[Dixielandjazz] Re: Winging solos

[Richard Broadie]

If someone paid me $1,000 to play the same chorous twice in a row, my family
would likely starve to death if dependent on that income.  I have some
favorite lines on certain songs but never quite play them the same way
twice.  It's the inspiration of the moment, coupled by the changes being
layed down by other's that makes playing jazz so much fun.  Guess you could
call it interactive - something we've been doing a long time before the
computer guys!  Dick
----- Original Message -----
From: "Charlie Hooks" <charliehooks at earthlink.net>
Cc: <dixielandjazz at ml.islandnet.com>
Sent: Saturday, June 28, 2003 9:10 AM
Subject: [Dixielandjazz] Re: Winging solos


> on 6/28/03 10:30 AM, willc at willc at nova.edu wrote:
>
> "I am in total awe of musicians who know what they're going to play in a
> solo
> before they play it. I don't have any consciously "preset" choruses
> because
> I can't remember exactly how I played the tune the last time.
>
> I have a feeling that my solos are shaped by how I THINK (but do not
> know) I
> acquired the ability to improvise."
>
>
>     What fascinates me about this thread is how differently we each come
at
> the theoretically similar act of improvisation.   And the more I think
about
> my own playing, the less sure I am that I ever do it exactly the same way
> twice.  I will never play any tune the same way twice, nor will I
ordinarily
> recall how I played it before; but on the set of Ab chords that comprise
so
> many songs--like the last strain to "Tiger Rag," and all of "Bourbon
St."--I
> gradually over the years found things that worked and that were memorable
> enough that I found myself playing them each time, and it made sense to
> select the best order for those phrases.   I did, and it worked, and I
kept
> it in the act: it sounded flashy and got applause.  I still recall that
the
> most applause I got when Itzes Tamas toured me through Hungary was from
> that stupid pre-composed couple of choruses.
>
>     Of course, when I play that chorus, I'm not improvising.  I'm
performing
> something that worked when I improvised it previously.  Now it depends on
> your personal purpose: if you're moved to "tell all' and bare your soul on
> every chorus, then this won't do it.   But if you're out to entertain
> people, give them pleasure from hearing something that has given pleasure
> to others, then it makes a certain amount of sense.   I'd get bored doing
it
> all the time, so I don't.  The guys think it's funny--I think: Tom Hope
used
> to play part of it along with me on piano.
>
>     Pee Wee Hunt was fond of telling me, "Benny Goodman told me once: when
> you play something good, remember it."  And Pee Wee certainly did that--so
> much so that most of his choruses became pat choruses.  And very memorable
> to everybody on the band.   Once Smokey Stover went to the mike just ahead
> of Pee Wee and played note for note a couple of Pee Wee's pat choruses.
The
> band went down, and the audience hadn't a clue what was cracking us up.
Pee
> Wee took it well, just looked around and said, "NOW what the hell am I
gonna
> play?"
>
>     Interesting thread.
>
> Charlie
>
>
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