| I'm always amazed at how some musicians can come | | | | consistent and hit the two and four of consecutive |
| together, count-off a tune, and create music on the | | | | bars at exactly the same spot as before. |
| spot that really swings. | | | | Let me use the target practice analogy again to make |
| How come some can do this yet others simply can't? | | | | this a bit clearer. If Steve's decision to hit beat two and |
| Why is it that some music grooves a lot and some | | | | four a fraction of a second later than the metronome, |
| grooves less or not at all? | | | | would be equivalent to hitting the target just a bit to the |
| While there may be a number of reasons to this | | | | right of the bullseye, everytime you shoot an arrow. |
| problem, I'll focus on one of them in this article. "The | | | | Notice how Steve would not change "the beat" or "the |
| beat" | | | | common denominator" at all, he would simply, |
| What is "the beat"? | | | | consistenly place his note just after the beat, where |
| You may define it as: "A common denominator, in the | | | | the "novice" would move "the beat" and make playing |
| form of a pulse, used by a group of musicians in order | | | | music "together" impossible. |
| to be able to play music "together". | | | | Does that make sense? |
| Now, if the individual musicians of a band or ensemble | | | | So how can we make sure that we don't "loose" the |
| have different pulses, or beats, how can they possibly | | | | beat? Is that something we have to have naturally or |
| be on the same page? Even if someone is loudly | | | | can we acquire this skill through practice? Well, I |
| marking the beat for everyone to hear, that doesn't | | | | believe that we can all improve our ability to keep the |
| mean that people are closely following it. Some may | | | | beat better by internalizing the beat. This will help you |
| place their music exactly around the beat while others | | | | to place your notes exactly where you want them |
| don't. All the individual notes that are being played don't | | | | placed even when the music is difficult and requires a |
| line up the way they should which results in "sloppy" | | | | lot of concentration. This does not mean, however, that |
| music. | | | | you'll swing more, because, remember that the "swing" |
| More carefully placed notes by the musicians result in | | | | comes from knowing where to place your individual |
| a "tighter" sounding band. | | | | notes relative to the beat and doing so consistenly. |
| Let's take a moment and use target practice as | | | | By "knowing where to place your individual notes" I'm |
| analogy. | | | | not implying that this is something that every musician |
| The target is the beat. The arrow is the note. If we all | | | | is doing consciously. I believe that large amounts of |
| shoot our arrows at the target at once, chances are | | | | talent are responsible for the fact that some people |
| that the arrows end up all over the place. Experienced | | | | will just naturally place the notes in a way that makes |
| professionals, however, have a much higher chance of | | | | them swing. This is what puts a Charlie Parker in a |
| hitting the bullseye. | | | | different league than the average college saxophone |
| Well, the same applies to music. The more musicians | | | | player. |
| hit the beat right on the head, the more the music will | | | | Ok, so how do we do it? How can we solidify our |
| sound "together". | | | | sense of the beat? |
| So how do you go about getting better at this? How | | | | The idea is to "internalize" the beat. |
| can you get a better feel for "the beat" and make | | | | Internalizing the beat means to be able to sense the |
| sure that your feel of the beat doesn't fluctuate as | | | | beat regardless of how much attention you have to |
| you are playing music? This, I believe, is the crux of the | | | | pay to the music. |
| matter. The more difficult the music gets, the more | | | | I firmly believe that you can only achieve this by using |
| musicians have to concentrate on mastering their part, | | | | your voice. Tapping your foot is "not" an option as |
| so that they pay less attention to the beat. | | | | we've seen from my example above. |
| This happens all the time on the bandstand, and it is | | | | You can always feel the vibrations of your voice, no |
| really easy to observe. Next time you're on the | | | | matter how loud the music gets, not matter how many |
| bandstand, keep an eye on a musician that's tapping | | | | distractions you're dealing with. |
| his foot to the beat. As the music gets more | | | | I thus suggest the following exercise: |
| syncopated, the foot may skip a beat, speed up or | | | | Exercise #1: |
| slow down, it may attempt to play the part that the | | | | Sing quarter notes out loud and play rhythms with your |
| musician is trying to play, or it may stop altogether! | | | | hands. |
| As this happens, the "common denominator", the | | | | You can do this along to with a metronome and |
| "pulse" or "beat", the "foundation" that's supposed to | | | | without. Just start the metronome, sing the same |
| keep the band together is now no longer stable. | | | | quarter notes, and play the rhythms that you sightread |
| Of course, the musician may argue that the part that | | | | with your hands. Don't just play rhythms that you know |
| he played was exactly in sync with his foot, but that is | | | | and are comfortable with. I usually grab just about any |
| all relative. His playing may have been right relative to | | | | music I can get my hands on and play the rhythms |
| his foot but if his foot moved, his playing was not right | | | | with my hands while ignoring the melody. |
| relative to the pulse of the band. | | | | You'll find this challenging at first, but once you've got |
| This can often lead to all kinds of discussions and | | | | the hang of it, it will become surprisingly easy. |
| disputes not all of which end on a happy note! | | | | At first there will be a tendency to stop counting out |
| A common response to the above-mentioned problem | | | | loud, or lower the volume gradually, some mumble. |
| is that "we would all sound like robots or machines if | | | | Focus on counting out loudly and clearly for the whole |
| we played exactly like the metronome". | | | | duration of the exercise. I suggest you count 1-2-3-4, |
| Let me respond to this by looking at one of the | | | | not just any sound. However, if you're a horn player, |
| masters of "time" or "groove", the legendary drummer | | | | you obviously can't count out loud. In this case I |
| Steve Gadd. He is known as one of the drummers | | | | suggest you do the exercise without your instrument. |
| that has mastered "time". This means that whatever | | | | This exercise will most definitely help you build a more |
| he plays, he is always exactly with the metronome. | | | | solid "inner clock" provided you practice it religiously. |
| You could shut off the metronome for a couple of | | | | In order to challenge yourself a bit more once you've |
| bars and switch it back on and Steve would still be in | | | | mastered the first exercise, you add the following |
| sync with it. Yet, Mr. Gadd does not sound like a | | | | exercise: |
| machine, far from it. His playing is some of the most | | | | Exercise #2: |
| "grooviest" you'll ever hear. Why is that? Why can he | | | | Start off counting the click out loud just the way you |
| be in sync with the metronome so much and not | | | | did in exercise #1, then switch to singing the rhythm |
| sound like a machine? | | | | that you're reading from a book and play the quarter |
| The answer is in where he places his notes. Let's look | | | | notes. |
| at a simple rock patten where his snare drum would | | | | Let me just point out that this exercise will merely add |
| fall on beat two and beat four of the bar. Now, he can | | | | independence skills and I don't believe that it is nearly |
| decide to hit these two beats exactly on the head, or | | | | as important as the first one. |
| he can decide to "lay them back" a bit. This means | | | | The nice thing about this exercise is that it will become |
| that he would hit beat two and beat four just a tad | | | | second nature and once you get back to the |
| after the metronome hit those same beats. These are | | | | bandstand you won't have to consciously think about it. |
| tiny differences and only schooled ears can make | | | | It will truly build a stronger sense of the beat which |
| them out. But these tiny details are what make music | | | | you'll benefit from enormously. |
| groove or not. | | | | Only thing left for you to do is convince your fellow |
| The key is that if Steve decides to hit these two | | | | band members to practice the same exercise. |
| beats just a bit behind the beat (meaning a fraction of | | | | Good Luck! |
| a second later than the metronome), he needs to be | | | | |