Joined: 22 May 2007 Posts: 2655 Location: Anacortes, WA
Posted: Sat Jan 16, 2021 9:10 am Post subject:
No my cup of tea, the improv style, but I was curious about the EWI bass thing. How long did it take you to get comfortable with it? _________________ Richard
Joined: 27 Nov 2012 Posts: 193 Location: Richmond, VA
Posted: Sat Jan 16, 2021 9:15 am Post subject:
Richard III wrote:
No my cup of tea, the improv style, but I was curious about the EWI bass thing. How long did it take you to get comfortable with it?
Different strokes for different folks! I'm not sure when it became comfortable, but I have been regularly playing EWI for professional situations for the last 4 or 5 years. _________________ --
Mr. Victor X. Haskins http://victorhaskins.com/
The path to be able to play what you improvised on cornet is to first develop the skill to improvise what you played on the EWI. To me, that's the thing that should stand out to people wanting to learn to improvise.
Students do not tend to think of the development of improvisational skill as having a definitive crawl then walk then run progressive foundation. They want to run before they can even crawl. The result is a lot of incoherency, going off track without a destination, getting lost and searching and fumbling for a way back because they never established the ability to maintain the melodic line.
I think that when viewing this video as much attention or even more attention should be directed to the EWI line than to the cornet improvisation as a learning tool. If you ask a student to play (improvise) just one note per measure, essentially imitating the bass line (EWI line), and stay within the melodic line and they can't do that then they aren't going to be able to improvise like you improvise on cornet or come even close without some sort of miracle happening.
I understand that everyone wants to just pick up the horn and instantly sound like Clifford Brown but you have to realize that you can't build a building out of thin air. You have to build it around a foundation and the stronger the foundation the stronger the building. Being able to play (improvise) the EWI line is the foundation of the skill demonstrated in this video. _________________ HERMOKIWI
That's beautiful! We've got one guy around these parts, a REALLY good sax player, who uses an EWI. Always kind of turns me off because the only sound he gets on it is this cheesy 90's video game synth lead tone. Hearing you use it in this way almost has me gassing for picking one up myself! Well done.....
Joined: 27 Nov 2012 Posts: 193 Location: Richmond, VA
Posted: Mon Jan 18, 2021 9:51 am Post subject:
HERMOKIWI wrote:
Great video illustrating an important lesson:
The path to be able to play what you improvised on cornet is to first develop the skill to improvise what you played on the EWI. To me, that's the thing that should stand out to people wanting to learn to improvise.
Students do not tend to think of the development of improvisational skill as having a definitive crawl then walk then run progressive foundation. They want to run before they can even crawl. The result is a lot of incoherency, going off track without a destination, getting lost and searching and fumbling for a way back because they never established the ability to maintain the melodic line.
I think that when viewing this video as much attention or even more attention should be directed to the EWI line than to the cornet improvisation as a learning tool. If you ask a student to play (improvise) just one note per measure, essentially imitating the bass line (EWI line), and stay within the melodic line and they can't do that then they aren't going to be able to improvise like you improvise on cornet or come even close without some sort of miracle happening.
I understand that everyone wants to just pick up the horn and instantly sound like Clifford Brown but you have to realize that you can't build a building out of thin air. You have to build it around a foundation and the stronger the foundation the stronger the building. Being able to play (improvise) the EWI line is the foundation of the skill demonstrated in this video.
Great observations! Learning how to play basslines is something everyone should know how to do--I wish I had understood how it worked when I started playing, because it would have made understanding harmony much easier. On top of that, knowing how they work and understanding the implications of collective, single-note lines in regards to the harmony will help folks be better bandmates (and horn players would *maybe* not treat rhythm section players like quarter note donkeys, or like "backing tracks"). _________________ --
Mr. Victor X. Haskins http://victorhaskins.com/
Well, I would maybe encourage you to not think of the EWI as a "treble-clef wind instrument". It is basically a wind-operated keyboard. Depending on what sounds you use (none of which, by the way, come built into the instrument), you can sound like a bass, like percussion, you can play polyphony, noises, and more!
And of course, the only reason my basslines sound good is because I have listened to great bass players and extracted the logic of how they connect harmonies whilst propelling the tune forward. It's definitely a different practice than just running scales to be able to "blow" over changes. Basslines are about BEING the (chord) changes.
To demonstrate my initial point, I would recommend you check out this ongoing project that I do called "ImproviStory"--literally every sound you hear (besides the piano and the cornet) is created by my EWI via samples or custom sounds I have designed: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hRqY8pO9CtM _________________ --
Mr. Victor X. Haskins http://victorhaskins.com/
Joined: 27 Nov 2012 Posts: 193 Location: Richmond, VA
Posted: Mon Jan 18, 2021 10:02 am Post subject:
area51recording wrote:
That's beautiful! We've got one guy around these parts, a REALLY good sax player, who uses an EWI. Always kind of turns me off because the only sound he gets on it is this cheesy 90's video game synth lead tone. Hearing you use it in this way almost has me gassing for picking one up myself! Well done.....
Thank you! And I understand that vibe--I think the dominant culture amongst EWI players is folks using the stock sounds within the instrument (they are not interesting) and just shredding a la Michael Brecker. There are sooo many possibilities if cats would think of the EWI as an amorphous sound tool rather than an electronic horn. I'd encourage you to check out the video I recommended to Jim above. _________________ --
Mr. Victor X. Haskins http://victorhaskins.com/
Joined: 03 Feb 2020 Posts: 107 Location: Los Angeles
Posted: Tue Jan 19, 2021 8:27 am Post subject:
Victor:
I watched the video you posted, and I hear what you mean about using the EWI in the broader sense of a wind-operated keyboard. Your use of it in the ImproviStory video was a consciousness-expanding experience.
Thank you, too, for zeroing-in on bass line playing. Very helpful! _________________ Jim19043
1998 Bach Strad L180S72
GR 3MX
That's beautiful! We've got one guy around these parts, a REALLY good sax player, who uses an EWI. Always kind of turns me off because the only sound he gets on it is this cheesy 90's video game synth lead tone. Hearing you use it in this way almost has me gassing for picking one up myself! Well done.....
Thank you! And I understand that vibe--I think the dominant culture amongst EWI players is folks using the stock sounds within the instrument (they are not interesting) and just shredding a la Michael Brecker. There are sooo many possibilities if cats would think of the EWI as an amorphous sound tool rather than an electronic horn. I'd encourage you to check out the video I recommended to Jim above.
Too right. It really kind of freaked me out when I heard the guy I'm talking about pick the EWI up and play a solo with......a sax sample. The dude is a STELLAR sax player, and plays a solo with a sax sample (cheesy one at that) with his alto sitting on the stand right nex to him.....smh.....
Joined: 27 Nov 2012 Posts: 193 Location: Richmond, VA
Posted: Thu Jan 21, 2021 1:28 pm Post subject:
Jim19043 wrote:
Victor:
I watched the video you posted, and I hear what you mean about using the EWI in the broader sense of a wind-operated keyboard. Your use of it in the ImproviStory video was a consciousness-expanding experience.
Thank you, too, for zeroing-in on bass line playing. Very helpful!
You're welcome, Jim! I'm glad you could broaden your horizons of what's possible after the experience.
area51recording wrote:
Too right. It really kind of freaked me out when I heard the guy I'm talking about pick the EWI up and play a solo with......a sax sample. The dude is a STELLAR sax player, and plays a solo with a sax sample (cheesy one at that) with his alto sitting on the stand right nex to him.....smh.....
Hahaha noooo...VSTs of wind instruments are the worst--even at their best, they lack the overtones, complexity, and character of any horn. What he did is the equivalent of you going to attend a live performance of Swan Lake with the ballet troupe in full leotards and costumes, and then they show you a video of them performing Swan Lake. _________________ --
Mr. Victor X. Haskins http://victorhaskins.com/
Joined: 27 Nov 2012 Posts: 193 Location: Richmond, VA
Posted: Fri Jan 22, 2021 7:04 pm Post subject:
theslawdawg wrote:
Yo, Victor!
Awesome, stuff. Keep it coming. We need more of this on TH.
Thank you, theslawdawg--will do! If you liked this one, you might like the next one I'm about to post.
nowave wrote:
Just wanted to say, aside from all of the (deserved) interest in your EWI bassline, I love your sound on the cornet. Really nice.
I appreciate that, nowave! Tone is everything, so that means a lot that you noticed it. _________________ --
Mr. Victor X. Haskins http://victorhaskins.com/
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