that a fair number of Christians don't really celebrate Christmas, it makes sense that this event is <b>more pervasive</b> than Christmas, since the physical and spiritual effects of this astronomical phenomenon affect EVERYONE directly, independent of religion and culture. <br />
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Back when we were less scientifically knowledgeable and yet <b>more</b> connected to the apparent motion of the sun, back when surviving the upcoming deep winter months was <u>actually</u> a pressing concern, the sun's reversal in the sky from it's 6 month decline was truly a monumental event and a time to reflect and celebrate, especially if you were inexperienced enough to think that it might just disappear forever. Here are some phrases from writings on the topic that paint a picture of what Winter Solstice has meant to people over the ages.<br />
<br />
hope and celebration<br />
rebirth and transformation<br />
hope in the heart<br />
peace and renewal<br />
fertility, strength to budding life<br />
license and revelry<br />
inward reflection<br />
last feast<br />
sharing and forgiveness<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-t2R5cKbQboU/Tuw9K2sR43I/AAAAAAAAALA/dYsk5AVuqPo/s1600/analemma.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-t2R5cKbQboU/Tuw9K2sR43I/AAAAAAAAALA/dYsk5AVuqPo/s320/analemma.jpg" width="222" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Path of the Sun for One Year Photographed at the Same Clock Time Once a Week - the Analemma</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
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Celebrating the Solstice has always been intermingled with mythology, superstition, ritual, folk tales and religion. In fact, many of the Solstice Concerts that I scanned included traditional Christmas and religious music - it is open game on how people celebrate the event and is often not intended to be an alternative to "religion", however, for many, it is can be <u>just that</u> - an alternative to Christmas and Consumerism, without religion. There is a perception that the Solstice Celebration is a Pagan or Atheistic ritual, but it really much more at its roots about universal human feelings and the anticipation of arriving at the shortest day of the year and heading into a replenishment of daylight - it is something anyone, regardless of their cultural overlays, mythologies and beliefs, can find reason to celebrate. Solstice Celebration has attracted, in particular, New Age, Celtic, Native American, Jazz and Classical musicians in their attempt to enhance the spiritual experience of Winter Solstice through music. But not just music----Below is a sampling of other ways people of all cultures have celebrated , and <b>still </b>celebrate the Solstice :<br />
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Animals freshly slaughtered for upcoming winter months provide feast.<br />
Wine and beer fermentation is complete and ready for drinking.<br />
Feasting and Gambling.<br />
Fornicating ( I'm not making this stuff up!)<br />
Dressing up.<br />
Attending all-night plays.<br />
Gift giving to the needy.<br />
Performing pranks.<br />
Visiting friends. <br />
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Jazz Woodwind player Paul Winter has made a name performing music in celebration of Winter Solstice for some 32 years. Here is a sample from a Paul Winter CD with Uillean Pipes ( Irish bagpipes ) and soprano sax and pipe organ that captures the style of much of the "genre".<br />
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<b> "A Winter Solstice"</b> series of 5 New Age CD's is a big <b>Windham Hill</b> favorite. Not <u>MY</u> favorite, mind you, but popular nonetheless. <br />
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A refreshing and welcome flavor to any Winter Solstice program is European Renaissance music (1400-1600). Because the character of the music and timbre of early instruments, it fits right in to the introspective mood and is usually way more interesting and sophisticated than even the most adventurous New Age Music. <br />
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<b><u> A SHORT EXPLANATION OF THE ASTRONOMY OF WINTER SOLSTICE:</u></b><br />
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Other than being the shortest day of the year ( only 9.25 hours here in salt Lake City on Dec 22) , it's most interesting to know exactly what's going on, astronomically speaking. But first, here are some <b>other observations</b> that we might make on the day of Winter Solstice, Dec 22:<br />
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1. It's the LONGEST day of the year if you live below the equator.<br />
2. It's a day of 24 DARKNESS if you live anywhere above the Arctic Circle.<br />
3. It's a day of 24 SUNSHINE if you live anywhere below the Antarctic Circle.<br />
4. If you live anywhere along the Tropic of Capricorn, the sun will be directly overhead at noon ( true noon, not clock time, when the sun crosses the N-S Meridian)<br />
5. The sun will rise in the SouthEast at its farthest southerly point of the year and set in the Southwest at its farthest southerly point of the year.<br />
6. The maximum height or "altitude" of the sun at noon ( true noon) is the lowest that it will be all year.<br />
7. The shadow from an eave onto a building is the highest from the ground that it will be all year. The shadow cast by a tree will be the longest shadow of the year ( at noon ). <br />
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The Earth, on the day of Winter Solstice, is tilted in such a way that the sun shines directly over the latitude line of -23.5º, which is about 1621 miles South of the Equator. And since the Earth is turning on its axis, the sun STAYS right over this line, or great circle around the Earth. This is such an important demarcation that we've labeled it the Tropic of Capricorn after an astrological event that <u>used</u> to take place that no longer does because of the Earth's changing position in the galaxy which is one of many many reasons that Astrology is a bunch of nonsense, but I digress.<br />
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The "Declination of the Sun" on Winter Solstice is -23.5º ( the angle at which the rays of the sun hit the Earth relative to it's imaginary AXIS) and can be found for any day of the year by consulting a "Declination Table" and from this, if you know your latitude ( find this on your iphone or gps, map or internet), you can calculate the "height" or "altitude of the sun at Noon <br />
90º - Latitude + Declination = Altitude of the Sun <br />
<b>Very handy</b> if you are building a skylight or building overhang and want some control over where the shadows fall at specific times of year.<br />
Here it all is graphically - notice that Mr. Red who lives on the Tropic of Capricorn, has to look straight up to see the sun at noon. Mr. Green on the Arctic Circle is in 24 hours of darkness as the Earth turns on its axis. Mr. Mauve is in 24 hours of daylight on the Antarctic Circle. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-N5bUhPL_H2Q/Tuw1QbykfsI/AAAAAAAAAKw/m6ipkOGVYXY/s1600/wintersolstice.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="328" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-N5bUhPL_H2Q/Tuw1QbykfsI/AAAAAAAAAKw/m6ipkOGVYXY/s640/wintersolstice.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Winter Solstice Dec 22, 2011</td></tr>
</tbody></table> BELOW, From a Local perspective, at noon, it is clear that the sun is low in the sky for Mr. Blue, looking South to his horizon. Mr. Blue is observing from 40.73º Latitude in salt Lake City ( 40.73º north of the Equator). Here, at noon, the sun will appear 25.8º above the horizon, on Dec 22, the bottom of its downward path, then heading back up for 6 months with a gradual lengthening the days, to replenish our souls and give us a reason to celebrate. Mr. Green will be in total darkness, in theory, but in reality, right at the Arctic Circle it is still possible to see the sun on the horizon because of the refraction of the sun's rays. Early polar explorers were somewhat surprised by this when their calculations didn't seem to be working. Happy Solstice and congratulations if you made it this far in the blog post and this far into the Winter to witness the turnaround of the Sun. (And some trivia - the original circle for these graphics were drawn with a pencil tracing along the bottom of a tuna fish can. )<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gQmeyXcDcs8/Tuw36BuTSCI/AAAAAAAAAK4/oN_i1xTnhJI/s1600/wintersolstice2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="328" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gQmeyXcDcs8/Tuw36BuTSCI/AAAAAAAAAK4/oN_i1xTnhJI/s640/wintersolstice2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Local Altitude at Winter Solstice in Salt Lake City, not exactly to scale</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</tbody></table> Steve Keenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15451798154189798012noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2301745086961186193.post-20857604694164040602011-12-13T16:17:00.000-08:002011-12-13T16:17:03.918-08:0028 Ways to Love Your Open Voicings<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YI_aYvAcHHk/TufmJEh9vUI/AAAAAAAAAKo/_8EgT2Z5Bj8/s1600/shearing1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YI_aYvAcHHk/TufmJEh9vUI/AAAAAAAAAKo/_8EgT2Z5Bj8/s320/shearing1.jpg" width="244" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">George Shearing - Master of Gorgeous Voice-Leading</td></tr>
</tbody></table>My previous post discussed Open Voicings and the staggering number of chord voicings that are possible when you starting really looking at the various combinations and permutations of the 4 notes of a chord. <u>Now we get serious</u> - How many different open voicings can we practically squeeze out of a four-part chord if we look at EVERY possibility? As you gathered from the header, 28, and here they are posted below. <br />
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28 voicings of 10 different 4-part chords ( see previous post ) in 12 keys will create 3360 different open voicings. Notice that every line of 4 successive voicings represent <b>inversions</b> of the voicing that is shown in the 1st bar of that line. <br />
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Practicing these voicings will transform your playing if you are stuck in a rut, and most of us have plenty of ruts, and will empower you to get away from the playing ordinary "root-on-the-bottom" voicings. Harmonic progressions that are much more interesting come from this familiarity. <br />
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The <u>example shown below</u> uses an Em7(b5), one of 120 different basic 4-part chords (sus chords excluded for now). <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_-rGiRcGY_o/TufkXl_4RhI/AAAAAAAAAKg/OhkXpO1qopI/s1600/28openVoicings.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_-rGiRcGY_o/TufkXl_4RhI/AAAAAAAAAKg/OhkXpO1qopI/s640/28openVoicings.jpg" width="422" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/jkzHg2c8v7I?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>Steve Keenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15451798154189798012noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2301745086961186193.post-41670759408676350002011-12-05T14:58:00.000-08:002011-12-05T14:59:09.744-08:00The Sweet 16 Voicings I know what's on everyone's mind - "I always fall into playing the same old Boring Chord Voicings out of sheer habit - How can I possibly break out of this rut?". While it may not matter in the slightest to the general public, it matters a lot to those of us who are energized by the subtleties of harmony (a small group of us, no doubt).<br />
Typically, on piano, we grab onto a <u><span style="color: #741b47;">Root and Fifth</span></u> OR <u><span style="color: #a64d79;">Root and Seventh</span></u> in the left hand and put the other notes in the right hand in our standard position, maybe throw in an extension or two, and we do this on every chord we come across, for our whole lives, <u>even longer</u> if we pass that concept on to our students. By getting away from the root on the bottom, and spreading out the notes methodically, we see a much more interesting world of sound and voice-leading open up, filled lots of refreshing possibilities. <br />
This study below is a way to shake your voicing world up a little and add some real musical interest to your playing or arranging. We split out the notes of a basic 4-part chord into its 16 open-voicing possibilities - a universe where any of the 4 chord tones is equally likely to fall on the bottom or top of the voicing. <br />
I use an Em7(b5) chord for the example here, but this should be practiced with all of the basic 4 part chords in all keys - that would be:<br />
<b>Maj7, Min7, Dim7, Min7(b5), Dominant 7, Min(maj7)</b>.<br />
Granted, it is a daunting project, but the rewards are immensely useful for players, arrangers and composers. <br />
Just the 6 basic chords alone, doing the 4 exercises, each with 4 voicings, in 12 keys would be<br />
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1152 new voicings ( 6x4x4x12).<br />
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Add in 4 additional chords with altered 5ths: (<b>Dom7(b5), Dom7(#5), maj7(b5), maj7(#5))</b> and you're now looking at<br />
1920 new voicings (10x4x4x12)<br />
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Don't let these numbers put you off, though - the brain can handle this, as there's a lot of transferred learning that happens between the different chord types. Listen, sing along, experiment and practice to incorporate these into your aural vocabulary and always voice-lead into and out of these voicings if you want them to really work....<br />
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<i style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"> (contact me if you want a full-sized file of this)</span></i><br />
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<i style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"> </span></i> <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-XOfYAXw_zHg/Tt1ESXGUBLI/AAAAAAAAAKQ/LfQF-nWnFtY/s1600/voicing1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="544" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-XOfYAXw_zHg/Tt1ESXGUBLI/AAAAAAAAAKQ/LfQF-nWnFtY/s640/voicing1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Broken Open-Voicing Inversions of Em7(b5)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-0YTyf9dCfXY/Tt1Gzc9wIfI/AAAAAAAAAKY/lR0GBccG2zE/s1600/nyvoices.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-0YTyf9dCfXY/Tt1Gzc9wIfI/AAAAAAAAAKY/lR0GBccG2zE/s320/nyvoices.jpg" width="307" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">New York Voices - Four Part Voicing for the Harmonically Obsessed</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Steve Keenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15451798154189798012noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2301745086961186193.post-75694758626446171202011-11-29T01:49:00.000-08:002011-12-01T23:19:59.544-08:00A Short Course: How to Accompany Singers 101Listen to <b>Mike Renzi.</b> THE END<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1mPG177hJv4/TtSh8IzEyoI/AAAAAAAAAKA/q-YM27zUnwA/s1600/renzi1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1mPG177hJv4/TtSh8IzEyoI/AAAAAAAAAKA/q-YM27zUnwA/s1600/renzi1.jpg" /></a></div>Mike Renzi is a singer's pianist, a pianist's pianist. He has a stunning mastery of the instrument and has the uncanny ability to always play the right thing in the right spot and play it absolutely beautifully. The list of singers he has supported over the years is a Who's Who -- here's a short list: Mel Torme, Bobbi Baird, Blossom Dearie, Maureen McGovern, Peggy Lee, Lena Horne, Cleo Laine, Jack Jones, Ruth Brown, Diahann Carroll, Eartha Kitt, Grady Tate..... and the list goes on and on. And yet how many have heard of Mike Renzi? His 10 year stint as musical director for Sesame Street which won him an Emmy ( among many other Emmy's) and gained him some notoriety but generally he seems to be in the shadows of the greatest singers and a bunch that are not so great. But the <b>important</b> stuff is always in the shadows so I'm hoping to shine a bit of light in there.... <br />
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Most of the recordings I can find find of Mike feature his trio in a supporting role for a featured vocalist, and only a very few showcase his uncanny abilities as a solo accompanist ( piano and voice ). He makes the piano sing and plays with a harmonic fluidity and pianistic tone that sets the bar extremely high for the vocalist he's accompanying and for all of us who play. If he ever puts out a solo recording I will be the first in line. <br />
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Two CD's he made with Maureen McGovern showcase his solo accompanying skills and are well worth hearing. His ability to differentiate the tunes, to bring something new and distinctive to each arrangement and to play with a fluid sophistication and finesse, tone and heart-felt interpretation are very rare. <br />
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Another Woman in Love <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Another-Woman-Love-Maureen-Mcgovern/dp/B0000026FO/ref=pd_sim_m_4">HERE</a> at Amazon with sound clips<br />
The Pleasure of His Company <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Pleasure-His-Company-Maureen-Mcgovern/dp/B000009Q1C/ref=sr_1_16?ie=UTF8&qid=1322557182&sr=8-16">HERE</a> at Amazon with sound clips <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-1kQi_gZyQIM/TtSmGsAbjDI/AAAAAAAAAKI/Ao2CsZMKuEk/s1600/renzi2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-1kQi_gZyQIM/TtSmGsAbjDI/AAAAAAAAAKI/Ao2CsZMKuEk/s320/renzi2.jpg" width="281" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Renzi with Maureen McGovern</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />
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Here is a YouTube cut of Renzi with a mature Jack Jones - listen to the shadows, there's a lot going on there that might go unnoticed. While this doesn't showcase his considerable Jazz skills, it is one of the few YouTube examples I could find to get a glimpse of his remarkable taste and finesse. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/-HBiAjKYWZM?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>Steve Keenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15451798154189798012noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2301745086961186193.post-60747404493614143082011-09-22T01:09:00.000-07:002011-09-22T01:09:36.909-07:00Freelance Musician--are you insured? Thanks to the Utah Legislature ( my home state ), f<b>reelance musicians</b>, as of July 2011, are required to show proof of Workmans' Comp Insurance AND Liability Insurance. This applies when performing at any hotel function, school function, wedding reception center and, well, pretty much EVERY gig. The Local Muscians' Union 104 Newletter will soon publish information about this which I will re-post on my blog. Without this insurance, you may show up at the gig and not be allowed to play. <br />
Already, I have run into an instance ( Salt Lake Sheraton Hotel) where the venue insisted on proof of these coverages. Stay tuned to this blog for updates and more details as I learn them and be sure to raise your prices and pass them on to the client. It looks like each will run into several hundred dollars per year. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-84msfD19XWI/TnrsTGjNEuI/AAAAAAAAAJ8/YhAN4V2JFaA/s1600/capitol.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="214" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-84msfD19XWI/TnrsTGjNEuI/AAAAAAAAAJ8/YhAN4V2JFaA/s320/capitol.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Steve Keenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15451798154189798012noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2301745086961186193.post-52669954348723594182011-08-23T23:39:00.000-07:002011-08-23T23:56:33.917-07:00Bass: Positioning for Power<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-V2wvOpvUh9M/TlSbbc4EAgI/AAAAAAAAAJ4/dUf3kwnnNGs/s1600/warwick.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="130" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-V2wvOpvUh9M/TlSbbc4EAgI/AAAAAAAAAJ4/dUf3kwnnNGs/s320/warwick.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Warwick Corvette Electric Bass</td></tr>
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As primarily a keyboard player, I am often called on to hire <u>bass player</u>s to fill out an upcoming duo, trio or quartet gig and have learned from experience, that my choice on this is <b>critica</b>l to the success of whatever the project is. Bass is <u>THE</u> "power-position" in any band. You might think that drums would fill that role, but it would be hard to convince me of that. Bass players <u>define</u> the harmonic progression by their choice of notes, they define the "groove" with their time feel, articulation, sound, space and they set the dynamics of the band. When the band is lost, all ears go to the bass - conversely, if the bass player is lost, all is lost. The sound of the bass fills the air like no other instrument and is responsible for establishing the overall sound of the band and is the main instrument that is in a power position to change and vary the overall sound of the band. <br />
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Choosing a bass player, I consider the following criteria. Every bass player brings something different to the table, but, like choosing a financial planner, I want someone I can trust and who is looking out for the overall interest of the group and is genuinely concerned for the outcome and is willing to defer to the big picture.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6uxJw6FcZQI/TlSW7gYoZqI/AAAAAAAAAJs/kaipkPDh8hU/s1600/marcjohnson.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="201" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6uxJw6FcZQI/TlSW7gYoZqI/AAAAAAAAAJs/kaipkPDh8hU/s320/marcjohnson.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Marc Johnson </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2kqDKCnuqx0/TlSXotFB_3I/AAAAAAAAAJw/F5Qvpejql6k/s1600/slamstewart.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2kqDKCnuqx0/TlSXotFB_3I/AAAAAAAAAJw/F5Qvpejql6k/s320/slamstewart.jpg" width="224" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Slam Stewart</td></tr>
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These are the things I look for in order of importance. Notice that " Soloing Over Jazz Changes" is not even on the list ( which is, ironically, the main thing that bass players work on in the practice room) <br />
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<b>1. </b><b>STYLES</b> - my "number one" consideration....<br />
I want a bass player that has a huge vocabulary of styles, that knows the difference between a mambo and a merengue, a beguine and rhumba, that knows a dozen ways to play "swing" feel, a dozen distinct ways to play "bossa nova", that is willing and eager to differentiate styles from one song to the next. Does the bass player default to a "walking 4" or a "generic Latin feel" on every tune or can she bring something refreshing and different to every tune? Does the bass play vary the length of notes, the articulation of notes, the amount of space, the timbre of the lines to bring some dramatic and creative stylistic variation to the table? I want to hire a bass player that has listened and studied many styles, old and new and knows a half dozen ways to play the waltz, that plays Gypsy Jazz differently than a Broadway Two-feel, that has studied and dissected jazz and pop bass styles of the last century. In a nutshell, I want a bass player that is musically informed, has a depth of experience and can <u><b>clearly differentiate styles.</b></u><br />
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<b>2.</b><b> HARMONIC KNOWLEDGE</b><br />
<b> </b>A bass player needs to understand CHORDS. Not just chord spellings, but how chords move horizontally. The bass supports vertical AND horizontal motion - this is not obvious when looking at individual chord symbols on the page, which are a gross simplification of what changing harmony does. I will always prefer hiring a bass player with piano skills for this reason. Chords connect in ways that are not clear to someone without this experience and <b>NOTE CHOICE</b> is critical in making sense of the flow of the song. Bass players often miss the fact, for example, that a C/D chord is a type of D chord and not a C chord, while an E/D is actually an E chord and not a D chord; or that an Ebdim7 may be actually functioning as an F7(b9) and the appropriate bass note might actually be F, or that the 6th of a min6 chord may be the best choice of notes in the context. A bass player that can <b>see through</b> the lead sheet abstractions and recognize what is REALLY going on, is my #2 consideration when hiring a bass player. Note choices are completely <u>up in the air</u> on the bass, and every single one is important and sends the band down a different harmonic path. A bass player that knows before playing it, that a chord symbol is wrong, or a poor choice, or that the root of the chord-symbol is not the note to play to make sense of the progression. A bass player with a piano-player's harmonic understanding is a huge asset.<br />
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<b>3. </b><b>TIME FEEL</b><br />
<b> </b>Every bass player has a different sense of exactly where to place the attack on the notes. Some are relaxed and laid-back, some push ahead. I generally prefer the latter or somewhere in-between, but that's just me. But time feel is also related to "groove", or just the overall feel of the rhythm. Much of that has to do with simply the NUMBER of notes coming out of the bass. I will hire a bass player that keeps it simple, but establishes a feel-good groove and knows how to leave space and vary note density. Fewer notes is my number 3. <br />
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<b>4. TUNES</b><br />
<b> </b>The ability to play by ear combined with the wide depth and breadth of listening experience will produce a bass player that is a real asset to a band. I prefer to hire bass players that will know tunes, in any key, when called up - they acquire this skill through intentioned and connected listening. Playing jazz from lead-sheets simply doesn't <u>look</u> good, or <u>sound</u> good. Creative playing, the supposed backbone of improvisational jazz, does not happen when reading from a lead-sheet. A bass player with a huge repertoire of songs, independent of key, is my #4 in things I look for in a bass player.<br />
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<b>5. </b><b>CREATIVE ATTITUDE</b><br />
One of my favorite bass players barely knew any tunes by ear and was pretty much unable to do jazz-soloing over changes, but I hired him often anyway. Why? Because he would LISTEN and bring something to the table that made the performance unique. He was attuned to dynamic and stylistic changes, and would take the performance to a new level by taking it seriously. Often I will start a song with a solo piano intro and might set some twisted and adventurous rhythmic feel in the short time afforded to me - this bass player would go WITH it and push it even farther into adventurousness where most bass players would channel the groove BACK to a comfort-zone of "walking 4" or "pseudo-bossa nova". <b>Linear Regression </b>in statistics, is the tendency of data to revert to the mean, or average, - I will hire a bass player that likes to skew the data away from the mean, or the normal-predictable way of playing. My #5.<br />
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<b>6. DUO CONCEPT</b><br />
<b> </b>Many gigs end up being just bass and piano - an artform that requires a different set of skills brought to bear. I will hire a bass player that is able to leave the "trio-concept" in the drawer and play an entirely different way. There is a strong urge, apparently, to fall in to a compensatory style of playing where the musicians are making up for the missing drummer. The tendency is to play MORE notes, MORE percussively, MORE emphatically, with MORE sound effects and slapping, MORE volume<b> . </b>I will always hire a bass player, in this situation, that has a solid time-feel and is able to <u>let go</u> of all this and play LESS of all of these things instead of MORE. An implied groove between musicians with solid time, that trust each other and sense the time without having to actually play it, is much more effective and just easier to play and easier to listen to. And it's much easier to accomplish my #1 objective, which is to always differentiate styles.<br />
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<b>7. SOUND</b><br />
I personally like it when a bass player has a variety of sounds to work with, from a round-warm full sound, to a punchy-funky edgy sound to a buzz-saw fretless sound. It goes back to #1, where I really want big overall conceptual changes to be happening depending on the tune. I also prefer a bass player that is listening to balance and blend between the bass and the chordal instrument - out in front of the band stand, this is ultimately what is heard. A bass that is too loud or too soft ( that's pretty rare ) kills the blend. Bass notes that are too low may not blend or support what is going on in the chordal instrument -- a bass player that is LISTENING and cares about this issue is on my list to hire. Bass sounds have changed over the years and, like piano sounds, they have gradually become more edgey and wirey sounding. My preference is generally for a sound where the high end is EQ'd to be out of competition with the other instruments, to maintain a bit of sound-spectrum independence between the instruments. We've all heard those recordings of guitarist-singers where the pick noise and finger noise on the guitar is as much in the foreground as the voice. I prefer to hire a bass player that thinks about these ideas and brings a sound to the bandstand that supports, complements and can be heard without creating "frequency-clutter".<br />
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I sincerely hope that these ideas can help some aspiring bass players, whether you accept or reject the ideas, at least think about them....<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HhYp4H6Kdh4/TlSYqgre4-I/AAAAAAAAAJ0/c9A4yhCTVOI/s1600/stevebrown.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HhYp4H6Kdh4/TlSYqgre4-I/AAAAAAAAAJ0/c9A4yhCTVOI/s320/stevebrown.jpg" width="241" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Steve Brown - played with all the greats...</td></tr>
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Steve Keenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15451798154189798012noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2301745086961186193.post-19892935019000777502011-08-23T13:29:00.000-07:002011-08-24T12:32:54.638-07:00Conlon Nancarrow : Master of the Contemporary Piano Roll<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PPk9s_6XS-c/TlP_mmiJftI/AAAAAAAAAJg/s9xnv0twl1s/s1600/conlon2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="303" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PPk9s_6XS-c/TlP_mmiJftI/AAAAAAAAAJg/s9xnv0twl1s/s320/conlon2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div> <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-XMjCJrfEB_Y/TlQHSDvVkKI/AAAAAAAAAJo/WJE0vz4yfRQ/s1600/conlon1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-XMjCJrfEB_Y/TlQHSDvVkKI/AAAAAAAAAJo/WJE0vz4yfRQ/s1600/conlon1.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Conlon Nancarrow 1912-1997</td></tr>
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Piano Rolls are not just about Stride Piano and cute sing-a-long-tunes. While many of the early piano rolls were incredible (see my earlier posts on Piano Roll Masters <a href="http://puppydogmusic.blogspot.com/2011/06/giant-of-piano-roll.html">James P. Johnson</a> and <a href="http://puppydogmusic.blogspot.com/2011/04/james-jimmy-blythe-where-have-you-been.html">Jimmy Blythe</a> ), Nancarrow propelled the art form to the next level using complex hand-operated and cumbersome mechanical roll punching devices, punching one hole at a time, to be played automatically on his customized acoustic player pianos.<br />
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To review the process if you've never seen one of these, <b>player pianos</b> use air, or more correctly, vacuum, to trigger notes based on a punched paper template that runs over a brass plate with 88 holes in it, and some more for pedal and dynamic functions and a couple more to keep the track running down the center of the tracker bar. The force of vacuum powered the tracking of the roll, the playing of the individual notes AND the operation of the pedals. The vacuum is created initially using electric motors or foot pumps. At the very beginning of the video below you will see a photo of the underside of the Ampico Grand Player Piano to get a sense of the complexity of the mechanism. The motor is visible off to the right with a belt connecting it to the pump. <br />
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The process of creating the rolls for Nancarrow was extremely slow and the results were somewhat expressively limited by the nature of the technology but the compositions are nonetheless compelling. In the commercial world of piano rolls, masters were creating through actual artist-performance and embellished by hand, a considerably faster process. <br />
Having studied with some of the masters ( Walter Piston, Nicolas Slonimsky and Roger Sessions ) and having played jazz trumpet out in the real world, Nancarrow was intellectually well equipped to produce some of the most innovative and important 20th century music to come along in some time.<br />
Nancarrow lived in Mexico City most of his life - he was raised in Arkansas and at one point, joined the Socialist Party when that was not particularly popular among politicians - his US passport was denied after fighting in the Spanish war against Franco. He moved to Mexico to avoid the harassment that he experienced in the U.S. In relative isolation it was impossible to find musicians with the skills to play his extremely complex and polyrhythmic music - he naturally gravitated to the player piano to realize his vision. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-o7iyBHKq7-k/TlQCjcXn0yI/AAAAAAAAAJk/jtotCtUYSyE/s1600/conlon4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="207" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-o7iyBHKq7-k/TlQCjcXn0yI/AAAAAAAAAJk/jtotCtUYSyE/s320/conlon4.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Conlon Nancarrow in 1983</td></tr>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/f2gVhBxwRqg?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div><br />
Study for Player Piano #21 - note the constantly changing tempo and multiple layers each at a different tempo. Check out YouTube - just type in Conlon Nancarrow - there is a wide stylistic variation in his compositions - some are undeniably Jazz influenced.<br />
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There are 305 hits on YouTube for Conlon Nancarrow to explore further and a number of CD's available to purchase. All of the Studies for Player Piano are on Rhapsody as well as some of his instrumental compositions. <br />
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RESOURCES FOR MORE DETAILED STUDY - some very well-written articles here:<br />
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<a href="http://www.sonoloco.com/rev/mdg/1403/nancarrow2.html">http://www.sonoloco.com/rev/mdg/1403/nancarrow2.html</a><br />
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<a href="http://www.blogger.com/goog_1477913416">http://www.frieze.com/issue/article/studies_for_player_piano/</a><br />
<a href="http://www.schott-music.com/shop/persons/featured/conlon-nancarrow/index.html">http://www.schott-music.com/shop/persons/featured/conlon-nancarrow/index.html</a><br />
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FASCINATING INTERVIEW AND BIO<br />
<a href="http://www.bruceduffie.com/nancarrow2.html">http://www.bruceduffie.com/nancarrow2.html</a>Steve Keenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15451798154189798012noreply@blogger.com4