May Full Moon Message

I enter as Red Winged Blackbirds
Announce Twilight’s approach
I slow and turn all around
Thanking the Guardians of Place

I walk absorbed in Sound
Sacred Sound
The Sounds our Ancestors
Knew so very Well

The Sounds we so often tune out
In fact sometimes
When we walk in places
Undisturbed by development

We are uncomfortable
By the Silence
We perceive
Until Our Ears

All of a Sudden
Awake to Nature’s Symphony
Constant yet ever changing
Harmonies and Melodies

Dance over complex
Undefined rhythmic patterns
Inherent in the Land
Heard by few, Sought by All

Tonight as I walk
I feel Alone ~ not Lonely
Just Alone and a little lost
Yet overhead One follows Me

I hear the familiar shriek
Looking up I see A Red Tailed Hawk
Also known as the Red Eagle
Magnificent in Flight

Following me
As He has done now
For the last 9 years
I am not Alone

I breathe and relax
His companionship
Welcome this Evening
As always

Following his flight
I say a prayer for the
Red Winged Blackbirds
As they are most prolific

And also easy prey for
A hungry Hawk
Yet it seems tonight
My Hawk Friend

Is just glad to glide overhead
As I walk
His Vision keen
His Strength and Power

Legendary
How do I know this is the same Hawk?
Well – because He follows me often
Hawks have the ability to

Single out and remember different
Species and people from on High
Years ago As I began
A Nature observation

In this area
I nestled High on a Hill
Three times a week for
Close to a year

I would always notice Hawks
Circling along with Vultures
And Other Winged Ones
One Hawk curious

Always soared over the tree
Where I usually sat
After a time
Every time I came

He would fly overheard
Then swoop low
In our greeting
And honoring of each other

Sometimes when I would walk my area
He would soar along above
When I just sat – He would hover
It’s been 9 years

I still go to the same preserve
Although my observation spot
Has changed
Last Year I was absent

Quite a bit
I thought my Friend
Had moved on or forgotten
This Night tells me

He is still alive and well
He still recognizes me
I am remembered
I am loved

I walk on and up the Hill
People with dogs walk below
Yet the Hill is empty tonight
I rejoice in the Space



Wide Open Space
My Hawk Friend
Does a spectacular Dance in the Sky
Deer stand behind me in the brush

Invisible to the eye
But very known to the Ear
They stomp and snort
They would rather I move along

I smile and start my descent
Along their trail
So easy for human walking
A fox cries in the distance

The Heron fly in for the Night
As I cross the bridge
I hear Beaver chewing
I give thanks to the Brandywine

The River of my Childhood
Explorations and Joy
Still flowing ever on
In this Space

Held in My Heart
I give Thanks
I watch as My Hawk Friend swoops
Lower once again

Then on He flies
Ever in this Place
Always in My Heart
I give the Wind

A Silent kiss
To carry to
My Beloved One
As He rises ever Higher



On his Journey
Through the Darkness
AS Full Moon sends
Her Blessings to All

I walk in Love
I am surrounded by Love
I am Love
I give Love

I bow in Gratitude
To the Sacred Space
To this Sacred Place
All Around Beauty Abounds


Sacred Space Beauty Abounds
Walk in Beauty My Friends
Walk in Beauty
We are never Alone
Aho!

Christine

Transcribing

Question

What's your view on transcribing? One teacher I had said you should be able to scat sing the solo you want to transcribe for ideas before figuring it out on the guitar and/or writing it out? What's your take on this?

Response

Well, obviously transcribing has certain value like using your ear (the most important) and figuring out how to notate the stuff (which can be a problem when people, such as myself, play over the bar line phrases) and is a ton of work. In my opinion though, if using it to gain a wider vocabulary, it's too direct. I mean I believe in the power of influence rather a direct copy of what someone played. I figure it this way: everything we hear that reaches us on an emotional level is taken in our brain - let it fester, and become part of your subconscious to manifest as you learn to play what you hear and not what you think. So, in summary, I believe transcribing once or twice for the experience of it is useful but not as a means for creativity in finding your own voice.

The Diatonic Trap

Question

How do you improve what you can hear in your head though? I've heard that if you can't sing something, you're not really hearing it. I can sing some OK stuff but I can't seem to get out what I really want to play. Everything seems simple and diatonic.

Response

I agree in that the voice is a direct connection to what we hear. For instance, if you play a C Major 9th and listen to it, then play a C Major 7th but this time sing the 9th. You will then experience the chord in a deeper more emotional way. I call it stepping into a chord. The chord surrounds you in a deeper way and you feel the emotional connection more.. Unless you are a trained vocalist, the range of what you hear may not be reachable with your voice, however, try to at least sing in the mid range - say concert D below middle C (first fret 2nd string – guitar is written 1 octave higher then it sounds) if you use falsetto you can get up to maybe A above middle C. (I can’t get that high anymore - I would like to unison up to the 12th fret 1st string ) So instead of letting these limitations bog you down, sing your ideas in the range you can reach. It doesn’t matter. Ideas are ideas. Musical ideas are more than just pitch. They are rhythmic phrases, harmonic relationships, even dynamics.

You feel you are too diatonic? Understandable because tonality is nature. Even the most obscure tunes can be explained diatonically except atonal music or Avant Garde nonsense. Don’t sell the diatonic “box” short. It can be more modern than you may think. In Bb rhythm changes – BbMaj7, G7+5, Cmi7, F7-9 – consider the diatonic scale of Bb. If you sing the notes C, Bb, D, F on those 4 chords above you get a hip sound using your voice – BbMaj9th, G7+5+9, Cmi9th, F7b9. Remember not to put the upper partials in your voicing just sing those notes using only the chords above. This exemplifies how mere diatonic notes can sound modern. It’s all about perspective – much like modality and a lot of other things.

The really deep thing is even though each individual chord has it’s own 1, 3, 5, 7, 9 etc, notice how on a deeper level the diatonic scale of Bb always manifests throughout the progression. In other words, the personalities of DO, RE, MI,FA, SOL, LA, TI are always present. This is important in improvisation because it allows complete control of what we hear. It’s like a multi-dimensional experience – each role/personality of the individual chord, plus the constant awareness of DO throughout.

Start here and everything else – chromaticism will make more sense. For instance, if you hear the BbMa7 and sing the tone F (FA) in your idea, you can then appreciate the lowering it to E natural to experience the flat5 – but more importantly how it relates to the 5th. On another musical idea, if you sing the tone F (FA) on the V chord (F7b9) you can raise it to F# to match the flat 9 in the chord, or even lower the 3rd to get the +9 sound with the F7b9 chord. Etc. Every diatonic note has a chromatic direction it can become. It’s up to your musical ear to make it work. We can’t talk in absolutes here. It’s about vocabulary. Never force things. Vocabulary grows over the years provided you remain sensitive to musical relationships.

Putting Modes Together

Question

It seems that it comes down to trial and error in when putting modes together. I'd appreciate it if you could just give an example of two modes sound good together. Say, D Lydian and A# Phrygian or something like that. I am also interested in what the best way in combining these together is in your opinion. By the way, I love the importance of skat video; It has helped me solo and compose like nothing I have ever seen.

Response

I'm glad you enjoyed them and got something from them. The example of the modal video was to merely diversify the diatonic modes. (playing them from the same center) As far as trial and error, well, that sure is a great way to learn and the best way I would describe the road to creative improvisation/composition - ONLY if your "errors" are based on your particular musical tastes at the time, however.

A video of combining 2 modes together for either co-existence (poly-tonality), or modulation (changing keys and/or modal colors) is a complex one to put into a short (under 10 minute) video. I will say to you that this (dealing with the relationship of 2 modes) was a personal curiosity of mine many years ago when I was very into experimenting with music. I will give you but a small hint that should put you on your way for experimentation:

The Concept of Distance. Much like a family tree analogy the distance factor is most interesting with diatonic modality. If you are C (Ionian) then your parents are F (Ionian) Your first descendants would be G (Ionian)and so on. Most people refer to this as the cycle of fifths or fourths for key signature purposes, but in this case, let's take a more interesting look: Common Tones. Hence, The Concept of Distance can be measured by the common tone factor. Example: comparing A Aeolian to G Phrygian is creating the same distance factor (amount of common tones) as C (Ionian) to Eb (Ionian) because their derivatives (A Aeolian = C and F Phrygian = Eb) are simply going from the "key signature" or C Major to Eb Major. Consider this:

A Aeolian to G Phrygian:

1) root progression = A to G (minor7th interval)

2)Color change = Aeolian to Phrygian

3)(and the most interesting hidden factor) Distance Factor = 4 common tones.

I know this seems complicated but you need to think about it and find your own personal uses for it, no matter what style of music you play/write.

Character Tones, Musical Tastes, and Genres

Question

A window just opened as to the possibilities with experimenting. Are there common root progressions worth noting? And if so, do they relate to all or to a specific genre of music. It seems that you have to emphasize the "uncommon" tones in the modes to make each of the modes stand out. But, are there any general principle as to modulation and making smooth transitions; such as, emphasizing a common tone and that be the turning point from one mode to the other or have some playing in between that is a back and forth of the modes to "mash" them together or nothing like either?

Response

I believe any musical element can be shaped to almost genre or create a new genre. The only absolutes are sincerity based on musical taste which should be a ever evolving. I used the term root progressions loosely. They can also be looked at as "key centers" and each mode having it's own little root progression respecting the mode in use. This can lead to a rather lengthly discussion or even a book! Each mode has a character tone and consequently primary triads. Always remember modality is fragile because the very nature of it is emphasizing a weaker tonality in the first place. Your point of connection via common tones is a good one for musical relationships in general. Otherwise, everything is open ended and based on your musical taste.