The B Section

In part 2, Brett and Kevin discuss more legal considerations that pertain to recording. 

Charleston, SC based trumpet player and attorney Kevin Hackler joined the B Section to discuss what working musicians should know about how the law works to protect themselves. In part 1, Kevin and Brett discuss important information regarding contracts for gigs. 

Want to make your own bebop style lines? Chromaticism and devices such as enclosures can help you achieve this while also providing you with smooth voice leading.

Being able to play in odd meters is something that is often expected of the professional jazz musician. Plus, its fun! The two meters that come up the most are 5/4 and 7/4. Learning the most common groupings of the beats within each measure will help you get the hang of these odd time signatures. 

Rhythm changes is one of the bread and butter forms that all jazz musicians must be familiar with. In this episode, B Section host Brett Belanger breaks down the A sections into manageable pieces and then gradually adds complexity.

There are a lot of criteria that can be useful to consider when asking this question. Ultimately, situational awareness and keeping your ears open will answer most of them. Don't overstay your welcome!

Using the example of C7sus, Brett explains a few ways to go about playing over this chord especially as a single-line instrument like bass. 

B section host Brett Belanger and friend of the podcast Jonathan Lovett scratch the surface of Chick Corea's influence and contributions to the word. Rest In Peace, Chick. 

There are many reasons you might find yourself playing bass guitar on a straight ahead jazz gig. When this is the case, it can be beneficial to utilize these tricks to capture more of the double bass vibe to better suit the music.

Part 2 of my chat with Bob. Enjoy!

Season 2 is here! Kicking off the second season is an interview with Bob Lanzetti. Bob is a versatile musician and a great guy. In the interview, Bob discusses his start in music, the beginnings of Snarky Puppy, and what he has been up to as of late. 

The last episode of Season 1. Brett reflects on the first season of the podcast as well as 2020 in general. Season 2 coming in 2021!

While it may seem self explanatory, there are some things to keep in mind when asking musicians to play a gig. Communication is key! Be forthcoming with all the details you have to eliminate potential tension and to not waste anyone's time.

Everyone wants more gigs right? The number one tip for getting work as a musician is networking. People rarely hire musicians purely based on skill level! Check out these tips for getting gigs.

B Section host Brett Belanger continues his discussion with Dr. Tim Fischer on pursuing higher education in jazz.

Tim Fischer reappears on The B Section to discuss getting higher degrees in the field of jazz. As someone who has earned his doctorate degree and has been teaching for some time at the college level, Tim is well versed in this area. This part one of our conversations. 

2020 has given all of us more time to practice. In this episode, B Section Host Brett Belanger discusses what he has been practicing lately. 

The concept of what makes something swing is not only subjective but also rather abstract. That being said, we as jazz musicians generally know it when we hear it! In this episode, Brett goes through some different considerations when learning how to swing.

Playing on just one chord for an extended period can actually be trickier than it seems. If you just play within the corresponding scale, you might run out of ideas and it can lead to a boring solo. In this episode, Brett gives you some ideas to generate more harmonic motion when playing on one chord.

The 2 feel is an important element of swing. It sets the groundwork for the 4/4 swing that often comes later. While simple in theory, there are some things to consider when developing a good 2 feel. 

I think we can all agree that gear does matter. It is the tool or tools that help us communicate our message as artists. That being said, sometimes equipment can get in the way of developing our craft if we place too much importance on it and get wrapped up in searching for the gear to make us better.

It's a controversial topic! Is the Real Book a helpful tool to learn standards and be able to cut a gig by reading tunes you don't know? Or is it a crutch that enables you to rely on your eyes and not your ears when learning or performing a tune? 

In this episode, Brett explains his process for preparing music for a gig or recording. The process involves prioritizing practice time around what is most difficult. Listening to the material if possible is especially helpful. 

Here are 5 more tips to help get your charts looking professional!

Having clean looking charts is super helpful when arranging or composing music for other musicians. The easier it is to read, the more efficient rehearsing the music will be. If it's a sight reading situation, the players will have the best chance at performing the chart correctly the first time. Here are 5 tips to make a clean lead sheet!

Being a good player is certainly one important aspect of being a professional musician and we should all strive to better our playing but that is just one piece of the puzzle. Many times, the reason someone is called for a gig has more to do with other professional traits than musical ability. The best player isn't always the most hired! 

All of them. All the minor scales. But at the right time! There are quite a few different minor scales that are essential to know and they all have a different use. Context is key! 

After teaching a course on building a musical solo at a jazz camp recently, I thought it would also make a great episode for the podcast. Some of the key elements of building a musical solo include melody, dynamics, phrasing, and more. Chops are fun but this episode is about making a musical statement when you improvise! 

In this episode, Brett gives some food for thought on how to make the bass player happy while on the gig. Not all bassists are the same but there are certain things that make many bass players frustrated, particularly acoustic bass players. Here are some of Brett's pet peeves. 

With the extra time on our hands, there are many skills we musicians can develop (besides playing our instrument) that can really enhance our passion. In the age of content creation, it's worth catching up on our tech skills to keep the music going even when we aren't together!

Yes. You should. Metronome work helps us keep ourselves accountable with playing in time and there are many creative ways to use it. Start with the metronome giving you every beat in the measure and then start taking beats away. There are many free and cheap metronome apps available!

What makes the bebop scale worth learning about? It's just like other scales we know but with an added half step, right? Yes, but that added chromatic note gives us a peek into one aspect of what makes bebop have the sound it does. By learning this scale and moving where the half step occurs around, we can begin to use passing notes to make our lines more interesting and fluid. 

As a professional jazz musician, it is expected of us to know quite a lot of standards and jazz standards but some stand out more than others. Here are 10 tunes you should know as a jazz musician!

During this pandemic, it's safe to say that probably all of us have had zero or very few gigs at least for some lengthy duration of time. This extra time at home grants us an opportunity to get some practicing in which is great but what about when it comes time to play live again? In this episode, Brett gives some suggestions of what to practice to keep you in shape for when gigging returns. 

Voice leading is the way in which you connect your lines and resolve your tension in music. Typically, the smoother the voice leading, the more satisfying and effective the resolution is. Smooth voice leading is the means in which you can make almost any line or chord “work”. In this case, it's not about the journey but the destination!

Do you consider the flow of your set when performing? Do you consider your audience when selecting material? Episode 18 is all about how to construct a meaningful and effective set list that has a nice flow to it while remaining flexible if need be.  

If you could only learn 5 scales to get yourself started in jazz, what would they be? In this episode, Brett picks 5 scales that you need to know to help you improvise. Listen until the end for a few honorable mentions and remember that there are many more scales worth learning beyond these! 

Pianist Jonathan Lovett makes a guest appearance and discusses with Brett what chord substitutions are, which ones you should know, and some personal favorites of his. Chord subs are a fun way to imply different harmony to achieve new sounds over the original chord. Chord function is key! 

Do you know your modes? If so, do you know how to apply them to your playing? In this episode, Brett gives you a couple of ways to think about modes and how to apply that knowledge to your improvisation. 

In part 2 of the interview, Brett and Charlton discuss the origins of Ranky Tanky and what it was like to win the Grammy for Best Regional Roots album. Go check out Charlton and Ranky Tanky!

In the second guest episode of The B Section, host Brett Belanger interviews recent Grammy Award winner and trumpeter Charlton Singleton of Ranky Tanky. In part 1, the two discuss Charlton's early life, education, and the beginnings of his professional career. Look out for part 2 next week and be sure to check out Charlton and Ranky Tanky on social media!

Utilizing space in our playing is a powerful tool. It can provide a more human element to a solo since it allows our phrasing to have pauses, just like when we speak. Pacing your ideas can also give you plenty of room to expand into when developing a solo. Saying a lot in just a few words is also an efficient way of making a musical statement that gets to the core of your idea or story. 

Want to start composing? Or maybe you already write but it's been a while? In this episode, Brett gives you a composition template inspired by the music of Kamasi Washington. This template is easy enough for even the novice composer to take advantage of. The basic idea is an ABA form with the bridge being in a different (and often brighter) key area than the A's . Give this a shot and be sure to check out Kamasi Washington!

The Blues is the foundation of many of the styles of music we know and listen to today. As a musician, it is important to know the different variations on the chord changes that exist. In this episode, Brett starts simple with a rock/blues style 1-4-5 progression and adds variations that increase in complexity. As a bonus, Brett explains the chord progression of an original blues that he wrote recently. This episode was recorded in front of a Facebook Live audience. 

Ready to free up your basslines even further? In Bassline Construction part 3, Brett discusses using delayed resolutions and how you don't have to always land on chord tones on downbeats of new chords. Next, start thinking about your bassline being a counter-melody instead of thinking solely in terms of shapes or patterns. 

Need to get your triplets together? Use the metronome creatively to build your inner clock and get comfortable on all three divisions of the triplet. Start slow and be patient to reap the rewards of these exercises. 

B section host Brett Belanger discusses being a musician during COVID-19 and offers ideas for us to support each other while staying creative. 

In this first guest episode, Brett invites Tim Fischer to talk about how to comp melodically. Take your comping beyond just playing what's under your fingers and let what is happening around you guide you. 

Looking for a way to approach diminished chords? In this episode, Brett breaks down what diminished is and takes you through a few ideas of how you can play over it.

We started with roots and fifths, next adding chord tones and diatonic notes. Now, let's get chromatic with it to really connect the dots and start sounding like a pro. 

Approaches and Enclosures are an excellent strategy for arriving to a target pitch in a musical way. Want some of that Bebop sound in your playing? Look no further!