As you can see and hear from these examples, the swing eighth note is generally played quite legato. On different instruments, swing eighths to be rendered in different ways using different techniques (i.e. swing eights on trombone make use of legato tonging, while on saxophone you can stick to true legato), but if you look at the list below, and the various instruments the artists play, the common thread is a legato eighth note.
Historical Context
Another important aspect to remember in our discussion is historical context. If you listen to players from earlier eras (anything pre Be-Bop) they tended to play with much more of a “lilt” or a more pronounced triplet-feel to their eighth notes. If you are playing music from an earlier era, you could definitely have your ensemble approach the eight note with a more pronounced “bounce.” But its important to note that contemporary improvisers tend to play a much “straighter” eight note feel than their predecessors, generat- ing the swing feel via the use of accents.
In ensemble passages (like saxophone soli or an ensemble shout chorus) have the players actually sing their parts along with the rhythm section, concentrating on the rhyth- mic feel, and ensuring that the eighth notes really swing.
Once you get your instrumentalists playing with a better eighth note feel, another area where you can offer them some direction is where they start their phrases while they are improvising. What I hear most often from less experi- enced improvisers are phrases that start in the same place every time. This usually ends up being on the first two downbeats of the first bar of an even phrase structure (2, 4, 8 measure phrase). To assist your students, have them practice singing a line that starts on the “and” of one, the “and” of two and beat three, then have them play the line on their instruments.
Example 6
There are other critical factors that play into a musician’s time feel, including phrasing, accents, rhythmic groupings, pacing, and many, many others. Hopefully we can address those at another time.
Listen Up
Finally, I would be remiss if I did not mention the impor- tance of listening, imitation and assimilation of this mate- rial AURALLY. It’s truly the only way to absorb and then impart this information to your students. I highly suggest transcribing a few of the following artists who have very distinctive rhythmic concepts and who are all fine ex- amples of artists who have fantastic and individual “swing eighth” feels. Playing along with them is the true path to understanding what a great swing feel actually FEELS like. Many scholars argue that the swing feel cannot be notated accurately, and I tend to agree. Hence, the only way to advance in this area is by active listening.
Here is a very abbreviated list of players who I think have a great time feel on their instruments, and whose concept of the swing eighth note are closely aligned with the concepts outlined above. Investigate some of their recordings, play- ing selections for your ensembles, and analyze what makes their eighth notes swing and groove as a group.
Joe Henderson Sonny Rollins Charlie Parker Lee Konitz Dexter Gordon Herbie Hancock Wynton Kelly Bud Powell Sonny Clarke Kenny Dorham Woody Shaw
I hope you are able to get something out of this article. If you have any specific questions I’d be happy to address them. You can find me at my website:
www.andrewrathbun.com.
Dr. Andrew Rathbun is the Professor of Saxophone and Jazz Studies at Western Michigan University.
Originally from Example 7
Toronto, Canada, Rathbun lived in Brooklyn, NY for many years and has performed with nu- merous jazz luminaries. He has re- leased 12 CDs as a leader and is an extremely prolific composer as he consistently creates new projects that include multiple art disciplines including dance, art and poetry.
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