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Well it's gotta be tough playing with Ten Left Thumbs, innit?

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Merry Christmas everyone, Have a joiful time! Been great working here in the last year and I look forward to learning from book 2 next year.

It's going to be a great year!
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Anyone making goals for next year?

Last year I set myself the goal of improvising quavers, in control - and - I've done it.

I'm wondering if I should do something about comping for next year. I'll stick with joi, of course, it's not mutually exclusive. I'm just wondering how much it would take for me to get together with other jazzers and comp, and if that's a realistic goal for a year. Any thoughts?

Hi 10
Short term goal: to get a maj-min tune nailed e.g. Beautiful Love
Medium term goal: to finish JOI at the end of April, God willing it will be 2 years.
Longer term goal: Develop skills for arrangements.

What is your preferred style of jazz ? Do the other musos in Edinburgh play it ?

Hi custard, you are working steadily at this. If I remember right you're in the 40's with the tunes, so that would be on course for the end of April. As for arrangements, that could keep you busy for a while, depending on what you arrange....

As for Edinburgh there is this place:
http://www.thejazzbar.co.uk/

I have to admit I've never been there. It's in a part of town that's difficult to get to - or more to the point, difficult to get home from. Especially at 3am. I'm not thinking just now of performing at all. There is a music library in town, musicians put up fliers. Any time i go there there will be signs saying 'jazz singer wants pianist to accompany' etc, etc.

I think I need to focus on quick reflexes for chords for this. I'm sure there's more to it than that. I've not really done two handed chords.

>> I'm just wondering how much it would take for me to get together with other jazzers and comp, and if that's a realistic goal for a year. Any thoughts?
It takes less than you might think. I think towards the end of the year might be a realistic goal.

Gotta work on 2 things: Be able to solo on about 1/2 a dozen tunes.
Be able to improvise at 120 or so.

It think the speed thing would take maybe 3 months to feel good. Each tune is like 3 to 4 weeks. So it can be done! But it'll keep you busy!!

Or did you mean comp for a singer in a duet?
I really have no idea how to do that, but you'd have to work with Dave specifically on this. I assume it will involve some basslines and playing in unfamiliar keys.

hi knotty, thanks for the reply. i was just thinking of some kind of playing with others, not necessarily soloing myself. ive not taken 'comping' as a goal, but maybe i should? a year is long enough to build skill if i work.

It's a nice goal!
There are some logistics involved, but the easiest is to simply sit at an open jam session, oR find someone that will host one and has a keyboard ready...

the logistics are a problem. i could have one other musician in my living room, at the right time. i dont have a dp, neither can i see myself being able to afford a good one in the next year. still, you never know what opportunities might arise.

having hunted around i have an initial plan and would like to hear your thoughts. stage 1: master 2+2 voicings as in randy p228ff and apply to tunes. i prefer these voicings to levine's 1+2 which just feel a little childish (root note only in lh). i think i need to make a start on 2 handed voicings, and getting them to come quick. course i can do much smarter than randy p228, *but* i need them to come quick. sound like a good place to start?

the other option would be more familiar rootless rh + walking bass. probably also important, but i can only focus on so much at a time?

10,

You can worry about logistics later. Once you start looking, you should be able to find places to play.

I think it would be a better approach for you this year to lay out a stricter practice plan. Doesn't have to be logging hours or whatever, but just having in mind all the things you want to do in your practice, what specifically they will make you better at, and roughly how much of your time you want to dedicate to it.

2+2 is fine, it's a simple solo piano approach, but it's not going to get you much closer to your goal of playing with others.

Better might be to learn to play arrangements for about a dozen tunes by the end of the year. Maybe less than that.

Also, I think it's important that you stick to the JOI program. Finish the tunes, keep with the hanons, and a lot of improv. Some singing with solos would be great also.
Perhaps as much as 30% to 40% of the time should be spend on improv. Then maybe 10% on hanons, 10% on singing with solos, and 20% on arrangements (whether 2+2 or totally free). Some time on the joi tunes and you got yourself a nice routine.

Playing to me does not count as practice btw. Each time you practice something, you should have in mind why you're doing it. And so with improv, you shoudl stick to the plan, just playing simple progressions for now and working your way up.
I've been playing Yardbird Suite for almost 4 weeks, and no other tune. I am now starting to dig the changes to that tune. I'm taking it faster one notch at a time, and it's starting to really burn.

hmmm, not sure. I just can't imagine saying, look, I've learned these 12 songs, lets do them - but if you want to do anything else it's going to take me a month to learn it.

The arrangements that I've done (and they took a lot of work to play to an acceptable level) didn't help me at all with coming up with chords quickly. Neither does improv because I work by setting my lh to autopilot.

I will absolutely stick with the joi plan.

but I think if I want chords to come quick, then that's what i've got to work on. Somehow.

the key here is to practice two-hand 2-5-1 (for example) combinations. Dm7 - FACE G7 - FABE CMaj 7 - EGAD, is one of a million..play them whilst saying the name of the chord out loud, chromatically, around the cycle of 4ths, up and down min 3rds, eventually using the metronome at slow speeds.

This will give you the grabbing capability.

DF

that exact voicing is what i do with one hand. every key, every day. what should I do for two hands?

just to clarify - my mo has been every chord is 3579 or 7935 to make a smooth progression around or a little south of middle C.

i just need a bigger spread. for ultimate grabbability.

Hi 10
Are you talking about harmonising ?
For Dave's example which is a 7th chord you can use
LH) R 5 7
RH) 3 7

If you are talking about melody as well, for the RH you need to include the melody note on top. If the melody note is already 3 or a 7, then you don't need to.

btw I know it's scary but I think like Knotty
Making your melody sing is important, much more important than harmonising your melody. To make your melody sing:
1. Stick closely to JOI (singing JOI tunes and the masters as you have been doing) and
2. Automate your LH to enable your brain to concentrate more on your RH.

oops, I screwed up, the two handers would be like:
Dm7 LH DGC RH FA
G7 LH GF RH BEA
CMaj 7 - CE RH ADG

no worries. but im confused, why does the dm7 have a G in it?



is the CE a third or a 10th? max reach is an octave.

so one thing i'm noticing is not being afraid to put root in bass.

thanks for all help.

hi cus, i'm talking about comping, so someone else is playing the melody, or soloing.

i suppose if i'm playing the melody then rh (melody) and lh (familiar chords i'm used to) would be a provisional start. probably worth practicing. but my range for chords is an octave and it would be nice to break out of this with two hands.