Phil Woods and Jackie McLean Play “Cherokee”

I love playing the Ray Noble tune “Cherokee.” It’s a classic bebop vehicle, and the bridge section represents a respectable knuckle-buster for even the more accomplished players. “Cherokee” is typically played anywhere from up-tempo to way, way, way up-tempo. I like to play it fast, but I’ve got my limitations. Once I hit around 300mm, I’m scrambling to stay on top of things.

Maybe one day, if I practice reeeaallly hard, I’ll be able to play it almost as well as these guys. Here are Phil Woods and Jackie McLean playing “Cherokee.” Sit back and get ready for a real bebop tour de force by two virtuoso, veteran alto sax players. Each is a distinct, mature voice in his own right, but here you can tell they’re both unabashed Bird disciples. The ideas don’t stop, and they’re dripping with classic bop vocabulary. Amazing, and a pure joy to listen to.

January 5, 2009 by
Filed Under: Jazz, Jazz Improvisation and Technique, Music, Saxophone, Video

Using Substitute Dominants

Sooner or later, if you haven’t done so already as a jazz improviser, you”re going to want to broaden your harmonic palette with substitute dominant chords.

Say that term, substitute dominant, and what immediately springs to mind for most musicians is what is also refer to as a tritone substitute, so called because the root is a diminished fifth–a tritone–away from the root of the dominant seventh chord in any given key. For instance, let’s say you’re in the key of C major. The dominant of C is G7. In traditional theory, the G7 is a major/minor seventh chord.

If you drop down a tritone from the G7 and build another major/minor seventh chord, you wind up with a Db7. That is your tritone substitute, the most commonly used substitute dominant.

Note that the Db7 is just a half-step above your tonic chord, C major. Now, you could use a a Db Mixolydian mode with it. But another good choice would be a Db Lydian flat seventh scale–i.e. Db, Eb, F, G, Ab, Bb, Cb, and Db octave. Note that, as is so often the case, a single note makes all the difference. In this case, simply raising the fourth scale degree of the Db Mixolydian mode a half-step, from Gb to G, gives you the Lydian flat seventh scale.

Now, here’s where things get particularly interesting: let’s say you want to inject a little color with an altered dominant, a G+7(#9). That chord immediately suggests that you”ll use a diminished whole tone scale. Guess what? The diminished whole tone scale uses the same notes as the Lydian flat seventh scale; the only difference is, it starts on the G instead of the Db. So in this case, you can use the same scale for either the altered dominant or the substitute dominant! Nice, eh?

One of the earmarks of the tritone substitute is that it flipflops the third and the seventh, which are critical tones in the function of the dominant sound. The flat seventh of the V7 chord is the third of the bII7 chord, and vice-versa. This means that no matter which chord you use, dominant or substitute dominant, the tritone interval between the third and the fifth remains, with all its tension that demands resolution to the tonic chord.

Using the substitute dominant in a ii-V7-I progression gives you ii-bII7-I. You can also alternate the dom/subdom sound on your journey toward the I, thus: V7-bII7-I.

By the way, the tritone substitute is nothing new. In Bach”s day, it was called a Neopolitan chord. Jazz is deeply rooted in European harmony; the genius behind it lies, in part, in how African American musicians fused that harmony with tonal colors and rhythmic approaches that no Western musician would have dreamed of. Jazz truly is a distinctly American art form.

January 5, 2009 by
Filed Under: Band, Christian Music, Jazz, Jazz Improvisation and Technique, Music, Saxophone

Fog and Ice in Caledonia, Michigan

Freezing rain. Black ice. Fog. January 4, 2009, has been a bit of a departure from the snowy, arctic blasts we”d been getting up till last week, when a warm intrusion brought rain and even thunderstorms through the area. Since then the temperatures, though cold, haven”t been bitterly cold, and today they”ve hovered right around freezing.

I brought my camera with me to church this morning with the thought that I”d grab a few moody fog photographs afterward. Here are a couple.

Half a mile from me, on the outskirts of town, lies a small lake surrounded by a tamarack bog and swamp. I thought the setting might offer some cool, misty shots, and it did.

On the way home, heading north on 100th Street, the overarching trees combined with the fog to provided a mysterious tunnel effect. I love how this looks!

Today’s slippery conditions have provided a perfect case in point for a recent discussion on Stormtrack about the effectiveness of National Weather Service wording for hazardous winter weather. So far, conditions haven’t been nearly as bad as I”ve seen them get. But then, this is Michigan; because we get icy highways as a matter of course, we’re prepared for the worst. Things get bad, we salt the heck out of the roads.

I can’t say how that has worked today, though, since I’ve pretty much hunkered down and stayed inside this afternoon. This is a good day for lying low and doing computer work. So here I am, blogging.

Of course, there are other diversions besides. Stormtrack has been keeping me entertained with two virtual chase scenarios running concurrently. This has afforded me the odd experience of waiting for convective initiation in York, Nebraska, and Wichita Falls, Texas, at the same time. I get around. Now if just one of these setups pops, I”ll be a happy camper.

January 4, 2009 by
Filed Under: Nature, Photography, Storm Chasing, Weather

WaterlandLiving.com: Where I Blog When I’m Not Blogging Here

Yesterday I posted an article on shear funnels at WaterlandLiving.com. Waterland is my “other blog.” Well, not mine really. It belongs to Dave VanderVeen, owner of Waterland Homes LLC, and it is devoted to all things Michigan.

Some of the stuff written by Dave contains just plain savvy insights on homes and real estate. But the blog as a whole is about outdoor Michigan. That’s no surprise, since Dave has followed a different path in home building and real estate, focusing on properties out in the country. Hunting cabins, lakeside homes, lodges, campgrounds…Waterland is where to go when you”re ready to trade suburbia for something closer to the land, to the fields, lakes, and woods of Michigan.

Yes, that”s a shameless plug for Waterland Homes. I get to do that kind of thing on this site. Never mind that—check out the blog. If you live in Michigan or in any of the Great Lakes states and love the outdoors, I think you”ll like what you find. The site is rich in images and packed with items of interest for nature lovers, fishermen, hunters, hikers, and backroads wanderers who love to see what”s over the hill and around the bend.

Tamarack Needles

Fridays are my day on WaterlandLiving. Six days of the week, Dave provides a more factual approach. My mission is to offer a bit of literary ambience—to take you to places you wouldn’t think to go, open your eyes to things you might pass by…to engage your senses so that you experience different aspects of the outdoors, and perhaps enjoy a chuckle or two in the process.

Riff through my Friday posts and you’re liable to come across just about anything under—or in—the Michigan sky. You’ll find articles on

* Michigan backroads

* carnivorous plants

* poison ivy and poison sumac—and what it’s like to eat them!

* railroads

* thunderstorms

* topwater fishing

* wild orchids

* hummingbirds

* sassafras tea

* what makes the leaves turn color

* hunting knives

* Hunter”s Moon and other monthly moon names

* wild cranberries

* winter photography

Hummingbird Feeder

The list goes on, and since it continues to grow, you’re apt to find just about anything in it, as long as it’s got to do with the outdoors and Michigan. So if you love the smell of white pine and woodsmoke…if the sudden thunder of grouse wings stirs something inside you…if a moontrail on the waters awakens your sense of wonder…then drop in.

Moonrise Over Gun Lake

I might add that Dave is getting set to launch a second blogsite devoted to the Lake Michigan shoreline. We’ll be exploring state parks, wineries and brewpubs, nature preserves, out-of-the-way restaurants, bed-and-breakfasts, harbor communities, and other points of interest along Michigan”s west coast. So stay tuned—I’ll let you know when the site is up and running.

January 3, 2009 by
Filed Under: Life, Nature, Photography, Weather

Reflections on the Old and New Years

As I begin this post, the year 2008 has just three hours left. There is much about it that I’m sure most of us won”t miss, but the downsides of life are all too easy to focus on, and we need no reminding of them. Instead, I’d like to thank God for a few of the blessings with which he has filled my life this past year.

I thank my Lord Jesus for…

* My close friends and family. You know who you are. I treasure you!

* Keeping me afloat financially as I”ve gone about forging a new direction as a freelance writer.

* Awesome storm chases in Missouri, Kansas, and Iowa–and my awesome storm chasing partners, Bill, Kurt, and Tom.

* The simple, wonderful gift of good beer.

* My new DSLR camera, and how it is helping me to view the world with an artist”s eye.

* The gift of music, and of growth as a saxophonist and jazz improviser.\r\n* So many, many other blessings, some of which I’m aware and others of which I’m unaware. Such is the grace of Christ.

* Finally, but really first and above all, the Lord himself. For his kindness. For his friendship. For his discipline, and guidance, and for his life that has become my life.

Thank you, Lord, for this year of 2008. Above all, thank you for You.

To all who read these words…

…to musicians, and songwriters, and singers, and all whose souls have been shaped by the melodymaker’s craft…

…to storm chasers, and weather fanatics, and those who have fallen in love with the hiss of inflow over prairie grasses, and the convective sculptures of the Great Plains…

…I salute you! Here”s to a Happy New Year!

This evening, the sun sets on 2008. Tomorrow, for better or worse, 2009 dawns on us all. In the face of a troubled planet, may the grace of the Messiah spring up in unexpected places and cause this next twelve-month”s time to be a hopeful and rewarding one.

Wishing you blessing, prosperity, wisdom, inner peace, and a deepened capacity to live the life God created you to live,

Bob

Aka “Storm”

December 31, 2008 by
Filed Under: Church Worship, Jazz, Life, Music, Saxophone, Storm Chasing

Jazz Improvisation E-Book: Another Update

Writing an e-book on jazz improv is definitely a challenge. The going is slow, since I’m still faced with the exigencies of life and the need to make a living. That being said, though, I am making progress.

In the process of writing, I find myself necessarily considering my approach. Any number of ways exist to accomplish the same end in jazz. A whopping amount of educational material also exists that says pretty much the same thing. After all, this isn’t a new topic, and I”m hardly the first person to write about it. How, then, can I offer value–something not different merely for the sake of being different, but something whose distinctions can help budding improvisers to better grasp at least some of the essentials of jazz craftsmanship?

As a street-level, self-appointed educator rather than a degreed, college-level didact, I myself am learning by doing, and my first lesson has been: start simple. I can’t possibly cover all there is to know about jazz improvisation in one book; such a book would have no end, and besides, I myself have still got plenty to learn. So I”ll probably write several books. This first effort will be for beginning improvisers. Note that I didn’t say beginning musicians. I”m assuming that anyone with an interest in improvisation already knows the basics of music theory, and while I do cover some of those basics, readers should already understand how a major scale is built, and what the church modes are, and what intervals are, and triads, and seventh chords, and so forth. Such things comprise the building blocks of all Western music; my interest is to help aspiring jazz instrumentalists assemble them in a way that fits the overall jazz genre.

In my approach, I hope to help players connect their inner ear with technical finesse, so that technique and the ability to “hear” develop together. We want to be able to not only conceive cool lines, but also to “feel” them in every key, even the weird keys such as concert E, B, or F#.

At the moment, chapter four is underway. It covers the unaltered dominant seventh chord and the Mixolydian mode. No need to say more, other than, stay tuned.

December 30, 2008 by
Filed Under: Band, Christian Music, Jazz, Jazz Improvisation and Technique, Saxophone

Prost! In Praise of the Post-Chase, Post-Gig Beer

I am sitting in my La-Z-Boy couch partaking of a mug of Russian imperial stout. Outside, the winter wind blows strong, but that simply accentuates the pleasure I find with each rich, roast-malty mouthful. Stout is a winter beer, Russian imperial stout is the king of stouts, and “The Czar” by Avery is an exceptional Russian imperial stout. What more could a man ask for, in the way of simple delights, than to recline in comfort in a warm, lamplit room and fill his senses with a heady beer steeped in tradition?

What has beer got to do with storm chasing or jazz saxophone? Everything when you”re a beer connoisseur. Along with a good steak, a mugful of frothy brew is the only way to cap off a successful storm chase. And after playing a great gig, there”s nothing like a superb microbrew–a malty Scotch ale or a citrusy, Cascade-hoppy IPA–to complete the evening. Beer is the drink of celebration for storm chasers and musicians, and a good beer is well worth celebrating in its own right.

This Avery”s here is potent stuff. At 10.77 percent ABV, it packs a definite alcoholic warmth, not to mention quite a wallop, though not enough to write my affecting–er, that is, affect my writing.

“The Czar Russian Imperial Stout” received top commendation by Stacey, co-owner with her husband of Pauly”s in Lowell, Michigan. Stacey is one of two people I know whose opinions in the area of beer have clout with me. (The other person is my best friend, Dewey). A few months ago, Stacey underwent training as a beer sommelier, and prior to that, she educated her palate via something like twelve or thirteen years of homebrewing. The woman knows her beer.

Tonight, inspired by renowned beer authority Charles Papazian expounding, in his writings, on a mug of Russian imperial stout, I moseyed into Pauly”s and asked Stacey to recommend a good RIS. She pointed me toward two, but the Avery”s was clearly her favorite, so I went with that. I”m not disappointed. “The Czar” is truly fit for an emperor, royalty in a 22 ounce bottle. At around $11.00, it”s a very pricey bottle, but trust me, this beer is worth it.

My mug is now empty, but my heart is full. I wax eloquent, expanded and uplifted by this fine, tar-black stout.

Beer. If you”ve transcended the mass-produced American pilsners, if your universe has expanded beyond Millers, then chances are that little four-letter word speaks volumes to you, as it does to me.

At the day’s end, after filming tornadoes in Kansas, you cap off your chase with a beer. When the gig is over, after four hours of playing your butt off, you reach for a cold one. Hopefully it’ll also be a good one, a fine ale, lager, or lambic worthy of its title. Given the often limited selection anywhere but in larger cities, you can’t go wrong with a Stella Artois. But whatever your choice may be, if your taste buds have led you off the beaten path of the big American brewers into adventure…I lift my glass to you.

Prost!

December 29, 2008 by
Filed Under: Band, Life

Bracketing: Changing Tones for Jazz Musicians

I’ve heard the technique referred to as “bracketing,” but it’s really just the good, old-fashioned Baroque musical ornamentation known as “changing tones” applied to a jazz solo. Whatever you call it, you can add interest and lyricism to your improvisations when you precede chord tones and target notes with both an upper and lower neighbor.

Three levels of chromaticism exist with the bracketing technique: diatonic, chromatic lower (or, conceivably but uncommonly, upper) neighbor, and dual chromatic upper and lower neighbors.

Play a C7 arpeggio, thus: C, E, G, Bb. Take it slow so you can hear the chord outline.

Now, playing each grouping of three as a triplet, surround each note of the C7 with its…

  1. 1. Diatonic neighbors (based on the C Mixolydian mode): D-Bb-C, F-D-E, A-F-G, C-A-Bb, D-Bb-C.
  2. 2. Diatonic upper and chromatic lower neighbors: D-B-C, F-D#-E, A-F#-G, C-A-Bb, D-B-C.
  3. 3. Chromatic upper and lower neighbors: Db-B-C, F-D#-E, Ab-F#-G, Cb-A-Bb, Db-B-C.

The latter two approaches are relatively common in the bebop language. Obviously, you can bracket any quality of chord or any scale tone. Devise bracketing exercises that will take you through all twelve keys and you’ll be well on your way to real fluency as a soloist.

December 28, 2008 by
Filed Under: Band, Jazz, Jazz Improvisation and Technique, Music, Saxophone

December 26 and 27 Severe Weather Outbreak

Sixty-degree temperatures and fifty-five-degree dewpoints: can this possibly be Michigan on December 27?

Yup. And that”s not all, folks. I awoke in the middle of last night to a wicked clap of thunder–interestingly, while dreaming I was out chasing storms. The dream I attribute to an acute case of supercell deficiency syndrome, but the thunder was a product of the vigorous system that cranked springtime temps and moisture on up into the Great Lakes.

After several days of vacillating over whether or not to chase, my buddy Bill and I concluded to sit this system out. This time of year, anything that smells even remotely of convective weather is tantalizing, but realistically, anything we could get to within a reasonable day”s drive would be a linear event with embedded supercells in a low-CAPE/high helicity environment. I’ve gotten skunked by those setups enough times to not feel particularly eager about going out of my way to chase one.

Still, like I said, this is December…and the action bumped farther north than the SPC had anticipated…and there were four tornado reports near Kansas City…and…naaaah, Bill and I made the right call. I’ll wait for something a little more promising before I make the drive.

Besides, the tornado watches kept extending north, bringing the action our way as the moisture pumped into northern Illinois and Indiana along with absolutely crazy helicities. Michigan actually wound up in a slight risk area, and with storms continuing to pop up across the landscape, theoretically, there was at least the possibility that something could just sort of drop into my lap. It didn’t, and that”s what it would have taken for me to motivate myself for a chase, but then, we Michigan storm chasers live on hopes and dreams.

As I write, RUC is showing a 1 km helicity of 950 near Fort Wayne, and earlier I saw a reading of 1,050 near where I live. If there had been any CAPE worth speaking of to sustain updrafts, any storms that formed could easily have gone tornadic. But as I said, it’s December. I’m happy just to have felt some close dewpoints, and to have ventured outside without needing a jacket.

With a fairly warm rain and balmy temperatures, the snowmelt has been rapid and flooding extensive. And to make matters still more interesting, the fog generated by mild air interacting with cold snow fields has been both beautiful and treacherous. My first of a number of encounters today with flooded roads came upon me unawares; thanks to the fog, I didn’t see the water covering the pavement until it was too late for me to do anything about it except keep on going and hope I didn’t kill my engine. Thankfully, the water wasn’t deep enough to do any damage, and from that point on, I was in a state of alert.

Temps are still in the fifties, but a cooldown is on the way and snow is in the forecast. Nothing major, though. Compared to what we”ve had, the next few days look to be a cinch. I do have every confidence that winter will snap back down on us like an elastic band. But I also wonder whether the weather machine has any more convective surprises in store for us. Time to take a look at the long-range GFS and see whether another fetch of Gulf moisture might not be ramping up with more convective delights. I wouldn”t mind, not at all.

December 27, 2008 by
Filed Under: Storm Chasing, Tornadoes, Weather

A Post-Christmas Severe Weather Outbreak? It Just Might Happen.

Now, here’s something you don”t normally expect on the day after Christmas…

Them there is dewpoints, folks–juicy, 55-degree-plus dewpoints stretching as far north as Saint Louis, Missouri, by 18z Friday, and Renselaar, Indiana, by 00z Friday night. And Saturday gets even crazier, pulling a mid-fifties fetch well into Michigan.

With wind fields and helicities every bit as wild as you’d expect for this time of year, this could be the ultimate in late-season storm chasing, or in early-season action, depending on how you do your books.

Several days ago I was just crossing my fingers. I’m still keeping them crossed, but with the WRF now chiming in to corroborate what the GFS has been consistently depicting, I think it’s time to practice saying the words, “severe weather outbreak.” Today’s SPC extended outlook agrees:

WITH A GENERAL CONSENSUS OF MODEL SOLUTIONS LEADING CREDENCE TO THE POSSIBILITY OF 60 F DEWPOINTS MAKING IT AS FAR NORTH AS THE MIDDLE MISSISSIPPI/OHIO VALLEY BY DAY 5/SATURDAY. IN ALL…CURRENT THINKING IS THAT A MULTIFACETED/ALL HAZARDS SEVERE RISK WILL MATERIALIZE ACROSS PORTIONS OF FAR EASTERN OK/OZARKS/ARKLATEX TO THE MIDDLE MISSISSIPPI VALLEY/OHIO VALLEY FOR DAY 4/FRIDAY INTO DAY 5/SATURDAY.

I’m currently considering St. Louis south toward the bootheel, possibly into Arkansas, and hoping that the next run or two nudges Friday’s setup just a shade to the east and north. Bill and I are talking about taking off around midnight Christmas night, and Kurt may join us if he is able.

At this point, I think it”s safe to say we’re in for a winter outbreak that could stretch as far north as central Illinois and Indiana. Should be interesting.

Looking for that perfect, last-minute Christmas gift for the storm chaser in your life? Consider giving a tasteful holiday package of backing winds, veering upper levels, and a little mixed layer CAPE–perfect as a stocking stuffer, and sure to be appreciated by Midwest chasers this Friday and Saturday.

December 23, 2008 by
Filed Under: Life, Nature, Storm Chasing, Tornadoes, Weather
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