The key to listening is to pay attention to what "kind" of listening you are doing. I find that I hear things differently when I am focusing on the music - just sitting and listening - as opposed to what I hear when I play background music while I'm eating or painting the garage, but also as opposed to what I hear when I'm sitting at the piano listening to something I'm trying to play. I see sort of intuitively why this might be, but I don't really understand it. The music isn't changing, and neither is my brain, per se. I think it comes down to what you are listening for.
When I sit and listen to music (which is a relatively rare occurrence), I generally don't listen for anything specific, but I do hope - and therefore I guess I listen - to hear something I never heard before. A subtle nuance in a certain note, or maybe a click of the bass string during a solo that adds a rhythmic touch. You never know what to expect with a new recording or a recording you haven't actually sat and listened to, so it is impossible to quantify beforehand, but I think there is something to it.
When music is just in the background, you hear something, but you don't really acknowledge what. So ultimately, only something that grabs your attention actually makes it to the foreground of your brain to be recognized and "heard" heard. In a sense, it isn't really listening at all, but nonetheless, I've had profound moments of constructive hearing while engaged in some mundane task, such as when I rediscovered Eric Dolphy while, that's right, painting the garage.
The ultimate listening for me, however, is when I'm learning a tune. If I'm seated at the piano and playing a CD over and over again, after a while, the way I hear the music, and what I actually hear, changes. Some parts of the song don't even exist when I'm listening that way. I may be interested in a rhythmic pattern or discovering a fill, or something along those lines, but then it becomes necessary to ignore parts of the song to hear certain other parts. That sort of listening I have done, but not yet mastered. Fortunately, I've found a parallel but unrelated skill that helps.
Sometime back I read about a relaxation exercise that involves stopping thinking. The human brain has a continual and unending stream of thoughts, generally not even interrupted for sleep, as far as scientists can determine. The exercise involves training your mind to not think of anything. It sounds easy but is deceptively difficult. In fact, it is damn near impossible. I have been practicing this exercise now for about two years. I can successfully stop all thoughts for what I estimate to be ten seconds or so. (I can't time it, because then I would have to think about that, and that would ruin the exercise.) Again, you have to NOT THINK ABOUT ANYTHING. Not your breathing, not about how dark it is behind your eyelids, not about the heartbeat you hear in your ears, or ANYTHING ELSE. Like I said, this is extremely and deceptively difficult. But, when I do this before listening to music, I do hear differently.
I don't know what any of this means. Just thought I would share it with late-to-jazz readers. Maybe someday I'll have some further perspective and better observation to share on this.
Friday, January 30, 2009
Monday, January 26, 2009
Another way to get high on jazz...
I recently had the opportunity to get to know a gentleman who serves, along with my wife and several other individuals, on the board of a certain internationally flavored social group in our community here in north Alabama. It was at a social event just for board members and spouses. It was there that he learned of my interest in jazz and promised to give me a tape of a jazz concert that he was involved in some years back. It took place on a KLM jet making its way to Amsterdam from Chicago in 1988. I finally received the tape last week and listened to it this past weekend. It features a group out of Chicago known as the Judy Roberts trio, and it is refreshingly good. Because they only played two songs in the "concert" (too many big wigs wanting to sleep on the flight, is my guess why), the tape is filled out with a radio interview/concert hosted by Studs Terkel. Although the Guinness Book of World Records would not recognize the concert, I've no doubt that the concert qualified as the "highest altitude jazz concert", because I'm pretty sure the shuttle astronauts haven't done anything like that. And even if they had, I know they couldn't have a piano up there, so the KLM jet concert would still qualify as the highest altitude jazz piano trio concert, ever, no matter what. (Don, the guy who shared the tape with me, did in fact call Guinness, but they declined to start a category for that.)
The quality of the tape was surprisingly good. I haven't yet learned how the promotion played out, and while I have heard of Terkel, Judy was a new name to me. Anyway, it occurred to me that the more I get into jazz and out in society, the more I find the literati, glitterati, and intelligentsia tend to be closely bound to jazz in one way or another, and I find that fact just fascinating.
At least fascinating enough to share with late-to-jazz readers.
The quality of the tape was surprisingly good. I haven't yet learned how the promotion played out, and while I have heard of Terkel, Judy was a new name to me. Anyway, it occurred to me that the more I get into jazz and out in society, the more I find the literati, glitterati, and intelligentsia tend to be closely bound to jazz in one way or another, and I find that fact just fascinating.
At least fascinating enough to share with late-to-jazz readers.
Friday, January 16, 2009
Some practice hints
These are some things that have been working for me. They might work for you, too.
1) Even if it doesn't seem productive, practice all the songs you're liable to have to perform at least once each every day. On Tuesday night, not having much time to practice, I was going to limit my big band practice to the two pieces we are going to play in the February concert, but I decided to at least have a look at the third piece that the director gave me. I input the main line in my music program to get the rhythm right, and I practiced all the main phrases except for the obviously difficult ones (two of the, say, six or seven phrases). I didn't expect we would be playing it on Wednesday, but it turns out that the third piece is the "break the monotony fall-back song" for the band, and they love to play it. So when we got sick of playing one of the tunes, we did decide to play the third piece a little bit. Good thing I had looked at it the night before. I actually held my own. Then we played four pieces in combo, so yesterday, I played all seven songs over a period of about an hour. Today, since I will have some time, I'll actually work on improving. But they are sort of getting better by sheer exposure.
2) Practice right before bed, even if it sounds bad. They say your brain forges the neural paths from a day's learning while you sleep. I've noticed that even when I can't play something, even hardly at all, if I practice it more or less right before I go to bed, even if I just keep making mistakes and making mental notes of those mistakes, the next day, it goes smoother. If I'm not drinking while practicing, as I have been doing of late, the effect is even greater.
3) Mix hard drills with easy drills. This seems to give me some positive reinforcement. I work at something that I don't do particularly well, like a stride left hand or full octave scales in both hands, and after that I run through some simple arpeggios and drills, or a straight up scale or two. There was a time I couldn't really play much of anything on the piano, and the realization that now I can play these drills that were once, essentially, impossible, reminds me that I'm not wasting my time on the hard stuff. Someday, it too will be soundly based in my repertoire. (Who knows what ridiculously esoteric and difficult stuff I'll be practicing then.)
4) Never forget to reward yourself. After practicing rootless voicings over and over, I always like to go back to one or two songs with straight up, rooted, full chords. Let's face it: Repeated rootless voicings on solo piano, although they sound great at times, are desperately tiresome after a while. The ear and brain really crave resolution and 3-5-7 harmony when they are continually fed 3-6-9 harmony for any length of time. Give your brain, nerves and muscles what they want, and when the pressure and spotlight are on you, they'll give you what you want.
I'll have more practice tips soon.
1) Even if it doesn't seem productive, practice all the songs you're liable to have to perform at least once each every day. On Tuesday night, not having much time to practice, I was going to limit my big band practice to the two pieces we are going to play in the February concert, but I decided to at least have a look at the third piece that the director gave me. I input the main line in my music program to get the rhythm right, and I practiced all the main phrases except for the obviously difficult ones (two of the, say, six or seven phrases). I didn't expect we would be playing it on Wednesday, but it turns out that the third piece is the "break the monotony fall-back song" for the band, and they love to play it. So when we got sick of playing one of the tunes, we did decide to play the third piece a little bit. Good thing I had looked at it the night before. I actually held my own. Then we played four pieces in combo, so yesterday, I played all seven songs over a period of about an hour. Today, since I will have some time, I'll actually work on improving. But they are sort of getting better by sheer exposure.
2) Practice right before bed, even if it sounds bad. They say your brain forges the neural paths from a day's learning while you sleep. I've noticed that even when I can't play something, even hardly at all, if I practice it more or less right before I go to bed, even if I just keep making mistakes and making mental notes of those mistakes, the next day, it goes smoother. If I'm not drinking while practicing, as I have been doing of late, the effect is even greater.
3) Mix hard drills with easy drills. This seems to give me some positive reinforcement. I work at something that I don't do particularly well, like a stride left hand or full octave scales in both hands, and after that I run through some simple arpeggios and drills, or a straight up scale or two. There was a time I couldn't really play much of anything on the piano, and the realization that now I can play these drills that were once, essentially, impossible, reminds me that I'm not wasting my time on the hard stuff. Someday, it too will be soundly based in my repertoire. (Who knows what ridiculously esoteric and difficult stuff I'll be practicing then.)
4) Never forget to reward yourself. After practicing rootless voicings over and over, I always like to go back to one or two songs with straight up, rooted, full chords. Let's face it: Repeated rootless voicings on solo piano, although they sound great at times, are desperately tiresome after a while. The ear and brain really crave resolution and 3-5-7 harmony when they are continually fed 3-6-9 harmony for any length of time. Give your brain, nerves and muscles what they want, and when the pressure and spotlight are on you, they'll give you what you want.
I'll have more practice tips soon.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Big band begins
This week I had my first practice with a big band. Due to lack of a second piano player, I was asked to join the second big band group, and even though it means I'll have to get up at 4:30 twice a week so I can leave work early to make the 4:00 start time, I was anxious for the experience and agreed to join.
It appears that the band will have 14 members, but we are hoping to add a tenor sax, so it might end up being more. The director gave me three pieces of music right after I sat down at the piano. One was an original song and arrangement, one was an arrangement of "My Funny Valentine", and the other was some kind of boogaloo piece. After a brief introduction of myself and two other new members, we jumped right into the two numbers, since we are preparing both of them for a Valentine's concert on February 11.
I have to say, I'm a bit amazed at how little I really have to do. Comping chords - if they aren't too complicated - is one of the few things (I think) I do reasonably well, and so I did that, straight up in both hands through the first song (the name of which eludes me). I started to embellish a little bit, but it occurred to me that if there was something I was expected to play, it would be shown on the piano part given me, and since there wasn't anything there, I stopped doing that. (I talked to the director afterwards, and he said, "Yep. Just play what's there." Okey-doke. Vanilla it is!) There was a lot of sitting through repeated sections of songs as the trombones "try it", then the saxes, then the trumpets, then all together, then add the rhythm section, but really, I kind of like that pace. It's especially nice to play in that environment knowing that I will also be playing in the same combo this semester that I played in last semester, a class where the pace will be a lot more brisk and the demands on my skills and speed will be a lot higher - which is the essence of playing in a smaller group. But enough about the combo...
After about fifty minutes on that one song, we worked on "My Funny Valentine" which starts with a slow (really slow, quarter note = 56) six-bar piano solo. Honestly, I couldn't play it that slow. It was impossible. I kept wanting to swing it and take off. I'm going to have to get my drum machine out, turn it down (if it goes that low), and pound those slow bars into my brain. I'll need to get my piano instructor to suggest some interesting chords to comp with so I'm not just playing straight up during my debut big band solo. We only really had about fifteen or twenty minutes to work on that, so practice seemed like it was over before it even began. I felt relieved, and happy, though.
So, now I'm playing in two groups, one at a leisurely, comfortable pace, the other at whatever pace we are going that day. It promises to give me a lot of good, solid musical experience, across a broad spectrum in a very short time. And with my reduced alcohol intake and increase in practice time of late, I expect to realize the dividends very soon. At least, a successful concert four weeks from now. (Speaking of which, if you are in the area, have a look at the concert schedule, and swing by to hear me sometime.)
It appears that the band will have 14 members, but we are hoping to add a tenor sax, so it might end up being more. The director gave me three pieces of music right after I sat down at the piano. One was an original song and arrangement, one was an arrangement of "My Funny Valentine", and the other was some kind of boogaloo piece. After a brief introduction of myself and two other new members, we jumped right into the two numbers, since we are preparing both of them for a Valentine's concert on February 11.
I have to say, I'm a bit amazed at how little I really have to do. Comping chords - if they aren't too complicated - is one of the few things (I think) I do reasonably well, and so I did that, straight up in both hands through the first song (the name of which eludes me). I started to embellish a little bit, but it occurred to me that if there was something I was expected to play, it would be shown on the piano part given me, and since there wasn't anything there, I stopped doing that. (I talked to the director afterwards, and he said, "Yep. Just play what's there." Okey-doke. Vanilla it is!) There was a lot of sitting through repeated sections of songs as the trombones "try it", then the saxes, then the trumpets, then all together, then add the rhythm section, but really, I kind of like that pace. It's especially nice to play in that environment knowing that I will also be playing in the same combo this semester that I played in last semester, a class where the pace will be a lot more brisk and the demands on my skills and speed will be a lot higher - which is the essence of playing in a smaller group. But enough about the combo...
After about fifty minutes on that one song, we worked on "My Funny Valentine" which starts with a slow (really slow, quarter note = 56) six-bar piano solo. Honestly, I couldn't play it that slow. It was impossible. I kept wanting to swing it and take off. I'm going to have to get my drum machine out, turn it down (if it goes that low), and pound those slow bars into my brain. I'll need to get my piano instructor to suggest some interesting chords to comp with so I'm not just playing straight up during my debut big band solo. We only really had about fifteen or twenty minutes to work on that, so practice seemed like it was over before it even began. I felt relieved, and happy, though.
So, now I'm playing in two groups, one at a leisurely, comfortable pace, the other at whatever pace we are going that day. It promises to give me a lot of good, solid musical experience, across a broad spectrum in a very short time. And with my reduced alcohol intake and increase in practice time of late, I expect to realize the dividends very soon. At least, a successful concert four weeks from now. (Speaking of which, if you are in the area, have a look at the concert schedule, and swing by to hear me sometime.)
Friday, January 9, 2009
Free music for late to jazz readers
OK, so this is not going to jump start the economy, but it might get you going a little bit:
Folks, I was contacted by "Tiffany" from the Gordon Goodwin Street Team. They liked what I wrote about Gordon Goodwin's Big Phat Band's new recording, Act Your Age, so much, they decided to reward me by offering my readers free jazz music. All you have to do to get your free music is send an e-mail containing your full name and mentioning that you heard about this offer on the late-to-jazz blog, and you would like to have your free download of "Jazz Police". Send the e-mail to [gordongoodwinstreetteam@gmail.com]. They should send it out to you right away. I checked it out and this is for real and the song they are giving you is great stuff: kind of Dragnet and Mannix theme-song-ish, but for this century. Really cool. And keep in mind: This is free. I don't get a kickback for a certain number of downloads, and Gordon will not be coming over to mow my lawn. I'm doing it because I love Gordon's music, and Gordon's doing it, because, he wants you to experience his music, too. Give it a try. It won't hurt a bit, I promise.
This is all particularly timely as I've just signed up to play in one of the big bands at UAH, while also continuing with my Wednesday night ensemble. This is going to be a musically busy spring with lots to write about. I'm excited.
Keep it jazzy folks!
Folks, I was contacted by "Tiffany" from the Gordon Goodwin Street Team. They liked what I wrote about Gordon Goodwin's Big Phat Band's new recording, Act Your Age, so much, they decided to reward me by offering my readers free jazz music. All you have to do to get your free music is send an e-mail containing your full name and mentioning that you heard about this offer on the late-to-jazz blog, and you would like to have your free download of "Jazz Police". Send the e-mail to [gordongoodwinstreetteam@gmail.com]. They should send it out to you right away. I checked it out and this is for real and the song they are giving you is great stuff: kind of Dragnet and Mannix theme-song-ish, but for this century. Really cool. And keep in mind: This is free. I don't get a kickback for a certain number of downloads, and Gordon will not be coming over to mow my lawn. I'm doing it because I love Gordon's music, and Gordon's doing it, because, he wants you to experience his music, too. Give it a try. It won't hurt a bit, I promise.
This is all particularly timely as I've just signed up to play in one of the big bands at UAH, while also continuing with my Wednesday night ensemble. This is going to be a musically busy spring with lots to write about. I'm excited.
Keep it jazzy folks!
Thursday, January 1, 2009
Sustain: Not just a pedal on your piano
Happy New Year and welcome to the second calendar year of late to jazz. I've had the better part of the last two weeks off, so I've had a lot on my mind, and since it is the season to make resolutions, I thought I would start off with that.
Because I try to be a dynamic person who is not averse to change, I don't really make resolutions. All year round, I try to do things to make my life better or more interesting. An example: I started a new exercise routine (who hasn't), but, I started on December 12. That way, it isn't a new year's resolution, per se, and, it is easy to remember, having started on 12/12.
So, my resolution this year is simple: sustain. Keep my life going, keep my music going, keep learning and studying and listening and playing. Sustain. Maintain the good, let the bad get exfoliated from my life naturally.
That's it. You have my best wishes for a healthy and prosperous 2009, dear readers, and remember, if you have a few dollars to spend, either spend it or invest it in stocks (which are cheap right now). Our economy needs everyone's help.
Because I try to be a dynamic person who is not averse to change, I don't really make resolutions. All year round, I try to do things to make my life better or more interesting. An example: I started a new exercise routine (who hasn't), but, I started on December 12. That way, it isn't a new year's resolution, per se, and, it is easy to remember, having started on 12/12.
So, my resolution this year is simple: sustain. Keep my life going, keep my music going, keep learning and studying and listening and playing. Sustain. Maintain the good, let the bad get exfoliated from my life naturally.
That's it. You have my best wishes for a healthy and prosperous 2009, dear readers, and remember, if you have a few dollars to spend, either spend it or invest it in stocks (which are cheap right now). Our economy needs everyone's help.
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