For this project I will be playing with a bassist and a drummer with a singer joining me on two tracks.
Throughout this project, I have learnt that Jazz is a very iconic genre due to the fact that it is very situational. An example of this is that if I went to see a pop singer like James Blunt live, although aspects of his set will be different from night to night, if the tracklist is the same, then overall I will have a very similar experience. Comparing this to Jazz, as Jazz is heavily based on improvisation, every performance from a Jazz group could sound completely different meaning that communication in Jazz is very important.
Above is an excellent performance by Roy Hargrove’s quintet in which you can see multiple elements of communication throughout. For example, the song starts with the pianist and you can see Roy looking over at him and waiting to come in. After the trumpet and sax come in with their main melodies, they play a nice bit of call and response between each other. Throughout the song, you can see the rhythm section constantly looking at one another as they keep the time and solo.
It is very important in Jazz to listen to one another when playing so as to to know what is best to play next. This is a technique I have been attempting to grasp when comping, as rhythmically you always want to fit in amongst the bassist and drummer without making it sound too cluttered. One of my major criticisms with my comping and solo technique is that I play too much, when leaving space in a song could have sounded much better. Another criticism I have for myself is that I could play better voicing’s when comping with a bassist, however I am very new to comping therefore I’ll cut myself a bit of slack.
As the piano is often drowned out by guitars when playing in rock bands, it is easy to play very loud to try and counter this, however with Jazz I have found that my technique has been a bit too heavy handed and I have worked hard to try and improve this by being more conscious of it when playing.
A technique widely used for playing the bass part in pop songs on piano is to play octaves in order to create a much fuller sound. A major part of my learning on this project has included me working out how to create a decent sound when playing with a bassist and I found that when I played octaves, this created quite a muddy sound as the bassist was already taking care of the deeper bass notes. Therefore when comping I have tried to play much sparser voicing’s in order to try and compliment the bassist. This is a technique I have been working on for about 3 or 4 weeks, so it’s not going to sound perfect, but hopefully it’ll sound better than when I started.
The benefits of playing in a trio
Although it’s been a steep learning curve for me, playing jazz within a trio, it is a challenge I have very much enjoyed. Personally, although I enjoy playing solo piano, the fuller sound of the band when playing together is great and gives me a sense of security when playing. Improvising is also much funner as when we exchanged 4ths in a practice of Autumn Leaves, interacting with other plays gives you a different buzz to playing on your own. Playing in a trio also allowed me to experiment with different comping techniques and rhythmic ideas which was great fun to do.
Responsibilities as a band member
The main responsibility in a band when playing a gig, as basic as it sounds, is to learn your parts. Although the music industry in Britain and the world is booming at the moment and there is plenty of money to be made, you won’t ever make it unless you put hundreds of hours of practice and effort into learning songs and improving your technique.
During the course of this project, I must have spent over 150 hours or maybe even over 200 hours practicing the 9 songs included in my set and general rehearsal techniques in order to improve my playing standard. This meant that when it came to my final performance, my muscle memory and actual memory of the songs was so good, that I probably could have played with my eyes closed if I really wanted to, however I used sheet music at the final performance just in case my memory went blank at any point in the show. By getting to this point of knowledge of the pieces, my confidence was hugely boosted as due to the amount of practice, if I made any mistakes I could quickly readjust to compensate for them.
As so many people in the music industry are constantly collaborating with one another, It is very important to have good communication skills as well as being easy to work with. Personally I am lucky enough to have good personal skills overall and a decent level of confidence. When working with the trio, I clearly stated any concerns I had and any ideas I had to resolve or change things for the better. As everyone in this industry is constantly learning new skills, it is important to be honest with people with what you know and always looking to learn different techniques. This is how all of the greats started and worked their way up.
Punctuality is hugely important, as if you are always late for gigs and rehearsals people will realise that they won’t be able to rely on you, meaning that you won’t ever be first choice. Some huge artists feel that they can get away with this and some can, however it often taints their reputation and the bond between them and their fan base.
In terms of respecting your fan base, it is always important to understand that they are the people that allow you to do this for a living ( if you are a performing musician) therefore you should always be respectful and thankful of them. (not saying I have a fan base, just commenting on the people who do).
Finally as a musician in a band it is important to enjoy what you are doing and enjoy working with the people in and around your band. If you are doing this as a professional this is your livelihood and if you enjoy what you are doing you will put much more effort into it and get much more out of it.
As an aspiring Jazz musician I put huge amounts of effort into practicing my instrument and learning from other Jazz musicians and industry professionals. I really enjoy music and that is what drives me to want to work for it as a job. Even when you want that lie in, but have to get up slightly earlier or stay behind later to practice or doing some extra work feels like a burden, as long as you get through it you’ll hugely benefit from it and by working hard all the time, you should improve your reputation overall.
For this project, I worked extremely hard and managed to put together a good performance and work with a great bunch of people. Therefore I was hugely rewarded for the work I put in which is all I can ask for.