jazz education
nailed it, and had a blast. And transcrip- tions need not be written out at first (or at all); aural transcription is arguably more beneficial, and I always suggest commit- ting the solo to memory before going to paper. For the more advanced, writing out transcriptions for analysis and thievery is the next logical step.
The six-bar phrase in Example 1 is taken from the beginning of the third chorus of Wynton Kelly’s solo on “I’ll Close My Eyes,” recorded in 1960 on Blue Mitch- ell’s Blue’s Moods. Notice Kelly’s use of chord tones. He starts on 5 ˆ before descending through 1
3
ˆ , decorates ˆ , 6
ˆ , and a
chromatic passing tone (A-flat) before landing again on 5
ˆ in the next measure.
From there, notice he targets chord tones on beats one and three in mm.2-4 and the first beat of m.5. And in mm.5-6, he plays the minor triad with a passing tone (G) between 3
ˆ and 5
feature of this passage is Kelly’s use of the inverted diminished scale1
ˆ . The other notable , beginning
on the “+” of beat three in m.2. Finally, the two chromatic pitches Kelly uses in the first two bars over an Fmaj7 are the flat 3
ˆ (a prominent blue note) and the previously-mentioned chromatic passing tone between 6
ˆ and 5 ˆ .
With a better idea about the structure un- derpinning this phrase, we can begin the process of making this idea our own by transforming it. The first transformation is to retain the same basic shape, loca- tions of chord tones, rhythm, and length, but start the idea on a different chord tone (see Example 2 on previous page). Think of it as moving the whole idea up or down a “notch.”
Example 2 retains many of the general characteristics that describe example 1, but the details have changed. Most notice- ably, I start in a different part of the chord (1
ˆ rather than 5 ˆ ), and because I followed
the same contour as the original, the pitch sequence is completely different in mm. 1-2.
Measures 3-4 contain the same ascending scale, but the metric placement has shifted. Another way to transform the idea is to start on a different beat (see Example 3 on previous page).
By starting on the “and” of beat three, the metric emphases slightly shift and the ascending scale gets cut short in order to maintain the original phrase ending. By combining the two variation methods, it would take a pretty savvy detective to figure out where you stole the idea.
Note:
1. An inverted diminished scale is an octatonic collection which alternates between half steps and whole steps, beginning with a half step.
Mathew Buchman is a pianist, composer and director of jazz studies at UW-Stevens Point. Email:
mbuchman@uwsp.edu
Wisconsin School Musician
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