A New Kind of Lead Sheet

I've been creating lead sheets that don't use sheet music notation or tab.  I simply write out the chords in Roman numerals and the melody notes based on their scale number.  For example, for a song in D every D chord is the I chord, every Eminor chord is the ii- chord, etc.  An F# note would be the number 3, an A note the number 5.  "Accidentals" and chords outside of the 7 chords from the scale are no problem.  An A# note in D would be a 5# note.  An F7 chord in D would be a III7 chord (capital letters because it's not minor).

This type of numbering system makes all keys universal. With this approach you can play any song in any key that you know the scale of and the chords for.  For songs that change keys, just choose the major scale that fits the best.

I've created a table containing boxes representing measures/bars to use as a template for writing out songs this way.  For songs where the melody comes straight from the vocal melody, I also write down the lyrics and apply a note number to each sung syllable.

Here's an example lead sheet for the song I Wonder Who's Kissing Her Now.  I encourage others to try this.  It's also good ear training because it's less visual and less tied to a certain key or fingering.  It makes it easier to practice a song in all 12 keys and in various ways, which is good for building an aural connection.

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Lionel Belasco's Song of the Jumbies and Back Down to the Tropics (as recorded by Nick DiSebastian)

BTL Music Notes chart for Song of the Jumbies

In 2013 I hired musician Nick DiSebastian of Built To Last Music Notes to transcribe all 18 tracks from the rare, out-of-print Bonne Humeur album by The Etcetera String Band.  I sent him mp3s from the CD (early string band music of the Caribbean: Creole Louisiana, Haiti, Trinidad, Martinique, Venezuela and the Virgin Islands) and Nick transcribed the music, sending back pdfs containing chords, notation and mandolin tab, per my request.

BTL Music Notes chart for Back Down to the Tropics

The tunes from that CD have become some of my favorite music to play.  One discovery made via this Bonne Humeur CD was orchestra leader and composer Lionel Belasco.  Born around 1882, Belasco grew up in Venezuela and Trinidad. He was classically trained, but composed indigenous pieces such as joropos, paseos and danzas.  I learned from the Bonne Humeur liner notes that a couple collections of his music were published over 70 years ago.

Recently I was able to obtain a copy of one of those volumes: the 1944 booklet Calypso Rhythm Songs: Authentic Tropical Novelty Melodies by Lionel Belasco and Leighla Whipper.  The booklet contains fifteen "authenticated West Indian calypsos".

I like to have audio and sheet music when learning a new song.  In this case I had the sheet music but no audio, so I asked Nick if he could make source recordings of a couple of the pieces from this collection and he said yes.  Sort of a transcription in reverse!  I sent Nick copies of the sheet music and not only did he make professional sounding overdubbed recordings for me (adding some embellishments and arpeggios where it fit), but he also created his own charts with some minor revisions to the chords and melody where it seemed to make sense.

Below are the recordings Nick made for me.  I have his permission to share them here.

I think these sound great!  Now I have clean sounding basic recordings featuring lead melody plus rhythm backup to get the sound of the tune into my head.  Without this I would be relying on my own somewhat unreliable reading skills and sense of timing.  If you have a similar need I encourage you to reach out to Nick to see if he can help.

See below for the original images that Nick had to work with.

Song of the Jumbies page 1 of 2

Song of the Jumbies page 2 of 2

Back Down to the Tropics page 1 of 3

Back Down to the Tropics page 2 of 3

Back Down to the Tropics page 3 of 3

Calypso Rhythm Songs front cover

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Practicing a Two Bar Section of the Haitian Meringue La Douceur

There's a tune I've been learning called La Douceur.  It was written by the Haitian composer/violinist Arthur Duroseau who was part of the Duroseau musical family from Port-au-Prince who made some recordings in the early 1950's.  La Douceur is a Meringue type of tune.  It has some syncopated timing that takes some getting used to and a seemingly difficult sequence of 8th notes at the end of the B-part which can feel very sped up when compared to the rest of the piece.

I wrote that two-bar lick out in the notation form that I have recently adopted which uses major scale note numbers which can then be applied to any key or tonal center you want.  See image below.  The note numbers correspond to the notes of the major scale.  This morning I was practicing that lick in the key of B, which means that my note "2" is a C# note and 2b (flat 2 or "doo" for diminished two) is the note C in the key of B.  With this kind of notation it's pretty easy to transpose.  All you have to do is know a major scale and then apply that knowledge to the sequence of notes.  After I'm done writing this I will try it in a different key.

La Douceur "lick" at end of B part

Michael Doucet recorded La Douceur on the 2013 BeauSoleil album From Bamako to Carencro.  Here's a link to that recording.  The lick starts just after 50 seconds and is only a couple seconds long:  https://soundcloud.com/airshowmastering/beausoleil-avec-michael

And here's a video of the amazing banjo-mandolin player Dennis Pash of the Etcetera String Band and the Ragtime Skedaddlers playing it.  Dennis' version is where I first heard La Douceur and it made me want to learn this tune!  The section transcribed above starts at about 33 seconds into this video.



Remember, this method of notating is not like a tab or treble clef anything like that.  The numbers correspond to major scale notes, not finger placement, so it's not instrument specific or key specific.  You can use this notation system for any melodic instrument....saxophone, flute, guitar, mandolin, et cetera, and you can use it for any mode.  A tune in Dorian would probably have 2 as the tonal center.  Makes sense, right?

Notating Tunes as Numbers from the Major Scale

In David Reed's book Improvise for Real he uses a numeric method to notate melodies based on the major scale.  This method of writing out music doesn't require a key signature or sharps or flats; it sees all scales as relative, as equals. (The only time a sharp or flat is needed is when a note lies outside the major scale and is therefore "sharper" or "flatter" than the 7 notes of the major scale).

When you write out a melody this way it shows where the notes are found within the (universal) major scale, making it easier to play it in any key on your instrument.  It also allows you to notice patterns or commonalities that you might not otherwise notice when you segregate tunes by key.

For example, I noticed the occurrence of a sharpened 5th note in several of the Caribbean melodies I've been learning, especially those with a minorish sound.  This may be an indication of a dominant 3rd chord which creates tension that is ultimately released by the 6 chord (a minor chord), in much the same way that the naturally dominant chord (the 5 chord) creates tension that is then resolved when it goes to the 1 chord.  In other words, 5 is to 1 as 3 is to 6.

To provide an example of this numeric notating I have chosen Old Joe Clark because it is both simple enough and weird enough to be good fodder for analysis.  Old Joe Clark is what old-timers call a "modal" tune, which basically means that its tonal center is based on a note other than note 1 of the major scale.  However, the notes of the major scale are still 100% present in Old Joe Clark...it just places more emphasis on notes 2 and notes 5 of the major scale than note 1, as you can see in the numeric transcription below.

Old Joe Clark numeric transcription

The melody to Old Joe Clark begins with notes 2, 3, 4, 3 and 2, 1, 7 of the major scale.  If you were placing this in the G-major scale (which is where Old Joe Clark typically resides, believe it or not) those notes would be A, B, C, A and A, G, F#.  I interpreted the melody as starting on note 2 of the major scale because that interpretation allows for all the notes to lie within the major scale.  The height of the number shows whether the melody is going up or down.  As Reed says, this helps avoid confusion when the melody crosses the octave line.

The brilliant thing about notating the melody in this way is that it makes all keys relative, so with a little practice you could just as easily play Old Joe Clark in any of the 12 keys simply by knowing where the notes of each of the major scales fall - in any position - on your instrument.  I am thinking of adopting this notation method for many of the tunes I am learning.  It provides significant insight into the construction of melodies.

Transposing from Major to Phrygian (Rakes of Mallow in Ionian and Phrygian)

Most fiddle tunes are either in Ionian (AKA the major scale, mode 1), Dorian (AKA "modal", AKA "minor", mode 2) or Mixolydian (AKA "modal", mode 5), and sometimes Aeolian (AKA "minor", mode 6).  You don't see many in Phrygian (mode 3), Lydian (mode 4) or Locrian (mode 7), if at all. So, I wondered what it would sound like to transpose* a tune from major/Ionian - the most common and normal sounding of all keys - to Phrygian - a weird, exotic minor mode.

*Is there a more proper term than "transpose" for when you move a melody from one mode to another?

For this experiment I chose the Irish tune Rakes of Mallow because a) it's in the key of G, b) it's a relatively simple tune and c) it was the first tune I thought of!  To do this I had to get the music theory part of my brain working.  I knew that Phrygian was the mode starting on the 3rd note of the major scale, so in other words the G-major scale from B to B (B-C-D-E-F#-G-A-B) would be B-Phrygian.

Rakes of Mallow in G-major

Rakes of Mallow in G-Phrygian

I then made note of those intervals and transposed from B-Phrygian to G-Phrygian.  Those notes are G-Ab-Bb-C-D-Eb-F-G. (FYI: these are the same notes as the Eb-major scale starting on its 3rd note).  I suppose another way of looking at it is, to go from Ionian to Phrygian you flatten the 2nd, 3rd, 6th and 7th notes of the major scale.  I already had Rakes of Mallow written out in mandolin tab in G-major.  Based on that, I wrote it out in G-Phrygian, making sure to convert every A to Ab, every B to Bb, every E to Eb and every F# to F.  Those mandolin tab transcriptions are included above.

Another interesting thing to point out is how the chords changed.  Knowing that the G-Phrygian mode is really just the Eb-major scale starting on its 3rd note, I know that the G-Phrygian mode would use the exact same chords as the Eb-major scale.  (The I chord in Phrygian is the III chord in Major, the II chord in Phrygian is the IV chord in Major, and so on).  Using that logic, I think I wrote out the correct chords in the G-Phrygian version of Rakes of Mallow.

Rakes of Mallow is easy to play in G-major but very difficult and unusual feeling in G-Phrygian, partly because on a tenor banjo in the Irish tuning of GDAE you don't get to use any open strings when playing this melody in G-Phrygian.  (I bet if I had put it in B-Phrygian it would have been much easier because those are the same notes as the G-major scale).  But, I will say that by putting it in the Phrygian mode - with its half step between the 1st and 2nd notes of its scale - the tune takes on an almost Greek or Klezmer sound.

Listen and see what you think!

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Mnemonic for Remembering Music Modes - I Don't Punch Like Muhammad Ali

When I transcribe a melody I try I like to determine which of the 7 "church" modes it might be using based on the notes I am hearing. There is a mnemonic for remembering these modes - I Don't Punch Like Muhammed Ali.  I learned it in an online music theory class taught by the University of Edinburgh Reid School of Music.

In other words, that's I (Ionian) Don't (Dorian) Punch (Phrygian) Like (Lydian) Muhammad (Mixolydian) A (Aeolian) li (Locrian).  Since there are two modes that start with L I try and remember that Locrian comes last.  Another one that works is I Don't Play Loud Music Any Longer.

So what do these modes mean?  I like to think of them in terms of the major scale.  Let's use the C-major (Ionian) scale since it doesn't have any sharps or flats.

Ionian = the notes from the major scale starting on the 1st scale degree: CDEFGAB.
Dorian = the notes from the major scale starting on the 2nd scale degree: DEFGABC.
Phrygian = the notes from the major scale starting on the 3rd scale degree: EFGABCD.
Lydian = the notes from the major scale starting on the 4th scale degree: FGABCDE.
Mixolydian = the notes from the major scale starting on the 5th scale degree: GABCDEF.
Aeolian = the notes from the major scale starting on the 6th scale degree: ABCDEFG.
Locrian = the notes from the major scale starting on the 7th scale degree: BCDEFGA.

Using the above scenario, if a tune doesn't have any sharps or flats but has G as the tonal center, then it's G-Mixolydian.  If if doesn't have any sharps or flats and you feel like D is the tonal center, then it could be D-Dorian.

I used this same methodology when transcribing a melodic portion of the Phish song Horn this week. In the first 30-seconds of the instrumental section that begins after the lyrics are done, I only heard a flattened note once - a Bb - that I treated as an accidental. The rest of the melody was using notes from the C-major scale, although the tonal center of the melody was either G or D. It definitely wasn't C. So I determined for now that the first several bars of of that 2-minute end section of Horn are using either the G-Mixolydian or D-Dorian mode.

More often than not melodies do have lots of sharps (or flats!), so to determine the mode you have think in terms of scale intervals - whole steps, half steps...that kind of thing. As you are transcribing a melody, determine its tonal center.  The tonal center is the root note; the note it wants to keep going back to. Once you have the tonal center you can determine the scale/mode based on the other notes being used. For example, a tune using the notes G,A,B,C,D,E,F# with an emphasis on E it would be in E-Aeolian (E-minor).

Once you have the tonal center established, it's really important to pay attention to where the 3rd and 7th scale degrees fall. Is the 3rd major or minor?  Is the 7th scale degree flattened? Where those two scale degrees fall plays a big part in determining a tune's mode.

Vangelis Pytharoulis - Cretan Melodies

One of the fun ways of using a music streaming service like Spotify or Rhapsody is to search for random, far out titles. For example, last week I had a hankering to hear more exotic sounding folk music from around the globe, so I created a huge playlist populated by albums that came up via searches for words like "Balkan", "Cretan", "bouzouki", "musette", "balalaika", "Turkish", "Middle Eastern", "Oriental", "Romanian", "Arabic", "pasodoble", "ngoni", "marimba", "choro" and so on. Anything I could think of in that vein.  I put it on random play and one thing I universally liked each time it came up were tracks from this generic looking album called Cretan Melodies - Instrumentals.

It says the album is by Vangelis Pytharoulis.  I have no idea who this is and I haven't been able to find anything out about this album. I just know I like the sound of it. Crete is an island that is part of Greece, but Cretan music is different than Greek music; it has a mixture of Mediterranean and Middle Eastern influences and probably some African and Oriental influences as well. It's kind of like everything I was looking for in that search all rolled into one.  One of my favorite albums of 2014 was Goats by Xylouris White, which is based on Cretan folk music, but with a more avant-garde flair. The presumably traditional music on this Cretan Melodies album had a lot of similarities to Goats but of course with a more indigenous sound.

These Cretan tunes run together in long, hypnotic medleys. Having never listened to this music until recently, and never having tried to play it before today, I wasn't sure what would happen but within a few minutes of trying to play along with the first tune on the album - called Esvis aeras to keri (sp?) - I was playing along with it! The time signature and rhythm may be different, but it was definitely using the D major scale, although it wanted to resolve to B so maybe it was B-Aeolian?  (see recording above). Looking forward to delving deeper into this album of Cretan music.

My search also uncovered some interesting Bal Musette and Middle Eastern gems, so I hope to cover those in future posts.

Q&A with Nick DiSebastian, Music Transcriber

Last year I worked with professional music transcriber Nick DiSebastian to have him notate all 18 tracks on The Etcetera String Band's out of print Bonne Humeur album of early Caribbean dance music. Nick is a Berklee College of Music grad and is currently on tour as the bassist for the band Town Mountain.  I have also taken a couple Skype lessons from him and one impromptu in-person lesson when his band came into town.  I thought it might be fun to do a QandA with Nick on the topic of transcribing music.   

Describe your musical background and any current music projects.

I started playing the guitar when I was 10. I loved to play rock and soon got into jazz. In high school I played guitar in the jazz band, started playing the bass in the orchestra and sang in the choir. I also played in a jam band. I went to college for Music Education. While in my late teens I attended a bluegrass festival and fell in love with the sound and culture. I soon picked up the mandolin and started playing guitar in a local band. Seeing young people playing on stage at festivals made me decide to transfer to studying performance as opposed to education. I began studying at Berklee College of Music where I learned much more about theory and ear training and was surrounded by inspiration. After graduating I continued to work as a guitarist accompanying vocal classes at Berklee and gigging around Boston. From Boston I moved to Nashville where I began playing with various local and touring bands. In 2013 I started my transcription business. I currently tour full time with the band Town Mountain as the bassist along with teaching private lessons and staying very active with transcribing. Guitar is still my main instrument and the quest of learning will never end. When I have time off from touring and transcribing I like to play bluegrass and jazz on the guitar.

How did you get started transcribing? What skills do you possess that make you especially suited to this task?

I always had a knack for hearing and figuring out music. In college I realized the value of notating music. I also learned more in depth ear training skills and how to use notation software. My mentor named John McGann had a transcription business very similar to mine. I admired what he had created with his business. When John passed away I decided to start my business. Since transcribing professionally my ability to hear and quickly analyze music along with my notation software chops have gone through the roof.

Why would someone want to have music transcribed? Isn’t there value, in the long run, to trying to work it out on your own?

Along with learning to play the notes and use the techniques of your heroes there is a world of music theory knowledge within transcriptions. The key to gaining this deep knowledge of theory is by knowing how to analyze music and notation. Learning directly from the masters aids everyone’s musicianship. As a transcriber I’m functioning as a time saver (by keeping you playing rather than deciphering) as well as an educator.

There is a lot of value in figuring out music for yourself but many musicians don’t yet possess the skills to hear and understand music theory enough to figure out what is going on in a recording. Along with transcriptions I offer lessons on analyzing music as a means to get the most out of learning to play a piece of music.

What are the most common types of transcription requests you get? Is there a style or type of music that you wish you received more requests for?

The most common music that I receive to be transcribed is bluegrass and fiddle tunes for the guitar and mandolin. I am on a big Gypsy jazz kick these days. I would love to get more work transcribing that style for guitar. The challenge with transcribing professionally is creating business. There are always more outlets for advertising. Touring full time restricts the amount of time I can spend transcribing but I would like to take my business to a Gypsy jazz advertising outlet within the next few months.

What is the strangest piece of music you’ve ever transcribed?

A fella named Lanny Fields had a big collection of music by the Etcetera String Band transcribed ;-). That was a bit out of the norm but I’m rarely surprised. I often receive messages via my website by first time customers for all different styles. Just this past month I transcribed Bryan Sutton, Jimmy Page, Dan Fogelberg, Sandy Denny and Django Reinhardt. I love the diversity. It keeps me on my toes and is constantly exposing my ears to new music.

Has transcribing other people’s songs or solos helped you with your own compositions and improvisation, and understanding of how music works?

Transcribing has helped my musicianship in many ways. The most obvious is that it has made my ability to hear and analyze music much stronger. It has also opened my eyes to compositional and improvisational techniques. There is a bit of neutralizing that happens when turning all different types of music into spots of ink on paper. The subtle differences in feel and embellishments from piece to piece interest me. For example transcribing the same tune by two different players (ex. David Grier vs Norman Blake) exposes me to different approaches to tone and interpretation. I like that!

You also give lessons via Skype. What is your approach to teaching using this medium?

Teaching on Skype has its advantages and disadvantages. The advantages are being able to teach from anywhere, any time WIFI is available, and staying connected with transcription customers, just to list a few. The disadvantages are not being able to play at the same time with a student and possible bad internet connection.

Each student is unique. I’ll always ask a new student what they are interested in learning and then move on to accessing their knowledge of music and ability on their instrument. Building a strong foundation in technique is the first skill I like to focus on. From there I like to work on a bit of theory. Once the more technical (sometimes “dry”) topics are covered I will get into a piece of music with the student. Analyzing what is going on in the music, how to play it and the emotions it conveys are what I really like to teach. That’s what learning and making music is all about: playing, feeling and expressing. Throughout all of the topics that are covered in a lesson I reiterate practice techniques to ensure that the student will be working on their material in the most efficient, effective and enjoyable way.

If you could only teach one thing to all students, what would that be?

If there was one thing I could teach students it would be for them have a strong sense of what they like and why they like it. Once the intention is set the path becomes clear.

More information about Nick DiSebastian's music transcription services can be found at  http://www.nickdisebastian.com/transcriptions.  Nick's debut CD is called Window View; avalable here:  http://www.nickdisebastian.com/window-view-cd

Transcriptions of Bird Song - F. Schuyler Mathews' Field Book of Wild Birds and Their Music

Last month I became aware of a book called Field Book of Wild Birds and Their Music by F. Schuyler Mathews, first published in 1904.

Mathews was a naturalist who combined his love of birds, composition, art and writing to produce this collection which captured – in music notation – the songs of over 80 bird species he encountered in the woods and countryside of New Hampshire, now more than 110 years ago. In addition to the musical transcriptions, Mathews provided illustrations and often poetic descriptions of the birds themselves.

At the time that Mathews was putting this collection together, there were no portable field recorders. He would have had to transcribe in real time using only his ears – a skill requiring a trained aural recognition and attentive, precise, listening.

Although they are natural songsters, birds have little regard for the rules of music, choosing to compose pieces that don’t resolve to the tonic or fall onto the exact pitches of the 12 musical notes!  Schuyler praises the chickadee for its “perfectly musical bit”, and when necessary, does his best to notate the bird-music that needs a little fudging one way or another.

The Brown Thrasher, as transcribed by Mathews

Nonetheless, Mathews, found that the bird not only possesses an ear for music but the mind to produce it. “His capacity for simple melody, his technical mastery of tone intervals and note values, his phrasing and his brilliancy as a performer, are certainly not exceeded by any vocalist of nature. The truth is, the bird is an accomplished singer who cares less for conventional rules than he does for the essence or the soul of the music; but above all he succeeds in inspiring his listener. What more, may I ask, could be expected of a musician?”

Ear Training: 13 Ways To Improve Your Aural Skills by Tom Hess

More and more I’m realizing that aural skills are the most important aspect of playing music.  It’s as simple as hearing a sound on a recording and then finding that sound on your instrument.  Studying theory and being able to read music can make you more knowledgeable, but it won’t necessarily make you a better or more natural player.  Whereas, someone who has worked stuff out by ear by listening to records can usually play pretty well, even if he doesn’t know the theory behind what it is that he's doing. (source: justinguitar.com - Why Transcribing Is So Important) With that in mind, I'd like to share this list by Tom Hess.  13 Ways to improve your aural skills (by Tom Hess) There are lots of ways in which you can improve your aural skills. I've listed many of them below. The idea here is NOT to pick just one of these ideas from the list and expect miracles. Do as many of these things as you can, as often as you can. Activities to practice: 1. Transcribing (figuring out by ear) songs, chords, melodies, solos, etc. using your instrument. 2. Transcribing without using your instrument (write the music down on paper and then when you think you have it as close to accurate as you can get it check your work with your instrument. Notice what errors you made and look to see if a pattern forms in your errors. For example, if you realize that you always think that minor chords sound major chords then you can see that this is something you will need to focus your practice time on. 3. Sing (yes sing out loud) scales. Start with singing the major scale, later add the natural minor scale, harmonic minor scale, pentatonic scale, blues scale, etc. 4. Sing intervals (two notes at varying distances). 5. Sing arpeggios (chords - one note at a time) start with major triads and then move on to minor triads. 6. Sight singing (you will need to have a basic understanding of reading music to do this) You can use any piece of sheet music for this. There are sight singing books that you can buy if you want. 7. Transcribe rhythms. this is just like transcribing a melody, but the focus here is on writing down on paper the rhythm only. 8. Improvising melodies, solos, etc. over chords. This is great thing to do anyway. 9. Imagine a 3 or 4 note melody in your mind and then try to play it on your instrument. 10. Record yourself playing lots of different chords (just major and minor triads for now). Try not to repeat the same chord very often. play back your recording and then try to identify whether the chords you hear are major or minor. 11. For those of you living in the United States, your local community college or university that has a music department typically offers basic aural skills classes that may be open to the general public. Community colleges often charge a very low fee for this class. I am not familiar with how this works in other parts of the world, so non US citizens should check this out with your local colleges. 12. There are ear training software programs available that can be found on the internet. The one I used in college was called Practica Musica by Ars Nova. (Note: This is not an endorsement for practica musica or Ars Nova, I'm just letting you know that this and other aural skills software do exist and can be a valuable resource.) Tom Hess 13. For those of you who may not be able to enroll in an aural skills class, I strongly recommend to seek out a private music teacher. The good thing about seeking a private teacher is that the teacher does not need to be a teacher of your chosen instrument. Any competent music teacher (no matter what instrument the teacher plays) can teach you aural skills. The key is to find a competent teacher though, there are a lot of incompetent teachers out there. Ear training is critical to any musician's development as musician. Remember to persevere and be patient with yourself as your ear develops. Expect progress to be like your physical instrument playing, slow but steadily moving forward each day. Your ear needs constant practicing just like your hands do, so don't neglect the most crucial tool that you have...... your ears! Tom Hess is a successful recording artist and composer. He is also a very dedicated music teacher, mentor, and coach.