Teacher extraordinaire Greg Fishman calls the attempt of forcing licks into a solo the “Lobster Theory.”  When you order a lobster at a restaurant, you can’t choose it an hour ahead of time and hold on to it.  When you select your lobster it goes straight from the tank to the boiling pot to your plate.  Any extra time spent in between those steps will affect the freshness of the meal.

In the bigger sense of music-making, what using hip new vocabulary for vocabulary’s sake amounts to is selfishness.  You know when somebody talks to you and uses big words that they don’t fully understand just to make themselves sound smart?  The vocabulary usage is about the individual, specifically an individual with something to prove.

For a band to really play as an ensemble and not just a collection of players, there must be selflessness at every instrument.  Rhythm section players address this issue at a much earlier stage than horn players and singers (“solo” instruments) because of their natural roles as accompaniment.  This doesn’t mean that they can’t be guilty of trying to sound hip at the sake of the band’s sound and groove!

As an audience it’s natural to direct our attention to the flashiest players.  Certainly this is true in most things covered by the nightly news, whether talking about the latest celebrity scandal or watching sports highlights to see all the homeruns.  Sports fans trumpet the fun of having fantasy sports teams, but in so doing can miss the finer points of the games – the batter who moves the runner over from first to second in a tie game – the player who makes a key block to spring a run for a key first down.

In jazz, I’ve always had a difficult time describing in technical terms how specific drummers play.  As I’ve gained more experience, I’ve come to understand why I enjoy playing with certain drummers so much – it has nothing to do with flashy vocabulary or ridiculous solos (not that I don’t appreciate those) – it has to do with musicality.  To me, the ultimate drummer is one so good that you often don’t notice him/her.  Their playing simply makes the band better – the tunes make sense, the grooves always feel good, and the soloists don’t overplay because everything sits just right in the pocket. A good quote from W.B. Yeats: “Think like a wise man but communicate in the language of the people.”

Here in Nashville, the very top-call session guys at all instruments are folks who always play in tune, play with clean articulations, and know how to play inside of a groove.  Essentially, they are virtuosic players who are mature enough to play with selflessness.

Our featured guest at this coming Sunday’s Nashville Jazz Workshop Jam Session is a drummer who is as virtuosic as any that I’ve ever encountered, but every time I’ve played with him he makes everything flow with ease.  I hope that you can come out and hear the wise words of drummer Derrek Phillips.

If you’d like to find out more about the project, including how you can be involved, please check out my kickstarter page.

Tunes from the Workshop – the Debut Album of Evan Cobb

thanks!

-evan

When I first watched the video, I immediately recognized the saxophone riff, but couldn’t remember from where.  That got me thinking about composition – some of the most effective and long-lasting music features riffs or tunes that get stuck in our head, no matter the context of the music.  For instance, I guarantee you recognize the opening melody of Mozart’s 40th Symphony.  Have you ever seen the 40th performed?  A chance, but not all that likely.  And yet you recognize the melody…how can that be?

This past Sunday afternoon at the Frist Center here in Nashville, saxophonist Jeff Coffin gave a free concert and lecture as part of the Jazz on the Move series entitled “The Art of Composition.”  Mr. Coffin spoke about all of the musical elements which can be utilized to make an effective composition. What really struck me about the presentation was that all of his tunes sounded familiar, even the ones that I hadn’t heard before.  I believe the reason for this is that Mr. Coffin’s compositions would often marry one or two slightly complicated elements – (i.e. a twisty melody or tricky metric meter) with simplicity in other elements (i.e. dynamics and articulations that clarify the phrase lengths).  The combination of a few complex elements with the simplicity of other elements made the composition sound clear and deceptively simple.

This was the final composition played by Mr. Coffin this Sunday.  Take a look and have a listen.

Download audio file (Mad-Hatter-melody.mp3)

As you already know, Jeff Coffin is world renowned for his saxophone playing.  When taking a closer look at his soloing however, we can see that his improvisations reflect the same ideals as his compositions: a combination of informed simplicity and just enough complexity to keep every listener guessing.  It makes sense when you consider the nature of improvisation as spontaneous composition.  Consider this quote from jazz icon Jimmy Heath, from an interview in the New York Daily News just yesterday.

“Improvisation is spontaneous composing, with a given structure,” he says. “The good improvisers will always have a pattern that they’ll repeat in different strata of the harmony. If you listen to people who are also writers, the way they play a solo is like they’re composing as they go along.”

Now have a listen and take a look at Jeff’s solo on The Mad Hatter Rides Again from his 2005 album Bloom.

Download audio file (The-Mad-Hatter-Rides-Again-solo-edit.mp3)

Which brings me to this coming weekend’s Nashville Jazz Workshop Jam Session.  The featured guest this month is also a saxophonist who is especially talented at crafting elaborate solos that seem composed, but start with “simple” riffs.  Like the Sexy Sax Man, he also has a history with horn section pelvic thrusting, as you can see at 1:40 into this video of the famous Gloria Estefan HBO concert from 1996.  Jokes aside, this saxophonist won a Grammy Award for his work with Arturo Sandoval and his toured the world in numerous professional settings many times over.  I hope you’re as excited as I am to hear the very talented Kenny Anderson!

“But it’s only November!”  True.  But the third Sunday of December is officially holiday season, so we’ll be taking that month off from the jam and coming back in January, just in time to take your Super Bowl bets.

But do not despair, as the NJW Jam has been growing strong and will finish with a flourish!  This coming Sunday November 21st, we’ll be featuring the amazing pianist Bruce Dudley, fresh off his DMA Lecture/Recital entitled “Classical Influences on Bill Evans’ Approach to Jazz Piano.”

So please come down and join us – don’t forget to bring charts if you’ve got an original or arrangement you want to play.

-evan

Tuesday night I’ll be playing with the Nashville Jazz Orchestra at its weekly spot in East Nashville at the French Quarter Cafe starting at 7pm.

Wednesday night is jazz night at Sportman’s Grille in Hillsboro Village, and this week I’ll be leading a quartet of fine musicians through originals and standards.

This coming Thursday, Friday, and Saturday marks my first service with the Nashville Symphony, and we’ll be playing a fun concert of Gershwin tunes entiteled “Here To Stay”.

Finally this Sunday is the monthly jam session at the Nashville Jazz Workshop, and this month will feature Anthony Belfiglio.  Anthony, a faculty member at Belmont, is a terrific piano player, teacher, and composer.  I’m looking forward to hearing his insights at the jam this week.

Looking forward to seeing you at the gig(s)!

-evan

Since it is September, I also wanted to tell you about the next featured guest at the Nashville Jazz Workshop Jam Session. But first a joke.

How do you make a euphonium player’s car more aerodynamic?

Take off the Domino’s Pizza sign.

Okay back to reality.  Our next featured guest is a man who routinely makes his audiences smile and laugh with his affable personality and tremendous sense of humor.  But that’s only a small piece of the package, because his trombone playing and musicality are second to none.  I hope you’ll join us on September 19th as we feature Roy Agee!

- evan

Sunday, August 15th 4pm to 6pm at the NJW.  FREE!

NJW Jam Session

Sunday, July 18th from 4 to 6 pm.

FREE!

-evan

Oh and here is a sneak preview of this month’s tune that all attendees will be playing:

Download audio file (April-18-Mystery.mp3)

- evan