Another theory epiphony

Bill McCloskey · Posted 2 Jan 2011 11:38 am

I posted this on the trumpet forum I frequent but since my last theory post seemed interesting to folks, I'll post this one as well in hopes it provides some more light bulbs to go off for some of you:

As I try and improve as an improviser, I'm changing many of my thoughts about what I've learned about playing jazz. The first jazz theory I really studied was the Mark Levine / Berklee school approach which emphasizes a scale/chord connection. With a focus on modes and a scale for each chord, the emphasis in learning falls on scales and key centers as a basis for improvisation.

But what has been helping most has been the jettisoning of that type of approach for one that focus on chords and melody notes. By eliminating most notes, instead of starting with a large grouping of notes to play from, I’m finding my improvisations are better and my understanding of the purpose of chords to drive melody is greatly increased.

As an example, let’s take a tune like the Fats Waller tune Black and Blue. Transposed for Bb trumpet, the first chords are Bm7/Em7/Bm7/E7/Eb7.

My old way of looking at this would have been to determine the key centers and improvise around that. But, using this approach, how much I’ve lost about the important notes in this tune!

For one, I’ve missed why these chords were chosen in the first place, and for that we have to look at the melody. The melody is a series of 4 notes repeated with slight variation. Let’s look at the melody notes played over the chords:

Bm7: melody notes: F# B C# D
Em7: melody Notes: G B C# D
Bm7: melody notes: F# B C# D
E7: meloday Notes: G# B C# D

The only change in the melody notes is first note which goes from F# to G To F# To G#. Everything else remains the same.

Let’s look at the chord tones:
Bm7: B D F# A B – 3 of the 4 melody notes are in the chord
Em7: E G B D E – 3 of the 4 melody notes are in the chord
E7: E G# B D E – 3 of the 4 melody notes are in the chord

The only note missing from the 3 chords is c# which is in the scale of tones of all 3 chords: the 2nd in the B dorian scale and the 6th in the E dorian and E Mixolydian scales. The purpose of those chords then becomes clear: Each chord change allows for the melody note that is unique to that chord: The bm7 lets me have the F# I need for the first 4 note phrase. The Em7 gives me the G, without losing the other notes in the phrase and the E7 gives me the G# without losing the other 3 notes in the phrase.

Using this method of analysis, the chords no longer indicate a movement from one key center to another, they represent the addition of important melody notes – notes that should be emphasized in an improvisation, so that the improvisation doesn’t sound boring and repetitive.

Looking at things this way, when learning a tune I go through the following steps: I limit myself to only the notes in the chords first. I make sure I have that down before adding any more notes to my improvisation. Once I have that down, I add any melody notes that are not in the chord and I limit myself to that until that feels natural. Then I add any notes from the associated pentatonic scale. And that is it: my available notes to play in any improvisation are made up of only chord tones, melody notes, and passing notes from the pentatonic scale.

I’ve found by limiting myself to this, my improvisations are much more melodic, interesting, and more exciting. Only after this is down would I add chromatic notes, other notes from various modes and scales, and licks.

This is working for me, so I throw it out there in case it helps you

Ron Page · From: Penn Yan, NY USA

I'm not formally trained in music theory, but your idea is very similar to Jeff Newman's course "Just Play The Melody".

He starts by teaching several harmonized scales and the deviates to melody patterns-- obviously taken from the scales. He takes your theoretical approach and gives us the practical application of it on the E9th tuning of the pedal steel.
_________________
HagFan
Emmons Lashley LeGrande II

Don Drummer · From: West Virginia, USA

Bill, have you ever used a book titled "Cutting the Changes"? It's all about reducing multiple chord changes to the most common key center. Your example in this context would yield a D Major. Don D

Don Drummer · From: West Virginia, USA

Bill, have you ever used a book titled "Cutting the Changes"? It's all about reducing multiple chord changes to the most common key center. Your example in this context would yield a D Major. Don D

Bill McCloskey · Posted 5 Jan 2011 1:02 pm

Don, this is, of course, Mark Levine's method. I'm very familiar with it and in fact have begun to reject it in my own practice/woodshedding times. I found for me that while it generates solos that "fit" the chord structure, those solos are weak and uninteresting because it does not take into account the underlying chord and melody notes which provide the power in the solo based on where you are in the harmony progression.

Don Drummer · From: West Virginia, USA

Bill I'm with you on rejecting the Levine method. While you can gain a lot of knowledge his way it seems counter-intuitive when actually playing an instrument. The book I refrenced is by Antonio J Garcia. A trombone player. He gives a very good example of improvising using the "What chord what scale" or verticle approach, verses the What is the key center?, Horizontal approach, in the preface to his book. P.S. I've always admired musicians who play instruments well one note at a time. Very Happy

Don D

Bill McCloskey · Posted 9 Jan 2011 10:06 am

Hey Don,

Took a look at the Garcia's stuff and yes, that guy is very much in the keycenter way of doing things. He says: it is much easier learning keycenters than all those chords, and he is right about that. Learning keycenters and playing the scales does allow for people to get the feeling they are playing jazz. But ultimately, you have to do the work and learn the chords and start incorporating the chords into what you are playing.

Sounds funny when we are talking stringed instruments where chords are second nature, but on a brass instrument like the flugel horn I'm playing these days, the chords are much harder because you need to memorize the notes and the fingering and there is no "move it up the fret". Each chord is its own challenge.

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