I have a new plan... I keep trying and failing to learn how to improvise, so I am developing a new plan. Step # 1 is to really learn the melody and changes of a tune, before worrying about 'owt else. We'll see how it goes.

This Step # 1 on All of Me. I was actually quite pleased with my tone here, for a change.

https://youtu.be/4cRfj8DwkwU

Cheers
Derek

This is an experiment in trying to stick to a couple of simple rhythmic phrases throughout a 12 bar blues (allowing myself a bit of freedom right at the end) with the idea being that it might make the improvisation easier by taking out a bit of thinking. Not sure it worked, but here we have the basic blues itself, followed by the improvisation where I tried to (roughly) adhere to the predefined rhythms.

https://youtu.be/ht70quu8iSU

Cheers
Derek

Following on from last month's video, here we have the same thing again at a slower tempo and a little more in context, but this time I'm using the major pentatonic - I think this scale fits the chords better, but ideally I'd like to be able to mix the two scales. But that involves thinking...

https://youtu.be/vXvz1lKlr5c

Cheers
Derek

It's the first of the month which means I do a monthly review of where I am. I'm 17 months in now... wow, I still can't believe I've kept this up. This month I've tried something new, but something that all the jazz teachers recommend -transcribing. Not writing down, but learning and memorising a jazz solo, to help (start) to get the feel of the music and phrasing and so on. This is Lester Young's clarinet solo off "Countless Blues". I can only play it at 75% for now- but I shall keep chipping away at those percentages! I've loved the entire process of listening and working out the phrases and timing. It has meant I've neglected other areas of studies, but I think it'll be worth it in the long run.

Cheers
Derek

https://youtu.be/WDgRmLgGyHY

I'm trying to record something each month as a measure of progress. I'm now at the 15 month stage. So here we have a low register / simple improv around Summertime.

https://youtu.be/esGDonpfzpI

Cheers
Derek

Hi One and All

I've now been playing 14 months and I think it's going ok. I reasonably happy with progress. That said, the last few months I've been focussing on the clarion register because I'm not happy with my tone there. But what's the secret? I always sound strained and force and "quacky". The link is a brief improv over Minor Swing but I think it demonstrates my frustrations. I'd like a nice round jazzy tone, instead I've got this. I mean, I'm not unhappy - I couldn't have done this a few months back - but all my long notes and scales and so on don't seem to be making much difference.

https://youtu.be/vYvgjdrpqvg

Regards
Derek

It's getting close to a year on this journey. The destination has always been to get to a point where I can accompany myself on recordings of blues, and - later, much later - swing songs. At this point, in practical and tone terms, I can get by with the blues scale in the lower register. This exercise was about learning a new pair of blues scales - in this case A (concert G). It's very simple and restricted, and was meant to be just a demo for a proper video, but I was happy enough with the demo, that I never bothered with the video!

It's an original blues, finger-picked on an old Martin, with the Noblet Artist playing the fills.

https://www.soundclick.com/music/songInfo.cfm?songID=14252064

I thought it was about time I posted a video of some playing for comment / observations / tips etc

I'm a whisker under 10 months in on this journey. Amongst many other things, I'm working through a wonderful (non clarinet) book called The Blues Scale by Dan Greenblatt. It's slow going, not because it's difficult, but because I find it hard to memorise the licks in the book. Anyway, these are four licks I came up with being played over one of Dan's backing tracks.

Clarinet is a Noblet Artist 45 with a (loose!) Hite Premier mouthpiece and a Vandoren 2.5 reed.

https://youtu.be/fc_WcWm2oVs

Cheers
Derek