We
first looked at this piece in the autumn of 2012. I think it was
originally chosen by Ash. At the bottom of this text I have included my
feedback notes from 2012.
Chucho, written
by Cuban saxophonist Paquito D'Rivera (a dedication to the great
pianist Chucho Valdez), is all about rhythm and groove. In our
Ropetackle sessions this year we have done a fair bit of work on rhythm
and groove but for a while I have been looking for a good opportunity to
invite Steve L to divulge some of the secrets of 'The Rhythm Tree'
(based on an approach put forward by drummer Dave Wickens).
The
Rhythm Tree (if I have understood it correctly - Steve, please advise!)
is a practical exercise in exploring cross rhythms and how they sound,
both individually and in various combinations. A bar of 4/4 may be
divided up as follows: 4 equal units (crotchets), 2 equal units
(minims), 6 equal units (crotchet triplets), 3 equal units (minim
triplets)*. Steve split us into 4 groups and asked us to clap one of
these rhythms (one assigned to each group). This was not as easy as it
seemed. It was a challenge to avoid speeding up. Steve encouraged us to
try and hear all the rhythms and how they interact with each other. He
would cut out various groups so as to isolate particular rhythms. The
longer term aim is to be able to switch between the rhythms, passing
them from group to group. Steve also pointed out that one cannot learn
to do this 'overnight' but that it require regular practice to make them
all really familiar. I would like to suggest incorporating some kind of
practice routine for next year's Ropetackle sessions, perhaps a quick
burst each week.
* NB '6 against 4' (aka '3 against 2') is minim triplets and crotchets - '4 against 3' is crotchets and minim triplets
Although the even quaver feel of Chucho does not explicitly feature any '6 against 4' type rhythms (for more on this see our session on Louise Elliott's Going Home
) I thought looking at some of the Rhythm Tree exercises might heighten
our rhythmic senses and awareness of groove. Many thanks to Steve for
leading this part of the session.
For the remainder of this session we worked on Chucho, first the melody and then improvising over the chord sequence.
We considered the importance of playing rhythmically and adding to the groove (rather than just playing over the top of it).
Harmonically Chucho is really a minor blues embellished with appropriate II V's. Notice how the II V's always resolve to the expected target:
bar 2 resolves to bar 3
bar 4 resolves to bar 5
bar 6 resolves to bar 7
bar 8 resolves to bar 9
bar 10 resolves to bar 11
bar 12 resolves back to bar 1
I suggested one could play over this sequence leaving out all of the II V's. This is a kind of harmonic generalisation.
We
explored soloing in various ways, including without the chords and also
without chords or bass (ie solo). We also did some duetting with bass
(Terry is now holding auditions for his new duo ..!)
You will see from my original feedback notes on Chucho that I make no claims to know very much about Cuban music. Chucho is described as 'lively mambo'. For a detailed description of what constitutes 'mambo' see attached pdf taken from The Salsa Guide Book by Rebeca Mauleon (which is an in depth guide to Cuban music and all its wonderful rhythms).
So,
that's it for this block and indeed for this year! I would like to
thank you all for your hard work and continued support, special thanks
to Terry and Charlie for their help and guidance, and a really big than
you to Steve and Ash for making it all happen :-)
I have thoroughly enjoyed working with you all this year and hope to see you in the autumn.
Have a lovely summer.
Mark x
