-
I'm not sure I'm the right person to be answering this because I use a different style but I'll do my best. I could tell you it was wonderful and avoid all kinds of trouble in this place but I won't, it would be unproductive.
Did I hear the melody? To be honest, not much. I'm not even sure what you were trying to do. What I think is that you had a fixed idea in mind, a modus operandi, and it was interfering with your playing freely. Instead of settling what you were going to do over the changes in a general sense, the idea in your head was limiting your action, if you see what I mean. Instead of just playing as you felt, your mind was trying to force what you were doing into a certain formula and so limiting and hindering any free flow.
I don't know if I'm being clear, probably I'm not, but there's sense behind this. When we get a firm idea or pattern beforehand and then try to make what we do conform to it, it acts as a block. The results never quite match what we had in mind.
I think the problem most of the time in improvisation is to know what we're doing but, at the same time, to play without hindrance. Trying to imitate definite patterns leads to frustration but playing freely is joyful. Which does not mean playing nonsense all over the place.
The bridge isn't a problem, it's just C7 for a long time. That can be broken into its ii, Gm, and stuff like that. It's the A sections that are probably problematical. But one can have a general idea and then let rip, as it were. That's not the same as following a rigid, pre-set formula which is going to paralyse the fingers.
It's a sort of 'middle way' approach, without wanting to be too Zen about it. Do you see what I mean? It's not a criticism, I'm trying to be helpful. Have the overview, then let go and play as you feel.
I know, it's all very difficult.
-
07-28-2022 02:43 AM
-
Originally Posted by wzpgsr
I’ve been learning the tune but I don’t know if I’ll have time to do it today, I’ve been out and about all week. There’s a useful descending line in the A sections, the 3rd descends chromatically from E to D at first, then the third time it goes down chromatically all the way from E to B (on the G7), you can get some mileage by hanging ideas around that. I think I can hear some of that in what Charlie Rouse plays. Really it seems to me that he and Monk are not worrying too much in detail about the changes, they are just sort of following the melodic descending thread somehow. Which I think you were doing too.
Actually Monk quotes bits of the melody during about 50% of his solo, at least that's what it sounds like!
-
Originally Posted by wzpgsr
-
Originally Posted by ragman1
-
Originally Posted by grahambop
-
Originally Posted by John A.
-
Originally Posted by ragman1
-
Originally Posted by ragman1
-
I got some free time today after all, so managed a take.
-
Originally Posted by wzpgsr
Also it’s cool how the melody goes down to a Db in the A section, then drops one semitone to a C in the bridge and climbs back up again from there. So the A melody is descending and the B melody is ascending. I hadn’t really thought of that before, but I must have been vaguely aware of it, I can hear it in my solo.
-
Originally Posted by ragman1
-
Glad to see you back, Triple. Hope all of you have recovered now. Not much fun.
Re. guitar playing, personally I've found having a break from it can be quite inspiring :-)
Pickup Suggestions For Blonde 89 Emperor
Yesterday, 07:27 PM in Guitar, Amps & Gizmos