Filipo wrote:
>
> "Bill/Claire Fairchild" <wicfair@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote in message
news:<R8Psc.60848$gr.5816021@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>...
> > I was a little surprised to learn it was Phil DeGreg's book you are
having a
> > problem with, since I've worked with this book for several years and
> > consider it the clearest explanation and practice method for jazz
voicings
> > I've seen yet.
>
> Thanks to all the wonderful responses to my earlier posts - I think I
> can see the light at the end of the tunnel now. The definitive answer
> I am seeking is embedded in the following paragraphs taken from
> various posts:
>
> <"It's true the book does not deal with melodies per se, but if you
> have the floppy disk with the midi exercises where Phil solos on vibes
> over the various voicings it should be clear how the voicings and
> improvisation fit together."
>
> I do have the floppy disk and I use it a lot with PG Music's
> Powertracks 8.0. If you cross out the word "vibes" and replace it with
> "piano", that would capture the essence of my question. Phil solos on
> vibes assisted by full rhythm section, i.e., a pianist, a bass player,
> and a drummer. In my case, I'm a one man band on the keyboard. So what
> I'm trying to do is weave (or harmonize) a solo piano melody (or, as
> you call it, improvisation) into the chord voicings, and his book does
> not do that. But I like the automatic chord voicing exercises so much
> that I've held on to Phil's book in the hope that I can somehow
> harmonize the melody on my own by converting his chord voicing
> practice methods to include the melody, resulting in something similar
> to what guitarists call "chord melody playing".
>
> <"If the examples they are giving are designed to be used to harmonize
> a melody also played on the piano then yes they should be showing how
> to do that. But they are probably just demonstrating various ways that
> you can comp behind someone else who is stating the melody like a
> singer or a horn player."
>
> This is precisely the point. Phil's book is primarily a comping book
> designed to show how you can comp behind a saxophone or vibes player.
> He does have a section called "Right Hand Melodic Phrases" but
> according to Phil, they only apply to 3 groups of voicings, namely:
>
> (1) Chapter I - Shell Voicings - e.g., play E - D in LH; melody in RH
> (2) Chapter IV - 3-Note Rootless Voicings - e.g., play E in LH; D-G-B
> & melody in RH
> (3) Chapter VI - 4-Note Rootless Voicings - e.g., play E in LH;
> D-F#-G-B & melody RH
>
> As you can see, adding a melody to the right hand causes the right
> hand to be overloaded with as much as 5 notes (Chapter VI) while the
> left hand plays only the roots. Which is ironic for me because I am
> left-handed and I can handle a lot more notes with my left than with
> my right hand. And I'm not ready yet to tackle rootless voicings - I
> need to see the root to get my bearings.
>
> So what I was trying to do was use the 4-voice shell extensions in
> Chapter III,
I don't know what you mean by "shell extensions" but "shell voicings"
are two note voicings 3 & 7 or 7 & 3 of the chord of the moment. They
are meant to be used when a bass player is playing the roots. If no bass
player is present then it is often a good idea to include the root with
your shell voicing.
In your "one-man-band" do you use any MIDI gear for accompaniment (bass
& drums?) or is it just you playing piano?
If you are using MIDI then program the bass line and that will free up
your left hand.
> primarily designed for 2-handed comping, and adding a
> melody to it, to convert it to a chord-melody style voicing. And this
> is quite hard to do, when the chords are flowing at a fairly fast
> tempo through all keys in half or full steps up and down the Circle of
> Fifths.
>
> So in the end, I may just have to settle for Chapter I shell voicings
> - left hand plays the root and either the 3rd or 7th, and just
> dedicate the right hand exclusively to the melody. Honestly, I find
> this voicing too sparse, and it does not seem to be harmonically
> complete, especially when you are playing thick and lush slow ballads
> like "Misty" or "All The Things You Are".
Well one area where shell voicings sound thin as accompaniment to a
melody is when the melody itself is the 3rd or the 7th of the chords, as
happens frequently in ATTYA.
So, if the melody is the 3rd in the LH use: Root, 5th, and 7th. Feel
free to use 9, 11 or 13 instead of the 5th, assuming that it fits the
chord and melody in qeustion. The tensions may be voiced above or below
the 7th depending on practicalities.
But here's anothe simple way to harmonize melodies; with full 4 note
close voicings of the 7th chords in the LH.
Fm7: F Ab C Eb
Bbm7: F Ab Bb Db
Eb7: Eb G Bb Db
Abmaj7: Eb G Ab C
Dbmaj7: Db F Ab C
Dm7: D F A C
G7: D F G B
Cmaj7: C E G B
etc.
or
Fm7: Ab C Eb F
Bbm7: Ab Bb Db F
Eb7: G Bb Db Eb
Abmaj7: G Ab C Eb
Dbmaj7: F Ab C Db
Dm7: F A C D
G7: F G B D
Cmaj7: E G B C
etc.
or
Fm7: C Eb F Ab
Bbm7: Bb Db F Ab
Eb7: Bb Db Eb G
Abmaj7: Ab C Eb G
Dbmaj7: Ab C Db F
Dm7: A C D F
G7: G B D F
Cmaj7: G B C E
etc.
or
Fm7: Eb F Ab C
Bbm7: Db F Ab Bb
Eb7: Db Eb G Bb
Abmaj7: C Eb G Ab
Dbmaj7: C Db F Ab
Dm7: C D F A
G7: B D F G
Cmaj7: B C E G
etc.
These voicings do not give you any type of a well thought out bass line
but they do sound more or less complete.
> Thanks all for your patience and understanding.
If I was embarking upon a career as a solo pianist I would take some
piano lessons from a pro.
--
Joey Goldstein
http://www.joeygoldstein.com
joegold AT sympatico DOT ca
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