Charlie Parker & the Omnibook

[jackaroo]

Looking for a copy of bird's solos transcribed for guitar w/ tab. Even better...an online or CDrom/DVD with the lines as midi so I can slow them down and play along and slowly increase tempo. Anyone know of anything like this - or where to look?

thanks,

J

[JimmyD]

Haven't seen anything related on line to Bird and guitar. There is a book that has 50 bebop heads arranged for the guitar. You could probably google that. I'll give you a line on a great set of books though. David Baker Volumes 1,2 and 3 are fantastic for learning the language of bebop. Run, do not walk and grab those exceptional study aids.

[dkaplowitz]

David Baker Volumes 1,2 and 3 are fantastic for learning the language of bebop. Run, do not walk and grab those exceptional study aids.
+1, great books!

As to yardbird, there are a couple books I've seen off the top of my head. One is "Charlie Parker for Guitar" by Mark Voelpel, and the other is a Mel Bay joint called "Essential Jazz Lines in the Style of Charlie Parker". The first one seems a little better, both have tab. I don't think either are as good as the omnibook, nor are they as good as taking a slowdowner app and playing along with Bird, since those books (omnibook included) won't show you exactly how he phrased the notes on the paper. And though his lines are worth studying unto themselves, the phrasing is a whole 'nother world of schooling.

Good luck either way,

Dave

[Tim Bowen]

Probably currently out of print, but the best collective of classic bop lines that I've found is the
"Bebop Bible", by Les Wise.

Sorry for the potential hijack, but JimmyD, are you by any chance from Philadelphia?

[dkaplowitz]

Probably currently out of print, but the best collective of classic bop lines that I've found is the
"Bebop Bible", by Les Wise.

I remember that book! Yeah, it's hard to find now. Les is a great teacher. Very inspiring approach. You'd always walk out of his classes pumped up and ready to take anything on. I remember liking his book "Inner Jazz" but that's another one that's hard to find now.

Anyway, he's got a couple other similar books in production, one of which is "Bebop licks for guitar". Book (with tab) + CD. It's not bad.

[JimmyD]

Sorry for the potential hijack, but JimmyD, are you by any chance from Philadelphia?

Actually I live about 50 miles away from Philly in Reading!

Jim

[ari]

Are you talking about this book?

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0793587476/sr=1-1/qid=1139254969/ref=pd_bbs_1/104-4927390-9217542?%5Fencoding=UTF8

ari

[neve1073]

the omnibook is great.
even greater is software or a machine that can slow down parker's solos so you can learn them that way. i don't know of any comprehensive midi transcription source--but even if i did, wouldn't it be better to hear bird at half speed than midi!!?? ;)

[dkaplowitz]

Are you talking about this book (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0793587476/sr=1-1/qid=1139254969/ref=pd_bbs_1/104-4927390-9217542?%5Fencoding=UTF8)?

ari

Yes, ari. I have that one. It's pretty cool, except no backing track/cd. So you'll have to figure out how to make what's written sound like what Charlie Parker really played, if you care about that. If you're just analyzing his solos for theory purposes, this book is probably worth getting. It's not really better than the Omnibook, though, so whichever's cheaper is what I'd go for if I had to choose.

[neve1073]

Are you talking about this book?

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0793587476/sr=1-1/qid=1139254969/ref=pd_bbs_1/104-4927390-9217542?%5Fencoding=UTF8

ari

I've looked at that book too. The transcriptions sound right, but I remember disliking many of the fingering choices he made...oh well, i'm picky. :jo

[Tim Bowen]

I remember that book! Yeah, it's hard to find now. Les is a great teacher. Very inspiring approach. You'd always walk out of his classes pumped up and ready to take anything on. I remember liking his book "Inner Jazz" but that's another one that's hard to find now.

Anyway, he's got a couple other similar books in production, one of which is "Bebop licks for guitar". Book (with tab) + CD. It's not bad.

Yeah, Les is a great inspirer, for sure. He always maintained that any new concept required 21 straight days of reiteration in order to be assimilated. Not sure how he arrived at the math, but I bought it. I've relied on his teaching concepts for a couple of decades now.

[Tim Bowen]

Actually I live about 50 miles away from Philly in Reading!

Jim

Could be that you and I have a mutual friend. If your last record was co-produced, and contained drum/percussion tracks, by a fellow named Jim E., be sure to give a yell for me. If I'm on track here, nice record.

[dkaplowitz]

He always maintained that any new concept required 21 straight days of reiteration in order to be assimilated. Not sure how he arrived at the math, but I bought it.

Ahhh...so that's where I got that idea! LOL! That makes sense. I learned so much while I was there. When did you go?

I love how Les's Bebop class had bebop completely analyzed down the most minute detail. The guy had really studied that genre. I still have the curriculum from his classes and it's some of the sickest stuff to look at --- all so concentrated! I tried to take notes in those classes but failed miserably. He spoke too quick and my note taking skills have never been very efficient.

Cheers,

Dave

[jzucker]

Is it a matter of reading music? Because the omnibook is a good place to start (get the concert version). There are many wrong notes but you can get the general drift. You might try just transcribing the stuff yourself. Figuring out the fingerings is part and parcel to developing your own approach IMO.

[KRosser]

Figuring out the fingerings is part and parcel to developing your own approach IMO.

A big +1...figuring out a way (or, ways) to finger those lines is the key to getting your phrasing together, in terms of both the right and left hands.

[Tim Bowen]

Ahhh...so that's where I got that idea! LOL! That makes sense. I learned so much while I was there. When did you go?

I love how Les's Bebop class had bebop completely analyzed down the most minute detail. The guy had really studied that genre. I still have the curriculum from his classes and it's some of the sickest stuff to look at --- all so concentrated! I tried to take notes in those classes but failed miserably. He spoke too quick and my note taking skills have never been very efficient.

Cheers,

Dave

Hi Dave,

I attended in '84-'85. One of the best years of my life, other than being totally broke the entire time! Les has an astonishingly quick mind, and his classes were among my very faves. I struggled with note taking as well. A bud is currently borrowng my copy of Bebop Bible, but I'm starting to miss it, so I'll be needing to snatch it back shortly...

[dkaplowitz]

Hi Tim,

I see ...you went in the golden days of the old building. I was in the first f/t classes in the new building ('87-'88).

I have a buddy Daniel Messerli (from Switzerland originally) who used to go by the name Micky Mess that went around the same time you did. It must have been good in those smaller quarters. I get the feeling it was a lot more personal than it has since become.

Anyway, didn't want to hijack the thread. Sorry for posting o/t.

Cheers,

Dave

[jackaroo]

Thanks for the replies everyone. I guess I'll go and buy some Parker recordings and do the whole slowdowner thing...I've used the midi program Scortch many times with great results while learning bluegrass stuff, very helpfull to slow it down and have the tab right there in front of you, plus the line is isolated as opposed to hearing slowed down cymbals, piano, bass etc...I've done it both ways and the midi way is easier for me. Granted the transcription is usually dumbed down a bit and obviously pretty stiff, so for feel stuff you have to listen to the recordings, but for getting up and going quickly I've had good results with midi based transcriptions in tandem with tab.

Now the ?...what recordings?
peace,

J

[neve1073]

jackaroo, i agree that slowing down the recording is the best way (and also that midi transcriptions are useful too). like you said, the subtleties of phrasing can't usually be captured in notation. i once spent like a week trying to play 1/16th notes like lee morgan, the trumpet player. if midi notation software had existed at the time i could have gotten a transcription, entered it in and played to that, but....well, it's best to play along with the recordings!

The Complete Studio Recordings on Savoy has some amazing stuff on it.

[maracox]

Thomas Owens has written his dissertation about Charlie Parker's improvisational style. You can get it probably via a university's library.

It's an in-depth analysis of Parker's trademark licks by extracting them out of 400 transcribed solos. There's a list of the 40 or so most used licks. Owens proved that Parker used them all the time and chained them together in his solos.

This book opened the door for me and made me understand and apply the language and sound of jazz / bebop! And that after 10 Years of trying hard. forget all those scale theory and stuff. That's the wrong key to it.

There is also a book by Sid Jacobs (Mel Bay), I think the name was "complete book of jazz lines" or something, which includes a list that contains a lot of those parker licks.

[dkaplowitz]

Thomas Owens has written his dissertation about Charlie Parker's improvisational style. You can get it probably via a university's library.

It's an in-depth analysis of Parker's trademark licks by extracting them out of 400 transcribed solos. There's a list of the 40 or so most used licks. Owens proved that Parker used them all the time and chained them together in his solos.
Is it this one (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0195106512/102-6901793-6691344?v=glance&n=283155)? I read a review that described one chapter that sounds similar to your description.

[free_jazz]

A respectful caution, if I may borrow a Mingus title... "If Charlie Parker Was a Gunslinger, There'd be a Whole Lot of Dead Copycats." Learn the language, phrasing, licks, etc. Taken as a means to an "end" (and does developing one's Own Sound ever end?), there won't be a copycat problem. I'm on a Jimmy Lyons tear lately... copycat? I wish... but it will definitely plant some developmental seeds toward free expression far beyond the thought process.

[maracox]

Is it this one (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0195106512/102-6901793-6691344?v=glance&n=283155)? I read a review that described one chapter that sounds similar to your description.

No, I own this one too. Owens has written it later and certainly was drawing from his dissertation, but basically it goes into another direction. (Nevertheless its very good and recommandable)

I meant the following:
Owens, Thomas. 1974. Charlie Parker: Techniques of Improvisation. Ph.D. diss., University of California, Los Angeles

[dkaplowitz]

No, I own this one too. Owens has written it later and certainly was drawing from his dissertation, but basically it goes into another direction. (Nevertheless its very good and recommandable)

I meant the following:
Owens, Thomas. 1974. Charlie Parker: Techniques of Improvisation. Ph.D. diss., University of California, Los Angeles

O cool. Thanks for the info. I'll probably look into both those titles.

Cheers,

Dave

[Frank C]

I've been using this and absolutely love. Worth every dime. Take any audio and slow down, loop without changing pitch. Even change keys. http://www.seventhstring.com/

[Strung Up]

Try here:

http://www.funkyfolkmusic.com/

He's got two books of parker transcriptions arranged for guitar. With CDs.

Charlie Parker Jazz Book
http://ericejazz.tripod.com/imagelib/sitebuilder/layout/spacer.gif Charlie Parker Transcriptions for Guitar Vol. 2 Jazz



Charlie Parker Blues Book
http://ericejazz.tripod.com/imagelib/sitebuilder/layout/spacer.gif Charlie Parker Transcriptions for Guitar Vol. 1 (Blues)

http://ericejazz.tripod.com/imagelib/sitebuilder/layout/blank.gif http://ericejazz.tripod.com/imagelib/sitebuilder/layout/blank.gif http://ericejazz.tripod.com/imagelib/sitebuilder/layout/blank.gif


http://ericejazz.tripod.com/imagelib/sitebuilder/layout/spacer.gif

I'll have to look into these at some point. Countless players have cautioned me about the numerous errors in the Omnibook, however, and this was usually as a prelude to the "transcribe it yourself" talk. Which years later, I started to heed.

[jzucker]

i don't see the point in charlie parker for guitar. Why not just transcribe it yourself?

[Strung Up]

There are no good reasons not to transcribe it yourself. The two most common (among me, friends, and students) seem to be laziness and intimidation by the material. Invariably, with any transcription book, you'll find both mistakes and fingering choices that don't work for you.

The benefits of transcribing for yourself (however slowly) are so numerous they warrant either another thread or discussion site.

[Dana]

I agree with the posts above. I never buy transcription books. The ones my students have brought in were either wrong or the fingerings didn't make sense to me.

Better to transcribe it yourself and work out your own fingerings. You'll learn so much from it.

Good luck!

[Tomo]

Thanks for the replies everyone. I guess I'll go and buy some Parker recordings and do the whole slowdowner thing...I've used the midi program Scortch many times with great results while learning bluegrass stuff, very helpfull to slow it down and have the tab right there in front of you, plus the line is isolated as opposed to hearing slowed down cymbals, piano, bass etc...I've done it both ways and the midi way is easier for me. Granted the transcription is usually dumbed down a bit and obviously pretty stiff, so for feel stuff you have to listen to the recordings, but for getting up and going quickly I've had good results with midi based transcriptions in tandem with tab.

Now the ?...what recordings?
peace,

J


Check out Sonny Stitt please. He was influenced by Parker
and Sonny plays a bit slower than Parker. I own the omni book,
I did more listening old jazz records. I highly suggest inject
language of jazz sound into your body. Once you have bebop
sound inside of your body. It's easier to speak .....

About tab.... I prefer regular notaion or just by ears.
this way you can play many places, choices over same
pitch. Tab kills creativity quickly sometimes.

Good luck!

PS, I love Chet Baker too.


Tomo

[Frank C]

I think we're missing the point. Transcribing should be a phase or favorite line. Then take it through 12 keys and try and use it and make it your own. Not a whole solo. Omni may be good for analizing concepts. Try this link. http://www.seventhstring.com/

[DrSax]

i don't see the point in charlie parker for guitar. Why not just transcribe it yourself?

Well, i'll just give you my experience. Several years ago I bought one of these (Mark Voepel's book sp?) because I had NO idea of even where to begin. It got me acquainted with the language, got my ears used to hearing those licks and where they fell on the guitar, etc. It also made me go back to basics, realizing there were alot of things i needed to improve (apreggios, for example). In essence, it was a springboard. Now, I've moved beyond it and certainly do transcribe, but back then it was really a help in getting started.

I think, sometimes, those of you who are way advanced have to take a step back sometimes and remember the days when all of this was still in the dark. I have stacks and stacks of books, some good some bad, but i bet I've learned something from all of them.

[jzucker]

I think, sometimes, those of you who are way advanced have to take a step back sometimes and remember the days when all of this was still in the dark. I have stacks and stacks of books, some good some bad, but i bet I've learned something from all of them.

I always take the step backwards to remember those days. I've taught guitar for 30 years. Transcribing the lines from the records is the best way to become aquainted with the language of jazz or any folk/rock/pop music for that matter. The page just cannot replicate the nuances of the music. It also develops your ear and invidual sense of harmony and theory when you do the work yourself.

It would make some sense (not a lot) if you decided against transcribing altogether but reading the transcriptions (whether in tab or notation) is like reading the cliff-notes version of the book in the sense that you get the overview but not the details.

[fancynapkin]

There are no good reasons not to transcribe it yourself. The two most common (among me, friends, and students) seem to be laziness and intimidation by the material. Invariably, with any transcription book, you'll find both mistakes and fingering choices that don't work for you.

The benefits of transcribing for yourself (however slowly) are so numerous they warrant either another thread or discussion site.

eh, my expirience with transcribing parker stuff is that its very out of tune, I once was working on "relaxing at camarillo" and I ended up having to do it over again but half a step up with lower tuning. Its not that important if your not looking to play along with the record, its just more difficult to transcribe it.

[jzucker]

eh, my expirience with transcribing parker stuff is that its very out of tune, I once was working on "relaxing at camarillo" and I ended up having to do it over again but half a step up with lower tuning. Its not that important if your not looking to play along with the record, its just more difficult to transcribe it.

I never noticed that frankly. I thought he played beautifully in tune and in time.

[neve1073]

eh, my expirience with transcribing parker stuff is that its very out of tune, I once was working on "relaxing at camarillo" and I ended up having to do it over again but half a step up with lower tuning. Its not that important if your not looking to play along with the record, its just more difficult to transcribe it.

get a transcribing deck or application with pitch control. parker does not play out of tune. maybe the recordings somewhere along the line got speeded up or slowed down. just adjust for that with pitch control on your transcriber.

parker's tone does get abrasive when it's slowed down, unlike, say, johnny hodges; but his solos are so perfect that it's so worth spending hours working on learning whole solos. you could start by picking a nice ii-v riff or something, but really the whole solos are worth learning. that's true also for the heads. the head to donna lee is an encyclopedia of bebop. transcribing yourself improves your ear immensely and your knowledge of the fretboard.

[Ed DeGenaro]

eh, my expirience with transcribing parker stuff is that its very out of tune, I once was working on "relaxing at camarillo" and I ended up having to do it over again but half a step up with lower tuning. Its not that important if your not looking to play along with the record, its just more difficult to transcribe it.
What is your standard for "in tune" Equal temperment or just intonation?