ARRANGING IN VARIOUS STYLES Ben Bram AUTHENTICITY How is it achieved? Harmonic language (does it feel right to have this chord here?) Instrumentation/units (do we have everything present that we need?) Rhythms (is each unit doing what it needs to be doing rhythmically?) Character (delivery of all parts, lead vocal, are we buying it?) *LISTENING* Critical, deep listening many musicians can transcribe notes and rhythms. Next level dynamics, articulations, bends, scoops, vowel modulations, vocal inflections, timbre, tone, mood, vibe, things you can t put into words. Open your ears to aspects of music that people don t usually listen for. THIS CLASS Is an oversimplification. To hopefully inspire you to go and learn about the styles you re interested in. To apply these styles to new, unique interpretations of songs from other genres. There are a million different genres of music I just chose a few. There is no one size fits all literally every song is different. o But there are some generally common characteristics.
DANCE-POP 4 on the floor perc VS. syncopated bass/synth rhythms o creates new composite beat Hard tuned, very rhythmically precise production style, everything on the grid Result: it makes you want to DANCE Gangnam Style by PSY Party Rock Anthem by LMFAO Turn Up the Music by Chris Brown Contrasts with floaty sections of no perc, then DROP
GOSPEL (URBAN CONTEMPORARY GOSPEL) I see it as soul/r&b without the simplistic constraints of contemporary pop o Lots of variation, improvisation, drum fills, vocal riffs o Virtuosic bass (Reggie) Gospel choir: usually simple triadic 3-part harmony, loose tuning, big sound Getting people to sing soulfully have to tell them what to do o Wide vibrato, vowel warping, informal pronunciation, scoops, imperfection, tight cutoffs, PASSION and INDIVIDUALITY. o Blend and overtones = not important Justified by Smokie Norful (laid back 6/8 groove) A little behind the beat Unbridled passion, starts with restraint then RELEASE Sweeter by Kim Burrell (midtempo R&B 4/4) Awesome bass lines! Full band accents Souled Out by Hezekiah Walker (uptempo 2/4) Tasteful use of choir unison, then back to harmony SPACE in the bass part, not just driving the whole time
FOLK/INDIE ROCK Generally simple, repetitive, and deliberate musical changes, chords move predictably, emphasis is on storytelling many chords would be out of place in this style, there are only a few right answers. Emphasis on emotive delivery breathy/gritty/with character can t be bland! I Will Wait by Mumford and Sons Banjo arpeggiation Mandolin/guitar strumming syllables, make them natural and under pronounced o Chng ga dat vs. joong guh duht Upright bass notes decay quicker, emphasis on attack, differs from electric bass Never Too Late by The Rescues Poison and Wine by The Civil Wars Pedal tones that carry through the whole progression (Db and Ab) o Make it sound more harmonically complex
BIG BAND/VOCAL JAZZ Can t Buy Me Love by Michael Bublé Walking bass, half step passing notes, allows for tensions Horn dynamics on held notes, forte piano Roles of each horn o Trombone stabs, virtuosic/legato/agile sax lines, trumpet stabs for emphasis Night Dreamer by Wayne Shorter/Kurt Elling Vocalese side-by-side (improvised solo learned, put lyrics to) Get Away Jordan by Take 6 Homophonic jazz harmony, LEARN JAZZ THEORY, TRANSCRIBE Tritone substitution/circle of 5ths Know which chords need to be straight tone to ring and lock, which can have vibrato Get away, GET GET JORDAN! horn imitation using lyrics
LATIN JAZZ There are SO many different styles of Latin American music. Latin music is like saying American music even more diverse. Get specific! Layered percussion is key difficult to replicate with only drums Clave different basic patterns that hold the rhythm together Descarga de Hoy by Cubanismo! (Afro-Cuban jazz) Montuno repeated syncopated piano vamp, arpeggiated Percussion: guiro, congas, timbales, clave/woodblock, cowbell Which clave is being played here? Syncopated bass parts which often tie over the barline Girl From Ipanema by Astrud Gilberto (Bossa Nova) Chill vibe, light percussion Syncopated clave-esque guitar Mas Que Nada by Sergio Mendes feat. The Black Eyed Peas (Latin-influenced pop/hip-hop) Combines rhythmic/percussive elements of many Latin styles Jazz harmony based on the circle of 5ths Utilizes modern production style, rap Ingenious melding of different styles
REGGAE/SKA High pitched snare popcorn or piccolo snare Beeats contain lots of hi-hat filler Signature/characteristic lead vocal style Skank guitar figure offbeats Stir It Up by Bob Marley and the Wailers Repetitive lick doubled/octavized in the bass and guitar Skank guitar figure (sixteenths) Santeria by Sublime Skank guitar figure (just eighths) King Without A Crown by Matisyahu Variation in beat, more driving, Reggaeton-inspired
OTHER IDEAS/INSPIRATIONS What Is Hip? by Tower of Power String Quartet in F Major 1 st Mvmt by Ravel/Emerson String Quartet String Quartet in F Major 2 nd Mvmt by Ravel/Emerson String Quartet Tamacun by Rodrigo y Gabriela CLOSING Be meticulous o Vocal stylizing/inflections/versatility o Transcribing rhythms/harmonies o Instrument imitation get to know the actual instrument, how it works TOOLS The Internet!!! o YouTube, Wikipedia, Google, etc. The Amazing Slow Downer software o http://www.ronimusic.com/ Jazz theory/harmony references o http://www.cs.uml.edu/~stu/jazztheory.pdf o http://www.thereelscore.com/portfoliostuff/pdffiles/quickjazztheoryre ffinal.pdf