Impro Lesson 14/12/12

Today we were getting filmed for the work that we've done today. Being honest i thought it was a bit all over the place, it was winged! you could hear people have done their home work, especially Donal the bas player. 

The problem for me was that we didn't have out structures down and that made the song hang out far too much in my opinion. It also didn't give a chance to scat, there were seven of us, all taking a solo, it must have been tough for the people watching especially if your waiting to film your part.

I feel a little bit guilty as i want part of last weeks lesson because of family commitments that made it difficult for me to attend. However i do feel the band could have mapped this out and got the structure together so it was clear, maybe it was just me, probably was but this could have a lot better and there is so much to do before we play this for exams. 

watching the other bands it seems there may be an recurring theme running through here.... I'm unsure how prepared people are! I'm a little confused with jazz and improvisation... to me it means improvising over a set structure or as near to it, i know there doesn't need to be any real rules but you need a rough agreement of what your going to improvise over! I could be wrong this is something i need to speak to Robin about.

THE SCATTING - I totally failed in getting this in, i did a good bit of research on this and thought i would be comfortable doing it but the unexpected long solos over the song sent me in to the direction of hiding in the song... so disappointed however at least there is room for improvement.. i really want to do this and make it work... preparation is the key...

1. we need to get the structure down - an agreement of what we will be doing, who will be taking the solo when and where!
2. Know your part - get chops or licks together to to fire into the mix and know the scales and modes of the songs, be able to rhyme them off.
3. Make mistakes work - improvise over it try something new if it is a dissonant note then slide it up or down to the next note that works.
4. link in with No2 - Know the key!
5. Practice - We need to get time together and practice, to make this really good we need to be on top of it!
6.Practice on your own - Know your dam part! get chops and licks together... make the impression.
7. break the song down into sections - if your struggling with a part then know what you need to do by stripping it back and practicing that part until you get it right then join it up with the rest.
8. Think about the performance - keep your eyes open and look around at your band members, know what is coming next.
9. Have Cues - myself and Steven do this really well, we know how we are going to end things, we know when its time and we orchestrate it in a split second, and take the guys to the end.
10. Get Comfy - after doing your homework and working with people who know their parts relax and enjoy the show.