Welcome to "Mastering The Bebopscales"
Purpose The purpose of this website is to provide exercises to make the bebopscales work for you. If you are interested in practicing bebop-inflected lines, this is just your site.
GOALS Flowing/legato playing The idea of this is to help you sound more fluent, more flowing, more bebop. The frequent use of chromatic tones made the beboppers sound more fluent than the bigger intervals used during the swing era, where arpeggio’s ruled the improvisations. Smaller, chromatic intervals are hard to hear at first. For beginning musicians hardly easy, but as you practice it more, you’ll get more adept. Charlie Parker came to this additional chromaticism through long hours of study and he commented on his studying habits a lot. Analysing the music, listening to classical music and practicing as he did, he became –if not the inventor- the hero of bebop music. You should listen to bebop-players a lot (not only Parker, but also Miles and more advanced modern players like Yusef Lateef and Coltrane) to hear how they flowed throughout their improvisations. Yet they tended to phrase very carefully, emphasising some notes, ghosting others. They sound legato, but never dull. Playing fast Charlie Parker played fast, unbelievably fast, like lightning. Whether you will be able to play as fast is only up to you and how many hours you are prepared to study. Amateurs like myself will probably never play as fast as Bird, but still, you can do a great jobs on slower tempos. Think of yourself as Miles on the Prestige-albums. Slower than Bird, but Bebop bebop bebop... It will make you play fluent double-time lines and still sound meaningful. No scalerunning as you’ll hear a lot of beginners do, but clear and fast beboplines. Playing changes fluently Playing bebop is also about connecting the chords. In Swing there was a lot
of arpeggiating going on, Bebop emphasised the use of chromatic tones and landing the chord tones on the strong beats. If you use the rules of thumb in these exercises, it will make you easier to connect the chords in the harmony. Listen to what Charlie Parker did on all of these great bebop-tunes and standards. He nailed the changes right there. Sounding mainstream If you practice these exercises, you will eventually sound Bebop. Revolutionary in the 40’s, mainstream (in the jazzworld) today. Though this is true, you just might like bebop and want to infuse your playing with bebop-elements. You should also remember that the great geniuses of modern jazz (Coltrane, Miles, Steve Coleman) worshipped Charlie Parker and came to their revolutionary music through and after the thorough study of bebop. Will this make you more reactionary, will you become old-fashioned. I don’t believe it. It will turn your ear and your playing to the intricacies of bebop. You should keep an open eye to the really modern players (Steve Coleman, probably seen in thirty years as the Charlie Parker of the 21st century). Even if I don’t like –esthetically- what goes on in modern jazz (John Zorn, Threadgill) and am more moved by mainstream, I am always open to the great revolutionaries of this music. What do I like? If i were to take four albums to a deserted Island Kind of Blue (Miles Davis) Gnu High (Kenny Wheeler) Any recording of the Keith Jarett trio Any recording of the European Quartet of Charles Lloyd Pretty lame, hé?
RULES OF THUMB 1. Starting on a chord tone is always ok 2. Moving to a chord tone from a weak beat: insert NO or an even number of notes 3. Moving to a chord tone from a strong beat: insert ONE or an UNEVEN number of notes 4. On skips: a. Octave displacement is always ok (doesn’t interrupt the flow) b. If you’re still on track (CT’s on a strong beat, NCT’s on a weak beat) Skips from any CT to any NCT are always ok Skips from any NCT to any CT are always ok c. When skipping from any CT to any CT or any NCT to any NCT: insert ONE or an UNEVEN number of notes before continuing Chromatic Diatonic Beat Starting note Chord tone
Non-Chord Tone
STRONG BEAT
WEAK BEAT
OK Insert NO or an EVEN number of notes before continuing.
Insert ONE or an UNEVEN number of notes before continuing
Insert ONE or an UNEVEN number of notes before continuing
OK Insert NO or an EVEN number of notes before continuing
A word on Strong and Weak beats. If you play eight notes the first, third, fifth and seventh note are on the STRONG beat, the others on weak beats. If you play chord tones on STRONG beats you have a lot of freedom to adlib on weak beats. In the following example the scale of G7 is outlined. You get the following notes on STRONG beats: G (1), G, F (7th), D (5th), D, B (3rd) and B again.
How to practice If you practice these ideas you could use two methods: cycles and chord changes.
1. Cycles You could practice all these exercices on cycles of chords. For instance using the cycle of fourths so as to practice in all keys each different chord. It can help your ear and develop your sense of chords. Especially useful for practicing the techniques on “stranger” scales, like phrygian, lydian, altered and so on.
2. Chord changes and standards slow at first... You could take a standard or a song, read over the chords and then take an exercise and use it over the whole chorus. At first you don’t use a steady beat. Just pay attention to using the techniques. Then play it at slow tempos first, then till you master and use these techniques at a comfortable tempo till you reach the right tempo. Don’t worry if you can’t play Beboptunes at 300 bpm. Go over your Prestigerecordings of Miles and relax, don’t worry.
Above all, be patient. Master each technique thoroughly before moving on. It could take you minutes, hours of months, who cares. Each step is a step forward. BE PATIENT and practice as much as you’re comfortable with. Don’t expect miracles, but you’ll definitely be sounding more bebop as you progress....
LIST OF SCALES The principle for the bebopscales is easy. For each dominant or minor chord that isn’t a I chord, you insert an extra chromatic tone in between b7 and the root. For each major chord or minor chord that is a I chord, you insert an extra chromatic tone in between the 5th and 6th. For harmonic major and harmonic minor, you could use the same principle, but these scales are not covered. The I chord of harmonic major doesn’t have a bebopscale. Using the bebopscale of dominant and dominantb6 (melodic minor). I frequently use the dominant bebopscale on other chords: Phrygian: if you play the dominant bebopscale from the third of the phrygian scale, you sound fine. Lydian: if you play the dominant bebopscale from the second of the lydian scale, ... gorgeous Aeolian: if you play the dominant bebopscale from the b7th, it sounds great. Locrian: if you play the dominant bebopscale from the b6th, you sound bebop Altered: if you play the dominantb6 bebopscale from the b6th or #5th, it sounds wonderful Dominant#11 or lydian dominant: if you play the dominatb6 bebopscale from the second, you ‘ll end up sounding fantastic. Major
Ten note scale
Dorian
Ten note scale
Phrygian
Ten note scale
Lydian
Ten note scale
Dominant
Ten note scale
Aeolian
Ten note scale
Locrian
Ten note scale
Melodic Minor
Ten note scale
Lydian dominant
Ten note scale
Locrian (mel minor)
Ten note scale
Altered
Ten note scale
. Step by step – The Neverending Scale Exercise Random changing of direction or the old up and down. In this chapter (follow the links above) you'll find a lot of exercises to get to know the bebopscales and to play in a bebop way. Chapter 1. is all about the basics, getting to know the chord tones and emphasizing them. 1.1. The Old Up And Down 1.2.Random Changing 1.3. Delay Chord Tones 1.4. Combining CT and Octave Displacement 1.5. Coltrane Blues Thing
1) The old up and down You can create very powerful phrases just running up and down (following the changes as they go by) and not changing direction before you run out of keys or strings or cymbals.
Examples NOTE: before moving to Cmaj 7 I had to insert an extra chromatic tone in order to start the first beat of the third bar with a chord tone. We’re talking rule of thumb n°3 here: moving to a chord tone from a strong beat (4th beat of the G7 chord), insert one or an uneven number of notes.
Using the whole-tone scale (starting whole tone things on the third beat...)
Examples
1) Random changing Remember you can change direction on every note. If you do it right, you will always have your chord tones on a strong beat.
NOTE: before moving to the third bar I already anticipated the Cmaj7 bebopscale one beat ahead.
Examples
Using diminished
Using Whole Tone
Examples
Delaying chord tones and then continuing up or changing direction If you are running up and down, you might want to delay the chord tones by an EVEN number of notes like in this example:
From above with two extra notes for example
Examples NOTA BENE: A small note on approach notes. If you are approaching a chord tone from above, you should definitely want to use a diatonic tone (see note). If you are approaching a chord tone from below, you could use chromatic approach tones.
Note: But: it’s just in case you want to sound bebop. Remember Bill Frisell... His teacher told him what the avoid notes are and being a rebellious little gangster he checked these out first, only to emphasize them in his playing. It makes him a wonderful musician, far removed from bebop, but what beauty and modernity... Great! Or from above and below (one note above, one note below)
Or by inserting an extra half step from below
Examples
Using four notes can make things even more interesting
Using diminished
Examples
Using Whole Tone
Examples
Example
Combining delaying the chord tone with octave displacement
In this example I use the fifth mode of harmonic minor on A altered.
What happens: I move to the chord tone from above, then progress downwards but an octave higher and then I approach the next chord tone with a delay (even number of notes). Another example in which I approach the last chord tone with a different kind of delay...
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Just to show you what is possible, the old II-V. It’s a little bit stupidsounding, but shows you what you can do with this powerful technique.
Using diminished
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Using Whole Tone
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The Coltrane Blues Thing . •
From CT down
In one of his late-50’s solo recordings he starts his chorus on the blues like this
From the point of view of Mastering the Bebop Scales he does something very specific: every time he hits a chord tone, he goes in the other direction and plays the chromatic neighbouring tone (approach note, if you will). The use of this can be limitless, keeping your bebopscale in mind.
Let’s take another blues example, but start on a different chord tone.
Listen See what’s happening?
Let’s go back to the old II-V and make up an example using dorian and mixolydian...
Now for the use of Diminished...
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And for the Whole Tone Scale
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But what if we turn the phrase upside down. Moving down, that is, instead of moving up. Well, the same thing goes...
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Another way is: •
From the CT up
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Downwards it gives you
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Using Diminished
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Using Whole Tone
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•
To a CT
A bit strange, since the chord tones don’t fall on strong beats is the following example (but then again, it’s only theory, isn’t it...?)
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Watch out for the seventh. You should use it, but it behaves strangly... you could try this... I put a little egg over the seventh....
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Diminshed sounds just fine
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Whole tone ‘s nice too...
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Just one small note (for example: from a chord tone to the third above and then back, or to the fifth and then back) An example using a third above and moving downwards. Nota Bene: I use the third as in a regular scale. So, if you take the third of the b7th of a dominant scale, you play the ninth and not the root.
Listen Let’s just say you skip to the third, but you don’t return to the original chord tone but to the next non-chord tone. Then you’ll have to insert an extra chromatic tone from above or below before the next chord tone. Again, notice the trouble with the seventh of the dominant chord! I haven’t resolved this to any set of solutions. It’s a dilemma: deal with it, you can try to solve the problem, but you might as well leave it there with a question mark. Still, this sounds good.
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A third possibility is skipping to –let’s say a third- and then continuing not with the starting CT but with a lower CT: listen,
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Listen to how well it sounds with the diminished scale:
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Try different intervals Fourths:
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Fifths.......experiment
Sixths.........experiment
Approaching each chord-tone from the opposite direction If you are playing from low to high instead of inserting the next NCT before approaching a CT, you take the NCT after the CT you are approaching. Let’s make it clear with an example:
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Or Diminished
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Or Whole Tone
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From high to low you can use the NCT after the next CT you are reaching for Diatonically:
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Or Chromatically
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The same goes for the Diminished (even though you stick to the diatonic tones)
Listen For the Whole Tone Scale I suggest you stick to the diatonic tones also, listen...
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From any NCT to any CT or from any CT to any NCT From any non chord tone to any chord tone... Just the principles outlined in the rules of thumb. In the example I focus on the G dominant scale, just to be sure...
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Using diminished
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Using Whole-Tone-Scale
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From any CT to any CT and from any NCT to any NCT
Let’s just say you like to bend the rules a little and you want to move from CT to CT. Well, no problem, just insert an extra tone before reaching the next CT.
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One starting note •
From below
If you approach the starting chord tone from below, you might consider using a (chromatic) approach tone. You will prefer to start on a weak beat...
Listen Using wider intervals you could get:
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•
From above
If you approach it from above you will mostly use a diatonic tone. Using a chromatic approach tone from above will make you sound more modern, but this course is focusing on bebop-phrasing.
Listen Using wider intervals would get you into this example
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Two starting notes •
From above
You insert an extra chromatic tone if the distance is a whole tone. Refer to from above and below if the distance is only a half tone...
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You could also use two diatonic tones...
Listen •
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From below
Listen Or you could also use two diatonic tones
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From above and below
Mostly you would use a chromatic approach note from below and not a diatonic tone
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Three starting notes
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Four starting notes
You expand on the ideas you have already learned. I will limit myself to some examples...
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Chromatic Stretches Inserting a larger number of notes (even or uneven)
•
Bridging the interval of an uneven number of half steps:
The following intervals have an uneven number of half steps: Minor Third Fourth Fifth Sixth Major Seventh The rule here is If you start on a strong beat: insert an extra tone before the CT you want to reach. You can do this by approaching the CT from above or using the technique described in Methenisms, Milesisms. If you start on a weak beat, insert no extra tones... Say you want to approach the b7th of G7 from the 4th: this makes an interval of a Fifth. Then you insert an extra tone...
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Listen Say you want to approach the third of G7 from the fifht of G7. This is an interval of a Third. The same goes here...
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Same goes for the other direction: going up gives you the same rules as above:
Listen Let’s go for the sixth interval: from b7 of G7 to the 5th of G7:
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•
Bridging the interval of an even number of half steps:
Intervals with an even number of intervals are: Major third #11 #5
b6 b7 Here the rule is: If you start on a strong beat and the CT that you want to reach is an even number of halfsteps away, you have to insert NO or an even number of notes. You just walk chromatically to the CT. On the other hand: if you start on a weak beat, insert one or an uneven number of notes.
Take the same exercises as above, but with intervals with an even number of half steps.
Methenisms, Milesisms
Pat Metheny, a dedicated follower of Miles Davis embellishes lines by inserting ghost notes a third or minor third lower. The emphasis is on the notes on the strong beats and the notes in between are just slightly touched on, hardly played, you can’t identify them, but they are mildly dissonant, and should be...
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Miles used this technique extensively far before Pat Metheny could even say ma-ma or pa-pa. Miles didn’t use these ghost notes (intervals of thirds and minor thirds), but used whole steps down as ghost notes. Oh Miles.........., man....
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Principle is: If you start on a strong beat insert the ghost tone immediately after your starting tone. By the time you reach the CT, you’re back in sync
Listen If you start on a weak beat, go down a chromatic tone before inserting your ghost tone and then continue...
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Using triplets First some examples....
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So, what’s the idea behind the use of triplets. Triplets break the flow of the eighth notes, so you have to add an extra chromatic tone to regain the flow of chord tones on strong beats, if you stay within the scale without skips. Triplets add a nice touch, you get off course, and you get back by inserting that extra note, terrific. You can expand on this using arpeggio’s and so on. For these, the rules all go. If you use a three note arpeggio, you should check your next note after the triplet. If you land on a chord tone (on this first beat, a strong beat), nothing’s wrong, if you land on a non chord tone, you should add an extra half tone...
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Using arpeggio’s •
Arpeggio turnback
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We use our chord tone as a starting point and the arpeggio turns back to it. If you use three note arpeggio’s as in the example above, you land on a non-chord tone on a strong beat. You should consider inserting an extra chromatic tone. The arpeggio can be turned upside down like in the following example
Listen If you use four-note-arpeggio’s, you stay far removed from trouble.
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•
Arpeggio’s to continue
Between the chord tone and the next tone you insert the three note arpeggio from the next tone and then continue down or up or changing direction
Listen You could think of the same two notes F and E and consider taking a three note arpeggio from above, but –as much as I advise you to use your imagination- use your ears to judge if it’s any good.
•
Leaping off the scale with arps
You can always insert arpeggio’s but keep in mind the rules of thumb. If the last note of your arpeggio is a CT on a weak beat, insert an uneven number of notes before continuing. If it’s a CT on a strong beat all’s well. If the last note is a NCT on a weak beat, you’re ok, if it’s on a strong beat insert an uneven number of notes before continuing..
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Embellishing the triad
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1 embellishing tone
Approaching from below (means using chromatic tones)
Approaching from above (means using diatonic tones)
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2 embellishing tones
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3 approach notes
You can find as many examples as you can think of... it’s up to you...
Examples
Embellishing every scale tone
After the chord tone I went up to the next diatonic tone, you could easily use the third, to great effect... Sounds beautiful with dominant b9th Examples
