On Being a More Interesting Improviser

8/8/2019 On Being a More Interesting Improviser

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On Being a More Interesting Improviser

by Jody Espina

My last articleforSax On The Web, was dedicated to the adult amateur saxophonist.Thanks to all of you who wrote me with such positive feedback. This article is dedicated

to any saxophonist who is interested in improvising. Beginners will find some helpfulideas here about how to construct an interesting solo. Advanced players will probably

know everything in this article, but sometimes being reminded of good ideas can freshen

up our playing.

We all know that an improvising jazz musician is telling a musical story... The same

conventions that apply to a good novel also apply to a good jazz solo. You need an

interesting premise (motif), or opening chapter. There should be character development(development of motif) as well as an interesting or satisfying conclusion. Other elements

of a real page turner of a book or a captivating solo are conflict and resolution or tensionand release. The intensity of a good book or a solo will have peaks and valleys. In musicthese exciting and calm moments can be achieved through the use of dynamics,

space/rests, speed/length of notes, and the range of pitch (low/high notes).

The first three tips in this article are so simple and common sense that you may think thatyou don't need to pay much attention to them. I believe that the players who diligently

practice the first three tips will be rewarded for their efforts with more applause from the

audience at the end of their solos and more respect from their fellow musicians.

Ideas 4-6, fall under the tricks and licks category. These may take more time and practice

before you'll be able to use them in a solo, but the way a chef uses spices to give foodflavor, these tricks can liven up your soloing.

Important note: These tricks and licks will not make you a better player. If usedeffectively, they may make you a more interesting or entertaining player. Fancy tricks

and licks can't replace replace solid fundamentals like good tone, intonation, time/swing

feel, phrasing and good technique. Therefore, my recommendation is to stay with your

normal practice routine and add one of these tricks at a time.

1. Space is the place - Play less notes and put space in between your ideas. This may

seem like a cheap trick but it's not. This simple and easy to do suggestion will

immediately make you sound better. Almost all of us including me would have moresuccess with our solos if we would economize on notes and give the listener time to

digest our ideas. A great way to practice this is to imagine that you're trading one or twobar riffs with an imaginary player. Play something then leave the space while you

imagine what the other player would play. Don't worry about there being dead space.

Most rhythm sections will jump all over those spaces and before you know it you'll be in

a real dialogue with the rhythm section. John Coltrane asked Miles Davis's advice on howto end a solo because Trane was having difficulty finding a place to end. Miles answered
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in his raspy whisper, "Take the horn out your mouth." Space is the place - Take the horn

out your mouth.

2. Go long .... and high - Another simple but very effective trick is to play a high note

for about as long as you can hold it. Used at the right moment in your solo, this is almost

guaranteed to get the crowd on your side. The shape of a solo is important. JameyAbersold explains this very well in Volume 1. of his play along series. For example, you

can start a solo in the low or medium range of the horn and as you develop your ideas,

start to play higher and higher and perhaps faster and more notes, building to a well timedvery long high note.

3. Could you repeat that please? - What's worth playing once is probably worth playingat least four times. Using exact repetitions or slight variations allows your listener to

follow your train of thought better. In other words, when you play a nice lick, don't just

abandon that little gold nugget. Let us see/hear it again. Turn it around for us, so that wecan get a good look/listen. Go back and listen to some of your favorite improvisers and

see if there are any cases of motif and development, which usually contains a healthy

dose of repetition.

Stop Right There!

The tips mentioned so far are enough to change your playing dramatically. On your next

solo, try and do these four simple things. Or better yet, record yourself playing a solowith a play-along or a live band. Don't use any of my ideas. Just play as you normally

would. Then record yourself while you consciously use the four ides below.

1. Play less notes2. Put space in between your ideas.

3. Repeat and make variations on the good ideas.

4. Build to a climax with a long high note.Now try and listen to both recordings as an impartial listener would. Which one is more

interesting?

4. Growl - Ben Webster, Earl Bostic, John Coltrane, Phil Woods, Clarence Clemens,

Boots Randolph, Gato Barbieri, and King Curtis are just a few of the great players who

have used the growl to great effect. Growling conveys intensity and soul. It seemsimpossible to play without conviction while growling. I don't think that I'm the best

growler in the world so I wanted to get an experts advice. I asked my good friend Steve

Goodson, if he would elucidate us on how he teaches someone to growl. Steve is an

expert on most things regarding the saxophone whether it be playing, teaching or themechanics of the horn. I think that as a player Steve would describe himself as a honker

and a wailer, a rock and roller, and a growler, which makes him very qualified to give usthis lesson. Let me say this before we go to Steve's advice: In order to make the growl

effect, the player has to actually produce a pitch or growl with his or her voice while

simultaneously playing notes on the saxophone. The note from the sax and the sound

from the voice mix combine to make the growl.


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Steve Goodson on Growling: "When I teach growling, I give the student a lesson in

physiology: at the junction of the mouth and the windpipe (where the bend is), there's lots

of stuff that tends to vibrate: the soft palate, the uvula, and a bunch of other tissue that Ican't name. This stuff will all get into a sympathetic vibration if the player produces the

growl too high up in the throat. The result will be an uneven growl and a potential

blockage of the air stream. I have the student listen to me by placing their ear very closeto my throat so they can see where I am producing the growl. Of course the most

common problem with beginners is that they use too much of the growl effect. I have the

student play long tones and learn to gradually introduce the growl into the note, and thento gradually reduce it. This gives them a broader palette of sounds to use. It is not

uncommon for the beginner to experience some irritation in the throat while learning this

technique. I suggest a gargle with Jack Daniels." (Authors note: The Jack Daniels falls

under the category of definitely don't try this at home. By the way, when I listened toSteve's throat he was growling at a low B concert. J.E.)

5. Flutter Tongue.

The resulting sound of the flutter tongue is somewhat similar to the growl so that if youcan't do one, hopefully you can do the other. To hear what the flutter should sound like,

play your horn with the bell facing directly into an electric fan. That's the sound. If you'reunable to get the flutter I guess you could bring a powerful fan to the gig and blow into it.

(Authors note: Unlike the growl, I'm very good at the flutter tongue.)

Step 1. Roll your R's the way you would if you were saying a word in Spanish whichbegins with R. To do this, place the tip of your tongue on the roof of your mouth right

where the ridge is. To find the ridge start with the tip of your tongue where your teeth and

the roof of your mouth meet. Keeping the tongue against the roof go away from the teethuntil you feel the ridge that leads back to the soft pallet. Lightly place the tip of the

tongue at the edge of this ridge and get some air moving out of your mouth until the

tongue starts rolling. Then, do that while you're blowing the sax. If you don't succeedright away, try to remember what it was like learning to whistle. It may have taken quite

a while, but you kept trying and you kept having different people demonstrate it to you.

Keep trying!

For some reason I like to use the flutter tongue in conjunction with the harmonic minor

scale, getting a snake charmer kind of sound. For example: Let's say you're playing over

an F# minor Funk groove, (your key) and normally you would play a Dorian Scale. That'slike an F# major scale with the 3rd and the 7th note flatted by a 1/2 step. You can usually

fit in the Harmonic Minor Scale over the same minor funk* groove place for the "snake

charmer" type of sound and with the flutter tongue, it can be funny and effective. TheHarmonic Minor Scale is like a major scale with the 3rd and 6th degree flatted by a half

step. Goof around and have fun with this one, but like all tricks, don't overuse it. (* I use

the term funk very loosely. It could be almost any minor one key groove.)

6. Cannonball lick.

This lick is taken from Cannonball's solo on Love for Sale, from the CD, Somethin' Else -

Cannonball Adderly (Blue Note BST 81595). The All Music Guide calls this CD, (which


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also features Miles Davis on it) "Absolutely essential". For the transcription I recommend

getting this excellent book of transcribed solos: The Julian Cannonball Adderly

Collection, compiled and edited by Tim Price (Hal Leonard HL006763244). Besides thelittle lick that I'm pointing out here, pay special attention to the articulations in this solo.

Tim did a great job including this extremely important aspect of Cannonball's sound.

Bear in mind that it's difficult for most mere mortals to play as fast and clean as the greatMr. Adderly. Don't be discouraged. Play the lines as slow as you need to, but do the

articulations. Articulations or the lack of articulations are one of the main reasons why

many inexperienced improvisers just don't sound as popping as the Jazz greats. Before Iget to the lick and while I'm on the subject of articulation, let me say this: Saxophonists -

please don't only transcribe and copy other sax players. Trumpet and trombone players

are usually better at articulation then we are. Listen to some Freddie Hubbard and Frank

Rosolino and copy some of their articulations. Now you're popping.

Well, without further ado, here's the lick: It occurs in the 19th bar of Cannonball's third

chorus. These trills on high B, C, and C# are achieved with the right hand index finger. In

the same way that you play your side Bb, put your index finger up to the top key of thosethree side keys. By the way, keep your thumb under the thumb rest where it's supposed to

be. You will play the high B and let it sound before you start the trill. Most people whotry this for the first time do not trill fast enough and that's why it doesn't sound right. Trill

as fast as you can and like everything else; if you need to, by all means start practicing it

slowly. For alto players, this lick works great over the Blues in Bb concert. For tenor

players, the same lick will work nicely over an F concert Blues.

7. One more thing.

Practice at home, perform on the gig. To be a good improviser you have to practice newideas and techniques before they can sound and feel natural. But, I believe at the gig you

should play from your heart. Play what you're hearing at that moment. There's nothing

worse than hearing a saxophonist practice on the gig. To me it's insulting to the audienceand the other musicians in the band, and it doesn't show you in your best light. There's

room for debate on this issue and there is definitely something to be said for stretching,

taking chances and trying things that you've never done before. These are allresponsibilities that an artist has. But I also believe that as an artist, you have a

responsibility to the audience to show them what's in you heart, not only what's in your

head. I personally try and play every solo like it might be the last one that I ever get to

play. If I know that it's my last chance to play, I want to go out giving one hundredpercent and playing notes that I will literally die for. That may be a melodramatic

thought, but I think that everything in life should be approached with that sincerity and

intensity.

I hope this article helps make us all more interesting soloists.

Practice with intensity, Play with intensity,

Jody Espina

[email protected]

e-mail for comments, questions or suggestions.

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On Being a More Interesting Improviser