Transcribing is absolutely key to this, which is why I have been doing this the old school way by slowing down the recordings and then playing along over and over again until I can play it. Just done some Wayne Shorter pieces, now working on Joe Henderson solos. It's like getting a personal lesson from these masters from beyond the grave, thanks to the magic of recording technology.
BTW I don't write any of it down - for me it works better if I do it by ear. Jazz is a spoken tradition because it's African music, and I find I don't retain the information if I just read it from a sheet of music (and I have loads of transcription books too).
Jazz is not african music! It is a mixture, and most of the iconic songs of jazz pertain to other genres mostly of Europe. Nobody can say exactly what jazz really is.. it is an undefined thing with his stolen icons.
@@brucemacdonald876 I call that "audioscription." Its only drawback is that all you learn is the line over the harmony - not the theory. You want to actually _play_ by ear, not just sound like you _learned_ by ear.
Have always loved the “language” framing of improvisation. If you think about it as a language, it’s kinda bizarre that music education tends to prioritize both reading and writing of the language over *speaking it.* We learn to *speak* other languages well before we learn to read and write them. Great video!
@@HonestSaxSound-unEdited- It's not weird that people learn to read music - it IS weird that most (Western/Classical) musicians don't learn to "speak" it. Imagine being totally literate in French but unable to have an extemporaneous conversation in French. That would be very weird - and that is the precise situation that traditional/conservative Classical music education creates, largely by design.
It is is not that rare to read and write in a language before speaking in it fluently. I leaned the second language like this and my son read and typed on a keyboard to communicate with a computer at the age of two before really speaking the language (he started to speak very late).
Whenever somebody says; I wish i had known this before because it would have accelerated my own proces might not realize that it might have been told before, but he was not yet ready to take the information in. A toddler first makes unarticulate sounds before it says maamaa. And making just a lot of random notes on yur instrument can give you an idea of what your instrument does. This does not mean that your information is worthless, but the opposite has it's values too. Having said all this, copying the masters is great to do, and gives a deeper understanding of your own musicality. Thank you for the video.
I began my journey in music as a classical musician, for whom "learning" was synonymous with method books, etudes and "repertoire." When I got hooked on jazz and wanted to play what I was hearing others play, I naturally looked for the same learning guides - and there were plenty. I developed facility with scales and arpeggios, and was continually frustrated that my solos sounded just like what I was learning. It seemed to me like there was some kind of boundary between what I was sounding like and what I wanted to sound like - almost magical to me because I couldn't fathom how to get from "here" to "there." Your description and language metaphor leads me to believe it wasn't so much about the distance I needed to travel as the direction I was traveling in. When I think back to all the years of exercise-playing, I'm saddened that I didn't encounter anyone who could share with me your succinct and competent explanation in my formative years (but better late than never). Incidentally (and somewhat embarrassingly), it wasn't that I didn't hear people talking about transcribing - I did. But I guess it seemed to me at the time that theory and technical ability were emphasized. I think there was also something about transcriptions seeming so hard, it felt easier and more familiar (especially as a classically-trained player) to run scales and play written exercises.
Good response! Do join a group session if possible. Our Conservatorium used to run weekend small ensemble playing and the tutor was brilliant. Music itself and playing it with others in a positive learning space is the go my friend. Its a lifelong learning : )
Yet another superb video! As a foreign language professor who happens to dabble in saxophone, I fully agree and support every point you made; both in musical language as in spoken language. I am sure with practice, love and attention players will find their own voice while implementing a communicative approach to music! Thank you for your time, dedication and posting videos for the public to learn from you.
I like the idea that a good improvised solo is a conversation between the musician and the audience. If the audience can't understand what you're saying when you play, then you're just talking to yourself. If you aren't making your playing accessible to ithers, then what exactly are you playing for. Personally, I prefer listening to players that make me feel their emotion over those that just seem to be demostrating their technical ability with no feeling behind it.
I’m first tenor in a concert band. My favorite thing in life is playing/recording film scores, it’s also what I’m best in as you need to translate the emotion from an image into sound (=emotional energy). Last week I went to buy a new neckstrap and fell head over heels with a soprano (never touched one before). So I came home and finally, after first hearing ‘Father Gabriel’s Oboe’ from ‘The Mission’, Ennio Morricone, decades ago, I could play and sing it myself. I’ve been playing it every day since. What a beautiful piece of music 🙌🏻
Jay , this video ‘the truth’ has improved my improvisations enormously. Thank you! Somehow you are just as important to me as Coltrane, Getz and Shorter.
Great video Jay. Improvisation is communication, at its basic form, which in turn reinforces your point about it being a language Jay. When we go to talk to someone, do we come with everything we're going to say written out? How about the opposite? Do we come with absolutely no ideas to contribute to the conversation? No to both of these. This is where transcribing is really important. To talk to people we learn new words and new ideas to discuss with each other, the same is true for jazz. Jazz is a conversational type of music with communication being the heart of it. When you improvise you are going up there and saying something to the audience, but also communicating with the various members of your band. That's what jazz was, is, and always will be.
@@HonestSaxSound-unEdited- it's the best definition we're going to get in order to explain it to people new to improvising. I've explained it this way to students, and it has helped de-mystify soloing, and made them more comfortable.
Those that know me know I didn’t need to have ‘improvisation’ explained. But what I DID NEED is to know there were still people like yourself who are competent, accomplished, committed and sincerely devoted to those in search of the right path to help unleash their creativity. Looks to me like they’ll find it here mate. Cheers. 👏
Just a side note. I agree with everything you say in this video but would like to add that my favorite technique for keeping my solos fresh is to play a random note and then provide context to resolve it and make it sound intentional.
You don’t even need to transcribe a whole tune. Even a swinging phrase is worth learning. I was listening to Little Sheri by S Turrentine last week and he plays a catchy passing phrase in the head. It turned out to a pretty easy pentatonic line with a great feel for the 2 and 4. Easy to learn in all 12 keys. Something as simple as that can be used to develop a musical statement. Still challenging, but a great place to start.
I think this is an excellent resource for people like me who are trying to get kids started on improvising. This is something I think I realised intuitively but had never really been able to put into words until now. It's something I've really disliked about how I've often seen improvisation taught. Until now I couldn't really put my finger on it. I'm sure this will affect how I teach beginners to improvise profoundly. Thanks for the great video!
I wish someone would have explained this to me 45 years ago. But I have come to understand this myself only in the last 2 years! I want my college years back when I had tons of practice time to work on developing jazz language. But now there’s career and “being an adult” and my time for practicing is much more limited. Anyway, good stuff, Jay. Hopefully some of the younger generation will figure this out before it’s too late!
Thank you Jay. I am of a certain age and have developed only a very moderate technique on Saxophone throughout my life. However, when I write and play music, I've always tried to tell a story, i.e. provide a narrative to my audiences' lives; sometimes it works. I really appreciate this video - so well explained. It should be compulsory watching for those involved in creative activities.
Jay you are certainly the best teacher I have ever seen. The way you convey your messages is always very inspiring, encouraging, easy to understand and never in a dogmatic style. You are the best! I have already learned so much from your videos and always a highlight to see a new one. Thanks so much!
This is the best video of music that I’ve heard with powerful meaning. You are correct in everything u said. We have our own voice and the only way of improvising solos will be through what we heard from our heros of the sax. Thanks for this video very true and inspiring
Thanks, Jay, for articulating this so clearly. I suspect I will never be a great bebop player; but that's ok, because my musical language was formed and is being formed by other styles.
The language framing is so perfect. And yea, if you listen to jazz through the ages, you can clearly hear how each generation was influenced by the ones before it. That wouldn't be possible without studying and mimicking. The key is to take what you learn and use it to express yourself. I think a lot of jazz musicians these days are too caught up in revisiting the past.
Ypu are true the whole video. Improvising is like speaking on the musical language. Using scales and patterns learned will help you to be understandable. Thumb up
Really needed to see this video today. I feel like I’ve been floundering aimlessly in my pursuit of jazz for years now. Had a long conversation about it last night. Then this video popped today. Thank you for your wisdom!
This is the best jazz improvisation video on RUclips! Thank you for doing it and I applaud the great production quality on this particular video! Great job, Jay!!
Good post jay, this is my year to try and master improvistation i am so useless at this i can play songs heads a ballad but improv i cannot cut it, i have the blues foundation and pentatonic foundation courses from better sax and they are a big help so of i go on my musical journey keep posting you the man..
If I could give this ten 👍 I would. Your insight directly parallels that of Michael Polanyi, a prominent 20th century physical chemist who turned his attention to epistemology. His concept of “tacit knowing” is often misunderstood and, thus, misrepresented. Your metaphor of improvisation as language, acquired as you describe, is insightful.
I didn't watch this video but I played a lot of music in a lot of different places and improvised quite a bit. I've done it drunk, sober, tired, wide awake, at night, in the day, on the street corner, and in concert halls. The key to improvising is this: Think of something that sounds good and then play it.
Jay, great video, as always... thank you for your warm advice to concentrate on solos transcription, something I've always been scared about cause too difficult for me. I never learnt it cause I've never started to do it.... I've got to give it a try...😊
Great video, Jay. we have to learn the language by mimicking, similar to how we learned to speak as children, it seems obvious when thought in this way But it’s good to have this affirmed.
Hi Jay, as always, great content. Have been following you since I started learning to play the saxophone 2,5 years ago! Funny to see at 3:51 into the video that you reference to my saxophone teacher Andreas Mader: A highly talented classical sax player … and excellent teacher! For now, I will continue to develop my mastery of the instrument before diving into impro … but good to have a clear understanding from the start!
Beginner's noodle, pro's communicate. I learned this in high school when I saw the early version of Weather Report. It was like listening to really wise philosophers discussing really heavy topics. they interacted, and fed off each other. it was a profound lesson in how jazz works. it wasn't some wizard soloing over a rhythm section. Every member of the band was equal and invested in the conversation. it was profound and moving
Thank you. In the guitar world, there is a common theme that always bothered me. Something like: „Don’t learn songs note for note, develope your own style“ But what does that mean? Does that mean you learned the top 10 most famous guitar solos of all time and suddenly have your unique voice? Doesn’t make sense to me. The more songs you learn note by note, the more vocabulary have to express yourself. I think some people are just lazy.
i just subscribe and just new in sax, im a f.horn player before, im not in the level of improvisation yet, but i always watch your video, i have target sound and want to have a45 mouthpiece for brighter sound, im more focus in sound quality for now. thankyou for the lessonss you share
Awesome video Jay! This video emphasizes something I've been working at for a couple years now as a classical player trying to expand and crossover into commercial and improv. I'd be interested in your opinion of using a video game to train the ear-to-instrument relation, and its benefits (as well as detriments) to newer players.
I never gave enough credit to practicing scales and arpeggios when i was in college. I felt so out of place i didn't really want to. But if I think about it, it's not much different than practicing and becoming an expert player of a video game. You learn the game's language. I think it just clicked for me.
Jedis toujours que la Musique est un Art . Et un Art se travail tous les jours deux trois heures par jour ! vos vidéos sont excellente bravo et merci a vous !
Great video and I appreciate the lesson, thank you! I will add that may of the great trailblazers of various styles of the past were actually illiterate and did not transcribe solos from before them. "Improvising musicians ALL transcribe solos from their favorite musicians. This is the process that ALL improvisors go through to learn the craft." They absolutely learned the language by listening. They did it by playing by ear. Take Django Reinhardt as an excellent example of this. Django is famously one of the greatest jazz improvisers of all time and created the "gypsy jazz" genre in Paris in the 1930s. Django had heard American jazz songs on the radio and on records in the 20s and 30s. When he learned to play guitar, he did so by listening to those amazing jazz musicians of the time. He learned the language of the American swing bands and was completely illiterate (both musically and in writing). He learned to play by ear and innovated the world of jazz guitar from then on. His physical handicap (burned hand) meant that his guitar fingerings were unusual as well. Modern jazz guitarists can thank Django for the simple chord shapes we enjoy today. The dude did not transcribe solos, but he did learn them... or at least learned how to mimic them. He made his band using traditional gypsy instruments (acoustic guitar, accordion, clarinet, violin, upright bass) swing like the best in the US.
Appreciate your post, though, the most ironic thing about improvisation is that, the vocabulary has to be learned. And improvising is basically using PREPARED vocabulary. So what ever is played while improvising is rarely brand new and never been played by the individual before. It is predetermined, by the amount of preparation and experience the player has. BUT the greats made sure Not to sound like someone else. So the definition of improvisation changes with the development of the player AND they experience of the listener.
@BetterSax I enjoy your lessons! When comparing Improvisation to learning how to speak, I thought about how a baby learns to imitate the words first, and the alphabet later. Should I teach my students how to play a song first, and then explain what the notation looks like afterward? I have never tried this. Have you?
it seems like for most people jazz and blues has "took over" the definition of "improvise", improvise is also what you said in this vid but it also a - search - for things we are don't know exactly what they are until we find them, for composers, improvising is a way of composing, it's hard to separate between composing and improvise which is only one way for looking after nice melodies or interesting musical moments, and off course, in order to improvise you even don't have to know how to play any instrument, just sing to yourself in your head is enough.
My vocabulairy can do with an update. I also have relied on scales in the past. However, even more important to me, has always been to know what colors/intervals and concepts to use. Like the blue note, like harmonic minor and squeezing everything out of the sharp 7th. I don't really see the point in just playing arpeggio's over chord changes, where's the joy and freedom in that? Have found a way to have Excel calculate licks for me in all 12 scales. Those, I have to apply to songs. Turns out that's the hardest part. However, once again, if I focus on licks around concepts I know I already kinda understand, then it works. Like practicing stereotypical and even boring (to me) rock n roll licks that utilize switching between minor and major notes in chromatic fashion. After doubling down on that and applying it to blues songs, I now can hear when to play major notes over a minor blues. Like the sun breaking through the rainy clouds of the blues. Now That is a useful contrast for telling a story. Cliches are cliches for a reason.
Good video Jay. The important point there for me is about constructing "your own" library of impro components. Yes through listening, copying and trying things out. Mr Bob
A famous jazz piano man told me to "speak" with my fingers. "Too many notes" "You have just produced musical vomit on keybard"...He is an ol' school Russian. He told me to say more with less. Once he had me practice "Everything happens to me" only using four notes per chord change and that included the melody!!! It forced me to stop, think, and be articulate in what I was saying with each note. Like a beautiful poem. Technical dexterity is a must, though. That only comes with musical calisthenics. No other way. Gots to be technically proficient. This week I'm playing everything in F# because it's a difficult key for me...like B, A, E, and C#. One key for a few weeks at a time. Instead of in Bb, I'll play Doxy in F# to get proficient in that key...melody, chords, impro. One step at a time, and like in martial arts, speed...wanting to learn too fast, and greed...wanting to learn too much, are the two enemies. Ignorance is also an enemy. Sometimes we can only learn from a good teacher. Have fun out there.
I love to wiggle my fingers! Lol. Anyway, I'm convinced there is no improvisation. I love Patrick's playing so much and Josh is fantastic as well. Miguel is beyond this world.
As a life long player and dedicated listener, I have really struggled to figure out why people love pop music while jazz has gone by the wayside. I’ve really been struggling to listen to jazz over the past year or two because much of it feels slapped together and somewhat thoughtless. Recently, I think I have concluded that 95ish% of improvised music is not memorable, and doesn’t really “say” anything. People want relatable, memorable, simple, and melodic. I’m kind of “out” of improvised music but and desperately trying to find a reason why.
Keep faith young person, your feelings are justified and correct. I'm working on the same thought problem. Why did jazz just about die over last 40 years after the 1960s and 1970s period of intense output? THE DEATH OF MELODY. Please read my long post here. I blame the AVANT GARDE players for literally frauding the public with fake literature improvising and hiding behind militarism ("meant for black people") or obscurity ("it's over your head"). The death of melody.
How about this--if music is communication, then music is also a form of rhetoric. Therefore, an argument could be made that there is an ethos, pathos, and logos of music. I've actually tried to teach that parallel before as an amateur musician and high school English Literature teacher. The author (ethos) is the musician, the text (logos) is the music, and the reader (pathos) is the audience. I usually emphasize pathos in my own classes--because without an audience, a text has no meaning. So if we apply that to music--the pathos should include what DRIVES the listener--and THAT should be what we practice. So... what drives the audience? Well, 9 times out of 10 the audience wants to listen to something they can bob their head to and dance--either on the dancefloor or in there seat. Even classical music aficionados--there is an inner dance that they crave. That dance is complimented by pattern and dynamics. Thus, we've raised a vital question, if we crave rhythm, pulse, dynamics, and pattern as listeners... then WHY do we insist on JUST practicing scales and advanced harmony when we woodshed?
@@CamIsSuper Even when we play music by ourselves--WE are both the listener and the musician. Actually, I think that the more adept you become as a musician--the better you get at listening to yourself as if you were an audience member enjoying YOUR performance. You learn to embrace the space as the self AND as voyeur that observes. Kenny Werner talked about that a bit in Effortless Mastery.
There is something missing in my opinion. Scales, progressions, patterns, licks are your basic parts of your vocabulary as letters, words, grammar are to make sentences and paragraphs. Learning the scales and all that stuff is highly important. And you learn it from books, youtube videos, teachers, and listening to other players. Transcribing and studying transcriptions is good. Focus on the stuff that you find meaningful and attractive is good in order to develop your own taste. But in the end, the technical things missing here are: 1) idea generation: how do I take an idea, develop and explore it to it's logical conclusion, and then follow up with something new but still coherent? and 2) melodic and narrative development: what constitutes good melody and what doesn't? And how do all these melodies fit together to tell a story which has a particular arch and narrative quality? And then there is the element which is mostly overlooked but Pat Metheny is one of the few who spoke about it and it totally makes sense: the actual context of the music. You have to understand the song and what it is about in order to improvise an effective and meaningful solo. The things you are going to play over So What are not going to be appropriate over Impressions even though Impressions is literally a sped up version of So What with a different melody. As Pat himself says (paraphrasing here as I don't know what object he used in his example) if the song is about potatoes, then we are going to discuss with our improvisations all kinds of things about the ways you can cook and serve a potato. It can be boiled, it can be fried, roasted, and it's all good and we are going deep in exploring this potato thing. But if you are going to improvise about rice, it will not make sense and is not appropriate because the topic is potatoes. These three things are important to understand in order to become effective in learning improvisation and understanding what you actually need to look for when for example transcribing a solo and I think this video is still missing that very crucial point in this very explicit way. Based on the contents of this video, I can start transcribing a Josh Redman solo. And there might be a lick of a few licks in there which sound cool. But what I should have been looking for is the first melodic idea Redman drops and then how that melodic idea is explored throughout his solo until it doesn't make sense as it became exhausted of its possibilities and we are off with a different idea being explored for some bars or even a whole chorus. I need to understand that I need to look at the whole solo structure to see where he is building tension, what parts of the harmony is he clearly trying to point out, where is he working towards an (emotional) climax, etc. Just because he plays this particular lick on B7 in this song doesn't mean I can drop it in Autumn Leaves whenever I see that B7 chord coming along. It's because B7 represents "fried" and the context of Redman's tune is Potatoes while Autumn Leaves represents noodles and you are basically imposing a sentence on fried potatoes in a discussion on noodles. It's not totally out of wack as you can fry noodles and both are foods and starches and side dishes. But it's not really sticking to the subject as the lick represents a literal (complex) sentence that I can now use but is often just inappropriate to use in a conversation. In my opinion we are not really being "lied to about improvisation". I think the point is that many musicians just fail to really explain how to effectively learn improvisation partly because many are not that great in improvising themselves and others who do might not be the best in articulating what it is they do (as some might not even understand it and mostly feel it). Especially since jazz education became focused (or perhaps even obsessed) with concepts like scales and modes because from the didactic perspective, these are very concrete things to measure a form of progress with and for students to feel gratification fairly quickly. The other harsh truth is that there are fundamentals we need to learn and that also means working on a set of tunes which represent this fundamental essence (aka bebop). I learned the hard way that just diving straight into modern jazz tunes like a Brecker Brothers tune because they personally appeal more to you than Charlie Parker playing Autumn Leaves is not really a good idea. You need to put the effort into bebop and other standards in order to do the modern stuff. It's not just the theory of the scales and modes and harmony, it's the mileage.
This is the video I have needed for years. It still begs one more detail for me though. We have to remember the vocab by using it, I get it. How can you do that with hundreds or even thousands of melodic pieces that you presumably learn in every key? It seems so utterly insurmountable, yet people do it. How?
As a 60 year old new sax player, who has only been playing for about a year, I have a question about this that I'm sure that either Jay, or one of you many experienced musicians can answer. I started playing the Native American flute about 7 years ago, along with the ukulele. I have since taken on the piano, as I believe it to be the bedrock of Western music. I've also moved from the ukulele to the guitar, which is a pretty natural progression, especially from the baritone ukulele. All this from starting off as a drummer when I was a kid. So, my question then, is if I'm playing what's called a "Heart Song" on the NAF, or practicing right hand Sus chords with left hand arpeggios on the piano, or playing some familiar chord melody on the guitar, is that not improvisation? If not, what is it? Nooding? Goofing off?? Writing my own music ???? It would certainly be based on the "rules" of what does, and does not, sound good on said instrument. If it doesn't sound good to me, it's probably not going to sound good to my listeners. So then, would this not also apply to the saxophone? Must everything I play be based on what someone else has played before? Btw, I've loved playing on the BetterSax alto, and am (kind of) patiently waiting for my BetterSax tenor to ship!!! Thanks to all you learned musicians for your wisdom and insight, and as always, much Thanks to you Jay, for all you do!!!
Jazz is an oral language. Good stuff. Explains a complicated process in a good way. I found the Jamey Aebersold jazz handbook and his other materials very helpful. Transcription by ear is so very important. I also think a good teacher is essential. Good stuff Jay.
I've noticed it takes a while for 'new stuff' you've been working on, is at a state when it starts sounding 'right' in an improvisation. You need to ID places where it works, doesn't work (so well) and how to make it sound part of the whole, rather than just the latest fashion or gizmo to use now. I'm always wary when I hear a lot of players all suddenly start using a particular figure, often borrowed from another genre. Fortunately it usually doesn't last long. I found it's interesting if you can figure out a variation of it, when others are just doing direct lifts. I like to keep checking the old stuff, new stuff and from eras in between. so it's less easy to pigeon hole ideas all from one era or genre. There's a lot of music out there, that you can use. Some may need a little reshaping, so it fits better with the rest of your stuff, but it's all there for using (in smallish chunks).
Your basic course on improvising starts with pentatonic scales but you emphasize rhythm in the course and creating space! Everyone who ad libs well is on the same rhythm track. For some artists a flurry of notes is what they want to say, with little space. Language learning is your metaphor and it is ideal. Listen to Italian movies or Russian or Spanish or French, etc. Find out what you like to hear, what resonates. Then you can easily identify how you want to say things on the horn, accents, breaths, , flurries, time for audience to respond, etc. Never a strong participant of transcription, because lazy, but yeah for imitation.
Jay nice video but need we to hear you play a two minute musical version of Millennial Rumble Gasses Miniature Book so we know what not to do. That could be a written head 'Millennial Rumble Gasses Miniature Book" and then go into an anti-improvisation of finger wiggling and un-coordinated non-musical sounds made with the mouth piece We need to hear what not to do.
When I practice, I end with finger wiggly up down the tones while Sonny Rollins is playing. It's not musical but I love hearing all those sounds spilling out of my horn.
I need a trick to know how many bars I've played. Last time, in class I ended up taking a double solo. I don't usually count bars when it's my turn. Listening to Chris changes is really difficult for me. And I supposed to be counting ?? Or, maybe just counting bars???? I am a total beginner here .
Composition and Improvisation are ultimately the same skill. Composition is more labored and permanent process while improvisation is more immediate and in the moment. The process of learning how to improvise teaches you how composition works. The process of learning how to compose teaches you how different melodies work over your chord progressions. I just think of them as the same skill, just approached from different ends of the same phenomenon.
Maybe you can answer a nagging question I’ve always had. I’ve listened to a lot of smooth jazz saxophonists, and Grover Washington Jr seems to do something unique - it sounds sometimes like his notes come out just a tad too early or too late. Perhaps it is just his deliberate signature style ?
Grover and a lot of folks play slightly behind the beat. That is they make their notes and 8th notes just a little laid back so it sounds very hip if done right. You can play right on the time. Some folks push the time and some folks rush. Rushing does not sound good. Others play right in the pocket.
@@docsaxman Thanks for explaining it in such an easy to understand manner. I saw Grover at a concert about a year (?) before he died. I went just to see The Rippingtons who were opening for him and was not yet a big fan of Grover. After The Rippingtons finished their set and Grover and his band came on stage and started cranking, I realized that The Rips were almost amateurs in comparison (but are still one of my favorite contemporary jazz bands).
Transcribing is absolutely key to this, which is why I have been doing this the old school way by slowing down the recordings and then playing along over and over again until I can play it. Just done some Wayne Shorter pieces, now working on Joe Henderson solos. It's like getting a personal lesson from these masters from beyond the grave, thanks to the magic of recording technology.
BTW I don't write any of it down - for me it works better if I do it by ear. Jazz is a spoken tradition because it's African music, and I find I don't retain the information if I just read it from a sheet of music (and I have loads of transcription books too).
Jazz is not african music! It is a mixture, and most of the iconic songs of jazz pertain to other genres mostly of Europe. Nobody can say exactly what jazz really is.. it is an undefined thing with his stolen icons.
@@brucemacdonald876 That's right. Don't use any "modern" aids, like sheet music. It's much better.
@@brucemacdonald876 I call that "audioscription." Its only drawback is that all you learn is the line over the harmony - not the theory. You want to actually _play_ by ear, not just sound like you _learned_ by ear.
@@brucemacdonald876Improvisation isn't just limited to jazz.
Have always loved the “language” framing of improvisation. If you think about it as a language, it’s kinda bizarre that music education tends to prioritize both reading and writing of the language over *speaking it.* We learn to *speak* other languages well before we learn to read and write them. Great video!
I think it is not so bizarre.. it was fundamental to "preserve" music and communicate it after.
@@HonestSaxSound-unEdited- It's not weird that people learn to read music - it IS weird that most (Western/Classical) musicians don't learn to "speak" it. Imagine being totally literate in French but unable to have an extemporaneous conversation in French. That would be very weird - and that is the precise situation that traditional/conservative Classical music education creates, largely by design.
You know what else tends to take a backseat to reading? Like, Listening...
@@lukasalihein Precisely! Thank you for making my point better than I did! 😁
It is is not that rare to read and write in a language before speaking in it fluently. I leaned the second language like this and my son read and typed on a keyboard to communicate with a computer at the age of two before really speaking the language (he started to speak very late).
Whenever somebody says; I wish i had known this before because it would have accelerated my own proces might not realize that it might have been told before, but he was not yet ready to take the information in. A toddler first makes unarticulate sounds before it says maamaa. And making just a lot of random notes on yur instrument can give you an idea of what your instrument does.
This does not mean that your information is worthless, but the opposite has it's values too.
Having said all this, copying the masters is great to do, and gives a deeper understanding of your own musicality.
Thank you for the video.
I began my journey in music as a classical musician, for whom "learning" was synonymous with method books, etudes and "repertoire." When I got hooked on jazz and wanted to play what I was hearing others play, I naturally looked for the same learning guides - and there were plenty. I developed facility with scales and arpeggios, and was continually frustrated that my solos sounded just like what I was learning. It seemed to me like there was some kind of boundary between what I was sounding like and what I wanted to sound like - almost magical to me because I couldn't fathom how to get from "here" to "there." Your description and language metaphor leads me to believe it wasn't so much about the distance I needed to travel as the direction I was traveling in. When I think back to all the years of exercise-playing, I'm saddened that I didn't encounter anyone who could share with me your succinct and competent explanation in my formative years (but better late than never).
Incidentally (and somewhat embarrassingly), it wasn't that I didn't hear people talking about transcribing - I did. But I guess it seemed to me at the time that theory and technical ability were emphasized. I think there was also something about transcriptions seeming so hard, it felt easier and more familiar (especially as a classically-trained player) to run scales and play written exercises.
You’re not the only one. This is a very common experience.
Good response! Do join a group session if possible. Our Conservatorium used to run weekend small ensemble playing and the tutor was brilliant. Music itself and playing it with others in a positive learning space is the go my friend. Its a lifelong learning : )
OMG! 20 years ago, a teacher told me to learn standards by ear to develop my vocabulary. I didn't fully understand it until this video. 🤯
I really liked the "meaningless" sentence, actually. Pretty hip, and outside the changes.
Yet another superb video! As a foreign language professor who happens to dabble in saxophone, I fully agree and support every point you made; both in musical language as in spoken language. I am sure with practice, love and attention players will find their own voice while implementing a communicative approach to music! Thank you for your time, dedication and posting videos for the public to learn from you.
I like the idea that a good improvised solo is a conversation between the musician and the audience. If the audience can't understand what you're saying when you play, then you're just talking to yourself. If you aren't making your playing accessible to ithers, then what exactly are you playing for. Personally, I prefer listening to players that make me feel their emotion over those that just seem to be demostrating their technical ability with no feeling behind it.
I’m first tenor in a concert band. My favorite thing in life is playing/recording film scores, it’s also what I’m best in as you need to translate the emotion from an image into sound (=emotional energy). Last week I went to buy a new neckstrap and fell head over heels with a soprano (never touched one before). So I came home and finally, after first hearing ‘Father Gabriel’s Oboe’ from ‘The Mission’, Ennio Morricone, decades ago, I could play and sing it myself. I’ve been playing it every day since. What a beautiful piece of music 🙌🏻
Imitation --> Emulation --> Innovation (Clark Terry).
Thoughtful explanation that makes a number of salient points, Jay. Thanks for posting.
Jay , this video ‘the truth’ has improved my improvisations enormously. Thank you! Somehow you are just as important to me as Coltrane, Getz and Shorter.
Happy to help!
Great video Jay. Improvisation is communication, at its basic form, which in turn reinforces your point about it being a language Jay. When we go to talk to someone, do we come with everything we're going to say written out? How about the opposite? Do we come with absolutely no ideas to contribute to the conversation? No to both of these. This is where transcribing is really important. To talk to people we learn new words and new ideas to discuss with each other, the same is true for jazz. Jazz is a conversational type of music with communication being the heart of it. When you improvise you are going up there and saying something to the audience, but also communicating with the various members of your band. That's what jazz was, is, and always will be.
Good definition, but nobody can explain what jazz really is.. it is an undefined thing with his greatest icon sounds stolen from other genres.
@@HonestSaxSound-unEdited- it's the best definition we're going to get in order to explain it to people new to improvising. I've explained it this way to students, and it has helped de-mystify soloing, and made them more comfortable.
Those that know me know I didn’t need to have ‘improvisation’ explained. But what I DID NEED is to know there were still people like yourself who are competent, accomplished, committed and sincerely devoted to those in search of the right path to help unleash their creativity. Looks to me like they’ll find it here mate. Cheers. 👏
Just a side note. I agree with everything you say in this video but would like to add that my favorite technique for keeping my solos fresh is to play a random note and then provide context to resolve it and make it sound intentional.
i agree with this, though the notes are only random in the moment, in the bigger picture you chose those notes to later add context
You don’t even need to transcribe a whole tune. Even a swinging phrase is worth learning. I was listening to Little Sheri by S Turrentine last week and he plays a catchy passing phrase in the head. It turned out to a pretty easy pentatonic line with a great feel for the 2 and 4. Easy to learn in all 12 keys. Something as simple as that can be used to develop a musical statement. Still challenging, but a great place to start.
I think this is an excellent resource for people like me who are trying to get kids started on improvising. This is something I think I realised intuitively but had never really been able to put into words until now. It's something I've really disliked about how I've often seen improvisation taught. Until now I couldn't really put my finger on it. I'm sure this will affect how I teach beginners to improvise profoundly. Thanks for the great video!
I wish someone would have explained this to me 45 years ago. But I have come to understand this myself only in the last 2 years! I want my college years back when I had tons of practice time to work on developing jazz language. But now there’s career and “being an adult” and my time for practicing is much more limited. Anyway, good stuff, Jay. Hopefully some of the younger generation will figure this out before it’s too late!
Maybe the best explanation I have ever heard on the subject!
Thank you Jay. I am of a certain age and have developed only a very moderate technique on Saxophone throughout my life. However, when I write and play music, I've always tried to tell a story, i.e. provide a narrative to my audiences' lives; sometimes it works. I really appreciate this video - so well explained. It should be compulsory watching for those involved in creative activities.
Jay you are certainly the best teacher I have ever seen. The way you convey your messages is always very inspiring, encouraging, easy to understand and never in a dogmatic style. You are the best!
I have already learned so much from your videos and always a highlight to see a new one.
Thanks so much!
Brlliant -- musically deep and psychologicially insightful. The breath of your knowledge, imagination, and openess to the new is a constant delight.
This is the best video of music that I’ve heard with powerful meaning. You are correct in everything u said. We have our own voice and the only way of improvising solos will be through what we heard from our heros of the sax. Thanks for this video very true and inspiring
Thanks, Jay, for articulating this so clearly. I suspect I will never be a great bebop player; but that's ok, because my musical language was formed and is being formed by other styles.
I'm a music student at a university and you just blew my mind!! Def gonna subscribe
The language framing is so perfect. And yea, if you listen to jazz through the ages, you can clearly hear how each generation was influenced by the ones before it. That wouldn't be possible without studying and mimicking. The key is to take what you learn and use it to express yourself. I think a lot of jazz musicians these days are too caught up in revisiting the past.
Ypu are true the whole video. Improvising is like speaking on the musical language. Using scales and patterns learned will help you to be understandable. Thumb up
this is fantastic, I wish every musician could watch this
Wow... never heard it said so clearly and succinctly. Truth Truth.
Really needed to see this video today. I feel like I’ve been floundering aimlessly in my pursuit of jazz for years now. Had a long conversation about it last night. Then this video popped today. Thank you for your wisdom!
Glad to hear it helped.
Thank you for this description. True words of wisdom that I have never heard before.
This is the best jazz improvisation video on RUclips! Thank you for doing it and I applaud the great production quality on this particular video! Great job, Jay!!
Another illuminating video from Better Sax! 🎷 ✨
Wow, mind blown! This video might be what i needed to hear and encourage me to pick up my sax again!
Good post jay, this is my year to try and master improvistation i am so useless at this i can play songs heads a ballad but improv i cannot cut it, i have the blues foundation and pentatonic foundation courses from better sax and they are a big help so of i go on my musical journey keep posting you the man..
If I could give this ten 👍 I would. Your insight directly parallels that of Michael Polanyi, a prominent 20th century physical chemist who turned his attention to epistemology. His concept of “tacit knowing” is often misunderstood and, thus, misrepresented. Your metaphor of improvisation as language, acquired as you describe, is insightful.
I didn't watch this video but I played a lot of music in a lot of different places and improvised quite a bit. I've done it drunk, sober, tired, wide awake, at night, in the day, on the street corner, and in concert halls.
The key to improvising is this: Think of something that sounds good and then play it.
Amen
Jay, great video, as always... thank you for your warm advice to concentrate on solos transcription, something I've always been scared about cause too difficult for me. I never learnt it cause I've never started to do it.... I've got to give it a try...😊
Great video, Jay. we have to learn the language by mimicking, similar to how we learned to speak as children, it seems obvious when thought in this way
But it’s good to have this affirmed.
Great! I've been saying this for years - there are no shortcuts!
I figured that a while ago. There is more to Improvisation that scales, Arpeggios etc. You can hear it when good musicians play.
Hi Jay, as always, great content. Have been following you since I started learning to play the saxophone 2,5 years ago! Funny to see at 3:51 into the video that you reference to my saxophone teacher Andreas Mader: A highly talented classical sax player … and excellent teacher!
For now, I will continue to develop my mastery of the instrument before diving into impro … but good to have a clear understanding from the start!
This information is priceless !!!!The best description of improvisation I have ever heard. Thank you for posting
Great video and well articulated - always leveling up the game brother!
Thank you bro
Beginner's noodle, pro's communicate. I learned this in high school when I saw the early version of Weather Report. It was like listening to really wise philosophers discussing really heavy topics. they interacted, and fed off each other. it was a profound lesson in how jazz works. it wasn't some wizard soloing over a rhythm section. Every member of the band was equal and invested in the conversation. it was profound and moving
Thank you. In the guitar world, there is a common theme that always bothered me. Something like: „Don’t learn songs note for note, develope your own style“ But what does that mean? Does that mean you learned the top 10 most famous guitar solos of all time and suddenly have your unique voice? Doesn’t make sense to me. The more songs you learn note by note, the more vocabulary have to express yourself. I think some people are just lazy.
Clear and motivating, thanks.
i just subscribe and just new in sax, im a f.horn player before, im not in the level of improvisation yet, but i always watch your video, i have target sound and want to have a45 mouthpiece for brighter sound, im more focus in sound quality for now. thankyou for the lessonss you share
Great info and great Blues Brothers cameo at 4:56 👍👍
Wow Jay, that was an insanely good and important video. I’m gonna share it in my community. Brilliant mate. 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
Thanks Jamie!
I couldn't agree more with you!
Thank you.
great video, if i had to give a shot at putting a meaning to improv i'd probably say its creating spontaneous melody
I was a part of a Wynton Marsalis clinic once. He defined improvisation as “spontaneous composition.” I’ve stuck with that definition.
I took my daughter to a Jazz for Young People presentation hosted by Wynton Marsalis years back. He was an amazing teacher.
Awesome video Jay! This video emphasizes something I've been working at for a couple years now as a classical player trying to expand and crossover into commercial and improv. I'd be interested in your opinion of using a video game to train the ear-to-instrument relation, and its benefits (as well as detriments) to newer players.
When you stumble in drunk at 2:00AM, improvise.
I never gave enough credit to practicing scales and arpeggios when i was in college. I felt so out of place i didn't really want to. But if I think about it, it's not much different than practicing and becoming an expert player of a video game. You learn the game's language.
I think it just clicked for me.
Jedis toujours que la Musique est un Art . Et un Art se travail tous les jours deux trois heures par jour ! vos vidéos sont excellente bravo et merci a vous !
Great video and I appreciate the lesson, thank you!
I will add that may of the great trailblazers of various styles of the past were actually illiterate and did not transcribe solos from before them.
"Improvising musicians ALL transcribe solos from their favorite musicians. This is the process that ALL improvisors go through to learn the craft."
They absolutely learned the language by listening. They did it by playing by ear. Take Django Reinhardt as an excellent example of this. Django is famously one of the greatest jazz improvisers of all time and created the "gypsy jazz" genre in Paris in the 1930s. Django had heard American jazz songs on the radio and on records in the 20s and 30s. When he learned to play guitar, he did so by listening to those amazing jazz musicians of the time. He learned the language of the American swing bands and was completely illiterate (both musically and in writing). He learned to play by ear and innovated the world of jazz guitar from then on. His physical handicap (burned hand) meant that his guitar fingerings were unusual as well. Modern jazz guitarists can thank Django for the simple chord shapes we enjoy today. The dude did not transcribe solos, but he did learn them... or at least learned how to mimic them. He made his band using traditional gypsy instruments (acoustic guitar, accordion, clarinet, violin, upright bass) swing like the best in the US.
Appreciate your post, though, the most ironic thing about improvisation is that, the vocabulary has to be learned. And improvising is basically using PREPARED vocabulary. So what ever is played while improvising is rarely brand new and never been played by the individual before. It is predetermined, by the amount of preparation and experience the player has. BUT the greats made sure Not to sound like someone else. So the definition of improvisation changes with the development of the player AND they experience of the listener.
putting together phrases that develop a continuing story that is embedded in the theme melody
I still haven’t found any musicians I really love and aspire to imitate
@BetterSax I enjoy your lessons! When comparing Improvisation to learning how to speak, I thought about how a baby learns to imitate the words first, and the alphabet later. Should I teach my students how to play a song first, and then explain what the notation looks like afterward? I have never tried this. Have you?
Great Video - and thank you forusing my Denisov as an example! 😄I love your work here on RUclips!
Thanks for watching and for the great clip!
Yes, I know what you mean. Some of the solos I hear on the more modern jazz tunes sound a bit too much like scale practice!
Well Explained!
3:33 Chad was playing at my school in that recording!!!
it seems like for most people jazz and blues has "took over" the definition of "improvise",
improvise is also what you said in this vid but it also a - search - for things we are don't know exactly what they are until we find them,
for composers, improvising is a way of composing, it's hard to separate between composing and improvise which is only one way for looking after nice melodies or interesting musical moments,
and off course, in order to improvise you even don't have to know how to play any instrument, just sing to yourself in your head is enough.
Patrick Bartley said something very similar just the other day.
My vocabulairy can do with an update. I also have relied on scales in the past. However, even more important to me, has always been to know what colors/intervals and concepts to use. Like the blue note, like harmonic minor and squeezing everything out of the sharp 7th. I don't really see the point in just playing arpeggio's over chord changes, where's the joy and freedom in that? Have found a way to have Excel calculate licks for me in all 12 scales. Those, I have to apply to songs. Turns out that's the hardest part. However, once again, if I focus on licks around concepts I know I already kinda understand, then it works. Like practicing stereotypical and even boring (to me) rock n roll licks that utilize switching between minor and major notes in chromatic fashion. After doubling down on that and applying it to blues songs, I now can hear when to play major notes over a minor blues. Like the sun breaking through the rainy clouds of the blues. Now That is a useful contrast for telling a story. Cliches are cliches for a reason.
Perfect!
Well done!
Great video
Good video Jay. The important point there for me is about constructing "your own" library of impro components. Yes through listening, copying and trying things out. Mr Bob
A famous jazz piano man told me to "speak" with my fingers. "Too many notes" "You have just produced musical vomit on keybard"...He is an ol' school Russian. He told me to say more with less. Once he had me practice "Everything happens to me" only using four notes per chord change and that included the melody!!! It forced me to stop, think, and be articulate in what I was saying with each note. Like a beautiful poem. Technical dexterity is a must, though. That only comes with musical calisthenics. No other way. Gots to be technically proficient. This week I'm playing everything in F# because it's a difficult key for me...like B, A, E, and C#. One key for a few weeks at a time. Instead of in Bb, I'll play Doxy in F# to get proficient in that key...melody, chords, impro. One step at a time, and like in martial arts, speed...wanting to learn too fast, and greed...wanting to learn too much, are the two enemies. Ignorance is also an enemy. Sometimes we can only learn from a good teacher. Have fun out there.
I love to wiggle my fingers! Lol. Anyway, I'm convinced there is no improvisation. I love Patrick's playing so much and Josh is fantastic as well. Miguel is beyond this world.
Really Nice Message!!!
I’ve been listening to a lot of Chinese tapes and can now speak Chinese by ear however; I don’t know what I’m saying. Xiexie ☮️🎶🎵🎷
Nee how mah?
You can't create something that speaks to people if you don't start by mimicking what works.
Love it
As a life long player and dedicated listener, I have really struggled to figure out why people love pop music while jazz has gone by the wayside. I’ve really been struggling to listen to jazz over the past year or two because much of it feels slapped together and somewhat thoughtless. Recently, I think I have concluded that 95ish% of improvised music is not memorable, and doesn’t really “say” anything. People want relatable, memorable, simple, and melodic. I’m kind of “out” of improvised music but and desperately trying to find a reason why.
Keep faith young person, your feelings are justified and correct. I'm working on the same thought problem. Why did jazz just about die over last 40 years after the 1960s and 1970s period of intense output? THE DEATH OF MELODY. Please read my long post here. I blame the AVANT GARDE players for literally frauding the public with fake literature improvising and hiding behind militarism ("meant for black people") or obscurity ("it's over your head"). The death of melody.
How about this--if music is communication, then music is also a form of rhetoric. Therefore, an argument could be made that there is an ethos, pathos, and logos of music. I've actually tried to teach that parallel before as an amateur musician and high school English Literature teacher. The author (ethos) is the musician, the text (logos) is the music, and the reader (pathos) is the audience. I usually emphasize pathos in my own classes--because without an audience, a text has no meaning. So if we apply that to music--the pathos should include what DRIVES the listener--and THAT should be what we practice.
So... what drives the audience? Well, 9 times out of 10 the audience wants to listen to something they can bob their head to and dance--either on the dancefloor or in there seat. Even classical music aficionados--there is an inner dance that they crave. That dance is complimented by pattern and dynamics. Thus, we've raised a vital question, if we crave rhythm, pulse, dynamics, and pattern as listeners... then WHY do we insist on JUST practicing scales and advanced harmony when we woodshed?
All about the listener
@@CamIsSuper Even when we play music by ourselves--WE are both the listener and the musician. Actually, I think that the more adept you become as a musician--the better you get at listening to yourself as if you were an audience member enjoying YOUR performance. You learn to embrace the space as the self AND as voyeur that observes. Kenny Werner talked about that a bit in Effortless Mastery.
There is something missing in my opinion. Scales, progressions, patterns, licks are your basic parts of your vocabulary as letters, words, grammar are to make sentences and paragraphs. Learning the scales and all that stuff is highly important. And you learn it from books, youtube videos, teachers, and listening to other players. Transcribing and studying transcriptions is good. Focus on the stuff that you find meaningful and attractive is good in order to develop your own taste.
But in the end, the technical things missing here are: 1) idea generation: how do I take an idea, develop and explore it to it's logical conclusion, and then follow up with something new but still coherent? and 2) melodic and narrative development: what constitutes good melody and what doesn't? And how do all these melodies fit together to tell a story which has a particular arch and narrative quality?
And then there is the element which is mostly overlooked but Pat Metheny is one of the few who spoke about it and it totally makes sense: the actual context of the music. You have to understand the song and what it is about in order to improvise an effective and meaningful solo. The things you are going to play over So What are not going to be appropriate over Impressions even though Impressions is literally a sped up version of So What with a different melody. As Pat himself says (paraphrasing here as I don't know what object he used in his example) if the song is about potatoes, then we are going to discuss with our improvisations all kinds of things about the ways you can cook and serve a potato. It can be boiled, it can be fried, roasted, and it's all good and we are going deep in exploring this potato thing. But if you are going to improvise about rice, it will not make sense and is not appropriate because the topic is potatoes.
These three things are important to understand in order to become effective in learning improvisation and understanding what you actually need to look for when for example transcribing a solo and I think this video is still missing that very crucial point in this very explicit way. Based on the contents of this video, I can start transcribing a Josh Redman solo. And there might be a lick of a few licks in there which sound cool. But what I should have been looking for is the first melodic idea Redman drops and then how that melodic idea is explored throughout his solo until it doesn't make sense as it became exhausted of its possibilities and we are off with a different idea being explored for some bars or even a whole chorus. I need to understand that I need to look at the whole solo structure to see where he is building tension, what parts of the harmony is he clearly trying to point out, where is he working towards an (emotional) climax, etc. Just because he plays this particular lick on B7 in this song doesn't mean I can drop it in Autumn Leaves whenever I see that B7 chord coming along. It's because B7 represents "fried" and the context of Redman's tune is Potatoes while Autumn Leaves represents noodles and you are basically imposing a sentence on fried potatoes in a discussion on noodles. It's not totally out of wack as you can fry noodles and both are foods and starches and side dishes. But it's not really sticking to the subject as the lick represents a literal (complex) sentence that I can now use but is often just inappropriate to use in a conversation.
In my opinion we are not really being "lied to about improvisation". I think the point is that many musicians just fail to really explain how to effectively learn improvisation partly because many are not that great in improvising themselves and others who do might not be the best in articulating what it is they do (as some might not even understand it and mostly feel it). Especially since jazz education became focused (or perhaps even obsessed) with concepts like scales and modes because from the didactic perspective, these are very concrete things to measure a form of progress with and for students to feel gratification fairly quickly. The other harsh truth is that there are fundamentals we need to learn and that also means working on a set of tunes which represent this fundamental essence (aka bebop). I learned the hard way that just diving straight into modern jazz tunes like a Brecker Brothers tune because they personally appeal more to you than Charlie Parker playing Autumn Leaves is not really a good idea. You need to put the effort into bebop and other standards in order to do the modern stuff. It's not just the theory of the scales and modes and harmony, it's the mileage.
This is the video I have needed for years. It still begs one more detail for me though. We have to remember the vocab by using it, I get it. How can you do that with hundreds or even thousands of melodic pieces that you presumably learn in every key? It seems so utterly insurmountable, yet people do it. How?
Just go one bit at a time. It all adds up quite quickly if you are consistent over the long term.
Great! 👏👏👏
Read the autobio of Miles Davis. He explains what the improvisation is.
lol i love the douchy student beanie
As a 60 year old new sax player, who has only been playing for about a year, I have a question about this that I'm sure that either Jay, or one of you many experienced musicians can answer.
I started playing the Native American flute about 7 years ago, along with the ukulele. I have since taken on the piano, as I believe it to be the bedrock of Western music. I've also moved from the ukulele to the guitar, which is a pretty natural progression, especially from the baritone ukulele.
All this from starting off as a drummer when I was a kid. So, my question then, is if I'm playing what's called a "Heart Song" on the NAF, or practicing right hand Sus chords with left hand arpeggios on the piano, or playing some familiar chord melody on the guitar, is that not improvisation? If not, what is it? Nooding? Goofing off?? Writing my own music ????
It would certainly be based on the "rules" of what does, and does not, sound good on said instrument. If it doesn't sound good to me, it's probably not going to sound good to my listeners.
So then, would this not also apply to the saxophone? Must everything I play be based on what someone else has played before?
Btw, I've loved playing on the BetterSax alto, and am (kind of) patiently waiting for my BetterSax tenor to ship!!!
Thanks to all you learned musicians for your wisdom and insight, and as always, much Thanks to you Jay, for all you do!!!
Amen!
Jazz is an oral language. Good stuff. Explains a complicated process in a good way. I found the Jamey Aebersold jazz handbook and his other materials very helpful. Transcription by ear is so very important. I also think a good teacher is essential. Good stuff Jay.
^thankyou!
I've noticed it takes a while for 'new stuff' you've been working on, is at a state when it starts sounding 'right' in an improvisation. You need to ID places where it works, doesn't work (so well) and how to make it sound part of the whole, rather than just the latest fashion or gizmo to use now. I'm always wary when I hear a lot of players all suddenly start using a particular figure, often borrowed from another genre. Fortunately it usually doesn't last long. I found it's interesting if you can figure out a variation of it, when others are just doing direct lifts.
I like to keep checking the old stuff, new stuff and from eras in between. so it's less easy to pigeon hole ideas all from one era or genre. There's a lot of music out there, that you can use. Some may need a little reshaping, so it fits better with the rest of your stuff, but it's all there for using (in smallish chunks).
Your basic course on improvising starts with pentatonic scales but you emphasize rhythm in the course and creating space! Everyone who ad libs well is on the same rhythm track. For some artists a flurry of notes is what they want to say, with little space. Language learning is your metaphor and it is ideal. Listen to Italian movies or Russian or Spanish or French, etc. Find out what you like to hear, what resonates. Then you can easily identify how you want to say things on the horn, accents, breaths, , flurries, time for audience to respond, etc. Never a strong participant of transcription, because lazy, but yeah for imitation.
Jay nice video
but need we to hear you play a two minute musical version of
Millennial Rumble Gasses Miniature Book so we know what not to do.
That could be a written head 'Millennial Rumble Gasses Miniature Book"
and then go into an anti-improvisation of finger wiggling and un-coordinated
non-musical sounds made with the mouth piece
We need to hear what not to do.
funny enough that exact clip got cut from the first draft of this video. Wouldn't want to subject you to that 😅.
When I practice, I end with finger wiggly up down the tones while Sonny Rollins is playing. It's not musical but I love hearing all those sounds spilling out of my horn.
I play the piano and everything you say applies in the same way.
Love the Bart Simpson! 🎷💫
I need a trick to know how many bars I've played. Last time, in class I ended up taking a double solo. I don't usually count bars when it's my turn. Listening to Chris changes is really difficult for me. And I supposed to be counting ?? Or, maybe just counting bars???? I am a total beginner here .
Composition and Improvisation are ultimately the same skill. Composition is more labored and permanent process while improvisation is more immediate and in the moment.
The process of learning how to improvise teaches you how composition works.
The process of learning how to compose teaches you how different melodies work over your chord progressions.
I just think of them as the same skill, just approached from different ends of the same phenomenon.
For me it's when the instrument plays me.
Melodic cells go brrrrrrr ( and transcription)
Maybe you can answer a nagging question I’ve always had. I’ve listened to a lot of smooth jazz saxophonists, and Grover Washington Jr seems to do something unique - it sounds sometimes like his notes come out just a tad too early or too late. Perhaps it is just his deliberate signature style ?
Grover and a lot of folks play slightly behind the beat. That is they make their notes and 8th notes just a little laid back so it sounds very hip if done right. You can play right on the time. Some folks push the time and some folks rush. Rushing does not sound good. Others play right in the pocket.
@@docsaxman Thanks for explaining it in such an easy to understand manner. I saw Grover at a concert about a year (?) before he died. I went just to see The Rippingtons who were opening for him and was not yet a big fan of Grover. After The Rippingtons finished their set and Grover and his band came on stage and started cranking, I realized that The Rips were almost amateurs in comparison (but are still one of my favorite contemporary jazz bands).
@@billwilliams5889Glad it helped! Rippingtons are a fine band and have had some great sax players. Jeff Kashiwa! Dave Koz!