Day 1
Comparing Notation Types and Applications:
Today we are going to be looking at the different types of notation and the environments they are used in. After watching the video, take a look below to find examples of the same song notated in different formats. You will find an audio example as well
Let’s take a look at a few examples of notating the same song. For the sake of this lesson we will check out my tune “Topless in Tokyo.” I have included both a bass chart, chord chart and lead sheet of the first page of the song. Below you will find the audio clip so you can follow along.
Audio Sample
Lead Sheet Sample
This is my preferred method of notation for any group both as a musical director and just reading as a musician. This type of chart is just a big melting pot with pretty much all of the information that you need to be successful. If you really study the audio track above, you will notice that not every single thing is notated but there is enough to get you by. I like to think of this like reading a song out of the “Real Book” or “Fake Book.” The chart allows you to “fake” yourself through it but ultimately you need to have listened to the song to be successful, which is the case for most music. This is great for both horn players, comping instruments and drum set so everybody knows what is going on but they don’t have to read a big score.
Bass Chart Sample
Bass charts…I love and hate them at the same time. The great thing is that sometimes there are songs that have specific lines that have to be replicated exactly. In that scenario, it is nice to be able to quickly reference that line. The downside to these charts is the lack of freedom and interruption. The worst time to use a bass chart is for a straight ahead song (walking bass line). Lots of times someone will write a song and then write out their own walking bass line but from their viewpoint which is often times not a viewpoint that is seasoned from a bass perspective.
Chord Chart Sample
This chord chart would probably be my second choice in terms of notation for modern music. This really does not give you much information to work with but only the changes. You will see this more often in jazz and swing charts. If you are just walking a bass line in straight quarter notes than a chart like this works very well. Sometimes if you are just playing a straight ahead tune if you were to read a lead sheet, all of the extra information might just get in the way of easily reading down the changes. For a song like Topless in Tokyo, this would not be the best option because this song does not follow an easy AABA form with a simple head. That being said, its still better than nothing and it allows the musicians a lot of freedom.
Nashville Numbers (or just numbers)
As I mentioned in the video above, in my personal experience I do not encounter this as much as the previous examples. It is more common for basic vocal tunes with a predictable formate. The perk is that the song can be easily transposed to any key to accommodate for a singers needs. For the sake of this lesson, I did not chart out my song in this system because it would just be ugly looking per the way the song is composed. In the lessons to come, we will talk in great detail about chordal theory but to keep it simple think of it this way.
Let’s use a C Major scale…so, C, D, E, F, G, A and B. The C would be “1”, the D would be “2” and count all the way up to seven and thats it. We will dive into this more tomorrow, but this gives you the basic drift.
The Take Away…
There are many different ways to notate music and even more than I mentioned here. As a musician you may find yourself in both the role as the composer and the hired musician. It is important to be able to understand all of these different ways of notating so when something comes your way, you can blow through it as ease.
All of this being said, in all of my years of playing professionally as a “side man”, I have never received a chart as clean and well engraved as the examples I have given you above. Consider the fact that I have played with multiple Grammy winning musicians and artists well respected in the industry. I am not saying this to toot my own horn but just to let you know don’t expect to get the level of quality you see above. You should just prepare for the worst and rely on your ear as much as you can to get through because that is one of our greatest assets.
The Best Preparedness is Over-Preparedness
I want to share a short story with you all about a gig I had once and highlight the type of things you will see (or not see) from charts.
One of the hardest shows I have ever played was with the James Francies Trio. Now if you don’t know who James is, he is a killer pianist that plays with The Roots, Pat Metheny, Chance the Rapper, Childish Gambino and everybody in between. The guy has a killer resume and is a killer player. If you check out his own music, its some of the most syncopated stuff I have ever seen and with alternating time signatures all over the place while still being musical. I was asked referred to play with James and his drummer Jeremy for a one off gig in South Florida some years ago. In preparing for the show, I asked him what material we would be playing. James sent me a few rough sketches of tunes he has never recorded (at that time). The songs had no tempo or style markings and no audio reference to listen to. So like imagine getting the chart to Giant Steps and not knowing if its a ballad at 60bpm or fast bebop at 200bpm. This was the situation I was in. I reached out to James carefully asking for guidance without trying to sound incompetent. He did not really answer any questions. When I asked him what the tempo or style was his response was “It’s just a vibe man.” Cool. So what I did next was the most important part of this story. I made a decision that I was going to master this gig no matter what it took and that I HAD to put my best foot forward. So how did I get past this lack of information? Well, I will give you a handful of things that I did in this scenario and why they worked.
1.) SCRAPE the internet for any and all live recordings that you can. Often times many artists have some type of videos of them playing online even if they have never formally released an album. Sometimes you will be able to find the exact songs that you have to play on a gig and sometimes you won't. The important thing is to study them. Learn their style. Observe their body language and how they communicate with other musicians on the bandstand. Study the person that is playing your instrument in that video, find their social outlets, figure out their vibe etc. Get to know these people as much as you can so you know what you are getting into. Although you may not find the actual music you need to shed for the gig, you will learn some valuable information that will likely dictate how those songs should be approached. Play along with those videos! Groove with the band before you ever meet them. This starts to get you in the right mindset and you are learning their repertoire. If you can ultimately show up to the gig knowing other music they play that they didn’t even ask you to learn shows how dedicated you are to coming right on the gig.
2.) CHART out the music. For this gig and many others I have had, I will write out every song in my music notation software. From there I will play it back in every tempo and style that I think possible. This helps you to not only internalize the possibilities of the songs but to also memorize them.
3.) IF you have any audio recordings, make yourself a playlist and listen to it non-stop until the gig. This is the best possible way to prepare yourself outside of practicing but is possibly even more important than the actual practicing. You gotta learn these tunes to the point where they are stuck in your head and you can just sing it easily off the top of your head. By the time you sit down and pick up your instrument to shed, you want to already know exactly what you need to do.
4.) PRIORITIZE fixing your worst parts. You have to know what you are ultimately going to suck on and work on it to get it to the level of everything else. If you know you will never get it to that level, find out a great way to fake it musically so the point of the line can still come across.
5.) LEARN THE CHANGES on piano and play it. I can’t stress how important this is. 90% of the gigs I play these days, I am also the music director. The reason is because I not only know my part but I make a point to learn everyone else’s part. I may not be a master at these other parts but I know how it fits within the ensemble and how I should be interacting with that instrument on the bandstand. Play through the changes and by ready to solo on any song because you never know when they will ask you to blow.
Okay now, that all may seem exhausting and well, yes it is. Is it overkill? Depending on who you ask. The point is that IT WORKS! The important thing to understand is that it is easy to get hired. The hard thing is getting a CALL BACK. After that gig James has called me to play with him anytime he has come into town. I firmly believe there are way more qualified people to play that gig and I even told James that but his response was “no man, nobody shed the music like you did.” I came and knew every song and that shows to any artist a respect for the music that they hold close to their heart.
You never know what kind of music you are going to get out there or ultimately not get. Just be prepared for anything and put everything you have into it and you will never regret the results.