[Dixielandjazz] Diary of an Improviser

Fri Mar 25 02:44:09 PDT 2011

Larry,

I'm intrigued as to how you, or indeed anyone, pulls a solo out of the ether as it were. Is this something that you've arrived at having learnt scales, arpeggios, licks etc. over many years or is this how you've always done it. I'm very much a beginner, I've been playing the clarinet for just a couple of years now, and I really struggle to play even a basic solo. I've got a couple of play-a-long type books, my favourite being a collection of Louis Armstrong tunes, or tunes that he made his own as it were, and another called "From Dixie to Swing" by the Dick Wellstood All-Stars, which I enjoy listening to - all the more if I'm not playing over it!

I can read and play the melody (the head) okay, with much practise, but as soon as it comes to the solo spot I'm lost at sea. The best I can do at the moment is to pick notes from the arpeggios of each chord as they fly past and with a few lucky accidents occasionally string together a few bars that sounds vaguely musical and interesting. The trouble is the chords fly by so fast that I just can't process all the information before the next one is upon me. I just don't know the best way to practise or what I should be concentrating my efforts on in order to make some progress. 

I just did my Grade 4 a couple of days ago, the classical system that most people learning an instrument go through, and that's really helped my learn to read music and ensures that I'm gradually building up a knowledge of scales and arpeggios, but doesn't really help one as far as jazz soloing goes. At least I haven't cracked how to apply this fledgling knowledge to the mystery of soloing. I fear that there is just an innate musicality that some possess and others, like me, just don't - however much we try - but even so I refuse to give up! Ear training seems to be the key component, but again I don't really know how to go about doing this effectively.

If any of you pros have any crumbs of wisdom that you care to share, I'd greatly appreciate it.

Sorry to go on, but on another note, do any of you have any information on the Dick Wellstood All-Stars. Were they assembled to record this play-a-long project, or were they an actual band of longstanding? I've heard mention of the various players numerous times on this list, especially Kenny Davern, 'Doc' Cheatham and George Duvivier but I can't recall mention of the Dick Wellstood All-Stars. It's a joy to listen to and one of just a few Dixieland style albums I possess. I'd love to hear more, if they recorded anything else.

Thanks for your time.

Best,

Allan Brown

On 25 Mar 2011, at 05:54, Larry Walton Entertainment wrote:

> I too enjoyed reading the piece but nothing of the sort is running through my mind when I improvise.  No wonder a lot of guys sound like they are reading an Arbin's book on their solos.
> 
> When I improvise it just happens.  How and why it happens I haven't a clue. What I do know is that it's akin to a Zen state where everything goes away including the horn.  I also know that there is an adrenalin rush because I can't sleep after many of my jobs  and I have to unwind afterwards.  It used to bother my wife a lot.
> 
> I don't think key or scales however I am locked into the sound of the chord progression and where it's going. I do think rhythm sometimes or more accurately feel it.  That way I can lock into what a drummer is doing.  It makes for some interesting give and take.  Knowing the tune helps but it isn't 100% required.  If I stopped and thought about any one of the things in the paper I couldn't do what I do.
> 
> I think it is a great analysis of what might go on but it looks like a recipe for technically correct but mechanical playing.  There's too many of those around right now.
> 
> Improvisation is composition on the fly and IMHO shouldn't have a cook book approach.
> 
> There is a young lady who is now a freshman at a very well known school in Texas with a great music program.  She is technically proficient and reads like crazy.  She is also awfully nice to look at but when she solos I want to cry.  Every note is correct but mechanical and tears my soul out.  When she is done her dad and others tell her how well she did and encourage her because after all she's a very nice young lady.  She walks away thinking she did jazz.  A twist on the whole thing is that her dad knows better.  The really sad thing is that she will graduate and go out and teach kids to do the same thing.
> 
> I was playing in a band and a trumpet player got up to solo.  He sprayed notes by the zillion - he was fast.  It was the only time that I ever in my whole life heard a guy play a solo and hit exactly every note wrong.  The closest thing that I can think of is that he was a half beat off and because he was thinking scales and all that other stuff what he was playing didn't line up and was basically 180 degrees out of phase.  The part that amazes me is that he didn't know it.  This guy should have been in the Guinness book of records but it probably wasn't a record.
> Larry
> StL
> 
> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Allan Brown" <allanbrown at dsl.pipex.com>
> To: "Larry Walton" <larrys.bands at charter.net>
> Cc: "Dixieland Jazz Mailing List" <dixielandjazz at ml.islandnet.com>
> Sent: Thursday, March 24, 2011 2:36 AM
> Subject: Re: [Dixielandjazz] Diary of an Improviser
> 
> 
>> Dear Kent,
>> 
>> Thank you very much for sharing your musical insights. I greatly appreciated them and will endeavour to implement them. I need all the help I can get.
>> 
>> Best,
>> 
>> Allan Brown
>> 
>> On 23 Mar 2011, at 16:00, Kent Murdick wrote:
>> 
>>> I'm a "Classic Jazz" banjo player who took up the alto saxophone at age 60 (I am now 64).  I did this because I wanted to participate more in the melodic aspect of the music.  It's been an interesting journey, and I have written a brief diary about how  I went about learning to solo. The diary is not yet finished and neither is the journey, but I thought it might be of interest to teachers or others who wish to do what I did. If you go the site below and click on the document "Dairy of an improvise+", it will come right up.
>>> 
>>> http://www.southalabama.edu/mathstat/personal_pages/murdick/stuff/Community%20Music%20School/
>>> 
>>> 
>>> 
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