01052019Building Fast Runs.Pdf
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Building Fast Runs on the Diatonic Harmonica: A Study in Arpeggios This material deals with creating fast runs using arpeggios. Playing fast lines can spice up your solo and there are more ways how to approach them (scales, patterns, arpeggios, and their combinations. I hear a lot of harmonica players use chromatic runs up and down the scale. These can be very effective when executed properly but also repetitive. Moreover, they might often sound jagged or forced due to changes in airflow direction and extensive bending and overbending. In contrast, thanks to harmonica’s layout arpeggios offer a much smoother transition from one note to another and create harmonic movement as well. The approach discussed in this learning material uses arpeggios. Jazz pianist Art Tatum was famous for his lightning-fast arpeggio runs and his work might be well worth studying even for harmonica players. Unlike the piano, the diatonic harmonica is an instrument difficult to control evenly and different technical aspects must be taken into account when playing. Changes in the direction of the airflow appear to be a very limiting factor for fast runs. Therefore, learning to minimise them and create meaningful lines is, in my opinion, essential. This study of 30 lines over 2-5-1 progressions attempts to do just that. Not all keys/positions are ideal for creating such lines and I will focus on 7 different keys/positions that are easy to arpeggiate due to their proximity to harmonica’s key centre, i.e. due to a smaller number of bends and overbends. By learning the principles of creating such lines you will be able to create your own variations even for the remaining 5 keys. I found that the following rules for constructing fast and seamless runs work the best. 1. Avoid changes in breath direction as much as possible. From my experience, the necessary changes are most acceptable when they occur at the end or beginning of an arpeggio phrase. 2. Proximity. This is a general rule not only limited to the harmonica. Keep the neighbouring notes of two arpeggio phrases as close as possible, i.e. use small intervals. Still, what you play will always depend on what you hear and what sounds best to you. 3. Playing arpeggios derived from a diatonic scale is fine but using notes outside the scale will add a little flavour to the lines. Mix in arpeggios from related scales/chords such as diminished or augmented. 4. Experiment with alternating between ascending and descending phrases. Try all combinations; it is possible to create long ascending or descending lines on harmonica as the instrument really offers three octaves. HOW TO USE THE MATERIAL All examples come with a short explanation. I use colour-code to highlight different aspects of the runs. Play through each line and read the notes to help you understand what is going on in each of them. Play in tempo, switch to 16th notes (over 2 bar 2-5-1). Play your favourite jazz standard and apply in your improvisation at appropriate places. Once you have played through a key/position, use the principles you have learnt to create your own runs and write them down at the very end. All arpeggio runs in this material can be altered, extended over more bars, or combined with scales or patterns. For reference, see additional examples. Arpeggios represent an essential element of playing but they are by no means the only one. This learning material’s focus is limited and further study is recommended. There are numerous books on music theory available online. To learn more and practice approach notes see also my learning material entitled ‘Approach Notes Exercises for Diatonic Harmonica’. For the purpose of this study, harmonica in the key of C will be used. All runs are written both in notes and tablature. The tabs use standard symbols: Symbol Meaning Example Meaning 1-10 Hole numbers 1 Hole number 1 + Blow +5 5 hole blow - Draw -5 5 hole draw o Overbend o6 6 hole overblow ’ Bend (a half step) -4’ 4 hole draw bend half step ’’ Bend (two half steps) -3’’ 3 hole draw bend two half steps ’’’ Bend (three half steps) -3’’’ 3 hole draw bend three half steps C major (1st position) Dm7 G7 Cmaj7 4 4 -4 -5 -6 +7 -7 +6 +5 +4 -3 -4 -5 -6 +6 +5 +4 -3'' -2 Example 1. This arpeggio line employs only C major scale notes and ends on the 5th of C major chord. It stacks four-note arpeggios in alternating directions, always starting directly below the last note of the previous arpeggio (orange). In itself the run is just fine but there are ways to make it sound more interesting. Let's consider Example 2, which uses an augmented chord arpeggio. 5 Dm7 G7 Cmaj7 -4 -5 -6 +7 -7o -6 -5 -4' +4 +5 +6 -7 -6 -5 -4' -3 +4 Example 2. substitutes the second arpeggio from Example 1. (C major 7th arpeggio) - with a Db augmented arpeggio (red). This will require an overdraw on hole 7, but the line is fluent because there is no change of air flow. Once 7 overdraw is mastered, it is really easy to execute. Then, there is an "inside-the-scale" C major arpeggio and the line continues down the Db augmented arpeggio (a tritone away from G) with an enclosure (see my practice material on approach notes) leading to the root (green). 9 Dm7 G7 Cmaj7 -3 -4 -5 -6' +6 +5 +4 -3'' -3''' -3 -4 -5 +5 +4 -3'' -2'' +2 Example 3. uses diminished scale arpeggios (blue) to supplement the standard diatonic scale arpeggios. The last of the first four notes - Ab - does not belong to the key of C major. In general, you can use the diminished chord starting half-step above the dominant chord; in this case, it is our odd note Ab (minor second above G7 chord). The run ends on the third of C major chord (green). 13 Dm7 G7 Cmaj7 -4 -5 -6 +7 -7 +6 +5 +4 -3 -4 -5 -6' +6 +5 -4' -3 +4 Example 4. employs the same diminished arpeggio device with an enclosure of the root at the end. F major (1st flat / 12th position) 17 Gm7 C7 Fmaj7 -2 -3' -4 -5 +5 +4 -3'' -2'' +2 -2 -3' -4 +4 -3'' -2'' -1 +1 21 Gm7 C7 Fmaj7 -4 -5 -6 +7 +6o +6 +5 +4 -3' -4 -5 -6 +6 +5 +4 -3'' -2'' Example 5. and 6. are simple diatonic lines in F major. Similar lines can be easily executed in the middle register starting on different notes of the scale.You can refer back to C major key lines on the previous page and construct lines starting on other notes too. 25 Gm7 C7 Fmaj7 -2 -3' -4 -5 +5 +4 -3'' -2'' +2 -2 -3' -4' +4 -3' -2 -3''' -3'' Example 7. a diatonic run with a diminished arpeggio ending on the third of F major chord approached from above chromatically. 29 Gm7 C7 Fmaj7 +7 -6 -5 -4 -4' +5 +6 +6o -6 -5 -4 -3' -3'' +4 +5 +6 -5 Example 8. is a diatonic run with a diminished arpeggio and ending on the root. This time starting with a descending arpeggio. 33 Gm7 C7 Fmaj7 -3' -4 -5 -6 -6' +5 +4 -3''' -2 -3' -4' +5 +6 +7 +8 +9 -9 Example 9. is a diatonic run with an augmented triad arpeggio (red) and a diminished arpeggio (blue). The second half of the line does not change the direction but continues up to the high register of harmonica outlining the C dominant chord by means of C major triad located on the "blow" notes. 2 G major (2nd position) 37 Am7 D7 Gmaj7 -3'' +4 +5 +6 +5o -4 -3 -2 -2' -3'' +4 +5 -4 -3 -2 +2 -1 Example 10. a simple diatonic arpeggio run. 41 Am7 D7 Gmaj7 -3'' +4 +5 +6 +5o -4 -3 -2 -2' -3'' +4 +5 +4o +4 -3'' -2' -2 Example 11. is the same as Example 10. but with a diminished arpeggio (blue) at the end. 45 Am7 D7 Gmaj7 +4 +5 +6 -7 +6o +5o -4 -3' -3'' +4 +5 +6 +5o -4 -3' -2' -2 Example 12. is a diatonic arpeggio run with a D augmented triad (red); the augmented triad has two common notes with D7 chord. Another option would be Ab augmented triad; it shares two notes with A minor chord and conveys the sound of the melodic minor. Also, Ab is a tritone away from D. 49 Am7 D7 Gmaj7 +2 -2 -3 -4 +4o +5o -6 +7 -7 +6 +5 +4 +4o +4 -3'' -2' -2 Example 13. has two longer runs and only one change of direction. The ascending line has a diminished arpeggio (blue); notice that it starts only half-step away from the preceding note. The descending line has a diminished arpeggio too, however, it now starts a minor third above the previous note. This is simply because the line preserves the direction of the air, which is mostly exhaled. 3 Bb major (2nd flat/11th position) 53 Cm7 F7 B♭maj7 +4 +4o +6 +6o -6 -5 -4 -3' -3'' +4 +4o +6 -5 -4 -3' -2 -2'' Example 14. is a basic diatonic line based on arpeggios. It is very fluent in terms of airflow direction, however, there is a two-hole jump between holes 4 and 6, which might represent a fluency disruption or pose difficulty for some especially with the 4 hole overblow.