Jazz groove

PrimusPanda · #1 12-06-2010, 10:01 PM

I have recently joined jazz band at my high school and have been getting more into the sound and feel of jazz as I progress through my years of bass playing. Although we get sheet music for the band, I would like to start jazzing things up a little outside of just a school band. What has helped you guys obtain that jazz/funk groove? Everyone says to start with scales and modes and I have been practicing those for months, and they have helped a little, but I am still finding my bass lines to be very amateur sounding

I have also been listening to various artists that fit into the jazz/funk genre to help expand my mind within these genres. Any tips or suggestions?

monroe55 · #2 12-07-2010, 03:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PrimusPanda

Everyone says to start with scales and modes and I have been practicing those for months, and they have helped a little, but I am still finding my bass lines to be very amateur sounding

I have also been listening to various artists that fit into the jazz/funk genre to help expand my mind within these genres. Any tips or suggestions?

Chord Tone Studies. Carol Kaye, Berlin.

MalcolmAmos · #3 12-08-2010, 03:38 AM

Have you been to http://www.jazzbooks.com/mm5/merchant.mvc yet? The play-a-long section may have something you might like to look into.

mambo4 · #4 12-08-2010, 04:46 PM

You should probably focus on Jazz OR funk rather than "Jazz/Funk"...in practice they are not the same thing...

Cloverfield · #5 12-09-2010, 11:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mambo4

You should probably focus on Jazz OR funk rather than "Jazz/Funk"...in practice they are not the same thing...

Yeah, often the "groove" of jazz is straight quarter notes. Now, that being said, playing in a "2 feel" is different and playing ballads is often even more different.

Funk is something else entirely. Funk is all about sixteenth notes and getting that note placement on the "e" and "uh" of the 1-e-and-uh sixteenth count. (No, I don't mean to say that funk means you never play on a downbeat...just before someone corrects me.

)

christoph h. · #6 12-09-2010, 03:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PrimusPanda

Everyone says to start with scales and modes and I have been practicing those for months, and they have helped a little, but I am still finding my bass lines to be very amateur sounding

In my experience, chord tones / arpeggios are much more useful material to practice.

Cloverfield · #7 12-09-2010, 05:21 PM

To the original poster:

When I first started playing jazz, with no experience, I simply played chord triad arpeggios over the changes. I recommend you do the same. It'll sound like crap, but eventually you can then add in chromatic passing tones and scalar movements, that sort of thing, to fill out your lines. Then you'll sound like a champ!...and will have different things to work on. haha

puddin tame · #8 12-09-2010, 05:24 PM

just play a lot, use your ears

slybass3000 · #9 12-09-2010, 05:38 PM

The Jazz Groove is in the 2 & 4 beats. Tap your foot on 2&4 while playing your walking bass. It will swing automatically.

azureblue · #10 12-12-2010, 12:11 PM

This is the first thing, before all else. Learn to swing in 16ths and in triplets, know the difference, & know how to play them.

Second - And fergawd' sake- do not play ahead of the beat - learn to play behind the beat. Learn to emphasize 2 and 4 and lay back on the 4.

Learn to lay down a solid, swinging groove - start with a simple 12 bar blues.

Jazz players can spot a rock player wanna be because they play ahead of the beat and don't know how to swing.. and this applies to jazz and funk........

As far as your walking lines go, copy some lines from other players, Ray Brown, especially.

My two cents for walking: Learn to spell the chords in your head - like- you see a C-9, then you know you can play C, D, Eb, F G and Bb. Learn to see two adjacent chords and find the common tones between them, and the tones which can be used to anticipate or that is resolved in the next chord. My approach is to think horizontally, not vertically, that is, in terms of each chord. I think in terms of where I am going to and coming from, if that makes any sense.

Example: C-9 to D7, one chord per measure--

C-9: C, D, Eb, F, G and Bb. Maybe an A

D7: D, F#, A, C. Maybe a B

Common are: C and D, and maybe an A & B.

Leading are: F to F#, Eb to E, Bb to B.

So for example- end C-9 on beat 4 with a G, then play the F# of the D7 right after, then walk down to the tonic - (beat 1) F#, E, D and hit beat 4 with the A. Next measure is back to the C-9, so play Bb, B, C, and C up an octave for beat 4. Or, to interest the ear, end D7 with an G (suspend it) on Beat 4 , then go to C-9 chord, then play an (beat 1) F, Eb, D, then C on beat 4... Note the difference between the two motifs of F#, E, D, and F, Eb, D - slightly different, but they resolve to the same note. Nice sounding in a walk, I think...

Play with this some on your own, and look for similar motifs and chromatics...