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Hi guys, im new on the forum. I Really love jazz guitar but dont find it comes easily.
If you wouldnt mind i have put two clips of my playing on a youtube channel Hi - YouTube
and im seeking advice on what you think needs improving.
I think my sound is not very modern but any suggestions on where I should go from here is appreciated as i feel as if im getting stuck.
Thankyou.
Simon.
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05-29-2024 08:38 AM
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It sounds pretty good.
mind if I ask, are you improvising the solo sections? It looks like you’re reading. Just curious
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Where do you think you're getting stuck? I think you sound good!
The "Exactly Like You" clip is maybe a little notey...I don't think your solo pauses for more than a beat. But you're capturing that kind of "old school swing" style quite well. Thought the Blues clip sounded great. Your time is also good, your lines sound confident.
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No im improvising on both videos.
Originally Posted by pamosmusic
Im looking at the chord progression its in front of me but you cant see it.
That said, ive drilled these licks so i can pull them out of the bag.Last edited by JazzwannaB; 05-29-2024 at 10:23 AM. Reason: Spellin
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Yes thats what i struggle with the space and letting things breath. I record myself to listen but its good to hear what others think because ultimatly its playing for someone to listen. Originally Posted by mr. beaumont
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Ah cool. Gotcha. Originally Posted by JazzwannaB
The stock answer you’re going to get is probably transcribing. And that’s the stock answer because it’s a good one.
Youve got a bit of a Charlie Christian vibe going on. Have you learned any of his solos?
There are lots written out, but learning them by ear is great for your ear with the improvising, and writing them down is great for forcing you to think about rhythm and space.
To Mr Bs point, that’ll help with space for sure, but also Charlie isn’t the most spacious of players. Probably an artifact of the time — not a lot of recording time means short tunes, short tunes mean one chorus max, and one chorus means he’s in it to win it.
There are other good guys to listen to (Grant green is always top of the list) but just singing lines is a good idea too. Wind players phrase more naturally because they have to breathe when they play so it doesn’t take long for phrases to start to conform to the length of a breath, for long phrases to feel a bit more urgent, etc. For guitar, piano, etc, it takes a lot more conscious effort
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Your ear, hands, form, and technique are good.
Maybe look at your vocabulary widening some.
Best way to do that's playing tunes with others.
...and welcome to the forum...
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I havent learned his solos note for note but i listen to him a lot. Just on spotify. Not sure what albums etc but i tend to lean towards that old time sound if you get what i mean. Originally Posted by pamosmusic
I will give it a go, maby work a few out. The singing the lines trick also helps but sometimes i know what in want to play but cant get it to come out on guitar. Suppose thats where the work comes in!
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Keep doing what you're doing and you'll be fine. If you want space, pause for an uncomfortable amount of time and then start again, that probably wasn't even a long enough pause. Bonus points if you do this on stage and your band who is used to you playing with no breaks thinks something is wrong and looks up.
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You sound good and seem at ease with the instrument.
One thing I noticed is you almost sound bored of your lines. You have practiced them a lot perhaps. How comfortable are you with going outside of these lines and making variations or even taking chances with what you hear in the moment? Can you easily access the notes that are available to you outside of your vocabulary in the context of each chord?
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Absolutely sounds proficient. To many, that's the goal to just become proficient. You have that down already. It would be just where you want to go from here. What do you want to improve on? 2 things I can think of are what the others said, you can add a bit more space, or you can work on vocabulary. You could also try adding chromaticism.
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Honestly not very. I could probably go around once more with different stuff but to keep going with on the spot stuff, no. Originally Posted by Tal_175
I think thats what im wanting is more vocabulary which actually outlines the chords in an interesting way.
What you think the best way to get at that is? Just transcribing stuff?
Bearing in mind ive only been at jazz for 2.5 years before that it was only minor pent blues type stuff with the standard 12 bar blues format.
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You play much better than me so I can't possibly be giving out any advice...
..having said so, I noticed("Exactly Like You") that while everything was nice and sharp, you target the 1.st degree of the key a lot.
Felt like it was your lick's magnetic point most of the time.
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Ah yes i see what you mean. ? Originally Posted by emanresu
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The best way to get out of diatonic playing is both transcribing or analyzing music for ideas; but also working out the raw material to be able to outline the changes: work the scales, arps, intervals, and chromatics.
Last edited by Bobby Timmons; 05-29-2024 at 02:45 PM.
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I like it
I will say only the textbooks are the records.
Listen carefully, steal and apply. Learn tunes. You’ll be fine.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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Um, there's the trouble with early attempts that people get kinda more comfortable with one certain thing. Originally Posted by JazzwannaB
Most often starting from a certain beat, or ending it on that, or doing a similar lick too often unchanged. Didn't notice that
with your playing. Just that 1st degree thing.
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Sounds good! You certainly don't need my advice!
Sound is good. Time is good. Playing has plenty of melodicism. I like what you're doing!
But, since you asked for ideas, a couple of things crossed my mind. Whether they're applicable to your goals is entirely up to you. I have no way of knowing where you're trying to get to musically.
1. There was plenty of melody, but there was also a hint of a scalar approach. That is, if you're going from a certain note to a target, you may tend to play a lot of the scale notes in between. I'd suggest leaving some out and trying to apply some sharp rhythms to the ones that you keep. Make every single note sound like a fully conscious choice in the service of the line you're playing with a cool rhythm. This is advice I often give to myself and then ignore.
2. This next item may sound too abstract. I apologize in advance. Think "Drama". Try to make the solos sound more dramatic.
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From reading your question and listening to the clips, I would say the real reason you're asking that question is because there is some kind of disconnect between the way you sound when you play and the way you would like to sound that is in your mind's eye, or ear, lol.
So I would say keep studying your theory and practicing, but also start studying the players who sound the closest to the way you would ultimately like to sound and start transcribing their licks. That way, you can gain insight into what they are doing to sound the way they sound and start incorporating some of those ideas into your own improv.
That being said, me personally, I would recommend getting away from the "licks based" mentality as soon as possible. Meaning copying a bunch of licks verbatim and then trying to regurgitate those licks when you improvise. Rather learn the 'concepts' that the players you like are using to create licks, learn those, and then you can utilize those same concepts to create your own fabulous licks that utilize jazz language and are maybe influenced by ABC players, but they are all you. Sure you learn some of their great licks, but use them as a starting point to create your own language, not as the be all end all that you just try and regurgitate over the changes when you should be freely improvising from your own soul.
As the others have mentioned, you sound good for someone at your level, and maybe a bit 'wordy', as others have mentioned. As an aspiring musician, you just have to accept the fact that there is no substitute for TOI. That means Time On the Instrument.
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