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Ken, your take has a very nice laid back feel to it. I think I'll go pour myself a glass of wine, sit by the fire, and listen again.

Glad you liked how I approached the head on that. Sometimes simple is the best, at least for me at this point. Three solo choruses is almost too many for me, especially when I'm aware the mic is on and I have to keep "performing". I definitely lost the form in that recording a few times. I've done a few more takes since then, but each has its highlights and blemishes so I think I'll just keep the first take. I also need to improve at "telling my story" as Gary told us in his first lecture, otherwise it can sound aimless.

I'm going to miss this course when it's done. Only 2 more left. Maybe I'll sign up for the 12 week version...

yeah Elkayem,
I agree your head was spot on, very much in the pocket. one thing that might help you not get lost in the form is playing those scales straigjt up and down a few times. I think even Gary says to do that.
also to stay in the pocket like you were you can play shorter phrases but use mostly 8th notes.

Nice job also Ken. wathc those hits marked on the sheet on the Cm7.
Realize that this tune is tricky because it has 2 extra measures at the end so our hear gets confused. nothing a little singing can't solve!

Thanks Knotty.

Rhythm has always been one of my areas area that needs attention, so when you use hip terms like "in the pocket" to describe my playing I think I must be doing something right. As the tune goes on, I definitely lose that "in the pocket" feeling a number of times as I struggle to create original lines. Shorter phrases, definitely. Something about Latin tunes makes me want to create these continuous melodies, so I should try to willfully break that.

I am realizing that I may not understand what you or Ken mean be "lost in the form". I never lost my place (I do in AABA tunes sometimes when I forget if the bridge is coming), at least I don't think I did. I definitely did hit a few wrong notes in there. Or maybe you were referring to my rhythm? I need to go back and listen to my recording again...

Not completely lost, but the change comes in late or awkwardly since there is more mental trying to remember where we are in the tune rather than having it on auto-pilot.

In my case, at the end of the last chorus, rather than change late, I literally just bailed on a LH voicing hoping that nobody would notice, and hit the change correctly on the RH. If I were locked in on the form, I wouldn't have that miss.

Hi Ken, ok I understand now and can buy that. That gives me something to go back and listen to. One of the good things about this course is that it forces me to record and listen to my own recordings, warts and all. I see from your blog you've been doing that for years, and yes you've been an inspiration to me that it isn't too late to take on this art.

I also saw what Knotty was saying about missing the marked hits hits on the Cm7. I went back and fixed those. Thanks!

500 miles high. http://soundcloud.com/chrisb/l03-c-bell-500-miles

Super job on the head chris. That was a nice arrangement.
I also like the bluesy effect in the 3rd chorus.

Thanks K. It was a b.... of a tempo to play to . . I would have loved for it to be faster.

Another lunch break take. Probably I will submit this one. I wish I had the courage and energy to write and work on an arrangement like you did.

http://snd.sc/13IGjLL

Enjoyed your lunch break. Yum. Nicely played, very relaxed, it breathes. Do submit it.

Well, I don't know if mine was so much arranged or written. I had an hour today, in-between my wife practising her oboe and shopping, I managed to record 3 versions. But I'm glad that it sounds like it holds together . . . (that sounds very Swinglish).

I struggle on what to do with the LH comping.

For now, I've two options. Just comp the A / B rootless voicings with 3rd/7th as lowest note. But this means E-7 won't go smooth into G-7 as those A / B voicings don't lay close to eachother.

Choose another inversion of the rootless chord so it's all smooth voice leading. This means for instance beginning E-7 with F# as lowest note, so for E- = F#-G-B-D which leads nicely to G-= F-A-Bb-D.

same for E7#9 to A min. As A- goes "to low".. because it's diving under middle C?

Next to that we see Bb Maj followed by B-b5.. But these are the same rootless voicings (because of b9 C melody in the piece)?!? So 4 bars same comping?

Lw,
Don't sweat the voicings. Pcik one, let it sinl in and stick to it.
For example g b d fs is fine on e-
E g a d is fine also. Just choose one.

For the b minor the root is nice here. D f a b will work good.
Don't do a lot rhythmically in the lh. Focus on a solid flow in the rh instead.

So many things to think about. ..

Chris, your head definitely sounds arranged, which is nice. The inner lines and parallel 6th (?) are at the right place.
I did steal the 2 handed last motif from you. Come to think of it I should have done 2 octaves instaed of 1.

Yes you should, you owe me a coffee.

Hey Chris and Knotty
Very nice work. Your lines are relaxed with space and your grace notes add to the cool ambience.
You're gonna top the course.

Chris: you should definitely consider performing this at your next gig.

Thanks Custard!

We'll see about performing it . . .

Since I didn't have any time this week, I just started today trying to improvise over the 500 Miles High tune... and this is exactly why I didn't try improvising anymore.

I just don't know what to do. Switching between scales at that speed makes me confused. Next to the switching I've also have to make a line which makes sense.. well.. it just doesn't work.

Give me one pentatonic (or blues) scale to use over a whole tune and I can improv.. I'll use the scale, arpeggios, add chord notes (if they aren't in the scale) etc. (on my level). Give me 10 scales over every chord a different scale and it sounds like nothing. Really frustrating.

I can run the scales up and down but well, that's not improvising. What I need are some sort of exercises which give something to hold on. Just giving scales and say: see what you can do with them maybe gives me too much freedom. Don't know where to start!

Try and look for common tones so that you can connect the scales.
For instance you can use a G on every chord.
Next is to find a second note ex: A (not on every chord, but nearly - not on Fm7)
Then another; F# and F

If you write out the scale tones you'll see that there's several different notes you can combine.
Next is rhythm . . . Patterns . . . it's a bossa . . .

I hear your frustration, but don't let it discourage you, your frustration is a potential for learning.

Thanks Chris, I'll keep that in mind!
Well... some of my brain power still goes to the chords in the left hand.. so starting earlier than the deadline date.. to get the comping-chords in the fingers.. would be smart. To be really free in the right hand I can't spend to much brain on what chord to play.

Well anyway, I'll just post it. Can use ANY sort of critisism, ideas etc. on how to get better at this......
https://soundcloud.com/scott-fr-d-ric/500-miles-improv-2

O and for some reason my jazz playing is really rough.. gotta find some articulation tutorials.

EDIT:
Well I listened to yours and it's just awesome.
Some things I hear immediatly (next to the awesome voicings):
- sounds like making use of "sliding" on notes from half up/down?
- what you do on 1.15 and 1.17. It's like running down scale quickly very smooth or something like that?
- 1.36.. such a run sounds so cool.. gotta find out how to make one. Is this something you work out before playing or real improvise?

Not bad. Nice touch, a relaxed head.
Now you're subdividing with triplets, this is a Latin tune, subdivision works a little better if you think 16ths and little straighter 8 notes.


Thanks.
Side-slipping. It works especially best when its a dominant chord, like the E7(#9). Well, listening to Chick Corea play this tune in its original version on the Light as a Feather album will teach and inspire you a lot. Practising with a metronome (or iRealB) is a great aid to getting those runs smooth. (again it's all down to working and practising on subdivisions).