Originally posted by Diki:
Yes OF COURSE you CAN do far more than play simple one finger chords with your LH and struggle to get even the melody played correctly in the RH on an arranger... But that doesn't mean an awful lot of people aren't doing it that way (I can't, for instance, remember the last demo anyone posted here where they actually strayed much away from the melody and blew a REAL solo - I know there have been some, but I can't for the life of me remember the last one).
Diki ... I love jazz (I have WBGO out of New Jersey streaming on the pc as I am writing this
http://www.wbgo.org/listennow/ ), and love to listen to true artists take a tune and "make it their own" during the solos ... I enjoy it when I turn on a jazz station in the middle of a great solo and try to find the chord progression that tells me the title before the artists get back to the melody line ... BUT, not everyone wants to hear a song played like that ...
I will be the first to admit that I do not have the 'chops' many of you have ... unfortunately, I did not apply myself as I should have as a youngster ... But I did listen enough to my parents' and music teacher's pleading for me to "PRACTICE!!!" to bring myself to a level of competency that has brought me countless hours of making music that other people enjoyed ...
Just for the record. I will often take a SMF and 'pare it down' to a trio or quartet, taking out the melody line, or in spots, leave it in to play a counter melody against it...
I guess I am one of those who doesn't stray far from the melody or basic chord changes most of the time, but there is an upside to that as well ... Many audiences, unless they are looking for a good jazz performance, would rather be able to recognize the tune, even during a solo ...
t.
[This message has been edited by tony mads usa (edited 10-30-2008).]