Category Archives: Classes

5/6/17 – Harmonic Rhythm and Special Guest Brent Fischer

PLEASE NOTE NEW SATURDAY TIME and EXTENDED FORMAT
HARMONIC RHYTHM AND SPECIAL GUEST SPEAKER BRENT FISCHER

On Saturday May 6th at 10am we’ll continue our exploration of harmonic rhythm, focusing on how jazz players and composers use chord movement…this topic comprises much more than cool chord substitution and complicated altered harmony. Harmonic rhythm defines phrases, form and pacing, and your heightened awareness of the flow of harmony will direct and focus the emotional content of your writing. We will refer to examples from Ellington/Strayhorn and Bob Brookmeyer.

Then after a break I’ll introduce our special guest Brent Fischer. Brent is the son of the late, great composer and pianist Clare Fischer, who was one of our most prolific and innovative jazz composers and performers. Brent is a fantastic composer and multi-instrumentalist in his own right. He collaborated frequently with his dad, but also has developed his own unique musical voice as a composer and performer. Brent will present some Clare’s harmonic and orchestration concepts, and how he’s carrying on his dad’s legacy. This is deep stuff people, so bring your analog or digital notation aids and put on your thinking caps. We will have some handouts, and I will project all scores and examples, and they will be available online for your laptops or tablets. Please see https://www.ellingtonstudygroup.com for more details, and we’ll see you there.

 

Grammy®-winning producer, composer, arranger and recent Record of the Year nominee Brent Fischer credits his late father, Clare Fischer, for creating a family tradition of writing with a rich harmonic and orchestrational palette that has become the Fischer brand. A multi-instrumentalist (vibes, keys, bass, drums), Brent Fischer moves easily between genres. His arranging credits for pop, R&B and jazz royalty include: D’Angelo, Prince, Michael Jackson, Usher, Al Jarreau, Elvis Costello and The Roots. Brent Fischer directs all the Clare Fischer ensembles and produced the last eight Clare Fischer albums, including: Grammy®-nominated 2011 release ‘Continuum‘, 2012 Grammy®-winning ‘¡Ritmo!‘ (Best Latin Jazz Album) and 2013 Grammy®-winning ‘Music for Strings, Percussion and the Rest’ (Best Instrumental Composition). The new Clare Fischer Latin Jazz Big Band release ‘¡Intenso!’ features Sheila E. and Roberta Gambarini.

2/25/17 – Hello and Goodbye

Saturday Feb. 25th, 2017 at Vitello’s E-Spot Lounge, Studio City, 10am – noon

 

On Saturday: Geek alert! I want to spend some time talking about what some call “harmonic rhythm”, a way of describing chords or a chord progression movingthrough time and how harmonic movement can define phrases and form. I’ll discuss how you might use the ebb and flow of some jazz harmony to expand the usual contemporary diatonic/modal vocabulary of a lot of today’s film and pop music. It’s all about opening up your inner ear and unlocking emotional and expressive potential of even the simplest phrase…and along the way perhaps leading you to a deeper understanding and appreciation of the jazz harmonic language.

 

Then we’ll move to a detailed discussion of “Hello and Goodbye” by Bob Brookmeyer from “Live at the Vanguard” by Mel Lewis and the Jazz Orchestra.  I’ll have a projected full score and printed musical example handouts. Be square or be there! –Scott

Saturday Feb. 25th, 2017 at Vitello’s E-Spot Lounge, Studio City, 10am – noon

Cover charge: $12 includes continental breakfast
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Vitello’s E-Spot Lounge – 4349 Tujunga Ave Studio City, CA 91604
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11/11/16 – Thad, Duke, and some College Chords

screen-shot-2016-11-09-at-12-30-25-pmOn Friday we will dive back into large ensemble voicing, first by revisiting “Diminuendo and Crescendo in Blue” by Duke Ellington. Duke’s work in the mid 1930’s predicted and influenced the “modern” big band arrangers.

screen-shot-2016-11-09-at-12-31-45-pm

Then…it’s Thad, Thad and More Thad (Jones, that is)…this time with an emphasis on jazz theory and harmony. His style fulfillment of the Old Testament Swing Era prophecy. This new sound is rich with thick harmony and intense harmonic movement…and impeccable voicing and balancing technique. We’re going to see lots of “college chords” and some challenging jazz theory – we will refer to examples from “Inside the Score” by Rayburn Wright.
Cover charge: $12 includes continental breakfast
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Vitello’s E-Spot Lounge – 4349 Tujunga Ave Studio City, CA 91604
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9/23/2016 – More Gil, more Thad

miles-aheadAt the September 23rd meeting we will start off by taking a quick listen to “Maids of Cadiz” by Gil Evans and Miles Davis. We’ll talk about some of the broad strokes: form, pace, and how Gil shapes this evocative and powerful piece. Then we’ll dive back into large ensemble voicing technique, continuing with the antiphonal style of Sammy Nestico, and introducing the chromatic, cross-doubled method of Thad Jones. We’ll refer to Ray Wright’s “Inside the Score” and Don Sebesky’s “The Contemporary Arranger”, and talk about strategies that might make your writing clearer, more transparent, expressive and powerful…and get us away from the screen and onto the score paper, away from the keyboard and back into your “inner” ear. See you then!

6/24/16 – Clear and Transparent Voicing Technique (that still grooves!)

On the 24th we’ll delve in to Ellington’s “Such Sweet Thunder”. This piece is a great example of the use of riffs, space, harmony, layering, groove, and economical jazz writing. There’s so much to say, I bet it takes an hour at least. Then we will begin a detailed study of large ensemble voicing, the way it’s officially “taught” in the textbooks…using as reference excerpts from Ray Wright’s “Inside the Score” and Don Sebesky’s “Contemporary Arranger”. We’ll discuss the different ways to stack and meld big band horns, particularly in the antiphonal style of Sammy Nestico, and if we have time, we will begin the melded, cross-doubled style of Thad Jones. This will be a great way to get us off the computer, away from the MIDI/sample grind, and address true, clear, powerful and artistic jazz orchestration. Please bring analog staff paper and writing implements, there will be handouts. Be there or be square!  –Scott

Last class was “Ko-Ko” and “Moten Swing”, we talked about form, voicing, and particularly orchestrating for a smaller horn section. Good stuff!

3/25/16: From “Ko-Ko” to KC

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On March 25th we will start an in-depth analysis of the iconic “Ko-Ko” by Duke Ellington, using as a reference an excellent transcription by David Berger. This is another great Ellington piece from 1940 that looks both to the past and to the future, with great soloists, and featuring the young bassist Jimmy Blanton. We will hear Duke’s “jungle period” roots mixed with a New Orleans and Swing vibe, and we’ll see how he squeezes everything into a compact and relatively short recording–accomplished as always with profoundly modern orchestration techniques.

I also want to take a look at “Moten Swing” by Bennie Moten–a little change of pace–we’ll talk about riffs and Kansas City swing, but also talk about horn voicings and mixed doubling for a smaller ensemble. If we have time (we ran out last time) we’ll listen to some more “modern” (late 50’s, early 60’s) music by Bob Brookmeyer and maybe even some free jazz from Sun Ra. That’s a lot of material, so put on your thinking caps and sharpen your pencils. See you there!