Tuesday March 21
Interval study in subdivisions of 3. Somehow it only took me 50 minutes to complete even though I slowed the metronome down about half way through. I started at 162 bpm with one note per beat, then after about 4 intervals I reduced it to 76 bpm, but played the first note on the downbeat and the rest in the space between. I thought I might have missed something but I didn't. So I went back over certain intervals at slower tempo, (64 bpm) to really nail the patterns.

I feel like I am relearning the bass but with almost 15 years of playing and knowledge the learning curve is not so steep. My confidence is increasing, as is my ability to be more expressive and creative. In BCP, we have been crafting a new song and I feel like my increasing abilities and confidence have fostered my creative input to the song. It will only get easier to compose with time. Composing is something I have wanted to do for a long time, but did not know where to begin. Collaborative composition seems like a good way to start. Look at Rodgers and Hart, Kern and Fields, Fagen and Becker, George and Ira Gershwin, Phish, and countless other collaborative composers. Their methods seem to work...

Monday March 20
Over the weekend I decided to increase the amount of time and the content of my practice sessions. I have more than enough material to work with but it can become overwhelming when trying to decide what to practice and then sticking with the chosen material. It might be called "vertical practicing" where a concept of music making is held for an extended period of time delving into the depths of the concept and all of its nooks and crannies. For example. Practicing ONE scale type or ONE arpeggio in all 12 keys using several rhythmic subdivisions.

I figured out that Kai's interval study consists of 720 patterns. 12 intervals, 12 keys and 5 rhythmic subdivisions. Each subdivision takes about an hour to complete so if the patterns start on a Monday with subdivisions of 2, it will start again on the following sixth Monday. I started on Monday March 20th and it will cycle itself on Monday April 24th, the sixth week.

Although this is good, reading music is what will really propel me upwards. I can read a little bit, but it's slow, and tedious. Chord charts are good, but its not the same as being able to read the melody. In the past I would loop certain parts over and over until I could get the notes and the rhythms correct, but that does not work on a gig and barely works while practicing at home. I needed a method; enter Carol Kaye, studio bass musician extrodinare. She has a practical, and easy to use method of learning to read in real situations. Her career is based on studio work for record companies, TV and film studios spanning an almost 50 year range, so reading for bass was an essential tool for her success. It works, after just a few days of using her book and DVD I already have improved my reading skills by a lot. For beginner readers it's all about breaking the music up in two parts, rhythm and melody (duh!). First beat out the rhythm then play the melody out of time, then mash the two together. Kind of like reading English only more fun. Thank you Carol!

March 18 and 19 Saturday and Sunday


Both days were spent in intense study, Saturday on the intervals with a subdivision of 2 to get an idea of how long it would take to play through 12 intervals in 12 keys. I found it takes about an hour with any problems included, although this will probably decrease in time. I also spent time just free playing on my sunny afternoon porch. Sooooo nice. Sunday, was spent figuring out how to ascend in one type of arpeggio and descend in another (minor up, major down, and vise versa). The goal is to be able to cleanly play through the cycle of fourths as soooo much of Jazz is based on the cycle. This will help my walking bass lines and soloing. I also played along with Jobim's "Wave" as I have a recording of Jim Hall playing this tune solo, live in concert with Ella Fitzgerald (no Ella on this track). Also looked into 'Witch Hunt" by Wayne Shorter an interesting tune, that conjures images of a crazed mob calling for the hunt of a supposedly deranged woman. Jesse wants to arrange this song for BCP and I am all for it, but Brian will need some time with this one as his reading is not to good and he probably has not heard it before. More to come.

Josh and Kai, High Sierra 2004