Developing Rhythmic Feel

[Menaceboi]

Rhythm is very important in jazz, that's what i feel. I have trying to think of ways to develop rhythmic feel. How do u guys go about developing rhythmically and what do you guys do to practise jazz articulation?

[big al]

try and play with guys with great time. If something sounds off, chances are it's you, and you'd better fix it before they start looking at you funny.

Listen to players, break down their articulation.

Practise with a metronome. Record yourself. Don't worry too much about the notes, if it sounds bad timing wise break it down and fix it.

Practise timing all you want, but on a gig don't focus too much on it, otherwise it may sound forced. There will be a million other excitements, disappointments (and chicks, ideally) etc. to concern yourself with, as well as interacting with your fellow musos.
The more you think, the more you stink.

I love players who play with great time.

[PH]

I agree with that.

Also, practice playing along with jazz recordings (in this case I don't mean play-alongs). Try to imitate the time, rhythmic lanuage, and articulation of your favorite players.

Find a drummer and play tunes with just a drummer, no other rhythm section.

Learn to play drums and/or dance.

Practice improvising on tunes with only the accompaniment of a metronome. To begin with put the metronome on 2 & 4 (like the drummer's hi-hat). To practice fast tempos put the metronome only on the & of 4.

It isn't always true that it don't mean a thing if it ain't got that swing. However, it should be an artist choice and not because you CAN"T swing.

[PRogers]

All I do is listen to a hell of a lot of jazz, and transcribe what I can.

[mateoshaw]

I can't say enough in support of the metronome on 2 and 4 suggestion...

I would also practice that exercise at a number of different tempos. I find particularly at slower tempos, you can really hear spots where you might be rushing or slowing down according to how comfortable you are with certain finger patterns, note choices, etc... I think it helps to have a real eveness in your eighth notes so if you do want to mess around with the pulse, you have an internal sense of where the time is always.

It might be a good idea to practice in just a key center or mode and then move on to outline changes of tunes with eigth notes when you get more comfortable with it. I think using play-alongs for this can be very helpful.

Also check out the difference in individual players, Freddie Hubbard plays eighth notes a lot differently than Clifford Brown, but I would say they both have amazing time feels. Same for someone like Clark Terry... Don't be afraid to record yourself and listen to the differences and where you want to head with it.

Good luck and Happy Shedding,

Matt

[marcX]

Transcribing helps a lot to understand the rhythmic concepts of different players/styles! Try a little piano playing....
marc