Čtenáři, možná vás zaskočí, že na českých stránkách nacházíte anglický text. Není to chyba. V současné době pro časopis Muzikus píše newyorkský klávesista a pianista Brian Charette. A tak jsem si v redakci řekli, že bychom mohli něco udělat pro zlepšení vašich znalostí angličtiny. Určitě nám dáte za pravdu, že angličtina se na pódiích objevuje stále častěji a potřeba domluvit se na pódiu i v zákulisí se stane brzy samozřejmosti. Proto zde naleznete originální verzi přímo od Briana a na stránkách časopisu Muzikus v čísle 11/2013 článek přeložený Petrem Štikou. Navíc zde máte audio ukázky, které do časopisu jaksi přeložit neumíme. Enjoy reading!
šéfredaktor časopisu Muzikus Ing. Vladimír Švanda
In the past few articles about rock keyboard playing, we have focused mostly on organ and synth players. This month I want to speak about the piano and it's role in rock music. We'll focus on three pianist that really defined the sound of modern piano based rock bands; Billy Joel, Elton John, and Chuck Leavell. We can't include exact transcriptions because of copy write restrictions, so I've come up with a few exercises to illustrate a few key elements of their style. For extra practice, try to analyse the following examples and transpose them to 12 keys for deep understanding of the harmonic concepts
Billy Joel
Born in the Bronx and finding his start in New York City, Billy Joel was one of the most successful pianit/singers of the 70s and 80s. His hard driving piano riffs provided a perfect back drop for his poignant lyrics. Ex 1 is very influenced by the Billy Joel song, "Angry Young Man". In the intro of the song, Joel used both hands to rapidly strike the same note in the middle of a modal piano lick. I've enclosed a suggested fingering. lh3 means the "left hand 3rd finger". "T" means thumb. The remaining fingers of the right hand play third groupings from the C dorian mode. Use this idea when setting up a tune in C minor.
Elton John
Originally a session keyboardist for English bands like T Rex. Elton John is one of the most successful recording artists of the last 30 years. He has had 58 top 40 singles, 27 top 10. Ex 2 is influenced by Sir Elton's soulful solo on "Bennie and the Jets". The left hand plays voicings popularized by jazz pianist, Bill Evans. The beauty of these voicings is that only one note moves to make the chord changes. The right hand solo line is comprised completely of the Eb major pentatonic scale (Eb F G Bb C). Notice how clever use of only one scale can weave through a classic 2-5-1-6 progression.
Chuck Leavell
Hailing from Birmingham Alabama, highly sought after session musician, Chuck Leavell, played with the Allman Brothers during the height of their fame and currently tours with the Rolling Stones. Ex 3 is influenced by Chuck's amazing solo on the Allman Brother's tune "Jessica". Over a 1 to 4 southern Rock Vamp, Chuck uses a G major (G A B D E) and g minor (G Bb C D F) pentatonics often voiced in octaves or with country infused grace notes to achieve the desired effect and to propel the Jam to the next level. On your own, experiment with playing notes from the scales together and add own grace notes to add flavor to your own improvisations.
