Bitches Brew by Miles Davis

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This is the title track from Miles' groundbreaking Bitches Brew album. The letter A is tricky to notate due to its freely interpreted approach. Those quirky keyboard voicings are given merely as a point of reference, so don't stick to the chart too literally. The letter B is harmonically very loose, but it's played in strict funk groove. Focus on the tones rather than the actual tonalities and dive into the groove!

:) Ville



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"Sanctuary" by Wayne Shorter

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I transcribed the head of Wayne Shorter's "Sanctuary" as played by the Carlos Santana & Wayne Shorter Band in 1988 Montreux jazz Festival (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uWstCK17yzo). The song was originally written as a slow waltz (3/4), but has been played in rubato and 4/4 time in his later executions (e.g. "Bitches Brew", "Circle in the Round" and "Footprints live!").

Also, I enclose a MIDI file of the head of the tune here. The file is thrown together rather hastily, but will give a picture of the above mentioned live version. The opening phrase in the MIDI file is played over |D D9#11 |A-11 |, but I guess it would be more close to home as |D D7b9#11|A-7b5(11) |.
All comments are welcome! :) Ville

P.S. My computer discovered a malware threat on the Free Jazz Intitute's site some time ago, but it didn't notice any harm this time. Any experiences on this discovery?



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So What ~ Tune & Miles' Solo

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Since some here found my analysis of Miles Davis's "Circle" useful, I am posting my analysis of "So What," excerpted from the same book, The Influence of Claude Debussy's and Maurice Ravel's Music on Jazz, as Seen in the Compositions of Bix Beiderbecke, Bill Evans and Miles Davis, by Ed Byrne (© Ed Byrne 1998).

Analysis of “So What,” both the exposition and Davis’s trumpet improvisation, will be drawn from my own transcriptions. “So What” is based on the dorian mode, reflecting its presence in Ravel’s Concerto for the Left Hand, as we shall see below.14 D and Eb, respectively, are established as priority notes by their prominent placement in the double-bass melody, and they are both approached from below by a note at the interval of a 5.

A modal transposition can be found moving up a semitone from D dorian to Eb dorian for the eight-measure B section of this AABA recurring form at measure 17 of the exposition, before returning back down a semitone to D dorian for the last eight measures, at measure 25 (Example 3a).

In addition to modal transposition, Davis, in his trumpet improvisation, creates a brief pc mixture in measures 24 and 62. In anticipating the modal transposition back to D dorian at two beats before 25, he plays a pc comprised of G, A C# and D, rather than playing the expected C of the D dorian mode (Example 3b). These examples could also be viewed as chromatic enhancements in the form of added leading-tones that help to emphasize the D and Eb priority notes.

A non-functional chord succession is present in the form of two chords that oscillate throughout the D dorian A sections, modulated up a semitone for the B sections, and back down for the last eight-measure A section (Example 3a). Similar to the frequent avoidance of resolving the leading-tone in cadences in Ravel’s Concerto, which we will examine below, avoidance of resolution of the leading-tone in Davis’s “So What” is also evident: it contains no cadences whatsoever.

A similarity between “So What” and Ravel’s Daphnis and Chloe is the presence of vertical quartal harmony. Beginning on beat three of measure 1 of the exposition of “So What,” pianist Evans repeatedly plays a quartal voicing that jazz musicians now call the "So What Voicing” (Example 3a). Quartal harmonies oscillate throughout “So What.”

Unresolved melodic tensions are present in Davis’s trumpet improvisation on “So What.” He sustains an E, the ninth of the D dorian mode, on beats two and three of measure 14, and in measures 33-35 (Example 3b). He plays elevenths, G’s, in measures 2, 11, 15, and elsewhere; and unresolved melodic thirteenths, C’s, can be seen in measures 24, 54 and 55 of the Eb dorian B sections.

Through his use of modes in “So What,” Davis realizes his desire to be free to concentrate on melodic improvisation. He is no longer obliged to constantly adapt his lines to chord progressions, which often contain harmonic clichés that force the improviser into playing melodic formulas. Like Evans’s “Peace Piece,” Davis’s “So What” is based on a static background of two oscillating chords. The two pieces differ, however, in that “So What” is based on the traditional AABA recurring form while remaining mostly diatonic to a dorian mode throughout.

Through modal transposition, Davis is able to give the piece periodic lifts in color and tension levels. Pc mixture and chromatic enhancement provide Davis additional pitch classes with which to add melodic interest and forward motion to his trumpet solo. The presence of parallel quartal harmony (not a commonplace in jazz in 1959) and unresolved melodic and harmonic tensions also help to endow “So What” with a sense of unhurried, thoughtful charm.

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Soulive's "Turn it Out"

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Anybody got it? Having trouble picking it out.

subjectChick Corea Live in Europe

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Has anyone transcribed anything of Chick Corea's "Live In Europe'' (w/ Roy Haynes & Miroslav Vitous-ECM 1983 ) ? Chick is at the peak of his powers on this record.

Sanctuary & Delfeayo's Dilemma

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Hey, does anyone have a lead sheet for Wayne Shorter's "Sanctuary", which is performed on Miles Davis' "Circle in the Round" and "Bitches Brew" albums? I found a rather roughly sketched transcription in the net, but I hope getting a more reliable chart.

Also, I'm looking for a lead sheet to Wynton Marsalis' "Delfeayo's Dilemma". So, please check your archives... :)

Regards, Ville

John Scofield's solo on Still Warm

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Here's Sco's guitar solo on his composition "Still Warm" from the album by the same name. Most of Sco's playing here is "inside" the changes. He begins with lyrical single note line, increasing the intensity with octaves and 16th-note bursts, which all build up to the final recapitulation of the melody. The lead sheet to this tune can be found elsewhere on the "Transcriptions" site.
:) Ville



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Sly by Herbie Hancock

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Here's another fine number from Herbie Hancock's legendary "Head Hunters" album.
:) Ville



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Au Lait (Metheny & Mays)

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Hey y'all!
Here's a revised version of the Metheny & Mays composition.
:) Ville



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Request : If I Were A Bell - Paul Chambers

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Does anyone have a transcription for If I Were A Bell bass line, from album Relaxin´with Miles Davis Quintet?

Lonely Woman by Ornette Coleman

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This is another oddity - along with Miles' Bitches Brew - that was truly difficult to transcribe. It was merely a bold attempt to analyze the tune and therefore it's essential no to stick to the chart too literally but "go with the flow". The song has been covered by several jazz musicians (e.g. Joshua Redman, Branford Marsalis and Joe Lovano) but I haven't seen the tune in any fake book around. Guess it's high time to fill in the gap.

The rhythmic phrasing of alto sax in Coda is transcribed hastily and should be revised.
Please share your thoughts on the chart - all suggestions are welcome!

Best wishes from Ville



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Au Lait (solo chords) Pat Metheny Lyle Mays

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Here's most of the bass line for the solo section. Repeats are played similarly with some variation. I was reminded of Autumn Leaves chord wise and listened to the Lyle Mays' piano to get some of the prevalent chord extensions. The odd harmonic rhythm makes a well worn chord sequence strangely unpredictable!



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I'm Crazy 'Bout My baby

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I'm looking for a lead sheet of Fats Waller's "I'm Crazy 'Bout My Baby". Does anyone have this anywhere?

Thanks,
-Ndhjazz

Goodbye Porkpie Hat

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Excerpted from Speaking of Jazz: Essays and Attitudes

Below is my transcription of Charles Mingus' Goodbye Porkpie Hat. It is a beautiful blues ballad, written in homage to the then recently-departed Lester Young. I always loved playing this composition with Mingus, who in turn enjoyed sitting down at the piano and discussing his composition and orchestration style with me. In the case of a sophisticated tune such as this or Herbie Hancock's Dolphin Dance, it is always best to do your own transcription rather than trust the Real Book, since it is not a standard tune—which you'd probably want to reharmonize anyway. Notice that the form of the exposition is different for the solos than on the Head chorus.

One of the truly special things about Mingus' writing style can be found in the coda (see transcription below), in which he uses an F pedal point for the two-measure coda, involving an Fsus followed by a GbMA7/F bass (third inversion). From my analyses of various Debussy and Ravel scores, I've found that often the omission of even just one note makes something profoundly different and charming. In this case, the omission of the seventh of the F chord is very special, and the two-measure pedal point is very subtle. Another relatively unusual feature is his use of mMA7 chords as tonic chords in which the MA7 doesn't resolve or function in a line cliché. Instead, they remain unresolved, creating tension and color as an alternative version of the more common m7 chord. Note that the last measure of the Head chorus (before the coda sign) should be a C7. In my arrangement of the piece, I added the contrary motion with the passing chords:

ANALYSIS:

HEAD: (4mm. for each line—2 chords per measure)

F7+9 Db7 / GbMA7 B7-5 / Eb7sus4 Db7 / Eb7sus4 F7 /
I7+9, V7of bII MA7 / bII MA7, bV7-5 / bVII7sus4, bVI7 / bVII7sus4, I7 /

Bbm7 Db13 / Gm7 over D bass) C+7+9 / D7 G7 / Db7 GbMA7 //
iv7, SubV13 of V7 / ii7 over vi bass, V+7+9 / V7of II7, V7 of V7 / V7of bII MA7, bII MA7 //

B7-5 Bb9 / C7 Eb7 / F7+9 Db7 / C7+9 //
SubV7-5 of IV, V7 of bVII7 / V7, bVII7 / I7+9, SubV7 of V7 / V7+9 //

SOLOS:

FmMA7 Bbm7 / FmMA7 Bbm7 / FmMA7 Bbm7 / FmMA7 B7-5 /
iMA7, iv7 / iMA7, iv7 / iMA7, iv7 / iMA7, SubV7-5 of iv7 /

Bbm7 Gm7-5 / Db7 Gb7 / FmMA7 Bb7 / FmMA7 Bb7 //
iv7, ii7-5 / V7 of bII7, SubV7 / MA7, IV7 / iMA7, IV7 //

Dm7-5 G+7+9 / Abm7 Db7 / FmMA7 Bb7/ FmMA7 C7+9 //
ii7-5 of V7, V+7+9 of V7 / ii7 of bII, V7 of bII / iMA7, IV7 / iMA7, V7+9 //

After solos, D.C. al Coda

CODA:

Fsus4(no7) GbMA7 over F bass / Fsus4(no7) //
I sus4(no7), bII MA7 over tonic bass / I sus4 (no7) //

Notice that Mingus uses many blues chords (seventh chords in which the sevenths behave as blue notes).



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"Techno" by John Scofield

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Here's a 16th note feel funky number from John Scofield's "Still Warm" (1986). The repeated bass figure is played by Darryl Jones. Don Grolnick plays faded-in chords through much of the head. The chordal figure at letter B is doubled by the synth. Omar Hakim's drumming here is magnificent.
:-) Ville



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Need Transcription

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Does anyone have the transcription and chords for "The Girl Next Door" by Pat Metheny

Herbie Hancock leadsheets

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Just wondering if anyone has lead sheets to any of these Herbie tunes:

*SLY
*VEIN MELTER
*PALM GREASE
*SPANK-A-LEE
*HANG UP YOUR HANG UPS
*HORNETS
*HIDDEN SHADOWS
*RAIN DANCE
*SLEEPING GIANT
*QUASAR
*WATER TORTURE
*TEXTURES
*STEPPIN IN IT

Thanks,
-ndhjazz

Miles Davis' solo on "So What"

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transcriptions of Jaco and Victor Bailey

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I'm looking for a transcription of Jaco's tune Dania, especially the harmony part.
and the chords progression of Victor Bailey tune "Consequently". Thanks in advance !

Fusion help...

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Hi guys, if anyone can help me, I'm trying to find lead sheets (even rough ones) for these tunes:

*PHARAOH'S DANCE
*SANCTUARY
*THE MAGICIAN - RETURN TO FOREVER
*THE SORCERESS - RTF
*MEDIEVAL OVERTURE -RTF
*SONG TO THE PHARAOH KINGS - RTF
*THE MOORS - WEATHER REPORT
*CUCUMBER SLUMBER - WR
*AMERICAN TANGO-WR
*UMBRELLAS -WR

Let me know if anyone has anything.
Thanks for your time,
-Nathan

Ravayah by John Zorn's Masada

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For Turiya by Charlie Haden

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This tune is also recently featured on Ravi Coltrane's newest album



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Dance With Death by Andrew Hill

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This is as close as I could come to it.



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3 East by John Abercrombie

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What It Is by Miles Davis

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Miles Runs the Voodoo Down - Concert Pitch

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Maiysha by Miles Davis

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The Pleasant Pheasant by Billy Cobham

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Orange Lady - Concert Pitch

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Directions - Concert Pitch

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HELP!!!

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I am a Bmus Student doing a research on Stephane Grappelli's improvisation techniques and style. I am desperately looking for a transcription of two recordings of Tea for Two, in order to compare them and explain the possible reasons for his changes. Can anyone help please?!!

Thank you very much

Sincerely
Diane



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"Birdlike" by Freddie Hubbard

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Since You Asked by John Scofield

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This beautiful tune is from John Scofield's brilliant Time On My Hands album which includes great writing and fantastic musical interplay between Scofield, Joe Lovano, Charlie Haden and Jack DeJohnette.



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It's Your Thing By Grant Green

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A great tune from Grant Green's album Alive. Recorded live at the Cliche Lounge in Newark, NJ on August 15th 1970, this recording is from Grant Green's funkier side.



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So Live! By Soulive

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Here I have included the guitar chords in the melody stave and notated the left hand organ bass line.
So Live! 07:52



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Uncle Junior by Soulive

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Here I have included the guitar chords in the melody stave and notated the left hand organ bass line.
Uncle Junior (7:22) written by Alan Evans.
Soulive are a cooking organ trio with Neal Evans playing the Hammond B3, his brother Alan Evans on the drums, and Eric Krasno on guitar. Get Down is Soulive’s first album and was recorded on March 2nd and 3rd of 1999.



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Idle Moments by Grant Green

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"Idle Moments, recorded over two sessions in November, 1963, and featuring Hutcherson and tenor saxophonist Joe Henderson. It offers in its dreamlike title track, written by pianist Duke Pearson, 14:52 minutes of the most serene instrumental romancing ever put on disc.

The duration of the track came about by accident. Called just before midnight, "Idle Moments" was the last tune to be recorded at the first session, and the playing times of the three tracks already in the can meant it had to be no longer than 7 minutes—anything over that would bust the maximum LP playing time of around 40 minutes. But due to a misunderstanding, Green soloed for 64 rather than the planned 32 bars, and Pearson, Henderson and Hutcherson followed suit, each soloing for twice as long as had been expected. Fortunately, producer Alfred Lion had the ears and wit to keep the tape machine running."

http://www.allaboutjazz.com/php/article.php?id=29913



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"Recorda-Me" by Joe Henderson

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This bossa nova number is from Joe Henderson's debut album "Page One" (1963, Blue Note). The recorded version has an introduction of ten bars, which is not included here. The B section may be considered optional and may be skipped, in which case the letter A is played after solos.

:) Ville



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In a Mist

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This is excerpted from my doctoral dissertation, demonstrating an analytical musical example of the influence of Ravel's Concerto for the Left Hand on Davis' modal (Impressionist) jazz style:

Beiderbecke’s In a Mist

In addition to his recorded improvisations, Beiderbecke published four piano compositions that also reflect the influence of Debussy and Ravel. In these piano pieces, he used harmonic progressions that go beyond the standard progressions of popular songs. In a Mist, first recorded in September of 1927, is the most well-known of Beiderbecke’s piano compositions. It includes many patterns of pitch organization that we will observe in Debussy’s and Ravel’s music. Green writes of this piece: In a Mist itself epitomizes the extraordinary conflict which raged inside [Beiderbecke]. It is a bewildering amalgam of barrelhouse thumping and Debussyan subtleties which illustrates more pointedly than any facts or any anecdotes how the sensibilities of a jazz musician were stimulated by the impact of modern impressionist music. (1962: 45-46)

As we have seen (page 4 above), Berton witnessed Beiderbecke listening attentively to recordings of Debussy’s compositions. Berton adds that Beiderbecke afterwards would sit at the piano and imitate the sounds he heard, gradually developing Debussy’s themes and harmonies into improvisations. He would begin in Debussy’s style, then a rhythmical pulse in the left hand would gradually evolve into an insistent swing rhythm, transforming Beiderbecke’s improvisation into jazz. After reaching a musical climax, Beiderbecke would abandon the jazz style and return to a style more like that of Debussy (156-59). Continuously reworking and developing these piano segments over a period of time--on breaks between sets during nightclub engagements, at Berton’s house, and elsewhere--Beiderbecke gradually developed his musings into complete solo piano compositions. Berton’s description of what occurred after Beiderbecke listened repeatedly to Debussy’s Ibéria provides us a window into Beiderbecke’s compositional process:

After getting all the way to the end of his ear rendition, Bix began to improvise on one of the sequences (“In the Streets and Byways” [Par les rues et par les chemins]). It wasn’t exactly jazz, and it wasn’t exactly Debussy; it was--Bix. . . . Sometimes he would sit at the piano toying with chords for a few minutes, and then, as though unconsciously, drift into some part of a record I’d played for him a week before, Ravel or Milhaud or Fauré, but oftenest Debussy. He was crazy about L’Après-midi d’un faune and couldn’t get enough of it; he seemed to discover something new every time we listened to it. A succession of far-out harmonies, seemingly unrelated, and suddenly I’d become aware that they had led
subtly but inevitably into, say, L’Après-midi . . . (157-58). Otis Ferguson also comments on Beiderbecke’s compositional process, stating that Beiderbecke “listened with awe to Debussy records and would sequester himself and sit morosely at the piano fingering the chords of a new music” (88).

Gunther Schuller, while acknowledging the influence of Debussy’s music on Beiderbecke, suggests that Beiderbecke was indirectly influenced by the European composer through performing with the Whiteman and Frankie Trumbauer orchestras. These large ensembles, devoted to an early fusion of Western art music and jazz, featured music written by Bill Challis, Ferde Grofé, Fud Livingston and others, pieces that were often derivative of Debussy’s and Ravel’s musical styles (191-92).

In a Mist contains several patterns of pitch organization that seem to derive from the music of Debussy and Ravel, as my analysis of works by those composers (Debussy--on pages 14-21, Ravel--on pages 39-46) will show.6 These include the use of the whole-tone scale, pc mixtures, non-functional chord successions, bichords, and other elements of the European composers’ style.

Although In a Mist is in the key of C major, prominent pcs forming subsets of whole-tone collections, for example, can be observed on beats two through four of measures 2, 4, 6, and elsewhere. The entire whole-tone scale is evident in measure 18, and the other whole-tone scale can be seen, for example, in measures 14 and 27-28.

Pc mixtures on the same priority note also appear. An A9 pentachord is mixed with an A pentachord comprised of A, B, C, E and F# in measures 51-52; and a pc comprised of A, B, C#, E, F and G is juxtaposed with a pentachord consisting of A, B, C, E and F# in measures 59-60. Although not totally free of tonally functional harmonic chord relationships through the circle of fifths, In a Mist contains many non-functional chord successions of different kinds--some stepwise, some disjunct. The first two measures, which recur throughout this piece, are based on a stepwise descending chord succession: FMA9, Eb9+11, D9, Db9+11. Another stepwise nonfunctional chord succession begins in measure 5, this time ascending: A13, Bb+7, B+7 (no 3), C7, C#+7+11, D#+7+11 (no 3), E#+7+11 (no 3), F#7b5 (no 3), D13 (no 11), and the following non-functional chord succession appears in measures 35-36: Am7, Dm7, CMA7, BbMA7, CMA7.

Non-functional chord successions involving root successions in 3s and 4s7 occur, for example, in measures 7-9: F#7+11, D13, FMA9; a B9 is succeeded by a D9 in measures 19-20; and aD
is followed by an F#
11 (no 3) in measures 40-41.

Resolution of the leading-tone--or the leading-tone itself--is often absent in cadences. The B moves down to A rather than resolving up to C when the G13 V chord moves to the tonic C triad in measures 16 and 78. The leading-tone appearing within a G9 does not resolve between beat four of measure 26 and beat one of measure 27: instead, the B is reiterated in another register on a CMA7 with an added minor tenth blue note. In measures 35-37 the tonic C triad is approached with a Dm7 (ii7) and a BbMA7 (bVIIMA7), neither of which contain the leading-tone.

Bichords are present throughout In a Mist.8 Cb+s appear over Db7s to create Db9+11 bichords in measures 2, 4, and elsewhere. The same relationship exists on all Eb9+11s contained in this piece; and C#+s appear over A7b5s, creating A+7+11 bichords in measures 1 and 18.

Quartal harmony and parallel chords are also evident in this composition. Examples of the former can be seen in measures 5 and 16, and in many other places in the score. Ascending parallel seventh chords with the root succession A, Bb, B, C, C#, D#, E# and F# can be found, for example, in measures 5-7 and 13-15. A descending parallel chord succession, F#m7-5, B7b5 over F bass, Em7-5, Ebm7-5 and Dm7-5 can be found in measures 39-40. There are melodic parallel 4s in measures 2, 7, 15, and elsewhere; and parallel 5s and/or 7s occur in measures 21-23, 26, and 29-31.

As in “Riverboat Shuffle,” unresolved melodic and harmonic tensions of kinds I will later identify in Debussy’s and Ravel’s music, abound in Beiderbecke’s "In a Mist." Added major sixths appear on F triads in measures 1, 73, and elsewhere; and A’s on C triads, for example, appear in measures 23 and 46-49. Added sixths occur on minor chords in measures 22 and 52: on beat four of measure 22 a B on a Dm6/9 can be seen; in measure 52 an F# on an Am6/9 appears. Unresolved major seventh tensions also occur in this piece: an E on an FMA9 can be seen in measures 1, 104, and elsewhere.

Unresolved ninth tensions are also present. There is a major ninth, a G on an FMA7, for example, on an FMA9 in measure 1; and on beat one of measure 30 an A on a G6/9 can be seen. Major ninths also occur on dominant seventh-type chords. For example, an Eb on a Db9+11 appears in measure 2; and a B on an A13 can be seen in measure 5. Major ninth tensions also appear on minor chords. An E on a Dm6/9 can be seen on beat four of measure 22, for example; and an E is placed on a Dm9 on beat four of measure 47. Major ninths also can be found on halfdiminished chords. There is an E on a Dm7-5 off of beat three in measure 40, and on beat four of measure 41. Augmented ninth blue notes (sometimes spelled as minor tenths) also occur on major chords. For example, an Eb appears on CMA7s--on beat two of measure 27, and off of beat one in measures 49 and 57. There is perfect eleventh tension, a C on a G7, on beat three of measure 83, and on beat three of measure 90.

Augmented eleventh tensions also appear on major chords. For example, a B on an FMA7+11 appears on beat two of measures 22 and 30; and on the first beat of measure 112 and on the fourth beat of measure 113, an F# on a CMA7 can be seen. Augmented elevenths also appear on dominant-type chords. For example, there is an A on an Eb9+11 on beat three of measures 1 and 11; and there is a C on an F#7+11 on beat one of measure 15. Unresolved thirteenth tensions also appear in this piece. For example, a B on a D9 can be seen on beat three of measure 20; and E’s on a G13 (no 5) can be seen in the second half of measure 34. Minor thirteenth tensions also appear. For example, a G on a B9b13 can be seen on beat two of measure 17; and an F on an A+7 can be viewed on beat one of measure 43.

Fused with the traditional rhythmic and thematic jazz elements of “barrelhouse” and ragtime piano styles, these Impressionist mannerisms supplied a new sound to jazz of the 1920s. They added a sense of melodic and harmonic surprise and sophistication to an already vibrant rhythmic jazz piano genre.

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"Say the Brother's Name" by Pat Metheny

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I listened to this wonderful piece on "I Can See Your House From Here" and found that there were a few typos in the Pat Metheny Songbook concerning the melodic rhythm. For example the melody at bars 1-3 of letter C was written in cut time in the songbook - in other words, the duration of the notes should be diminished by half as I've done here.

The drums and bass are played with a strong double time feel throughout the piece. The 16th note Latin feel strengthens for solos.

Happy new year everyone!
Ville



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"Alfie's Theme" by Sonny Rollins

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"D-Natural Blues" by Wes Montgomery

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"Work Song" by Nat Adderley

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Stang's Swang by Stevie Ray Vaughan

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This uptempo piece is from Stevie Ray Vaughan's Couldn't Stand The Weather album.



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Freddie Hubbard's "Red Clay"

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This is the title piece from Freddie Hubbard's "Red Clay" (recorded in 1970). The minor 7th add 11 chords (C#-7 add 11 and B-7 add 11) don't include the 5th. E.g. C#-7(11) may be interpreted as a Bsus4/C# chord. I'm not aware of the accuracy of the drum part in Intro, which I wrote down hastily. Once again, I'd welcome all comments concerning the chart.

Best wishes from Ville



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Sandu by Clifford Brown

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Hank Mobley's "My Groove, Your Move"

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Hey y'all!

This track is from Mobley's 1960 release for Blue Note Records. It's a mellow G minor blues with a peculiar form. The first round of the melody is 12 bars long and the second one 20 bars (12 bars + 8-bar tag). The solos are on a 12-bar minor blues form, similar to the first chorus of the melody.

I scribbled down the melody of the tune, but I need some helping hand with the chords, especially from the 2nd ending onwards.

Listen to the tune here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ou14RVXuquA

All suggestions are welcome!

Ville

Further study on "Chameleon"

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I sat down and tried to figure out what's happening on Herbie's Chameleon (Head Hunters, 1974). I wrote down the overall structure, bass lines, basic chord changes and changing meters, and here's what I've managed to put together. Don't take the chords at letter H for granted - they are rather a sum of evaluation of some charts I've checked. Note that the tempo accelerates gradually towards the end.

Best wishes from Ville



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Dance Cadaverous by Wayne Shorter

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Here's a peaceful jazz waltz from Shorter's "Speak No Evil" disc. The harmonies wander a good deal here (e.g. the first two minor major 7th chords at letter A and B are half step apart), so I wrote the chart without a key signature, although the tonality is fundamentally centered around B minor.

:) Ville



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Festive Minor by Gerry Mulligan

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This number is from Gerry Mulligan's "What Is There to Say?" that was recorded in 1958 and 1959. The album can be considered a classic in modern jazz. The quartet consists of baritone sax, trumpet, bass and drums (there isn't any chordal instrument on the recording). The album features fantastic interplay between the musicians (highly recommended!). The chart lacks a 32-bar section that is played before the out chorus.



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"I Have A Dream" by Herbie Hancock

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Here's the first track from Herbie Hancock's "The Prisoner" (1969, Blue Note), which incorporates a number of horn instruments. I haven't identified the names of the instruments that play the melody in turns. Although the piece is written for a large ensembe I bet it would fix for a small jazz combo (e.g. quartet) too. The names of the chords are somewhat simplified since the Herbie's arrangement is rich in harmonic movement.

:-) Ville



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Herbie Hancock's "Chameleon"

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This is a classic funk number from Herbie Hancock's "Head Hunters" album (released in 1973). This is a shortened version of the original recording, which has additional sections not included in the chart. (After repeating the ||: Bb-7 |Eb7 :|| vamp the solos evolve into ||: Bb-7 |Db7sus :|| figure.)
:) Ville



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Groove Merchant

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Here's a nice foot-tapping 16-bar blues, which is typically arranged for a big band, but works just as well with a smaller group. The head of the tune divides into 16 bars long A section and 20-bar B section that is an extended variation of the A section. The solos are on a 16-bar form.



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"Midnight Voyage" by Joey Calderazzo

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Here's Joey Calderazzo's "Midnight Voyage" as played on Michael Brecker's "Tales from the Hudson" (1996, Impulse!).



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"Sweet Sorrow" by Joshua Redman

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Here's a slow jazz ballad from Joshua Redman's 1994 release "MoodSwing". If someone has written down the basic piano voicings (played by Brad Mehldau) for the head of the tune, please share them here.

:) Ville



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"Chill" by Joshua Redman

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Here's an easy swing tune from Joshua Redman's fantastic MoodSwing" release for Warner Bros.



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Help With "Benny's Back"

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Stolen Moments - a piano transcription

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"No Room for Squares" by Hank Mobley

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This is the title track from Mobley's 1963 release for Blue Note. It's a fast C minor swing tune, whose intro and outro are played in even 8ths feel. Listen to the song here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ndqxk5J-VHQ

All comments are welcome! :) Ville



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Kurt Rosenwinkel - Brooklyn Sometimes

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Hey folks.

I've done a lead sheet for Kurt Rosenwinkel's great tune Brooklyn Sometimes, from his latest Deep Song album. I know he's released a book of tune transcriptions, I personally haven't seen it, this chart was done as more of an exercise for me. It is a great tune, nonetheless. Bouncing along with a kind of wistful ease and swagger, it's upbeat but gentile, and as Rosenwinkel has mentioned of many of his tunes, it is very songlike. I've done a pretty long analysis, and any corrections would be useful!

Analysis:

The first 16 bars are piano introduction, the same chords as the repeated section at the sign. I think on the recording Kurt plays the piano here, so his singing is a part of the tone colour of the introduction. The vocal line is very quiet, and difficult to discern, but is there, and elegantly sows some of the seeds of the melody within the harmony by embelleshing the melodic tones. The vocal line also adds a certain specialness to some parts here: note in bar 10 how the vocal line doubles the bottom rising figure, which is quieter from the piano, and does not double the higher figure. Rosenwinkel said that sometimes some harmonies need a richness added to certain tones, and he will try and add this richness through his singing. I'm sure Kurt could have sung that top line, but he chose to sing the rising one, adding a shimmering rising texture to the major sixth, which falls to a perfect fifth, which lifts the figure. The rising figure makes the lift more subtle, which the top, higher line being the lit one, the one that is noticed. The embellesment of the rising figure makes a point of highlighting the slip from the slightly more dissonant sixth to the more consonant fifth, rather than a mere fall from the D# to D natural.

The chords themselves appear beautifully chosen and structured when the melody appears in bar 17. I've written chord symbols, most probably to aid in improvisation over the section, or to make the harmony understandable. However the voicings should be strictly adheared to. They are necessary for the tune to make sense, in my mind, and are great, simple chords.
The repeated section itself is split into two further subsections, made clear by the bassline. In the first 4 bars the harmony moves up, and then twice down, and in the second four bars performs a similar outing except for the B major(add4) in bar 24.
The cadence here falls to the Asus in bar 25. Really this is an E chord, but the Asus makes for more clarity of voicing than E7(omit3)/A, and really the Asus is a true Asus performing the function of the E chord. This second subsection would appear to be a dominant section, but is not quite what it seems. Instead of having a section of movement around the dominant, the bassline conceals the key centre by hovering on the B and F#. This makes for an intruiging mix of ambiguous tonality - the first subsection is very clearly a D minor sound, but here, it is difficult to work out exactly what is going on. Moments like bar 28, with a Eb major sounding chord, superimposed over this B natural make for a jolt in tonality. The lower Bb of the voicing clashes with the B natural in the bass. But it isn't really dissonant, it is merely the harmonic extension of the perpendicular nature of the melody and the bassline at this point. The section shuffles along, with the bassline being altered in bar 30 to make the sound more consonant, to finally find the dominant in bar 32 (albeit with a b9, which adds to the slightly more dissonant nature of this section).

Then follows a bridge section. This section is intruiging, not only harmonically, but rhythmically also. Firstly we have the A / Gm / | D/F# figure which is then lowered and continued in the E / F/Eb / | D figure. But there, apparently, the logic seems to end. Even the melody is disjointed, although still songlike. It is not nearly as memorable as the melody in the sign section. Mehldau approaches the piano melody with great touch but also robustness, which allows for the melody and Kurt's interjections to coexist carefully and not compete.
After the piano plays its melody, the guitar returns with a strange, haunting melody over some even more illogical changes, and a strange rhythmical structuring. I've written it in 4, but it could easily be split up into other time signatures. Ali Jackson supports the bassline by adding cymbal sounds and crashes, but also continues with the double-time feel with the hihat on upbeat quavers. Really, to me, the purpose of this bridge section is to contrast the logical nature of the sign melody, so when it returns on the D.S. there is a release of tension and rhythmic uncertainty - suddenly, there it is, that incessant bassline, the upbeat quavers, bouncing along.

The bridge changes return for a piano solo, only before a guitar solo on rising chromatic harmony. At bar 51 I've written the changes extremely simply - some of the voicings should be more minor, some should be more major in sound. But really the voicings are up to the pianist. The bass shows where the harmony is going, and the resolution at bars 57-8 allows a little breath of fresh air. The rising chromatic harmony builds tension incredibly, and this is greatly contrasted by the release of tension as the piano solo enters.

Finally, the melody at the sign is recapitulated, to fine on the dominant A7(b9), which lingers in midair. Despite this, the tune is extremely satisfying - it doesn't end on the bridge. The great melody comes back, and the listener goes off humming it.

Hope this has helped shed some light on a great Rosenwinkel tune.

Cheers...

L.



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Una Mas (One More Time) by Kenny Dorham

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This bright bossa nova is the title piece from Kenny Dorham's album "Una Mas (One More Time)" that was recorded in 1963 for Blue Note. The tune has a slight resemblance to Lee Morgan's "The Sidewinder" - the melodic rhythm at bars 1-2 of the head is indentical with each other. This is a condensed version of the recorded arrangement. The chart differs from the original recording in that once the tune has come to an end Kenny calls "Una Mas" and the interlude is repeated 4 times before the final recapitulation of the head. I think the recap is unnecessary since it doesn't quite manage to uplift the lengthy arc of tension that has already been discharged (the eventual duration of the tune is 15:15).

I'm not sure about the accuracy of the chart, so I'd like to hear you thoughts on it. The tune didn't catch on in the jazz circles contrary to Dorham's another medium-fast bossa nova named "Blue Bossa" that was released the same year in 1963 and became a common jazz standard. I haven't found a lead sheet of "Una Mas" in any fake book around; does anyone know if it's published in any sheet music collection? Also, if anyone has a sheet music to the piece (or a chord chart or any other kind of document of the composition) I'd like to have a copy of that.

Note: The earlier chart had some errors that I fixed.

Have fun! Ville



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Circle

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Circle

Davis’s “Circle” (1963) contains a greater number of pcs, pc transpositions and mixtures, pedal points, tonally non-functional chord successions, and unresolved melodic and harmonic tensions than we saw in “So What.” Unlike Ravel’s long-range cellular and structural development, however, Davis appears to follow the common practice in jazz of applying chord scales (or modes) to chords locally, rather than globally. In “Circle,” Davis has composed interesting chord successions, upon which he improvises on each chord, seemingly deriving notes that fit neatly into their underlying sound.

Since Davis plays the “melody” of “Circle” differently in the exposition and recapitulation, it is probable that, having composed the recurring form and chordal structure in advance, he allowed himself the freedom to improvise the melodic content of the piece. In doing so, he seems to have satisfied his improvisational urge, for he opted not to play his customary improvised solo in the development section, while the other band members did. Analysis of “Circle” will be derived from my own transcription.

Several pcs are evident in “Circle.” It is based primarily on a pc comprised of D, E, F, A, B and C. The chords Dm, Dm7, Dm6 in the first three measures contain a line-cliché that supplies the notes C and B in addition to the tonic triad; and an E is present in the melody in measure 2 (Example 4). D chords appear in measures 1-3, 23-24 and 49-51. A DMA7+11 pentachord is present in the anacrusis, in measures 6, and in many other places. The B aeolean mode is present in measures 7-10, 29-32 and 55-58. B is established as the priority note by the B pedal that lasts for four measures. A G aeolean passage can be seen in measures 41-42. G is established by means of a G pedal that lasts for the entire measure, and in Davis’s line G is the highest and final note.

Davis chooses colorful notes over many of the chords, which, when considered in combination with the chordal accompaniment, create a variety of pcs. A DMA7+11 pentachord is sounded in the anacrusis measure; a hexachord comprised of D, E, F, A and C can be seen in measures 1-3. In measure 9 Davis’s melody note, E, on the Bm11, creates a hexachord comprised of B, C#, D, E, F# and A. Melody notes B and D combine with an F#m7 to create a hexachord comprised of F#, A, B, C#, D and E in measure 11. Melody notes C and Ab combine with Gm7 to make yet another hexachord comprised of G, Ab, Bb, C, D and F in measure 12; and melody notes G# and Eb combine with Am to create a pentachord comprised of A, C, Eb, E and G# in measures 37-38.

“Circle” also contains numerous pc mixtures like those found in Ravel’s Concerto. For example, there is a one-measure introduction on the tonic pentachord, DMA7+11, before it moves to a D minor tonic chord in measure 1. Indeed, the entire performance gains in its charm by requiring the listener to guess which version of the I chord will be sounded. (This is similar to the pc mixture that can be seen at the second a tempo of Ravel’s Concerto--More about this later.) One of the more distinctive pc mixtures occurs in measures 25-27, where Davis plays a scale comprised of Bb, C, D, E, F, G and A over Dm6 that, combined with the chord tones, creates an eight-note collection consisting of D, E, F, G, A, Bb, B and C.

Like Ravel’s Concerto, Davis’s “Circle” contains tonally non-functional chord successions. A succession comprised of Dm6, BbMA7, EbMA9, DMA7+11, Bm7, for example, occurs in measures 3-4; and another succession, comprised of F#m7, Gm7, Am7, Dm7/E, Am7, moves up in similar motion, beginning in measure 11.

Frequent avoidance of resolution of the leading-tone is also evident in this piece. An Am7 pentachord containing no leading-tone (C#), for example, acts as the v chord preceding the DMA7+11 I pentachord in measures 15-16, 37-39 and 63-65.

Parallel chords occur between EbMA7 and DMA7 in measures 5-6, 27-28 and 53-54--and between F#m7, Gm7 and Am7 in measures 11-13, 33-35 and 59-61.

Unresolved melodic and harmonic tensions can also be observed. Davis plays a C on a BbMA7 in measures 4 and 26, for example, sounding major ninth tensions. He plays an A on an E, creating an unresolved perfect eleventh in measure 47. Unresolved augmented elevenths occur when he sustains E’s over BbMA7s in measures 19 and 20; G#s on DMA7s create augmented eleventh tensions in measures 6 and 65; and an F on an A7 produces a minor thirteenth in measure 48.

Pedal points can also be found in “Circle”: on D in measures 1-3, 23-25, and elsewhere; on B in measures 7-10, 29-32 and 55-58. Bb pedals appear in measures 19-10 and 45-46, and A pedals occur in measures 37-38 and 63-64.

In addition to the patterns of pitch organization found in “So What,” perhaps the most interesting quality of this composition is the presence of extended series’ of non-functional chord successions, over which are juxtaposed successions of different modes and other pcs. Each successive chord often contains three or more pitch classes not present in the preceding pc. This provides Davis, when improvising over the composed harmonic structure, the opportunity to carefully select colorful notes that are often chromatic to the same pitch-classes contained in the measures that precede and follow it. In addition, the scarcity of harmonic clichés in “Circle” forces the soloists to create improvisations that are relatively free of melodic clichés; and the pc mixtures between the different versions of the I chord is surprising and exhilarating.




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Lonnie's Lament by John Coltrane

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This tune was first released on John Coltrane's Crescent album in 1964. The melody and most of the chords are constructed from the C Dorian mode.

I've transcribed the piece from Kenny Garrett's "Pursuance: The Music of John Coltrane" - it's a terrific recording! Garrett's arrangement deals with alternating 3/4, 5/4 and 4/4 passages. Note that the 5/4 time is broken down as 3/4 + 2/4, which makes the basic repeating rhythmic figure look like 3/4 + 3/4 + 2/4. In spite of the rather complex metric structure, the tune has a strong jazz waltz-like feel throughout. Also, the continuous rhythmic pattern gives the mournful melody a nice boost.

Have fun! Ville



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Tutu by Marcus Miller

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This is the title tune from Miles Davis' 1986 release for Warner Brothers. It has a fairly slow and funky swing 16ths groove, which I've written in cut time with swung 8ths. Miles and Marcus drop in tasty G minor blues fills all over the place. Note that the bass is tuned a whole step lower than in standard bass tuning.

Have fun! Ville



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Dolphin Dance

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Excerpted from Speaking of Jazz: Essays and Attitudes

Here’s a transcription of Herbie Hancock's Dolphin Dance, a unique piece which I performed with Herbie years ago in Avery Fisher Hall at Lincoln Center, NYC. Since the melody is widely known and basically correct, I'm only including the harmonic chord succession here—which is rather different from the normal lead sheets. As I've stated before, sophisticated original compositions such as this especially need to be verified through transcription, rather than trusting the Real Book and other unofficial sources. Since not everyone played exactly the same pitch collections in every chorus, I chose to make judgment calls and come up with an overall composite of what I thought was the general consensus.

Some tunes are too special to entrust to unofficial sources. With a piece like this, I always try to start with the urtext, which is the original recording by the composer. As with Wayne Shorter, Hancock knows exactly what he wants—and is special and sophisticated. In the case of standards, it's instead about signifying—two different types of story, with different intent. For example, I would never reharmonize Dolphin Dance, but I reharmonize and arrange many of the standards that I perform.

The key to improvising on this piece is in its strong melody. There are some non-functional guide tone lines of a sort, too—especially over the pedals, which remind me of Debussy's Nuages. I don't take the chords too seriously in terms of direction for improvising, however—only color and mood. I love how the melody climaxes two-thirds through on the highest note of duration, a classic Golden Section. While all other melodic motives are well-developed, the climax motive only happens that once. It's a beautifully constructed work on all levels. For me, the most noteworthy chord is the Ab7-5 blues chord in the momentary Cm, suggesting flat five blues phrases.

ANALYSIS

Dolphin Dance, a very sophisticated Impressionist-inspired Herbie Hancock piece, is one of the most complex jazz compositions written to date. Hancock was influenced by French Impressionist composers Claude Debussy and Maurice Ravel, as the salient characteristics of this particular composition demonstrate. Since not everyone played exactly the same pitch collections in every chorus, I made judgment calls to derive a composite of what I thought was the general consensus.

Although lush and mostly non-dissonant in nature, this is an atonal composition (no primary key). As with Debussy's and Ravel's atonal passages, Hancock includes brief tonal references with occasional ii V cadences; but none of those cadences (four in this piece) establish a key. There are, instead, brief suggestions of keys in this non-functional chord succession (keys of : Eb, Cm, G, Cm, G, and F . . . ?). As with the Impressionists, Herbie employs various pedal points over which he suspends a variety of successions containing unresolved melodic Ninths, Elevenths, and Thirteenths—a rich milieu.

Hancock succeeds in achieving an extremely moody and subtle vehicle for his virtuoso, yet sensitive, piano style. Many professional jazz soloists fall flat on their asses attempting to improvise on this in public: It separates the men from the boys, since you really have to do your homework on this one, since your average jazz licks just don’t work.





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Slings and Arrows by Michael Brecker

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This challenging number is from Mike Brecker's Tales from the Hudson album that is out of this world. All daredevils out there, have a go at this one!

:) Ville



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The Sidewinder by Lee Morgan

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Here's a real book type transcription of Lee Morgan's Sidewinder from his Blue Note album of the same name. The tune was released in 1963 and it became a big hit and instant soul jazz classic. The piece has a rather peculiar 24-bar blues form, that is basically a conventional 12-bar blues whose each chord is extended by half (8+4+4+4+4=24).

The funky piano comp figure that is doubled by the horns in the melody has a relaxed Latin feel, but is played with swung eighth notes throughout. The chromatic vamp figure on Eb7 can be construed as Ebdim or Eb-6 (Gb and C) to Eb7 (G and Db). It is sometimes presented (e.g. in the Real Book vol. 1) as chromatic transfer from D7 to Eb7, but I prefer the earlier interpretation, which is backed up with Eb note in the bass. That chromatic ascending chordal figure (from Idim to I7) is a common blues riff that can be often found in blues tunes in varied inversions.

I also included a sample drum part at the end of the chart. The snare drum accents follow the piano comp rhythm at the first bar, but are played differently at the second bar. The ride cymbal plays a regular swing time throughout.

Have fun! Ville



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Little One by Herbie Hancock

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This one is from Herbie's classic Maiden Voyage album. The piece is constructed of rubato head and jazz waltz solo section. The Eb-7/F (F Phrygian) chord at 2nd bar of letter C is an alternate to Eb13/F chord; note that those chords are harmonically different from each other (I've gleaned a pile of transcriptions of the tune and included two different versions of the chord here). The rest of the parenthetic changes are alternative chord namings (e.g. D-/E for E7susb9).

:) Ville



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Continuum by Jaco Pastorius

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This is a lead sheet type transcription of Jaco's Continuum. The tune is like a continuous loop where you can't tell where the structure links up - that's why it's called "Continuum". The piece can be performed on a solo electric bass guitar. However, the original recording includes keyboards and light drums that accompany the bass.

:) Ville



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Heaven Hill by John Scofield

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This bluesy ballad is from Scofield's Blue Matter album.

Enjoy! Ville



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Filles de Kilimanjaro

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This is excerpted from The Influence of Claude Debussy's and Maurice Ravel's Music on Jazz, as Seen in the Compositions of Bix Beiderbecke, Bill Evans and Miles Davis, by Ed Byrne (1998).

“Filles de Kilimanjaro”

Davis’s “Filles de Kilimanjaro” (1969) reveals further similarities to Ravel’s Concerto. Bitonal passages, for example, occur over an extended pedal point; and the symmetric wholetone scale can also be found. Analysis of this composition, both the exposition and Davis’s improvisation, will be drawn from my own transcriptions. The entire composition unfolds over a G pedal point (Example 5a). The exposition begins with a passage that employs the G anhematonic pentatonic scale (G, A, C, D, E), and it moves through a variety of other modes and pcs.

Pc mixtures abound in “Filles de Kilimanjaro.” The aforementioned pentatonic scale, for example, is enhanced by the addition of pitch-class F# in measures 7-8; and a blue note, Bb, is sounded over the G pedal in measure 18. A tetrachord comprised of A, C#, D and E can be seen in measures 32-33; and the winds trill on pitch-classes Eb and F over a whole-tone collection played by the pianist, while the bassist continues playing the G pedal point in measures 37-40.

A bitonal relationship exists in measure 29, where a Bb triad appears over the G pedal point; and another bitonal relationship takes place in measures 32-33, where an A tetrachord consisting of A, C#, D and E can be heard over the G pedal.

In “Filles de Kilimanjaro,” as in “Circle,” the melody creates unresolved melodic tensions. Unresolved major sevenths (F#s), for example, appear in the second half of measures 7 and 8. Ninths, A’s, occur on beats two and three of measure 2, in measures 30-35, and elsewhere. Elevenths, C’s, appear in measures 3, 4 and 25-28; and augmented elevenths, C#s, occur in measures 24, 32 and 33. Unresolved melodic thirteenths, E’s (or added sixths) are present in measures 7, 9, 13-15, and elsewhere; and minor thirteenths, Ebs, appear in measures 37-39.

Similar relationships of sound organization are present in Davis’s trumpet improvisation in “Filles de Kilimanjaro.” A variety of modes and other pcs are sounded, in addition to pc mixtures and bitonal relationships. He plays the G ionian mode, for example, in measures 1-22 (Example 5b). (F#, the seventh degree, however, does not appear until measure 15.) G is established as the priority note through the pedal, which sounds for the entire duration of the piece; and in Davis’s line, G sounds like the priority note because of qualitative emphasis: it is the final note, the goal, of several phrases: at the end of measures 1, 5, 11, and 20.

Davis also plays an Eb lydian passage over the G pedal, creating a bitonal relationship in measures 23-31, before playing a pc comprised of G, A, B, C, D and E in measures 32-56. Eb is established in Davis’s line as the priority note through both qualitative and quantitative emphasis: the phrase begins and ends on Eb, and it is sounded for twelve and one-half beats--far longer than any other note in the phrase. A Db lydian passage appears over the G pedal in measures 74-85, creating another bitonal relationship. Db is made to sound like the priority note through its prominent placement, and by being the final note of the passage. Davis concludes his solo on the final G trichord, comprised of G, A and B. “Filles de Kilimanjaro,” therefore, demonstrates a further development in Davis’s adaptation of the patterns of pitch organization found in Ravel’s Concerto. Like Evan’s “Peace Piece” and Davis’s “So What,” “Filles de Kilimanjaro” is based on a pedal point over which a series of contrasting events are juxtaposed.

Perhaps its most salient characteristic is the presence of a variety of bitonal relationships. As we have seen, bitonality first appears in the exposition; but in his trumpet improvisation, Davis improvises lines on extemporaneously-chosen bitonal relationships vis-à-vis the G pedal point, including relationships different from those found in the exposition and recapitulation. This is done freely, without formal restrictions imposed by a recurring form containing predetermined bitonal successions, and without predetermined phrase lengths. The additional presence of the whole-tone scale in this piece also provides it with an early twentieth century sound that gives it a surprising sense of tonal ambiguity, in spite of the presence of the unrelenting G pedal point. This results in a satisfying artistic performance that is unusual for its time.



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Peace Piece

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Excerpted from The Influence of Claude Debussy's and Maurice Ravel's Music on Jazz, as Seen in the Compositions of Bix Beiderbecke, Bill Evans and Miles Davis, by Ed Byrne

Bill Evans’s “Peace Piece”

Just prior to his association with Davis, Evans recorded an extemporaneous modal composition entitled “Peace Piece” for his LP Everybody Digs Bill Evans. Recorded in December 1958, four months before Davis’s Kind of Blue, it is in Martin Williams’s opinion, “a remarkable ostinato tour de force, an improvisation as good as some of the carefully wrought French impressionistic [sic] compositions which in part inspired it” (35-36).

In “Peace Piece,” many of the stylistic musical manifestations of Debussy and Ravel are apparent: modes and other scalar collections, pc transpositions, pc mixtures, and tonally nonfunctional chord successions. Bitonality, quartal harmony, parallelism, unresolved melodic and harmonic tensions, and pedal point also exist in this piece; and there is also a lack of resolution of the leading-tone in cadences. Based entirely on a double pedal point of C and G, “Peace Piece” is accompanied by two oscillating chords, CMA7 and G9 sus4(no 5), that together create a diatonic accompaniment comprised of a diatonic hexachord (C, E, F, G, A, B). Jim Aikin’s transcription, published in Contemporary Keyboard (46-49), will serve as the basis for my analysis of “Peace Piece” (Example 2). “Peace Piece” contains a variety of pcs and modes of the kind found in the music of Debussy and Ravel. They all occur over the double pedal point, creating pc mixtures and a pc transposition in the process. The C ionian mode can be found in measures 1-43, 51-57 and 68-76. C is established as the priority note through the C pedal that recurs throughout this piece. A pc comprised of F#, G, B, C#, D# and E# is sounded over the C diatonic accompaniment; and a pc collection comprised of Ab, A, B, Db, Eb, F and G appears in measures 48-49. A pentachord consisting of E, F#, G, A and C is played over the pedal in the first two beats of measure 50; and Evans plays a quintachord comprised of G, Ab, B, Eb and F in the second half of measure 50.

Parallel non-functional chord successions can also be found in “Peace Piece.” Parallel ascending trichords (G, Eb, F#), (A, F, G#), (B, G, A#), for example, are apparent in measures 58-59. There is a tetrachord comprised of C, Db, D# and E in measure 60; and a quintachord consisting of F#, G, A, Bb and B appears in measure 62. Evans plays a hexachord comprised of D#, E, G#, B, C and D in measures 64-65; and he plays a pc comprised of C, Eb, F, F# and G over the pedal point in measure 67.
Built on an ostinato, the only passage in “Peace Piece” that resembles a cadence occurs in measure 75, where on beat four the fifth degree, G, is in the pedal point; but the leading-tone, B, is absent.

Bitonalities appear in, or are at least suggested in “Peace Piece,” since all of the pcs mentioned above occur above the diatonic pedal point; and they are often chromatic in their relationship to it, and appear in discrete registers.

Quartal and quintal intervals occur with frequency in “Peace Piece.” 7s and a 5 can be seen in measures 6-8. Evans plays parallel 7s in measures 20-23 and 30-35, and successive 5s are evident in measure 36; 5s and 7s appear in measures 54-56 and 70-76.

Unresolved melodic tensions abound in “Peace Piece.” The initial melodic motive, which first appears in measures 6-13, contains several sustained ninths, D’s. A major seventh tension, B, appears in measures 14-17. F#s create extended unresolved augmented elevenths at the end of measure 43 and in measure 44. C#s create minor ninth tensions (spelled enharmonically) in measures 45-46, while the repeated A’s create major sixths. Since the two chords of the accompaniment are CMA7 and G9 sus4 (no 5), “Peace Piece” also contains unresolved harmonic tensions: a major seventh (B) on the CMA7 tetrachord, a sustained perfect fourth (F) and a major ninth (A) appear on a G9 sus4 (no 5) tetrachord.

Analysis of “Peace Piece” demonstrates an extensive presence of the kinds of sounds heard in the music of Debussy and Ravel. Traditional chord progressions are non-existent. The constant presence of a pedal point comprised of two oscillating chords provides the listener with a reference point for the succession of pcs and pc transpositions and mixtures that take place.

Bitonality, parallelism, unresolved melodic and harmonic tensions, and the lack of resolution of the leading-tone in its cadence also supply this performance with interesting patterns of pitch organization. Evans’s extemporaneous performance of these Debussyan and Ravellian sounds endow this seven-minute piano solo with a resultant refreshing style that was unusual and surprising for its time.



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I've Got Rhythm

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Excerpted from Speaking of Jazz: Essays and Attitudes:



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Ed's Solo w/ Chet Baker

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Hi Folks,

Below is my paraphrase solo of There Will Never Be Another You with Chet Baker. I was supposed to take two choruses, but, satisfied I said enough in one, stopped there.

To give context to the evening, I'm including a short except from my new book, The Sublime and the Ridiculous: Tales from a Jazz Life, which I haven't released for fear of getting sued by so many. . .

Carnegie Hall Concert

When performing for a big star in front of a packed house of one of the most famous concert halls in the world, anything can—and often does—happen. Chet Baker got a call from Creed Taylor to do a major comeback concert and record a live double CD recording at New York City’s Carnegie Hall with fellow headliners Gerry Mulligan and Stan Getz, along with such luminary sidemen as Roland Hanna, Ron Carter, John Scofield, Harvey Mason, Dave Samuels and Bob James. When they got to the rehearsal at CTI Studios, they all fell out into bickering and other ego-induced unpleasantness. As a result of each star refusing to play together without also being able to do a set with his own band, I became Chet’s compromise addition to the play-list for the concert recording that would be released as Carnegie Hall Concert.

Subsequently, when Chet and I rehearsed our best material with Bob James, Ron Carter, and Harvey Mason, everything went beautifully. On the evening of event, however, several things ran amiss. The announcer brought the sidemen onstage first, and then announced the star. The entire band was assembled onstage, then Chet’s name was announced—but Chet didn’t come out right away. Then I noticed that the curtains were ruffling, and that there was a commotion of some kind taking place backstage. Chet was engaged in a fistfight: That’s how the concert began.

Then, seeing the hall filled, with people even crowding the aisles, Creed, for some reason approached Chet and started suggesting tunes for him to play—tunes which we hadn’t rehearsed—and indeed didn’t know. This was one of Chet’s weaknesses: As great a musician as he was, he would often exhibit poor judgment as a bandleader. He scrapped our entire set and started calling—onstage—different and unfamiliar material. One of these tunes was The Thrill Is Gone, and he counted it off at the slowest ballad tempo I’ve ever heard—before or since. Anyway, he sang the melody while I backed him up on trombone, and everything was fine—until my solo, which followed. Pianist James, apparently uncomfortable with the tempo, quadrupled the harmonic rhythm (played through the chords four times as fast) during my improvisation, in which I was obviously paraphrasing the melody in single time. Carter was lost and wouldn't commit.

Chet, frustrated, yells to James (about me): He’s trying to play a ballad! To this James, a successful producer in his own right, merely gave an indifferent shrug and continued what he was doing. This infuriated Chet, who turned beet red, clenched his fist and headed directly towards James to punch him out—on stage, in Carnegie Hall, in front of a packed house, while recording a live double album! I was in center front stage, with Chet on my left and James on my right, so when I saw this going down—while recording a solo and still on the mike—I had to shake my head at Chet while leaning forward to block his path to the offending pianist.

This demonstrates how no matter how well prepared you are stuff can and will happen. Remaining beyond the minutia of the music (chords, scales, forms, etc.) is the only place to be, so that you can be free to react to the players with whom you are conversing; and the audience to whom you are telling your story. Only if you are focused and strong enough can you overcome such obstacles and distractions as the incident I have described.

Later on that evening Chet and I were playing our steady local gig at Striker’s, a jazz night club in the basement of a hotel located on the corner of 65th Street and Columbus Avenue. Here the phone was ringing off the hook all during our set, since the bartender wouldn’t answer the phone, knowing that it was Chet’s girlfriend calling, as was her habit whenever she knew that Chet’s wife was at the club. In a moment of brief silence between tunes, Chet looked at me and said, You know, man, this is where it’s at. He had just come from his big, successful comeback concert at Carnegie Hall in New York City, recorded a live double album for the biggest jazz label in the world, and he tells me that this dingy little club, where we were paid twenty-five dollars each a night was where it’s at.

Ed



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Up Jumped Spring

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HERE IS MY TRANSCRIPTION OF FREDDIE'S CHANGES. ALS0 PLEASE FIND MY TRANSCRIPTION OF KENNY BARON'S SHOUT CHORUS.

SCROLL BELOW FOR EXTRA PAGES:



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"Moanin'" by Bobby Timmons

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Here's another classic blues number from the hard bop era. It is such a catching minor blues in AABA (8+8+8+8) form.

Ville



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"The Blues Walk"

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Here's a classic up-tempo blues number that was famed by Clifford Brown.



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"Still Warm" by John Scofield

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Hey there!

This is the title track from John Scofield's "Still Warm" album (1986, Gramavision) that includes great writing and awesome grooves. The tune is harmonically very interesting, incorporating a good number of slash chords and inversions. The solo section is built on four chords (G13sus, AbMaj7#11/G, Absus/G and E/G) that are played over G pedal point. Scofield uses G mixolydian, Ab lydian, Ab major and G half-step/whole-step diminished scales on those chords.

The bass line (at letter A) is not an accurate transcription and is included for reference only.

And once again, please feel free to share your thoughts on the transcription.

Ville



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"Half Life of Absolution" by Pat Metheny

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This gorgeous tune is from Pat Metheny Group's live album "The Road to You". I have picked this score from the Pat Metheny Songbook and made a few changes to it.

A brief analysis of the form:

An indefinite part of sound effects precedes the written introduction. Drums start playing time in even eighths feel and keyboards sneak in. Guitar plays the melody at letter A twice.

The letter B evolves into tense and rhythmically strong turning point. The tension rises until the final polychord (FMaj7 over F#5) that dies away and the pulse pauses for a moment. (Note that the previous 9/4 bar may be divided into three 6/8 bars.)

Letter C (that is identical to Intro) prepares calmly the following guitar solo section at letter D that builds gradually. For soloists this is a great study of Lydian harmony (G Lydian scale is identical with B natural minor and D major scales). The letter E is played (in compound time) to end the guitar solo.

Keyboard solo follows in similar manner, except it doesn't proceed to letter E but moves back to letter B. This time the rhythm stops on the G#m7 chord (at bars 18-19 of letter B).

The tune is repeated from the top and Coda is taken first time. The melody at letters F and G (where it is played an octave higher) is similar to A, but the changes are reharmonized. The final guitar solo (in compound time) at letter H concludes the piece.

All comments are highly welcome!

Ville



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"All Blues" by Miles Davis

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This is a lead sheet type transcription of Miles' classic blues. Note that the tune could be written equally in 3/4 (jazz waltz) time instead of the current 6/4 time signature.

Ville



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"Alone in the Morning" by Joshua Redman

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This bossa nova tune is from Joshua Redman's brilliant "Moodswing" album.

Ville



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"Goin' Ahead" by Pat Metheny

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Here's my transcription of Pat Metheny's "Goin' Ahead" from his "Travels" album. This solo guitar piece (played on a steel-string acoustic guitar) is also recorded on Metheny's "80/81" that differs considerably from the "Travels" recording. The melody is somewhat freely interpreted and the overall piece is constructed with ease and finesse.

Ville



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"Oliloqui Valley" by Herbie Hancock

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This tune is from Herbie's "Empyrean Isles" recording. The piece alternates between latin/even 8ths and swing feel. The composition starts with bass ostinato in F minor and changes key to A major at the end of the head and solo section. The head and solos are similar in form: ABAC (8-4-8-8 bars). Hancock plays a magnificent solo here (as always). Note that he uses a Db half-step/whole-step diminished scale over the Db13#11 chord, so you may add b9 in the chord symbol.

Once again, all comments and suggestions are welcome!

Ville



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The Eye of the Hurricane

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This driving tune is written by Herbie Hancock for his "Maiden Voyage" album. The bizarre polychord (GmMaj7b5/Fm6) at bars 7-10 of letters A1 and A2 peals out like thunder. This uncanny chord includes several consecutive notes that are split into different octaves. Once the theme is stated, the solos are on a 12-bar F minor blues form (the soloists go outside the changes every now and then).

I'm not sure about the metronome marking (250 bpm), which is a rough estimate. So I'd welcome all comments and suggestions regarding the actual metronome setting.

Ville



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Waltz Macambo

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Blues for Happy People (bass line)

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Here's a Ron Carter bass line from Donald Harrison's "Blues for Happy People". The recording was on "New York Cool", a no-chord instrument trio setting with Billy Cobham.

Update includes a Sibelius file, which should be playable within your browser. If you don't see the Sibelius score, get Scorch here http://www.sibelius.com/scorch



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Blues for Happy People (flash example)

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Ron Carter's line on Blues for Happy People with Donald Harrison and Billy Cobham as a flash movie:

"Au Lait" by Metheny & Mays

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Hi there!

I have transcribed Pat Metheny's and Lyle Mays' tune "Au Lait" from the Group's "Offramp" recording. The piece is not included in the PM Songbook since Pat felt that Lyle's contribution to the composition was more significant than his. The tune has an ethereal swaying feel and it changes time signatures frequently. Also, the tonalities wander throughout the piece.

Now, I'd like to hear if anyone of you guys out there has ever performed this composition, or have figured out the solo changes for the song. All comments are welcome.

:) Ville



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Bill Robinson tune-Death Of Vargas

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Dogbite's Changes (MAJ7 b5)

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From the mighty All About Jazz forum comes this tune, changes provided by Dogbite and melody, such as it is, provided by me. It relates to the discussion of the MAJ 7 b5 chord.



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request for: Down In Brazil

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Through the contact page, an Indonesian student made the request for these changes, and so here are the vanilla chords to Down In Brazil by Michael Franks. I wasn't familiar with the tune, but found it on iTunes.

Here's an excerpt from the original:



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Don't Wait Too Long

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Dean Parks' solo on "Don't Wait Too Long" from Madeleine Peyroux's "Careless Love"



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12 for 24

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This is an arrangement for 5 guitars and Rhythm for the UNT L5 Guitar Ensemble. It's fairly simple, nothing overly dramatic or ground breaking but still if you have a Guitar Ensemble at your school here's a chart for your library



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