Lineage - It's Importance to Me

I am very fortunate. I grew up in a household where jazz was being played all of the time. I grew up on Zoot Sims, Lester Young, Coleman Hawkins, Sonny Rollins, Count Basie, Duke Ellington and Oscar Peterson and as I grew older my tastes expanded and I started getting into Dave Liebman, Joe Lovano, Steve Grossman, Bill Evans, Bob Brookmeyer, Michael Brecker and so many others.

I have been thinking quite a bit about influence, and lineage because my students are developping into players. I have a grade 9/10 big band that I lead in Ottawa. Every rehearsal I walk into the room, and ask "So what's everybody been listening to?" There are some great answers - Miles Davis - Nefertitti, Michael Brecker, the RH Factor, Arturo Sandoval, and so many other artists. I'll ask "Does anybody know who Johnny Hodges is? or Clifford Brown? or Don Byas?"

The answer is generally "no", except for my students - because listening is a huge part of my lessons, and I can even think it's unfair that I ask. Unless you grow up in a jazz household, you probably don't know a lot of the names that I would bring up - especially as a 13 or 14 year old who's just getting into the music.

I believe that it is important to know the lineage of your instrument - the players and the physical instrument itself, and the music.

The lineage of your instrument is important from the player standpoint, because you begin to hear the influence. You can understand why and how a player draws from the players before him/her. Listen to Lew Tabackin for not just the Coleman Hawkins, but the Don Byas and the Sonny Rollins in his sound, phrasing and lines. If you talk to players who are new to the soprano saxophone, they are indebted to John Coltrane, but what about Steve Lacy?

If you think of the history of an instrument, you can figure out why players played the way they did. Especially on the saxophone, the invention of left-hand pinky-rollers was a huge innovation. Before they were invented moving around that key cluster was very awkward. Have you ever owned a Buescher True Tone? That was one of the reasons for me to switch off of them. The ergonomics were awkward on that part of the horn. This is just one example. But you could relate that to the reason players from that period didn't spend that much time around that end of the saxophone.

Another point to touch on is style. How was an eighth note played in 1925? '45? '65? '85? today? What kind of vibrato was in style?

The reason that I think that lineage is so important, is because it creates an active listener. When you start understanding nuances in sound, rhythm, texture, etc. You integrate what you like into your playing concept and taking something from the greats can't hurt.

It's incredible to watch my students hear the influence another player has on another - they then find out what they want to sound like. They develop a concept for their sound. They feel time in different ways. To me, it all comes down to active listening.

What do you think about these clips? What do you like? What catches your ear? Can you hear the influence?

Body and Soul

Coleman Hawkins

Dexter Gordon

John Coltrane

Michael Brecker

Chris Potter

What do you like? What catches your ear? Can you hear the influence?

Open Scales

I have never enjoyed practising scales. I understand the purpose and their value (even tone, technical dexterity, rhythmic accuracy) but even with all of the positives, I still have a hard time enjoying eating my musical vegetables.

That is, until lately. This is definitely not a new discovery, but I have found a way to make the study of scales work for me. I've called it "Open Scales."

I take a scale and play it out of time. My goal is to create an interesting melody for myself by varying the rhythmic aspect. Essentially, I play each scale freely. The beauty is that I don't have to think about the notes (they are within the scale - moving step-wise). As I create different rhythms it feels like I'm playing a cadenza.

I have found that there have been many upsides to this kind of exercise. One thing that I've noticed is that I play scales for hours now. I'm simply finding scales more interesting. Since I am in total control of the exercises' flow, I feel more connected to each idea. Instead of just a set of notes, I am creating phrases.

I am also spending more time with the metronome. When a new idea emerges, I can develop it over the horn, and I push my technique differently. I feel like it's more practical. When I get an idea that doesn't execute cleanly, I hit the metronome. Now, I have goals!

Tone develops from another perspective as well. In particular, I am focusing on how intervals relate within a scale. For example "F" is the sixth of "Ab" and it sounds and feels very different when traveling to the seventh as opposed to the fifth.

Also related to tone is colour. I feel as if my spectrum has become broader. It's fulfilling to hear all of the different colours that are within a note and how they change from interval to interval. As I spend more time on this concept, I am gaining more control of the pallette, and realizing the potential of each phrase.

I have tried this with a few students as well. It's great fun and extremely to see what they come up with. It's a real study in perspective. I find myself grabbing a lot of ideas from my students - because it's fresh. I'm also seeing how creative my students can be.

Prior to starting this method of practising scales, I practised scales daily, with a metronome, full range, at various volumes, and with many different articulations. With incorporating this into my practise routine, I was looking for a new perspective that might enhance my enjoyment of an integral part of learning the horn.

Airport Travel

Many of us who travel frequently understand the risks of taking our instruments to an airport, but we also have experience in this matter and we usually, can come to an agreement with the airport employee that we are dealing with. I often have friends and students who are traveling for the first time that ask me what my experience is, and how I get by carrying my tenor or even baritone saxophone on an airplane.

Here's an example of a recent email -

I am a grade 10 music student and I play the alto saxophone, and my school band is travelling to England in April for a music competition. I was recently in a music store and had taken a look at some of the soft sided alto saxophone cases. My mom and I figured that they would be a lot lighter and more comfortable to carry around, but we were not sure if they would fit on the air plane as carry-on and we know how careful some of the people are when they load on luggage.

Based on the dimension given on the various websites, the cases are not considered carry-on. I was wondering if these cases would provide enough protection for my saxophone if it was checked baggage.

So if it was your instrument and it had to go underneath the plane with the checked baggage, would you feel comfortable with it in one of the soft sided cases, or would you stick with the standard wood / plastic case?

My answer -

Here's my experience in regards to flying.

I am a multi-instrumentalist (woodwinds) but primarily a tenor saxophonist. I carry my instruments in leather gig bags. The advantage - they are light and I can trek around pretty easily with more than one instrument. The disadvantage - they are soft and if I'm not careful, the instruments can get damaged very easily.

I fly quite frequently and I always carry my instruments on the plane (some exceptions - if I have my flutes and/or my clarinets, I have, but not always, stuck them in my luggage, or have shipped them). I even carry my bari sax on when I fly. My cases are larger than carry-on size, but I have never flown with them in cargo.

Now to your questions.

If it were my instrument, I would not go underneath into checked baggage. There is no option for me. My saxophones would be near impossible to replace (1931 Selmer Cigar Cutter tenor saxophone, 1930 Selmer Cigar Cutter alto saxophone, 1932 Cigar Cutter baritone saxophone). Any damage is signifcant damage, especially if I'm heading straight to a gig. So, my instruments never get flown in checked baggage.

I would not feel comfortable shipping a horn underneath the plane in a soft case. I know people who ship their horns in Protec, BAM, Walt Johnson (the older ones) and Hiscox cases. These cases are either soft on the outside and have a hard shell on the inside, or they are totally hard-shelled cases.

I would feel safer with one of the cases that I mentioned above, rather than a standard box case. The padding on the inside of those cases are (typically) more forgiving - meaning softer. I also find that they hold the saxophone more securely.

Now for my advice.

Try and carry your sax on the plane. Here's a list of things that you can do or think about.

Get a nice case. You never know what they are going to let you do at the gate. You need to be prepared.

Call the airport. Explain your situation. "I am a musician, traveling with a large group. I have an expensive saxophone that I would like to carry on the plane..." Take the name of the person that you speak with.

If you get a nice case with a shoulder strap. Carry the horn on your shoulder - it looks smaller.

Show up early, speak with the flight attendant.

Smile.

Be polite.

Even with all of the advice that I can give you, you still have to be prepared for anything. I have had success so far, but I am always ready for the answer that I don't want.

If you have any other questions, please feel free to contact me.

Cheers!

R

I know that the AFM (American Federation of Musicians') is currently trying to get a standardized set of guidelines to keep this issue from being a case-by-case basis. As far as I know, nothing has come of it yet. If anyone has any other experiences to share, or any advice, feel free to comment.

Too Early?

I have a student who's in grade six (I assume that she's 11 or 12 years old - I've never asked), and she's just started to play the flute (so far, we've developped the Bb and F major scales). In her last lesson, she asked me to teach her "Lester Jumps or something like that..." so I played the melody to "Lester Leaps In" and she perked up right away and exclaimed "that's the one!"

I wrote out the melody and gave it to her. We spent the rest of the lesson firming up the rhythm (she can play the notes consistently) and I sent her home. Her homework for the next lesson - memorize the tune.

I'm very excited that a student that is young has taken an interest in the music that I love. I've asked several other music teachers in the area what they think in regards to her age, experience and their teaching methods. I have gotten too basic responses - "too early" or "go for it!"

So, I ask teachers (in all subjects), parents and anyone else who has an opinion a few questions -

If a young student shows interest in a subject, do you acknowledge it?
If not, are you stiffling their creativity in any way?

Transcription - Joel Frahm - Pennies From Heaven (Chorus One)

I have been doing a lot of lifting lately, and therefore, quite a bit of intense listening. One saxophonist that has caught my ear is Joel Frahm. I had the opportunity to chat with Joel while he was in Ottawa (unfortunately, I missed both his shows for my own gigs, but caught him afterwards). Super nice guy! He even tried my new horn (Selmer Cigar Cutter Tenor - I love it!).

This transcription, from Sorry, No Decaf, grabbed my attention because of the phrasing of the melody, and because of Joel's inside-outside breaks (check out bars 15-16 and 31-32). As far as
I've heard, the trio (Joel Frahm - tenor sax, Doug Weiss - bass, Matt Wilson - drums) play over the standard changes, but I'll update that as I move through the rest of the solo.





As I was transcribing this, I went through the first few times in real time, and I caught quite a bit of it. Then I put the solo through Transcribe! which helped me out. I found that the intro was harder to write down than to play. The 6/4 bar drove me crazy (I kept trying to figure it out in 4/4), but overall pretty straight ahead. Frahm's use of space in the next couple of chorus' have been fun to figure out, but they're not quite ready to go. I'll post them soon.

Practising - One

A few months ago, my girlfriend, Val (follow her here), and I decided to buy a house. This has given me more time to practise than I have ever had (since college). Living in the apartment was not condusive to practising, because I have always had neighbours who have complained (not that it ever stopped me from practising, but I did put less hours in). Now that I can practise when I please I am finding more and more holes in my playing - particularly in my technique.

I have always focused on my sound. Long tones, soft and loud, bent and straight, with or without vibrato - I have always been obsessed with sound and tone. Check out Andrew White's Four Hour Warm-Up. Don Englert turned me on to that one. Technique, however, has always gone to the wayside. I have always gotten by, but just, and now the more I want to execute, the more frustrated I have become.

So, the remedy....I have started adapting Czerny's School Of Velocity from piano to saxophone. These set of exercises are brilliant, and suit the saxophone quite well. I'm finding that they force me to use the palm keys and the altissimo register. This mobility is the challenge I've been looking for!

When I practise, there are several elements of my playing that I'm working on.

Tone and air support - these exercises are written for the piano. There are not many places for the saxophonist to breathe. I have been omitting a note here and there to make sure that I can keep full support and a good sound.

Articulation - I play everything with the "jazz" articulation (ta-tee-ah-tee-ah). To make sure it swings. Practical application is a concept that I cherish.

Time - Metronome starts at 40bpm on beats two and four. No questions, until it's perfect.

Keys - each study gets transposed through every key. I do this at sight. I feel this is an important skill because A) it forces me to think about what's coming next, B) the study becomes internalized much quicker, because I can't read it, and C) sight transposing is a necessary skill - have you ever worked with a singer? (Sorry - had to do it.)

These (in my mind) are the keys to making any exercise or set of exercises practical. I'm finding that I'm getting around the horn much more comfortably, and hopefully, the technique will start to show in a few weeks. I learn slowly - it usually takes a few weeks, or sometimes even a month before my practising exposes itself at a gig.

You can find the Czerny book here, and from my research, it IS public domain, so feel free to download it.

The Trio

Every Tuesday night, for the last twenty seven Tuesdays (except for one), my trio of Philippe Charbonneau (bass), Matt Aston (drums) and myself have performed at the Avant Garde Bar. This residency has allowed us to explore each other's musical boundaries and has created one of my favourite groups that I have ever worked with.

I'm blogging about the trio, and specifically Phil and Matt, because they make my job easy. Yes, all of the compositions are mine, and yes, the group has my name on the banner, but it is far from my group. We work as a cohesive unit - a collective. This makes the music, to me, much more fulfilling.

Phil was the first bassist I worked with when I moved to Ottawa in June of 2008. We played my original compositions (at the Avant Garde, no less) in a quartet setting (Kelsey McNulty was the pianist, and Patrick Sénécal was the drummer). Phil hooked me up with a bunch of great players - Zakari Frantz, Olivier Fairfield, Linsey Wellman, Mike Essoudry, Thomas Posner, Kelsey McNulty and so many others. Phil always has great arrangement ideas, and creates a huge amount of spontaneaty in the group. He keeps me on my toes.

Matt turned down my first gig...but he has helped me move a few times, so I guess he's alright. I have played more with Matt than any other musician in the last two years. Matt has been part of almost every small group that I have put together. He will be with my Large Views Ensemble and a few other projects that I have coming up. Matt provides a great support for both Phil and I to explore. He seems to push us at just the right time or he lets us go where we feel. My favourite part about Matt's playing is his dynamic range. He knows when the group needs to shift gears. He gets inside of my tunes and there's a huge trust factor when it comes to our interaction.

With both of these incredible musicians, the music is a lot of fun, challenging and explorative.

At the beginning of October, we're heading into the studio (for the first time with this group), to record the trio's debut album. If you're ever in the Ottawa area on a Tuesday night, check out the trio for a preview of what you'll hear on the upcoming release.

Coming Up This Year

My life never feels like it has a definite year end (or beginning for that matter), I have always felt that the best place for me to start is in September. I love the fall, school is in, it starts getting really busy for me with students and gigs - this is my new year. I love this time of year. So much inspiration.

I have to alert you to some projects coming up over the next several months.

My Large Views Ensemble will become active again after about a year off. We're coming back with a new look. I've pared down the group to allow for some more freedom. This ensemble is made up of my trio (Philippe Charbonneau - bass, Matt Aston - drums and cymbals) and a string quartet (led by Elizabeth St-Cyr - more on her in another post). Keep your eyes open for a show and possible recording in November.

The Nonet will be back this winter as well. This group has been on an even longer break. A show with brand new material is being written currently. I`m really excited about bringing a bunch of my favourite musicians back to the stage and performing large group music together again.

As always, look out for my trio. We play every Tuesday night at the Avant Garde Bar. Come check us out. Each week, I`m bringing more original material and the group is getting more creative with every show. We`ve been performing at the Avant Garde for a steady six months now.

More projects are in the works, so keep coming back for more news! If you`re ever looking for any more information regarding the happenings in the blog, you can contact me through my website.

Fun With An Old Friend

The last two weeks have been fairly hectic for me (not that I'm ever totally relaxed, but still). Life changes, new groups and everything inbetween.

A couple of the highlights involved a friend that I hadn't seen in half a year. In fact, I didn't even realize that he was in town until he called me for a gig on June 2nd.



Pianist Nick Maclean. One of my favourite players to work with and a really great hang. Nick and I met a few years ago in a band led by Jim Lewis at the Ottawa International Jazz Festival. Nick was playing trombone, and I tenor sax and clarinet. We didn't talk much, but I remember him playing the piano before rehearsals. A few months later we met (again) through singer Renée Yoxon and we did quite a bit of playing and a some recording (I may dig a few of those recordings up and post them). At this time, I was settling in Ottawa, and Nick was heading to Humber College.

That more, or less brings us up to date. Nick called me for a gig and I jumped at the chance to work with him again. Lately, I have been working with my trio (almost exclusively) and haven't played with any chord players - I couldn't have been more excited for a change of pace. A duet. Just saxes and piano. And as little sheet music as possible.

Nick and I started off the gig as if we'd never stopped playing together. Right from the first note we were able to push each other. Not pushing so much that we were uncomfortable, but pushing enough to keep each other on our collective toes. Nick brought a great arrangement of the theme from Star Trek and the rest of the night (except maybe one or two) were great standards. We've decided to spend a little more time learning each others' originals and we're hoping to get in to record around August.

The next week, I was able to catch Nick's trio (with Donovan Bullen and Mike McNeil) and that trio was incredible. It reminded me of a Monty Alexander album Montreux Alexander. I was fortunate enough to sit in with the group for the second set and the group was so easy to play with. Great interaction, great swing, great sound.

If you can catch Nick somewhere in Ottawa this summer, make sure you do - you won't be sorry. And make sure you look out for any news regarding the upcoming recording!

My New Horns

A fellow saxophonist, Linsey Wellman, turned me on to Ellery Eskelin and his blog (view it here). In a recent post, Ellery talks about getting his Buescher Big B tenor restored, and how much he loves it.

I have to admit that this was the first time that I had ever had Ellery Eskelin play - he`s a great! I love his tone! And his ideas! I`ll have to try to grab a lesson with him.

Linsey and I were talking about that blog post in particular, because I recently made a major purchase...FIVE saxophones. Four (curved soprano, alto, tenor and baritone) are Buescher True Tones (the model that preceded the Big B - which is the horn that Ellery Eskelin has had restored) and one Rudolph Wurlitzer (c-melody), which happens to be a Buescher stencil from the same time period. Five matching horns that play beautifully.

Here`s the story behind the acquisition of the four True Tones.

I have played several different models of saxophones over the last few years. I`m a little bit crazy when it comes to gear. Not so much that it gets in the way of my practise time, but in that 4am kind of crazy. I like to drool over eBay late at night after a gig and think of ways to acquire horns and mouthpieces and many other saxophone, flute and clarinet paraphernalia.

My first horn was a vintage Borgani tenor that I loved, but I couldn`t get over the keywork. It was a very uncomfortable horn for me to play on - my wrists were constantly sore. I sold that horn about three years ago on eBay.

After that, I had a Selmer Series II, a Selmer Mark VI, and up until recently, a Yamaha Custom Z. These are the tenors that I have owned. I`ll focus on that, since it`s my main horn.

Through all of these horns, I promised myself that if I ever found a set of nice old horns, I would get them.

A few weeks ago, I started looking, not particularly planning on finding anything, but just simply seeing what was out there, and a set of Buescher horns was for sale in Nova Scotia. This was Sunday night.

Monday morning at 11am, my Yamaha Custom Z tenor and my Custom EX soprano were sold! I, for the first time in my career did not own a single saxophone.

Friday morning, I flew down to Nova Scotia, tried the horns (the man who sold me the horns was incredibly welcoming) and flew back that afternoon.

After working on the baritone, alto, and tenor, I am happier than ever. The soprano needs a total repad (this will come over the next few weeks). You can check out the tune `You Do Something To Me` on the Reverbnation player. That`s the new bari. I`ll post more tunes in the next few days.

The horns are different from the modern horns in many ways. The keyword of the older horns is said to be clumsy. In regards to this comment, I find the horns different, but not difficult to get around the horn on. Also, tuning is not as locked in. I find this to be true. I do have to focus a little more on pitch, but it makes life interesting. One thing I do miss from the new horns is the front F key. I can always put one on, but I`m sure I`ll find a way around it. If anyone has suggestions, let me know.

A really positive aspect of the Bueschers is the tone! Big, fat, round and yet still totally flexible. I still sound like me. I love that!

I have a day off tomorrow, so more work on the horns (from a practising and tech side of life)!

Cheers!

Rich

Welcome!

Hi Everybody!

Thank you for checking out my blog. I will be posting (hopefully regularly) my thoughts and questions from my world of jazz and woodwinds.

Cheers!

Rich