keith jarrett on melody

[jancivil]

Another great thread that could go in many directions.

I've often thought that having a formal musical training may often constrict a composer's thought processes; their training conditions them to think in only certain ways, whereas a composer without formal training does not have these mental constraints and is thus freed to think more creatively. Of course that can mean they also don't have the tools with which to expand their ideas.

You have to learn everything you can enough to forget it.

in other words:
the thing which is restricting, in my view, is a level of naming or analysis during the process, which has a whole host of aspects including 'is this correct' to get in your way. If you really understand, say 'voice leading' or the wider implications of extending a sonority vertically, you don't have to think too much, you have some things at hand as more automatic, or impulsive choices.


about finger or hand music. I am getting back to my real instrument, guitar, with some normative things in mind as a springboard. 'blues', let's say. so, there are things which are useful my hands know to do, but I can't be lazy and let the fingers do the walking, so the thing is to sing it, if only in my head, as I go.

[Jay Sherman]

about finger or hand music. I am getting back to my real instrument, guitar, with some normative things in mind as a springboard. 'blues', let's say. so, there are things which are useful my hands know to do, but I can't be lazy and let the fingers do the walking, so the thing is to sing it, if only in my head, as I go.

the instrument should just be an extension of your body no different than your voice. You should be able to play one note/chord and then just play on the instrument whatever pops into your head.

[jopy]

of course, with jarrett there is always the singing what you play (too much so, for my tastes--can't he point those mics away from his tweedle-eeting along?). it's forgivable to my ears though, because it's clear that a vocal melodic concept is always part of his approach.

[Cordelia]

"Nothing is what I want, a true zen saying..." Dummy Up/Frank Zappa


the mechanics of operating an appliance such as an instrument can really replace using your ear; some people just play fingerings, basically. I would say to sing melody before playing or at least during 'invention'. Find phenomena in the sonority and reveal these.

Great post.
So many threads here- "I've got this 8 bar loop, what comes next?" And I always think, well what do you imagine comes next? I don't know how anyone can complete a track without imagining the melody first.
Imagine and listen. The melodies will reveal themselves.
I've been teaching a lot of guitar lately. I always ask my students to sing a riff before they play it. It is the one request that always gets a defensive response.
Confusing. Maybe a defense against the fear that they'll discover no music inside of them?

[beauchamp]

there is always the singing

Love it.



beauchamp

[deastman]

the instrument should just be an extension of your body no different than your voice. You should be able to play one note/chord and then just play on the instrument whatever pops into your head.

Yes, but the point (as I understand it) is to not just randomly play every note that pops into your head at that instantaneous moment. Rather, you should thoughtfully work out the entire melody in advance. Personally, I tend to use a hybrid of the improvisational and planned methods. I'll start by improvising over a chord progression for 20-30 minutes, using both my fingers default patterns and listening to what I hear in my head. Slowly, I'll begin honing in on the "ultimate melody" which best encapsulates what I want to say.

[jopy]

there is always the singing

Love it.



beauchamp

Simultaneously--LMAO and thinking this is EXACTLY what a jazz trio is supposed to do.

[Ogg Vorbis]

Great post.
So many threads here- "I've got this 8 bar loop, what comes next?" And I always think, well what do you imagine comes next? I don't know how anyone can complete a track without imagining the melody first.
Imagine and listen. The melodies will reveal themselves.
I've been teaching a lot of guitar lately. I always ask my students to sing a riff before they play it. It is the one request that always gets a defensive response.
Confusing. Maybe a defense against the fear that they'll discover no music inside of them?

{yoda} Face your silence, you must. Hear the next phrase, you will.{/yoda}

[rp314]

Another great thread that could go in many directions.

Indeed, some of these posts made me reflect on various challenges facing creative musicians. For example, it's possible to suggest that none of the greats ever really "created" that much. It's typically their ability to take the "unusual" and successfully develop their craft that makes them interesting. Zappa, Monk and others were often accused of lifting ideas from fellow musicians and lesser known artists. Although not indicative of their important contributions, for example, the John Cage quote he himself at least once attributed to Antonin Artaud; also the practice of humming or singing while playing during a recording I believe was first done by Glenn Gould. But in all cases the elements that are "borrowed" somehow seem to become integral to the artist's own thing.

To me the process is, for lack of a better term, dialectical. On one end is the intellectual study and on the other intuition/improvisation. Hopefully, those two forces meet up in some middle point in a nicely finished work. Often, however, the results are likely to be more on one end or the other, although that's not necessarily bad.

We don't determine the scope of what we do, of course, but one's bias is that by reflecting and working on these things we are more likely to do well than would otherwise be the case.

[flowdesigner]

I'm discovering it, not writing it.

Cool!

[wrench45us]

also the practice of humming or singing while playing during a recording I believe was first done by Glenn Gould

intentionally?

there are Monk recordings where he's humming softly -- almost more growly than singing

caused a friend and me a little distraction trying to figure out what it was
once we had a good enough sound system to hear it

again not sure if it was intentional -- or just in the moment

[flowdesigner]

the instrument should just be an extension of your body no different than your voice. You should be able to play one note/chord and then just play on the instrument whatever pops into your head.

But you have totally different ideas if you compose classic rock on a overdriven guitar. There are a lot of ideas that just work in the context of the instrument its performed on and the sound of the compostion as a whole

[Dunbar]

Thnaks for posting that quote jmeier - i've found it reasuring. Now i can get back to staring at my keyboard without feeling guilty.

[beauchamp]

humming

Then there's Errol. Totally out to lunch.



beauchamp