FAQs: Singing while you play a solo--spontaneous or planned ahead?
Chris checking his IfCM email. (you will never have to worry about IfCM deep fakes)
From time to time I receive email questions from friends and students. The following is a re-enacted conversation that could be useful to your jazz/creative music life:
Dear Chris,
I've been enjoying the Thelonious Monk album Palo Alto on my new speaker system at home. These speakers sound so good that I noticed that the bassist, Larry Gales, was singing his entire solo on the track "Well, You Needen't"! What's the deal here? Did he work out this solo ahead of time so that he could sing and play at the same time?
Yours in jazz,
Navid from Cincinnati
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Dear Navid,
Great question! This is an excellent reason to listen to tunes from high quality streams or analog media and with nice headphones or speakers--you hear so much more detail! Working out a solo ahead of time for your practice is a great way to gain confidence with the language, craft something that you really like, and even turn it into a tune of your own. However, it's generally not usual for jazz players to play prepared solos in jam sessions or performances (although anyone who raises a stink about someone who does it breaking the "sacred laws of jazzery" should chill out). I'm pretty sure that Mr. Gales is singing and playing his improvisation extemporaneously! This is actually somewhat common for experienced improvisors to practice singing their improvisations, and even for players who don't have to blow into an instrument (pianists, guitarists, bassists, drummers) to sing their ideas WHILE they play. You can do it too, just start small and slow:
Step 1: Sing anything. Okay, sing something you can repeat and sound kinda consistent in keeping pitch. To try this out, I just sang "Happy Birthday" to my cat (the intent is a lie, it's not her birthday and she will get no presents).
Step 2: Go to a piano, guitar, or other instrument and after singing the starting pitch of your chosen simple tune ("hap-py...") try to match that pitch on your instrument. You can also have a friend (or cat) find the pitch for you. What is that pitch called? I started Happy Birthday on an E. Take note!
Step 3: Try to match the rest of the pitches and rhythms that you sang on your instrument. If you know how to figure out the important elements of the tune (is it in a major/minor key? is it in duple or triple meter? what scale degree does the melody start on?) that could be helpful to note as well. I know that "Happy Birthday" is usually in a major key in triple meter and the melody starts on scale degree 5.
Step 4: Try to sing the song starting on a different pitch. Figure out steps 2-3 again. Repeat this process for a few different keys.
Step 5: Sing something that sounds like your song but not exactly (like, a variation). For this new phrase, find the starting note on your instrument and they try to play it as you sing it. You might not get this on the first attempt! Try singing and playing the idea until it sounds like you're playing and singing the same thing. Repeat this step with new ideas.
Guess what? You're probably a little better at this because of your practice. This is a great way to combine ear training, singing, and instrumental playing together. If you spend a bunch of time listening deeply to a small amount of material (maybe just a couple of seconds of a melody or solo you like) and trying to sing it you will improve your ability to develop that "instant touch" (as Clark Terry called it) where you can play what's in your head pretty much in real time. You gotta sing, though! Sing while you walk. Sing in the car. Sing in the shower. I'm not saying that you'll ever love your singing, but the more you do it the less you'll hate it. Happy practicing!
For your jazz,
Chris Teal, IfCM Co-Director