New!!: PROCESSES On 'All The Things You Are': Ways To Use Your Musical Vocabulary

PROCESSES:

process ¹ |ˈpräˌses; ˈpräsəs; ˈprō-|

noun

 A series of actions or steps taken in order to achieve a particular end:

(American Heritage Dictionary)

This information will take some time to internalize, but I guarantee that you will be using it for the rest of your life.  These techniques can be traced back to before Bach, before Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina, to the first thoughtful playing of tonal music.

Musical processes are the methods through which we can present our total internalized vocabulary, all the scales, chords, licks, etc. which we have at our subconscious, intuitive command.

I hope to give you some examples of processes I have developed, from which you can go on and discover your own.

The early greats of jazz let melody be their guide.  Embellishing the melody is still the first level of improvising, and is called Filigree: Ornamenting the Melodic notes with upper and lower neighboring tones.

Example #1:

 A further example of this first level of improvising is to choose only notes of the given chord to embellish the melody, keeping the notes added to a minimum amount and rhythmically inactive.

For all these examples, I will use the beautiful Jerome Kern tune,

‘All The Things You Are’.

Example #2

The list of processes for non-melodic improvising, using both chordal and non-chordal tones is endless.  I explain a few of mine, from which you can get ideas to invent your own.  The main thing is to practice these processes on all applicable parts of your internalized vocabulary until using the processes themselves is internalized.  As long as the processes are at your complete and intuitive command, the number of processes need not be great.  It’s better to have 15 to 20 well learned, than 50, which are only partially learned and have to be consciously worked out.

The first such process I’ll mention is to play a continuous flow of eighth notes, using only notes of the given chords, and changing the chords with the harmonic rhythm.  We would describe this style as rhythmically active.

Example #3

 

The arpeggios can be simply played, or in any number of broken, varied forms; there are no rules.

Example #4

Next, develop the ability to identify the scale which applies to the given chord, play that scale, and change the scale with the harmonic rhythm.  As long as the key remains the same and the chords used are the basics of that key, the same scale can be applied for a very long time.  This is very true for modal playing.

Example #5

Now. try mixing both scales and arpeggios in one improvisation.

Example #6

Bebop scales are yet other processes to learn, practice, and internalize.  This requires learning what scale from which each chord is generated from, then adding a chromatic half between either the 5^th and 6^th steps (for major and minor 6 chords and major 7^th chords) or the 7^th and 8^th steps (for dominant 7^th, minor 7^th, and half-diminished 7^th chords).  Each chord has it’s own individual, unique scale; the added half step creates an 8 tone scale, making the same notes occur on the down and up beats, when the scale is played over 2 or 3 octaves --- a 7 tone scale reverses in each octave.  In other words, the chord tones will always occur on the accented downbeats.

Example #7

The Bebop scales are played over the changes in the same way as normal diatonic scales.

Example #8

Using the scale of the key you’re in, you can learn processes to make the triad off of every scale step a rich source of materials for improvisation.  This way of playing creates lines that play over the changes – go ‘outside’ (meaning regardless, or in spite of the chord).

Example #9

These same processes can then be used with 7^th chords off of every scale step.

Example #10 
(A process favored by of J. S. Bach)

Here are processes using the Octatonic, 

or diminished  scales.

Example #11

Processes with the Pentatonic Scales.
Example #12

I hope these techniques are helpful; I will be adding to this ‘Processes’ list from time to time.  Please check periodically.

Please comment and give me feedback.

Sincerely, Errol Weiss Schlabach

'Appomattox': Scene Of Servility

'Appomattox': Scene Of Servility

I was reading an essay by William Zinsser, one of the finest American writers of the 20th century, called 'Appomattox', (from a little book he wrote in 1990, called 'American Places').  In his essay, he describes the kindness with which Grant treated Lee 
in the surrender terms of the agreement, ending the American Civil War: 
The soldiers were simply to give over their arms, keep their horses, and go home!  

No vindictiveness!  The surrender was silent, civil, peaceful, having been  preceded by President Lincoln's statement to Grant on March 28-29, 1865 (before the April 12, 1865 surrender): "Let 'em down easy".

That surrender morning at the Appomattox red brick house of Wilmer Mclean's, 
was quiet, reverent, and servile.

The spirit of Appomattox, that of Lincoln, Grant, Lee, and the 100,000 total soldiers, 
who treated each other with reverential respect, created a stillness which was to be not the end of fighting, but the beginning of a new 'NATION', never

again to be called a ‘UNION’.

(Prior to the Civil War (1861), the ‘United States’ was a plural noun; after, ‘United States’ was always singular (1865).)

Wouldn’t it be a ‘Zen’ moment in world history, if all intercourse between peoples of a marriage, of a family, of a community, of a state, of a nation, ----of the whole earth, could look at one another and see a ‘one’, where everyone’s action would be for the good of everyone, without thought of a ‘self’: Just one organic whole!

‘With a musician's love for America and mankind.

Please give me feedback and comments!

God Bless, Errol