A few more transcriptions

jazz_trpt · Posted: Thu Feb 23, 2012 8:23 am Post subject: A few more transcriptions

I apparently didn't link up all my transcriptions when I made the move over to a blog format, so here are some links to transcriptions I did several years ago which are now available on the new site:

Miles' Davis's trumpet solo over the chord changes to "Autumn Leaves", from the Cannonball Adderley recording Somethin' Else, transcribed by Ron Foster.

Miles Davis's trumpet solo over the chord changes to "All Of You", from the Miles Davis recording "Round About Midnight".

Ray Nance's trumpet solo over the chord changes to "Take The 'A' Train", from the Duke Ellington recording Ellington/Armstrong Jazz Festival (from the 1956 Newport Jazz Festival).

Is everyone able to view/print the PDFs without the use of a Google Docs account?
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Jeff Helgesen
Free jazz solo transcriptions! :: Jazz Mayhem CD

gbdeamer · Heavyweight Member Joined: 31 Dec 2007 Posts: 1541

Thanks Jeff.

These are VERY valuable for guys like me.

It would take me weeks to do just one of these transcriptions, and it would be largely inaccurate.

jazz_trpt · Posted: Thu Feb 23, 2012 12:40 pm Post subject:

trpthrld · Heavyweight Member Joined: 09 Mar 2007 Posts: 3322

Jeff, great work but I question some of your use of sharps and flats on notes that, because of the key, you would not normally see sharped or flatted .

I say this because when I was on the copying staff with one of the AF Bands that I was in, the rule we used was "make it simple to read more than stay with what is theoretically accurate and correct." That rule superseded the adage of "professionals should be able to read anything you put in front of them"

When time is money, making it simple is the prevailing guideline.

On Ray's solo, you've got E#s, Fbs, Cbs, and a Cb that follows a tied-over C#. In the keys of D and F, those are notes you would not see often, if ever.

The A# is the #11 of the E chord...even at that, how often do you see an A# when playing in the key of D?

Did you transcribe on Finale in concert key then transpose? I run into that problem, but detailed proof-reading lets me fix those notes.

As a performer, when I'm sight-reading / playing a chart, if I see something out of the ordinary, that takes my concentration away from the job at hand. Seeing an Fb in the key of D major makes me wonder if I didn't miss something else.

Again terrific work and thank you for making them available to us, but I am curious about using written notes that you don't often see in jazz.
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jazz_trpt · Posted: Thu Feb 23, 2012 3:33 pm Post subject:

Tim:

Hi, thanks for the reply. I can't speak to what most folks prefer to see, but I can explain my rationale.

I will issue a couple of caveats -- first of all, some of these transcriptions, and the rendering of them, are quite old (some set in Finale 2000), and reflect both a lack of experience with using Finale at the time, as well as a spot in a continuum of adopting a standard practice. So, I have no excuse for some of the choices.

That said, I generally have a method to my madness, especially with newer transcriptions. When I notate enharmonic leading tones, I generally notate them to infer the direction of the line. So, if, in a cadence in A, I have a chromatic neighbor approaching a B natural, I'll more often notate as A# instead of Bb. Likewise, I'll notate an upper chromatic (enharmonic) neighbor as a flatted note.

I will also (arbitrarily) opt to break the rules occasionally with regards to enharmonic spellings in order to reduce the number of accidentals. (By way of example, you mention Fb's... really, I think there's only one... I'm pretty sure that I did that to avoid repeating a series of corrective accidentals in the bar between that and the Eb that follows. Similarly, you mention E#'s ... again, I think there's only one ... Given the choice of dropping in two accidentals (F natural followed by a corrective accidental to F#), the E# implies an upward direction to the line while limiting the number of exceptions to the key signature.

I do understand your preference for ease of reading when the pressure's on. I'm the same way (and rail against poor editing on a frequent basis). But I didn't prepare these to be used in a performance situation. I sure hope people don't print these off with the intent of reading them in place of a live, improvised solo...!

If there are other, specific choices you'd like to discuss, I'm certainly happy to chat about them. I don't recall someone mentioning issues with note choices, but I'm always open to changing my practice to make things easier to understand within the framework of the changes (which is the whole point)...!
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Free jazz solo transcriptions! :: Jazz Mayhem CD

trpthrld · Heavyweight Member Joined: 09 Mar 2007 Posts: 3322

Jeff, everything you say makes perfect sense. And yeah...older Finale files...we've all got 'em lurking somewhere!

Generally, accidentals are much better and easier to read than enharmonics.

I suppose part of my beef with enharmonics is, as I do a lot of musicals where key changes are a way of life (one show I played you seldom went more than 8 measures without a key change), is their use can be confusing because they imply there's been a recent key change and it's on the page as a courtesy.

What I would suggest is, if you have the time, redo the A Train solo but without the E#s, Fbs Cbs, the Cb that follows a tied-over C#, even the A#.

Place them side by side and let your eyes tell you which is easier to read.

Again, terrific transcriptions of solos we should all be familiar with, and thanks for letting us have them.
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jazz_trpt · Posted: Thu Feb 23, 2012 4:36 pm Post subject:

trpthrld · Heavyweight Member Joined: 09 Mar 2007 Posts: 3322

Not familiar with MuseScore - whuzzat?
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jazz_trpt · Posted: Thu Feb 23, 2012 4:44 pm Post subject:

MuseScore is a freeware music notation package, open source. Not competitive with Sebelius (sp?) or Finale at this point, but pretty powerful for the price (free) and ideal for what I do (transcriptions, lead sheets, very basic arranging).
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Jeff Helgesen
Free jazz solo transcriptions! :: Jazz Mayhem CD

BeboppinFool · Posted: Fri Feb 24, 2012 5:15 am Post subject:

Much of the reasoning you posted above, Jeff, is how I operate. When you're going up, use sharps. When you're going down, use flats. And when you can prevent additional cancellations in a measure that's a consideration as well.

I've decided to try to avoid using double sharps and double flats in the past few years, also, even though often they make the most sense. They just require additional thought processes that don't always outweigh extra cancellations of accidentals.

But I don't mind E# or F-flat . . . once at a recording session I did back when I lived in NYC Tony Barrerro said, "Don't ever write F-flat for trumpet!" My old pal Chris Battistone has never forgotten that and quotes Tony often (using a remarkable impression of Tony's voice).

But getting back to the point that these are transcriptions for study and not parts to be sight-read on a gig, I think that Jeff's choices are all good.
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gbdeamer · Heavyweight Member Joined: 31 Dec 2007 Posts: 1541

I'm learning a lot from this discussion.

Thanks guys.

Yamahaguy · Heavyweight Member Joined: 09 Dec 2004 Posts: 3312

I'm not too bright...so the less thinking for me, the better!

jazz_trpt · Posted: Tue Feb 28, 2012 11:50 am Post subject:

Based on Tim's suggestions, and so I can get used to using MuseScore, here's a revised copy. It's an apples-to-oranges comparison in some ways (I had to correct some errors in the original transcription, and I added some bells and whistles, plus the type's just bigger), but I think it's quite readable with his suggestions.

http://jeffhelgesen.blogspot.com/2012/02/ray-nance-take-a-train.html

Thanks to all who chimed in. I'm always interested in hearing how people use these things. Clearly not too many people playing along, though, or my clams would have been discovered by now!
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Jeff Helgesen
Free jazz solo transcriptions! :: Jazz Mayhem CD

jazz_trpt · Posted: Wed Feb 29, 2012 10:49 am Post subject:

A few more older transcriptions added to the new site:

Don Fagerquist's solo over the chord changes to "Chime Time", from the Henry Mancini recording Mr. Lucky.

Nat Adderley's cornet solo over the changes to "Naturally" (a.k.a. "Never Say Yes"), from the Nat Adderley recording Naturally.

Don Fagerquist's trumpet solo over the chord changes to "Better Luck Next Time", from the recording The Dave Pell Octet Plays Irving Berlin.

Harry Edison's trumpet solo over the chord changes to "Bones" (24-bar blues), from the Herb Ellis/Ray Brown recording Hot Tracks.
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Jeff Helgesen
Free jazz solo transcriptions! :: Jazz Mayhem CD