Getting started in Improv-part 1

As a teacher, I often look around and wonder how I can make learning music not necessarily easier, but more accessible to younger or newer students. As a fan of jazz and a student myself of the art of improvisation, getting started in improv seems to be the largest hurdle for any student I've ever known. Once a person gets past the initial stage, it seems like the only thing that can stop a person is their own personal drive to succeed. With that being said, what will follow is a series of post that most succinctly discuss the initial foray into improvisation.

The steps included in this post are:

1. Develop your sense of swing


2. Develop rhythmic ideas


3. Learn your scales

Step 1 - Develop your sense of swing

This to me cannot be emphasized enough. The ability to hear swing and reproduce it on your instrument is critical, no matter what instrument you play. Let me explain. Swing is derived from the articulation of the eighth note. A scale in eighth notes played with a "concert" articulation (I hate the term "legitimate") could be written like this:





If you were to swing the scale with jazz articulation, you would create something like this:





Just that one note change creates a whole new feel. Shifting the slur one note to the right puts a slight accent on the "an" of the beat, which is the essence of the swing style. A colleague of mine, whom I respect as a knowledgeable jazz educator, uses the term "back-accenting" to describe this form of jazz articulation. From my own experience, back accenting in certain ranges of my instrument is easier than others. The goal of any person developing their sense of swing should be to maintain a consistent articulation style from the lowest pitches to the highest.

So, what can you use to practice back accenting? I would say almost anything, provided you are able to separate the times when it's appropriate to back accent versus concert articulation. Etude books, all 12 major scales, and songbooks are all full of opportunity to acquire proper jazz articulation. When you practice, use some kind of metronome. I have a regular Dr. Beat, a CD Metronome (which can be found at www.paulcarman.com/store/home.php) and my trusty Band in a Box computer program. All of these tools and more can be used to help develop your sense of swing.



Step 2 - Develop your rhythmic ideas


For this step, listening is key. Listen to recordings, and I mean any recordings, not just jazz. Listen to your favorite band. Listen to the rhythms they use in their songs and try to sing them back. Than play those rhythms on your instrument. Play the rhythms on a single pitch or a scale fragment. WRITE THEM DOWN! A lot of people seem to think that since improv is music that isn't pre-written, you should never have to write. That is completely inaccurate. Writing down rhythms has multiple benefits. You internalize a rhythm more if you write it down, and you become more selective about your rhythmic choices. Another tool that you could use for this, besides the CD metronome and Band in a Box, is the Aebersold Play Along Volume 24 Major and Minor. By the way, I'm not getting paid to mention these products, I'm just sharing what tools I've used myself.



Step 3 - Learn your scales


Oh no, the dreaded "S" word. Scales!!! Yep, that's right, you got to learn your scales. Start with the major scales and learn each one, there's 12 total. I would start with one octave up and down (no need killing yourself playing more than that right now). Be sure to monitor your articulation while you play. Check to make sure you're back accenting throughout the scale. In addition to learning the scales, learn the key signatures by heart. You may even want to make some kind of flash cards to quiz yourself when you're not playing your instrument.



Final Thoughts


OK, well, that's enough steps for now. There are more to come, but before I sign off, I just want to stress one or two more points. First, this is not something that will happen overnight. It takes many weeks and even years depending on how well you want to improvise. Which brings me to my second point, your progress will be determined by how hard you work. If you just want to have fun and goof around in a community jazz band, there's is nothing wrong with that, and you may find that following all these steps is not for you. That's cool. I hope you enjoy the music making process. But, if you want to play as well as the masters you here on those old jazz records of yours, it will demand a great deal of time and energy. Lastly, when you practice, everything is kind of done at once. You won't practice scales without practicing back accenting, music can't be regimented like that. When you focus on rhythms, you will also be re-emphasizing the scale work you've done and back accenting. Everything is connected.


Alright, that's it for me. Later.