06/11/2013 (12 Moons Solo Project Day 162)

12 Moons Solo Saxophone Project Day 162

Date: 6/11/2013

Instrument: Tenor saxophone

Location: Main performance hall at Chief Sealth High School.  Seattle, WA 

Notes:

I found myself in the large performance hall at Chief Sealth High School once again today.  With sufficient, uninterrupted time to record, high mental energy and a vacant space, I decided to work with the room on short, puckish phrases.  During this improvisation I focused on 2 fingerings and 3 overall actions, with the concept of a change in perception caused by a change in criteria.  There are often fingerings on the horn that when played on their own, will, with some measure of predictabilty create a specific pitch.  However, if that fingering is preceded by another particular kind of fingering the resulting sound of the second pitch can be entirely new.  This was the case during my improvisation today.

The 2 fingerings and 3 total actions used a total of two pitches.  In fingering 1/action 1, this used the tenor pitch “C” in the altissimo (extreme upper) register.  The 2nd fingering/2nd action used the pitch “C#” a half step above.  The 3rd action/1st fingering created the pitches C and C# together in a cluster.  Again, this 3rd action used the exact same fingering as fingering 1/action 1, but would only clearly sound this two-note cluster if coming directly from fingering2/action 2.  During the improvisation this chord cluster can be heard as the aggressive “zip” sound that occasionally ends a melodic phrase.

-Neil

The image “Predators” accompanying today’s post by Albert Kotin

06/10/2013 (12 Moons Solo Project Day 161)

12 Moons Solo Saxophone Project Day 161

Date: 06/10/2013

Instrument: Tenor saxophone

Location: Home studio in Clinton, WA (Whidbey Island)

Notes:

During my practice session this morning, I explored sympathetic key clacking inside of melodic phrases.  I approached it a variety of ways, including cross fading pitches and the key clacking, or creating different rhythmic cycles with the clacking itself while playing a melody.  I eventually settled on a bluesy theme with 4 pitches, where I performed a piece inspired by steel body guitar playing.  In my own playing I tried to replicate the twangy, gutsy tremolo by fluttering open and closed the lower stack “clutch” key on every pitch played.  I maintained this flutter only when actually playing a note and did this to give the effect that the clacking was more a part of the note sounds themselves rather than something used for affectation.   I used my index and middle fingering, rapidly alternating one after the other as though trilling two keys on a piano.  

This improvisation uses pitches divided in the upper register and middle register.  The upper register uses the traditionally tempered pitches Eb, G and Bb–an Eb major triad.  In the middle register I used alternate fingerings to create breathy, bluesy tones with the pitches Db and Eb.  These pitches used the following fingerings:

Db (Left Hand) Fork F, A-G keys, octave 

Eb (Left Hand) Fork F, C key, octave

-Neil

The image “A Near Distance” accompanying today’s post by Perle Fine (1961)

06/09/2013 (12 Moons Solo Project Day 160)

12 Moons Solo Saxophone Project Day 160

Date: 06/09/13

Instrument: Tenor saxophone

Location: The rec room in my childhood home.  Edmonds, WA

Notes:

This morning I unexpectedly had to be on a 6:30am ferry back to the mainland, and found myself at my childhood house, horn in hand and fully ready for the day by 7:30.  During this time I worked on quiet, controlled gestures, scales and long tones.  I ended my practice session by working with three false fingerings on the tenor pitches “D-E-F."  This minor gesture became the fulcrum of my improvisation today.  During this piece I cycled the three pitches at a steady tempo and included the use of flutter-tonguing to punctuate the pitches.  As the improvisation evolved I began slightly adjusting my lower lip position, taking in just a bit less of the thick part of the lip and balancing more on the thinner outer part.  This technique allows for the core pitch to sound as well as extreme upper register chirping tones.  I worked to phase between the traditional pitches and the pairing of traditionally and chirped tones.  The fingerings were as follows:

Tenor pitch D: (Left Hand) Middle C, Octave // (Right Hand) Low C

Tenor pitch E: (Left Hand) Middle C, Octave // (Right Hand) F-E keys, Low C

Tenor pitch F: (Left Hand) Middle C, Octave // (Right Hand) F-E keys, Side C, Low C

-Neil

The image "Two Nudes on Purple Canvas” accompanying today’s post by Robert Beauchamp

06/08/2013 (12 Moons Solo Project Day 159)

12 Moons Solo Saxophone Project Day 159

Date: 06/08/2013

Instrument: Tenor saxophone

Location: Home studio in Clinton, WA (Whidbey Island)

Notes:

This morning I learned about the passing of saxophone legend Bert Wilson (1939-2013).  A pioneer of multiphonics as a course of study, Bert was a deeply soulful and thoughtful player.  He inspired countless musicians across a career that spanned decades.  I had the great fortune to spend about 4 hours with Bert earlier this year.  That afternoon being my first and last time hearing him play in person and listening about his storied career as an innovator and saxophone master.  What a joyous man.  What a beautiful man.  

I found myself thinking today that I don’t celebrate people enough while they’re here.  Fortunately, during Bert’s later years there were so many people that were close to him and collaborated with him.  I’m certain this must have added so much happiness to his life. My improvisation today is inspired by a bit of the conversation I had with Bert.  We had a very interesting talk about the importance of melodicism in music, and coming from Bert I wasn’t at all surprised to hear him talk about the importance of melody as the core component of why we listen to music.  When I first heard Bert I was deeply inspired by his ability to play multiphonic chords in such a soulful and melodic way.  A rainbow of love streamed from Bert’s instrument and I’m so fortunate to have spent even a few brief hours in his presence.  As Bert told me, “The more you know the more you blow."  Great teachers are always great students themselves, and Bert radiated this with every note he played.

-Neil

The image accompanying today’s post is of Bert Wilson live in action.

06/07/2013 (12 Moons Solo Project Day 158)

12 Moons Solo Saxophone Project Day 158

Date: 06/06/2013

Instrument: Tenor saxophone

Location: A bathroom on the second floor at Benaroya Hall.  Seattle, WA

Notes:

Tonight I participated in a concert with saxophone great Roscoe Mitchell, performing several renditions of his seminal composition “Nonaah."  Roscoe performed a solo set tonight which nearly brought me to tears with its beauty, power and commitment to the moment.  I truly felt for the first time in my life that I was inside this man’s instrument, breathing, exploring and pushing along with him.  I even found that my breathing starting to coincide with his while he played, and I would become physically strained when it was clear to me that Roscoe was pushing himself to the point of discomfort.   It was truly an inspirational night for me.

I recorded this improvisation during the down time before out concert.  I could not find a room on the second floor that was free from the sound of musicians sound checking or warming up.  It was a welcome problem to have, and I eventually found my sonic respite in a bathroom on the second floor of the performance hall.  There was no compositional model to this piece, though my mind was heavily invested in the thematic development of Roscoe’s composition "Nonaah,” and this certainly influenced my train of through and artistic choices while sculpting this improvisation.

-Neil 

The image “Red and Blue Composition” accompanying today’s post by Ad Reinhardt (1941)