Friday, October 21, 2011

Uptempo Jazz part 2: Karriem Riggins



I know that there are lots of people out there who struggle with playing uptempo jazz like I am.  So I am going to make these uptempo jazz posts a series to help everyone by showing my approach to learning this extremely challenging musical style. 

Staying Relaxed
For me the basic challenge with playing uptempo jazz is that the tempo puts such a strain on my technique that it causes me to tense up.  When I am tense, it is impossible for me to think creatively, and so my playing becomes stiff, unresponsive, and awkward.  In other words, instead of hearing and responding to the two songs of jazz, I get a kind of tunnel vision where all I can focus on is what I am playing. 

Developing uptempo vocabulary
In order to develop my technique to the point where I don't have to focus on what I am playing and can instead listen and be responsive, I have been working on emulating the comping of some of my favorite uptempo drummers.  As I mentioned in my earlier post on developing uptempo vocabulary, Kareem Riggins's playing on "Caravan" from the Ray Brown Trio's "Live at Starbucks" in one of my current favorite uptempo play along tracks. 


At (2:03) listen for Kareem's whip-crack response to Geoffrey Keezer's statement.  Here is a transcription of the comping pattern he uses:
Uptempo Karriem

There are four sections in this transcription, and I want to talk a little bit about each one.

1.  Isolated comping rhythm
The first section is an isolated, singular example of the comping rhythm.  This is where I will start my practicing.  The first thing I will do is play this comping rhythm at a range of tempos, for example starting at quarter note=85 bpm, then going to half note= 85 bpm, and then finally whole note=85 bpm, focusing on relaxation, control, and really hearing the rhythm.



Once I feel totally comfortable playing this rhythm through this range of tempos, I will try to play it while singing the melody of "Cherokee" (video coming).

2.  Musical context
This leads me to the second section which is a transcription of the rhythm of Geoff Keezer's solo.  Keezer himself has a remarkably deep rhythmic vocabulary which often shows up in his solos.  However, the main point here is to emphasize where in the form this comping rhythm shows up.  Since this rhythm is played towards the end of the form as a kind of climax/transition to the next chorus, when I am playing it while singing "Cherokee" I will put it into more accurate context by only playing it at the end of each 16 bar section (I will try to post videos of me doing both of these steps some time in the near future).

3.  Longer phrases
The next section shows Karriem's comping in rhythm in more context, and also shows how he links this rhythm together into a great over-the-barline pattern.  More specifically this is a six quarter note phrase operating in a 4/4 setting.  In order to get this physically comfortable I will practice this longer seven bar phrase the same way I practice the first section. 

4.  Musical dialogue
The final section shows how the rhythms of Keezer and Karriem intersect.  This is a fascinating study in and of itself.  It sounds to me like Karriem's over the bar line phrasing was inspired initially by what Keezer was starting to do, and then this in turn encouraged Keezer to take his own rhythms in an over-the-barline direction, but in the heat of the moment anything could have motivated them.  The important thing is that they are clearly listening to each other and the result is a gloriously intertwined rhythmic dialogue.  Notice for example how Keezer anticipates that Karriem will want to fill the last bar of the form to clearly mark the transition to the next chorus, and stays out of his way. 

Practice philosophy
In general when learning vocabulary at any tempo setting, I find it helpful to think about not only what a drummer played, but why and where they played it as well.  In other words, thinking about the broader musical context that stimulated the rhythmic response, not only the response itself.  I then try to get as close as possible to simulating this musical setting in my practicing to prepare myself to make good musical decisions when I get into a similar situation.


4 comments:

  1. I'm sorry but... I have been a professional musician for more than 15 years and I still find nearly ALL up-tempo jazz to be completely unlistenable garbage that falls under the category of "just because you CAN play it... doesn't mean you SHOULD." And yes, I CAN play it... I just typically don't find it to be musical at ALL. And as a side note... I find that many of the jazz uninitiated tend to think of this type of jazz when they imagine jazz at all... which is why so many people find jazz unappealing and are turned off by it. Don't get me wrong... I LOVE jazz and am very schooled in it as well but... I generally think that, if you CAN NOT sing back what you have played, it is NOT musical. And music should be listenable, not math... or a sport. I find that just about everything above 300 bpm is nothing but sport playing which I personally find to be anti-musical. Disagree with me as you will but... music should NOT be difficult to listen to.

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    1. Thanks for sharing your perspective! I appreciate you taking the time to respond to my posts.

      I agree that there is a lot of bad uptempo jazz out there, but I don't think I would go so far as to say nearly all. Three musicians that spring to mind immediately as counter-examples would be Charlie Parker, Sonny Rollins, and Ray Brown. All three could play blistering uptempo stuff that still retained an incredible degree of musicality. There are lots of other examples that we could talk about as well, but those are three that really stick out to me.

      I also totally agree that music shouldn't be a sport. But I think because of the incredible bar set by musicians like the ones I mentioned above, there will always be a non-sport related reason/inspiration for jazz musicians to try to learn to play this way. Because of musicians like Charlie Parker, there is no reason to think that playing extremely fast HAS to be exclusively athletic or unmusical. And having access to this range of tempos can add a particular kind of energy and vitality to jazz music (if done correctly of course).

      I agree that lots of inexperienced audiences who really do not enjoy uptempo jazz (myself included initially). But I also think that there is a place for music that challenges audiences. Very often in the history of music great innovations were initially received with disdain and sometimes outright hostility. Eventually though these same innovations became standard practice, embraced and loved by audiences everywhere. I believe that to some degree, the crazy tempos of Bebop are one of those innovations.

      That being said, I don't think music should be made exclusively for the purpose of challenging audiences. That to me seems artificial. The question in my mind is always, "is the musician/composer really hearing this?". That is, is this a honest musical expression, a genuine attempt to communicate? I know that that standard may seem a little vague, but it is the best I can do. And in the case of uptempo jazz, I think that all the musicians I listed are examples of really hearing what they are playing.

      In any case, thanks for checking the blog out, I look forward to hearing more from you.

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  2. Regardless of your opinion of the musicality of uptempo jazz, as a professional drummer you will, without a doubt, have to play up tempo tunes on gigs from time to time. That is reason enough to explore the subject.

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