Saxophone Forum


by Kitch22
(98 posts)
19 years ago

A Jazz Key Change . . . ?

I play alto sax, and I have a solo for a "funk" song in my jazz band, titled Tiger Lady, by Jeff Jarvis. In my solo keys there is something like a G6/B, and I'm not quite sure what it means. I think that it may mean somthing about adding the two together, but I'm not sure. Please let me know what those slasehes mean. Also, I'm stuck on what kind of stuff to play. I'm used to playing real swing stuff, and this is my first funk solo, so to speak. Please help me out! Thanx.

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  1. by barimachine
    (323 posts)

    19 years ago

    Re: A Jazz Key Change . . . ?

    well im assuming it means that its the change half way through the messure id have to see but yea jeff jarvis is pretty awesome hes writting a chart for our band so itll say for the blake high school jazz ensemble on top of everyone of the charts

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    1. by mintyfreshjam
      (48 posts)

      19 years ago

      Re: A Jazz Key Change . . . ?

      It means a G6 chord with a B in the bass.

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  2. by Kitch22
    (98 posts)

    19 years ago

    Re: A Jazz Key Change . . . ?

    So that means I just play the G6? Is that right? And what notes would I play for G6? Thanx.

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    1. by mintyfreshjam
      (48 posts)

      19 years ago

      Re: A Jazz Key Change . . . ?

      G B D E

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      1. by jazzax
        (30 posts)

        19 years ago

        Re: A Jazz Key Change . . . ?

        G major scale is the basic tonality, so you could just play on that or a G pentatonic (GBCDEG). Pentatonics often work well as a basic approach to funk tunes. As always, you can play all twelve but generally resolve passing tones to chord tones...in other words, don't HANG out on a Bb or an F natural (especially abrassive sounding if F# and E are being played in the harmony). You could play Bh as a passing tone to B or A and you can play F as a passing tone to F# or E. Just a few ideas...of course there are so many ways to approach improv. Have fun and use your ears!

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        1. by peter090
          (155 posts)

          19 years ago

          Re: A Jazz Key Change . . . ?

          G6/B as stated is a G6 GBDE with a B in the base. Check the context of the chord and you will probably see that the B bass is to either strenghten the bass line or maintain a B pedal. The context makes a huge difference. G/B in a tune that was based in D would want a C# and F# if it was in C F natural would sound better and C natural would be a litte extra problematic is at anticipates the tonic. Like Jazzax said anything works as a passing tone but you can't analyze a chord out of context.

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        2. by golferguy675
          (600 posts)

          19 years ago

          Re: A Jazz Key Change . . . ?

          Hey man, what these guys are giving you is great solid stuff, and I could go a mile farther down the road in that direction..but I'm not going to. One thing I will touch on in that category though, is tension. Play the out of an F#, and get all that tension, then resolve it to a G and play it out even more. Resolutions, my friend. One word... Rythm. You could just sit on a G, B, Bb, D, or E and just play some funky rythms on that one not for 8 bars, it's a great crowd pleaser and it's fun as . The best is D in funk, because you can use that great alternate. Play middle d, and add the d palm key, it open's it up a lot.

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        3. by jazzax
          (30 posts)

          19 years ago

          Re: A Jazz Key Change . . . ?

          Yeah...that's a very important concept...rhythm. I know when I was in high school (over 20 years ago I hate to say), it seemed very important to play really fast because so many really good players tear it up and play at lightening speed. But great players play fast with incredible rhythmic (and melodic/harmonic) drive (like Bird and Cannonball) and I just wasn't even close to that. I really wanted to be, but I wasn't. Playing a lot of notes fast without any rhythmic(and melodic/harmonic) energy is, well, very lame sounding. Better to play a few notes that really nail it rhythmically than a lot of notes that don't. Another thing was I thought it was really important to make things really complex. You'll probably find that some of the hippest lines are really easy to play, but it is HOW they are played (for example, where the accents are placed to create the energy in the line) that's important. Jazz has made me very humble through the years (although I still suffer from self delusions of gandeur occasionally). Just a few more thoughts.

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        4. by mintyfreshjam
          (48 posts)

          19 years ago

          Re: A Jazz Key Change . . . ?

          You know, talking about Bird and Cannonball... If you were to slow down their double time licks, you'd find that they work just as well as a single time lick. That was what made them amazing players among many other things because their fast stuff fit at a regular tempo too.

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