Essential Jazz Guitar Comping Rhythms

TERENCE WRIGHT GUITAR Jazz Guitarist - Music Educator - Composer http://terencewrightguitar.com

In this lesson we will examine some of the most widely used and effective comping rhythms in jazz. Rhythm is widely seen as the most important element in jazz music and many other musical idioms.

Playing with a confident sense of rhythm will not only sound great, but make any musicians you play with feel great playing with you. Some common scenarios where a jazz guitarist may need to provide strong rhythmic comping include:

Playing with an ensemble - Depending on the style of the piece you are performing, you may be required to support the rhythm section (bass and drums). Freddie Green is probably the most renowned jazz guitarist for this type of playing. Freddie rarely took a solo, but without his solid comping its been said that the whole band would fall apart. Check out an example of Freddie's comping on this link to youtube here.

Comping for a soloist - It is important to make a soloist feel at comfortable when comping. When a musician is taking a solo, and you are comping, it is your responsibility to make him or her sound great. For starters, try keeping an eye on your volume level and most importantly maintain a consistent sense of rhythm. For both accompanying a soloist and playing in an ensemble, the simpler the comping patterns the better!

Solo performance - This is where you can have the most flexibility with the rhythm, but also the most responsibility. It can be more difficult to hold down a steady groove without any other performers, but it can be rewarding for you and the audience if you can pull it off. Solo jazz guitarists will often play choruses of only chords and rhythm, or a combination of chords and single lines.

The rhythms included this lesson are all easily applicable to any of the above situations.

Quarter Note Comping Rhythms

The first and arguably the most important rhythm we will look is the quarter note rhythm.

This essential rhythm seems easy, but it can take years to develop a solid quarter note groove. Be patient and be sure to add this rhythm to your regular practice routine!

1 / 8 TERENCE WRIGHT GUITAR Jazz Guitarist - Music Educator - Composer http://terencewrightguitar.com

The key to making this sound great is to make sure you are holding the quarter note for as long as possible. Each chord played on the quarter note should ring up to the very last moment before the next quarter note. There should be a short and deliberate pause just before the following quarter note. The pause can be produced through releasing the tension in your fretting hand for a brief moment.

It is common for guitarist to play this rhythm while letting each chord ring for only half the duration of the quarter note or less. Don't fall into this trap, listen carefully and it will pay off!

The seventh chords used in these examples follow a VI - II - V - I chord progression, one of the most common jazz chord progressions!

If you are looking for more information on the chords used in this lesson, check out the 10 Must Know Jazz Guitar Chords lesson and start building your chord vocabulary today!

Beat 1 and 3

In many big band or ensemble scenarios a guitarist is often asked to provide strong comping on beats 1 and 3. The use of a metronome will help you nail down a really tight 1 and 3 comping

2 / 8 TERENCE WRIGHT GUITAR Jazz Guitarist - Music Educator - Composer http://terencewrightguitar.com pattern. Depending on the demands of the situation, you may need to let the quarter note ring for its entire duration, or just briefly.

Beat 2 and 4

Beats 2 and 4 are very commonly used as comping patterns to strengthen the swinging feel of a tune. As with all the rhythms in this lesson, it is beneficial to practice with a metronome. Use this rhythm sparingly when in a duo situation.

3 / 8 TERENCE WRIGHT GUITAR Jazz Guitarist - Music Educator - Composer http://terencewrightguitar.com

The Charleston Comping Rhythm

The Charleston rhythm is an excellent example of a swinging comping rhythm. It works great in a duo situation where you need to leave space for the soloist but also provide a swinging accompanying rhythm. This rhythm is absolutely not limited to a duo performance. The Charleston is commonly found in everything from big band performances to solo guitar performances!

4 / 8 TERENCE WRIGHT GUITAR Jazz Guitarist - Music Educator - Composer http://terencewrightguitar.com

Charleston Variation

If we take the Charleston rhythm and displace it by an eighth note, we will get an unofficial variation of it. The rhythm itself starts on the 'and' of one as opposed to starting on beat one. This is a great rhythm to play when a bassist or drummer is present.

Be careful when applying this rhythm to a duo situation because it does not provide a solid beat one. Without a solid idea of where 'one' is when comping in a duo situation, you run the risk of losing the time and feel.

Charleston Variation

Finally, this Charleston variation uses the same rhythm as the Charleston itself, but it also includes a quarter note on beat four. The additional quarter note makes the rhythm a bit busier, but it can be just as swinging and effective as the Charleston in many performance situations.

5 / 8 TERENCE WRIGHT GUITAR Jazz Guitarist - Music Educator - Composer http://terencewrightguitar.com

Bossa Nova Comping Rhythm

Every well rounded jazz guitarist should have a repertoire of bossa nova tunes. This rhythm will get you through any bossa nova tune in 4/4 time sounding the part!

6 / 8 TERENCE WRIGHT GUITAR Jazz Guitarist - Music Educator - Composer http://terencewrightguitar.com

Rootless Bossa Nova

After playing through the rhythm with full voicings of each chord, as in the previous example, try playing the same rhythm without the chord root. If you are playing a bossa nova tune with a bass player present, it is best not to step on each other's toes. If you take out the root note (in this case also the lowest note) in each chord, you will blend nicely into an ensemble.

7 / 8 TERENCE WRIGHT GUITAR Jazz Guitarist - Music Educator - Composer http://terencewrightguitar.com

Solo Guitar Bossa Nova

Finally, if you are playing a bossa nova groove as a solo musician or in a duo situation, try this example out. The idea is to play the root of the chord on beat 1 and 3 to simulate the bass player while playing the rest of the chord with the bossa nova rhythm.

After running through all the above rhythms, try applying each one to tune of your choice. To take your comping to the next level, check out voice leading chords on guitar lessons!

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