Transcription

[Kindofblue]

More common in Jazz, Transcribing. Transcribing has always been a thing I have been told to do, and I have always found it interesting.

But my questions is Why do YOU transcribe. Is their anything that you think should be done. Are you more likely to sit down and work away at a song or take random bits of songs and crack away at it?

This is a thread out of curiosity NOT me asking "what is transcription"

[Ed Fuqua]

To me, the most important thing about transcribing (based on the way I transcribe) is that it replicates the process of improvisation. That is, by internalizing (by listening to a solo or line over and over and over again and learning to sing the line with all its nuance) you are working on the mechanics of improvising - hearing a line internally with enough clarity to play it on your instrument. When you transcribe you're doing that with someone else's line, when you improvise you're doing it with YOUR line.

Which means pretty much starting at the beginning (of the solo, the line, the melody, whatever it is you're trying to transcribe) and working till you get to the end. Cause you're not doing a crossword puzzle, you are ( to all intents and purposes) trying to decipher a conversation's MEANING, not just what words they're using.

[jgbass]

I had to do transcribing these past few months as I am studying jazz at a university. My teacher, in the past had suggested it, and I resisted it, but the last few months I really took the plunge because I had to. I am totally seeing the value of this and now I WANT to transcribe.

I am amazed what a great tool this is. As Ed mentioned, it is a way to really internalize something. It really helps me to get inside what the soloist is doing. It helps to analyze further too. The soloist probably did not consciously think of anything doing the solo, but it is interesting to look to see what note of the chord was played, guide tones, the more mechanical stuff, use of rhythm, etc., etc.

I learned what a long way I have to go in playing better solos. Way beyond just knowing licks, Now I am interested in studying specific player's styles. Maybe I will not have time to sit down and transcribe as much as I want, but, having gone through the process of transcribing at least a chorus several times and further analyzing it, I think I will be able to look at written out transcriptions as well in a more knowledgeable way and understand better what is going on.

Plus, now I have some choruses to actually play when I rehearse and/or play out.

I am sold on transcribing and it will really get me to the next level. And, instead of bits and pieces, I really want to dig in and at least transcribe a full chorus to look at a part of how the solo builds.

[PocketGroove82]

Originally Posted by Kindofblue

But my questions is Why do YOU transcribe. Is their anything that you think should be done. Are you more likely to sit down and work away at a song or take random bits of songs and crack away at it?

I feel like resuscitating this dead thread.

I transcribe different things for different reasons. Sometimes, I just do a a couple bars of a solo that I like, so I can effectively steal a lick and assimilate it into my vocabulary. I'll dissect it and come to a realization about how it's constructed, what makes it so hip, and discover ways to use it in different situations (over different chord qualities, for instance)...then I play it in all 12 keys around the cycle until it's officially in my bag. I'll alter the line so that it's more "mine", or keep it original to pay homage to an influence.

Other times, I'll transcribe full solos and try to get inside the head of a certain player who has a unique approach. Doing this with horn solos helps remove me from the bassist mentality and see what melodic choices the great ones use. There are a limited amount of 'technically right' (in) scale choices for certain chords and we bassists can learn a lot from transcribing horn solos and seeing how the masters of melody pick and choose, to express themselves in a individual way.

I also transcribe certain bass lines that I really like and ones that are considered MUST KNOW material (A Night in Tunisia, Footprints, All Blues, So What, The intro from All the Things You Are...the list goes on and on). I'll do 8/12/16 bars of a bass line, or a full chorus or two, or the whole tune. Whatever it takes to get inside a player's head and emulate his style, sound, feel, and harmonic sensibility. Then I play with the album and try to "become" that player for the length of the tune.

I'll also transcribe chord changes so that I know the right chords (rather than relying on a mistake ridden real book) and the most common variations of standards which are often played a couple different ways in jam sessions.

So for me, it really depends on my goals. If I'm trying to get better at walking over changes that seem weird to me (!Monk or Shorter!) then I'll transcribe choruses to see how Al McKibbon or Ron Carter navigated the progression. If I just want to steal a Christian McBride lick (which he stole from Ray Brown ), then I'll just learn that one bar.

Matt

sorry for the long winded, coffee fueled post!

[98mtd]

I just learned Ray Brown's solo, note for note on Oscar Peterson's "Sometimes I'm Happy" from Live from Chicago CD. In this solo Ray quotes a Slam Stewarts solo, meaning Ray mastered Slam's solo enough to play it in his.
Jazz is a language. For example, if you do not know the meaning of a word, how are you going to use it in a sentence. Transcribing is analyzing words and sentences, or in terms of Music, licks and phrases. A jazz musician is eloquent and well learned if the student transcribes the masters Jimmie Blanton, George Duvivier, Milt Hinton, Al McKibbon, and so on...

[davidAaronCarte]

I like transcribing sax solos because it doesn't sit that well on a bass - kind of interesting to make it work
treat transcriptions like studies or etudes