PRACTICE PORTAL

Here are some more transcriptions from one of my favorite pianists, Mulgrew Miller. as i mentioned in an earlier post, Miller’s compositions share something in common with the great Cedar Walton. they’re made up of memorable, even singable melodies, and set on top of unconventional, sophisticated progressions.  they’re accessible and elusive at the same time. the two songs below are good examples of what i mean. “For Those Who Do” is from the record HAND IN HAND. it features five members of the album’s septet: Kenny Garrett on soprano sax, Steve Nelson on vibes, Christian McBride on the bass and Lewis Nash on drums. the form is interesting: after a four measure drum intro, the melody is stated by the saxophone. the first section is twenty bars long. after a second twenty-two bar melody is played, the section’s progression repeated for solos. after blowing by Garrett and Nelson, the initial melody is restated. the second melody is then looped while Miller blows over it. the lines that he plays over the challenging progression are just incredible. Miller dances on the outer edges of the harmonies but he is always able to anchor what he does with a strong rhythmic sense and an ever present funkiness. “Another Type Thang” comes from the date WITH OUR OWN EYES, a trio record featuring Miller, Richie Goods on bass and Tony Reedus on drums. the melody begins after an eight bar introduction. the A section consists of a four bar idea that is repeated in the following four bars, modulated down a major third. the B section starts with a two bar motif that is repeated in descending whole steps. half of the A section is repeated, then a coda like section, eight bars long is played. the blowing is over the twenty-eight measure ABA form. Miller plays a really grooving solo punctuated by amazing 16th note runs…

MULGREW MILLER- “FOR THOSE WHO DO (melody)” (mp3)

LEAD SHEET FOR “FOR THOSE WHO DO” (pdf)

MULGREW MILLER- “FOR THOSE WHO DO (solo)” (mp3)

SOLO FROM “FOR THOSE WHO DO” (pdf)

MULGREW MILLER- “ANOTHER TYPE THANG (melody and solo)” (mp3)

LEAD SHEET FOR “FOR THOSE WHO DO” (pdf)

SOLO FROM “FOR THOSE WHO DO” (pdf)

I’m adding chord progressions to the transcriptions that i’ve posted and am making revised PDFs where i’ve found mistakes. so far i’ve added progressions to Cedar Walton’s and Mulgrew Miller’s “Hindsight” and Lennie Tristano’s “Line Up”.  i’ve made some corrections to “Line Up” and to Booker Little’s “Hazy Hues”…

While i was listening to music to find material for my last post about Mulgrew Miller, i dug out a copy of Vincent Herring’s record, Evidence which features Wallace Roney, Ira Coleman, Carl Allen and Miller. on it, they do a version of “Hindsight” by Cedar Walton- over the years, many comparisons have been made between Miller and Mcoy Tyner, perhaps because of some stylistic similarities in their improvisations- when i hear Miller- at least compositionally- one of the first people i think about is Cedar Walton.  Walton has written so many great songs over the years like “Bolivia”, ” Firm Roots”, “Clockwise” and the song featured on this post. speaking as an improvising composer, i’ve always been most intrigued by his chord progressions. “Hindsight” features a nice vamp which moves between B7#9, C7#9 and A7#9 and then the melody, played over a descending 1/2 step progression that begins from C and alternates between major and dominant chords on its way down to where it finally comes to a rest on E maj. it’s a challenge to improvise melodically over those changes, to play over the whole phrase rather than from chord to chord to chord.  in the hands of masters like Miller and Walton, progressions like these are material for amazing improvisations… Walton is a great example of a composer improvisor. he sounds as if he’s reading/ writing a piece of music somewhere in his head as he’s improvising. i just finished pulling his right hand line off the recording and the notes on paper are really beautiful to look at. all the fat and excess carved away to leave a finely sculpted line. he has a highly developed sense of symmetry and form, undoubtedly honed during his years as a songwriter.  you can see the results of many years lived with this music. wow… let me shut up. his version of “Hindsight” is from his date called Composer which features Roy Hargrove, Christian McBride, Vincent Herring, Ralph Moore and Victor Lewis. below are transcriptions of Miller’s and Walton’s right hand…

MULGREW MILLER- “HINDSIGHT” (mp3)

SOLO TRANSCRIPTION OF “HINDSIGHT” (pdf)

CEDAR WALTON- “HINDSIGHT” (mp3)

SOLO TRANSCRIPTION OF “HINDSIGHT” (pdf)

Mulgrew Miller is a pianist that every one should be aware of. but he’s one of those guys that musicians speak about with an air of reverence while general jazz listeners , who may know the name, can’t quite place the face. he’s a “musician’s musician”, a double-edged compliment reserved for guys who don’t get the attention and accolades they deserve. for quite a while now, Miller has been one of the most in demand pianists on the scene due in large part to his wide palette of harmonic shades and a highly personal melodic vocabulary. i first became aware of his playing from listening to a cd called Wingspan, which also introduced me to the ridiculous alto playing  of one of  his longtime associates, Kenny Garrett. i spent many an hour listening to that joint, in awe of the improvisations and the compositions. Miller has a real gift for writing catchy, singable melodies and setting them in a sophisticated harmonic framework. his melodic lines brim with elliptical patterns while his left hand evokes a harmonic mood that moves quickly between earthy and ethereal. i no longer have a copy of that record but i do have many others including With Our Own Eyes, Time and Again, The Countdown and Hand In Hand, the record that i pulled this transcription off of. another record, one on which he’s a sideman, that to this day is near the top of my playlist is Cassandra Wilson’s Blue Skies. Miller drops gem after gem in his soloing and wraps Wilson’s awesome voice in a thick haze of soul and depth. “Thinkin’ Out Loud” is loosely based on “Minority” but instead of the traditional turnaround, the song instead sits on an E major chord for four bars before a  ii-V over two bars takes it back to the top. i transcribed the right hand line and when i get up the courage, i’ll try to pick out the left hand. in the meantime, check it out…

MULGREW MILLER- “THINKIN’ OUT LOUD” (mp3)

SOLO TRANSCRIPTON OF “THINKIN’ OUT LOUD” (pdf)