Here’s an easy way to use the rich contour of the melodic minor scale to organize melodic material into 4ths moving from dominant to tonic. Take a look at the example above.
In the first measure I create two four-note shapes based upon the diatonic 4ths found in both a C major scale, and in a D melodic minor scale. You’ll notice there is no C# in this measure (the 7th degree of the D melodic minor scale, which is a strongly “defining” note). But the first note in the 2nd measure is a Db, which both sonically and functionally implies the D melodic minor. It also is the first note of a new scale, Ab melodic minor. (So the Db functions as a common “pivot” tone between both scales.)
Of course it is the Ab melodic minor that is rich in altered harmonic tensions over the G7 chord (specifically, -5/#11, +9, -13, -9). Yet this scale is organized into 4ths, as well, in order to continue the general shape and direction of the melodic line. Again, there is a common “pivot” note in measure 3 (the B natural, which also functions enharmonically as Cb, the third of the Ab melodic minor scale).
In the 3rd measure the shape changes slightly, with a descending version of the C maj7 chord. Then the 4ths emerge again (with a little variation between the F# and G) until the end. The general color of the line is a bit on the “modern” side because of the 4ths, but has enough familiar harmonic elements in it so that it can function quite well in a bebop or post bop context.
I often ask the following “trick” question to my students on the first day of class at the college where I teach the Alexander Technique:
“If one of my students is staring out the window with her eyes glazed over as I’m speaking to the rest of my class (who all seem to be engaged in the topic of conversation), would it be truthful to say that that particular student is paying attention?
Of course most of the students answer with a resounding “No”.
But I always seem to have that one deep-thinking student that disagrees. It’s always something like this:
“Oh she’s paying attention to something. She’s just not paying attention to what you’re saying.”
And that is entirely true.
Or as I often phrase it (if you’ll forgive my use of a “double negative”), “Whenever we are awake, we are never not paying attention.”
You see, as far as the functioning of you brain is concerned, as long as you’re awake, you’re paying attention to something. Always.
So during your practice session:
When you “daydream”, you’re paying attention.
When you’re wondering what you’re going to have for lunch, you’re paying attention.
When you remember something funny that happened yesterday, you’re paying attention.
When you get “distracted” by something (or “blank out” and forget that next phrase you should be able to play by memory), you’re paying attention…
So when you’re practicing your instrument, the question isn’t “Am I paying attention?”
The question is “What am I paying attention to right now?”
And perhaps a more important and constructive question would be, “How can I direct my attention right now to optimize my practice efforts?”
This might be a “where” question, as in “Where am I ‘placing’ my attention?”
Or it could be a “quality” question, as in “How would I describe the quality of my attention?” (Is it “narrow”, “diffused”, “focused”, “scattered”, “calm”, “agitated”, “disengaged”, “playful”, “curious”, to name a few…)
If your attention seems “focused”, you could further inquire, “Is my attention ‘exclusive’ and narrow, or ‘inclusive’ and expansive?”
In other words, is your attention broad enough and flexible enough to easily include noticing what you’re doing with yourself as you practice?(your balance, mobility, ease, breathing etc; what we refer to as your “use” in Alexander Technique jargon)
Or does your tendency to “focus” exclude your sense of what you’re doing with yourself?
Because if you can’t notice how you’re “using” yourself, you run the risk of developing habits of inefficient and even harmful movement patterns you’ll bring into your music making.
On the other hand, does your “focused” attention have you placing too much of your consciousness on the parts of your body that you think are most relevant to playing your instrument? (e.g., wind instrumentalists focusing almost exclusively on the embouchure)
If that’s the case, you might be interfering with the movement and postural mechanisms that work best with a little less direct conscious attention (not to mention making yourself less available to your expressive impulses with the music).
It’s all a matter of balance, isn’t it?
Too much, too little, too broad, too, narrow, too specific, not specific enough…
The key thing to remember is that the way you pay attention impacts how you react. How you react impacts how you learn, experience and express the music. (When I refer to “reaction”, I’m talking about posture, movement, balance, sensory perception, use of time and more.)
And most important of all, you have a choice in how you direct your attention.
So give a bit of your attention to “how you pay attention” as you practice, and discover and develop the attentional qualities that work best for you.
One of my favorite harmonic forms to improvise over (as well as to hear other musicians improvise over) is the well-worn jazz standard, “Out of Nowhere”. It just seems to be one of those songs that inspires creatively melodic improvisation. It has a beautifully symmetrical form, and the sharp harmonic/tonal contrasts emphasize this symmetry. It is for this reason that I decided to use this form to compose a solo that is purposefully “non-symmetrical”, yet still captures the essence of the time/harmonic form.
Mostly, this is a study in polymeter. There are numerous instances of 3/4 over 4/4. For example, take a look at the last two beats of measure 12 in the example above. This four-note eighth note pattern gets slightly altered tonally, then displaced by a quarter rest going into measures 13 and 14, creating a phrase sequence that implies this 3/4 over 4/4 polymetric tension.
There are other polymetric events throughout this etude, as well (including 5/4 over 4/4), for you to experience and analyze. Also, I occasionally use both suspension and/or anticipation of harmonic cadences to support the polymetric assymetry, creating lots of “over-the-bar” phrases.
And there is a nice rhythmic surprise (an implied metric/tempo modulation, via eighth-note triplets) in measures 45 through 48:
I’ve suggested a tempo for this particular etude (quarter note equals 132) mostly because I thought the contrasts between the eighth notes and triplets work optimally around that tempo, more or less. I suggest you practice this with the metronome in two ways: First with the click only on the first beat of each measure. Next, with the the click only on the second beat (back beat) of each measure. Both ways will give you a clearer feeling of the metric and rhythmic dissonance. Also, playing this over a backing track could really help you internalize the asymmetrical phrasing qualities as you hear them over the chord changes.
Pulse, rhythm, meter and feel. These are the essential components of time that musicians utilize to create music.
I’ve been nearly obsessed with exploring and better understanding how our perception of time impacts our music (including going deep into the science of how our brains perceive time). Even our most basic movement skills are coordinated through our sense of time.
Without time, there is no coordinated movement. None. And without coordinated movement, there is no music.
In every practice session I’m working on things that challenge and expand my sense of time. Again: pulse, rhythm, meter and feel. (I’ve even composed two eBooks with exercises in polymeter and multiple time subdivisions that document some of my explorations.)
One of the “staples” of my work with time is using multiple, simultaneous pulses; i.e., working with more than one tempo at a time (no pun intended). I usually do this either with metronomes and/or with drum grooves (I really like the Smartphone app Drum Genius for this!)
I’ve been working this way for several years now, and I continue to reap wonderful benefits from my efforts. If you haven’t practiced with multiple time sources, I highly recommend that you do so. Here’s why:
The three most palpable skills that you will cultivate from practicing with multiple tempos are:
1 Improved “precision” in your perception of pulse (steadier, more reliable sense of time)
2 Improved flexibility and adaptability in changing tempos (finding the “groove” more immediately and solidly; not getting “stuck” in certain tempo ranges)
3 The ability to actively and accurately “imagine” tempos nested within tempos (this is especially useful for improvising musicians!)
As you work this way you will also find that your technique becomes cleaner and more precise as well (though without losing the musical flexibility that is so important to expressive and dynamic playing).
Here’s a simple way to get started:
Begin by using two metronomes that have slightly different sounding clicks (this makes it easier for you to perceive of and integrate the two pulses).
Set one metronome at half notes, around 60 bpm. Set the second metronome at 2/3 the tempo of the first. So in this case, half notes at 40 bpm.
Find a simple scale or melodic pattern to practice, composed of quarters and/or eighth notes (again something simple). Start at the faster tempo and play the pattern a few times to embody the tempo as you “notice” the click of the slower metronome.
At a certain point, jump over to the slower metronome and play the same pattern at the slower tempo. Aim for embodying the new tempo as soon as possible. Once you feel that you’ve locked in the new tempo, switch back to the original tempo, and so on, moving back and forth between tempos.
Whichever tempo you are in, see that you are “hearing” (but not necessarily “listening to” the other metronome clicks).
The aim here at first is not so much being able to conceive of both tempos simultaneously, but rather that you can easily and readily switch between tempos.
Once you’re comfortable with all these activities, add another challenge. Perhaps it is to play a particular piece (etude, solo transcription, etc.) as you move back and forth between tempos. Or you can also add more rythmic complexity the original scale pattern you started with, using triplets, quintuplets, syncopation, etc.
If you’re an improviser, the next challenge could be improvising with the two metronomes. First, just improvise over a mode, scale, or simple riff, something devoid of a specific time/harmonic form. Once you feel solid doing that, improvise over a short, familiar harmonic form (maybe the blues?) And so on, again, adjusting the time/harmonic form to fit the new tempo.
When you get to the point where you’re able to function well in these two tempos, decrease the differences in time between the two metronomes. Maybe set one at half note at 60 and the other at half note at 45. You can continue to lessen the tempo differences until you get both metronomes at nearly similar tempos (say 60 bpm at one and 55 bpm at the other).
At whatever two tempos you’re working with, take some time to sit and listen (without playing) to how the two tempos eventually converge and make a singular, simultaneous click. Try to conceive of and anticipate this occurrence. Find the pattern.
And of course, you can also play around with different drum loops, perhaps exploring not only multiple times, but multiple feels and metered subdivision. For example I like working with the metronome clicking on half notes, while I add a drum groove in 4/4 that is subdivided into four, 3/4 patterns (12 beats over three measures).
If you’re truly brave and adventurous, you can add a third (or more?) time source.
If you continue to work this way, you will learn (as I have) to actually “hear and imagine” more than one tempo and subdivision simultaneously. As I’ve stated above this will not only make you a “stronger” musician (better reader, time keeper, etc.), but will open up amazing roads as an improviser, allowing you to create an abundance of rhythmic tension and release.
So give it a try. Have fun with it! Explore, learn. And grow as you do so!
