Wayne Shorter’s ‘Footprints’ was the tune of the month in Matt Warnock’s Jazz study group. This is my end of the month submission for feedback.
On Matt’s suggestion from last month I switched my focus from technical to musical items. So rather than use x scale and y arpeggio, I used a different idea for each chorus.
As Matt says, “Scales and arpeggios are a means to an end, if you keep focussing on the means, you’ll always play in a technical way. If you focus on what those means can do for you, create musical ideas, then your focus is on the end result, making music.”
“The word ‘jazz,’ to me…only means ‘I dare you.” Wayne Shorter
I played in Em so that I could use open strings. To a drum pattern that I found while practicing to random drum beats on my looper (something I do quite often). I tried to use a theme for each chorus. This was the first and only take after setting up levels. I like this tune a lot……another great month. Thanks Matt.
0:00 Chords 0:37 Melody 1:11 Melody + Ornaments 1:45 4ths 2:19 Single String 2:45 Bend + Tap + face 😉 3:40 Patterns ala Bickert 4:03 Just play *2 5:15 Chords 5:48 Melody + Ornaments 6:26 Out
As you go forward with soloing, switch your focus from technical to musical items. What I mean is, rather than say, “I used x scale and y arpeggio,” say “I used a 3-note idea from the melody and then developed it using rhythms, articulation, and dynamics.”
Scales and arpeggios are a means to an end, if you keep focussing on the means, you’ll always play in a technical way. If you focus on what those means can do for you, create musical ideas, then your focus is on the end result, making music.
Matt Warnock Feb 2023
Saw this on Matt’s ‘studio‘ website this morning. Thought is was worth sharing.
“Most of us know that this music is profound; even apocalyptic at times. However, it is so often approached on such a casual social and commercial level, we tend to ignore and overlook the stirrings within our souls and the voices of our ancestral ‘spirits’ that remind us of the fact, that there is a revelation of certain prophetic dimensions inherent in this music.”–Doug Carn
This is a songbook definition of classic. Uno: the whole album is great. Two: Doug Carn’s arrangement and the musicianship are first rate. Tatu: the lyrics are poetry. Yet, all of that great goodness is surpassed by the job that Jean Carn does as the featured vocalist.
In the Fifties, Billie Holiday, Sarah Vaughan, Dinah Washington, Carmen McRae, Ella, and others following in their wake, mostly re-interpreted popular American songs: Tin Pan Alley, Broadway show tunes, and movie music. By the force of their creativity, they turned otherwise second-rate songs into standards. In fact, jazz musicians created the ‘standard.’
Then came the Sixties. A revolution. And of course the music was a hip reflector of the politics. Self determination. Jazz musicians wrote their own songs, not just new melodies fitted on top of pre-existing chord changes, as was the case with bebop and the morph from, for example, “Cherokee” to “Ko-Ko.” Under the influence of Trane, the object was not just to cover “My Favorite Things” but rather to express our own Love Supremes.
By the Seventies, we were bequeathed a body of original jazz music. Doug Carn’s genius was fitting lyrics to this new music. Additionally, this music was issued on the Black Jazz label, a self-determination effort of Black musicians to own and distribute their own music and not be dependent on the entertainment industry for production and distribution. The mid-Seventies were the high point of this social and musical movement. In the late Seventies and on into the early Eighties, Jean had a moderately successful career as a pop vocalist, but most of her subsequent recorded solo work is forgettable. And Doug never did come up with another vocalist to do what Jean does with his lyrics and arrangements. They needed each other to complete each other. Even though they both were talented, together they were exquisite. Elegant. But you know, disco wasn’t hearing none of that.
Anyway, it’s the combination of Doug’s lyrics and Jean’s vocals that makes this iconic early Seventies jazz record so moving.
On the title cut, Jean’s breath control and dynamic range are astounding. So rich, so supple, this is the art of the jazz ballad: from expertly hit high notes to a hushed closing that is so tenderly voiced it could well be the last words of a mother who has just put her child to sleep. “Infant Eyes,” now a staple jazz ballad, is a Wayne Shorter composition. There are hundreds of recorded versions of “Infant Eyes,” however Doug and Jean Carn outshine them all. Listen. Just listen. And if you can get to the album, listen to everything (especially Michael Carvin’s drumming and George Harper’s tenor and flute work).
While I had my arm in a cast I stopped shaving as it was too difficult. I’ve had the cast off a couple of weeks now….arm getting back to normal. Now, do I shave or not….until spring? Pendant que j’avais le bras dans le plâtre, j’ai arrêté de me raser car c’était trop difficile. Le plâtre a été retiré il y a quelques semaines maintenant… le bras revient à la normale. Maintenant, est-ce que je me rase ou pas… jusqu’au printemps ? #hannahats
Stoner Doom in fact. My latest musical effort. I know you wanna hear it. Cooked up on a Sunday afternoon…..Fender Stratocaster straight into a Focusrite Scarlett, and thereby into Ableton Live with a Neural DSP Archetype Cory Wong plugin. Enjoy!
Fell off my MTB, broke my right ulnar. Did it back at the start of October. Would have mentioned it sooner, but I couldn’t type! The metalwork on the X-ray is from when I broke it when I was 14. Look to the left of that and you’ll see the new break. I’ve had it in a cast for 7 weeks. Got the cast of now and trying to get back to normal. I’ve been told not to ride until mid December. But I can play my guitar! Got some work to do as it’s quite sore/stiff/weak.
I was riding down a trail that I’ve ridden hundreds of times en route to Cognac la Foret. It is quite tricky. It’s a rocky stream crossing. I usually make it OK. Not this time though. Front wheel dropped into a hole and I went straight over the bars, landed on my arm on the rocks. I didn’t know it was broken at first. I thought I would be OK. I was a bit shaken, and it took me a while to get up. My arm was hurting so I put it in the cold stream water while I gathered my senses and worked out what to do. I noticed I had cut my arm open. I took it out of the stream, gave it a rinse from my bike bottle and wrapped my buff around it.
The plan now was to abandon the ride and cycle home along the road. Just getting to the nearest road was tough. Just getting on my bike was tough. After a few kilometres I knew I was going to have to call Carla for help. Carla took one look at my arm and told me I would need to go to hospital. The hospital doctor took one look and sent me for X-ray. 5 hours later I’m stitched up with my arm in a cast.
If I should die, think only this of me; That there’s some corner of a foreign field That is for ever England. There shall be In that rich earth a richer dust concealed; A dust whom England bore, shaped, made aware, Gave, once, her flowers to love, her ways to roam, A body of England’s breathing English air, Washed by the rivers, blest by suns of home.
And think, this heart, all evil shed away, A pulse in the eternal mind, no less Gives somewhere back the thoughts by England given; Her sights and sounds; dreams happy as her day; And laughter, learnt of friends; and gentleness, In hearts at peace, under an English heaven. Rupert Brooke. 1887 – 1915
Here’s the video showing how beautiful this river is….
“Notre-Dame-de-la-Paix” est situé à 200m du bourg de St-Auvent, au point le plus pittoresque de la rivière (la Gorre), dont le lit est encombré de rochers qui entraînent la formation de nombreux rapides ainsi que de plusieurs îles boisées. Communément appelé “le petit Lourdes en Limousin”, ce vaste domaine se caractérise par les nombreuses découvertes culturelles et religieuses que l’on peut y faire : la Grotte, réplique de celle de Lourdes, l’Oratoire, situé sur la colline (Mont des Béatitudes), l’oratoire de Notre-Dame de Potmain, le chemin de crois, la chapelle Notre Dame de la Paix, l’abri des pèlerins, diverses statue de Sainte Bernadette, Notre Dame de Fatima…etc. Cet édifice religieux et site naturel est un havre de paix, propice au recueillement.
“Notre-Dame-de-la-Paix” is located 200m from the town of St-Auvent, at the most picturesque point of the river (the Gorre), whose bed is cluttered with rocks which lead to the formation of numerous rapids as well as than several wooded islands. Commonly called “little Lourdes in Limousin”, this vast area is characterized by the many cultural and religious discoveries that can be made there: the Grotto, a replica of that of Lourdes, the Oratory, located on the hill (Mont des Beatitudes), the oratory of Our Lady of Potmain, the Way of the Cross, the Chapel of Our Lady of Peace, the shelter for pilgrims, various statues of Saint Bernadette, Our Lady of Fatima…etc. This religious building and natural site is a haven of peace, conducive to contemplation and meditation.
For the past 4 years I have put out an album to document my musical adventures. Remembering to Forget is this years album. There’s a range of styles, however, all are heavily influenced by my study of jazz guitar with Matt Warnock. It’s his teachings, approach and creativity that I have put into practice here. I hope you like it.
Here’s some background for each track….. Time to Think… From an original idea by PatrickM. Because sometimes we need time to think, to reflect.
Argo Phosphine… From time to time I get an invite from a local record label to submit a track for a compilation album. The brief – Call for the « PHONOGRAPHIES » project
For the “Phonographies” project, each artist is invited to compose a sound or musical piece containing field recordings. The composition should contain recordings through samples or it may be a raw « one-shot » piece.
I insist on the fact that your composition must absolutely contain sounds recorded around you or in your sound banks: that is the point. This is what will make the link throughout the project.
There were storms at the time, and during the day there was acrid smoke from the forest fires 300kms away, and what seemed like the endless noise of jet engines. I wanted something relentless and disonant. I recorded the sound of the storms, also the sound of the frogs. I used pickscrapes for the sound of the jets. White noise from a flanger and various guitar sounds with the guitar is drenched in reverb and delay. Percussion from loops of unequal lengths and some ‘one shot’ sounds from an old recording. Argo Phosphine is an anagram of Phonographies.
Beseechingly Yours… My tip of the hat to one of my favourite guitar players Derwin “Big D” Perkins.
Pocket Queen… Taylor Gordon a.k.a Pocket Queen on Instagram. Every so often she posts a drum loop and invites musicians to do something with it. This is my attempt at one of those.
Infant Eyes – Wayne Shorter… A cover of Infant Eyes. This was my Jazz study group’s tune of the month for July (https://www.mwgcourses.com/).
Juillet… Simply a tribute to July making use of some tasty chord moves I’d learned in the jazz study group.
Remembering to Forget… The title track. It’s a thing to do at the end of a serious practice session on guitar. Just forget everything and play…..but you have to remember to do that.
Andalusian Cadence… Exactly that. Let the cadence do the work and play the least I can while making sure to hit the ‘meaningful’ notes.
La Belle Riviere Gorre… Another one for the local record label to submit a track for a compilation album. The brief – Call for “CARTES POSTALES” project
(Based on the idea of Argentinean artist Carlos Devizia) Each artist will have to choose one of the most beautiful natural places in the world for them. They will compose a sound (or music) piece inspired by that place. We at Camembert Électrique believe that there are so many beautiful places in our world, that they deserve to be honoured musically.
I chose one of my very favourite places. The River Gorre near Saint Auvent. Just a stones throw from where I live. I walk there often and I find it to be a magical place. I make a point of stopping to just watch the river flow for a few minutes.
