Digital Pill – working musicians talk about their lives

Dave Evans explains the uses of the accordion bellows shake. In this video, Dave describes the uses of the double and triple bellows shake in jazz, zydeco and cabaret music. He includes detailed instructions about how to perform the shake as well as techniques for adding accents to play with the rhythmic aspects of accordion. [...]

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Cam Robbins demonstrates a classic device for jazz improvisation on the clarinet, rhythmic register jumping. The video contains several examples and Cam demonstrates how to use the technique over one and two chord sequences. Here’s some links to Cam’s music Cam playing with Skazz and also this is a link to all his music on [...]

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Anton Delecca explains the uses of chromatic scales in jazz improvisation and as a warm up excercise for sax. In this video, Anton describes three excersices for warm up that improve tone and dexterity and are very useful to enliven passages of improvisation. This video works together with a pdf of the lesson available here [...]

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Dean explains how to slide effortlessly into the altissimo register of the sax in one long continuously ascending note. Click > HERE < to download a pdf of the lesson Listen to Dean’s music here The Pearly Shells Zydeco Jump The Vanguards

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Paul Williamson explains the uses of bebop scales in jazz improvisation. In this video, Paul’s first post for Digital Pill, he describes the construction of bebop scales, jazz articulation, the use of a metronome and how bebop scales place the chord tones firmly ON the beat to create an “inside” sound in improvisation. The video [...]

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Dean looks at long notes from several different angles – the growl, vibrato, dynamics and ear training. Listen to Dean’s music here The Pearly Shells Zydeco Jump The Vanguards

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Anita Hustas performs and talks briefly about two graphic scores ‘Stream’ and ‘Underwater’ from her ‘Water’ collection composed in 2008. In trying to find creative approaches to composing and making music, and integrating visual art and music performance, Anita has been creating graphic scores for improvisors since 2003. In this video Anita plays Double Bass [...]

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Peter Knight demonstrates improvised laptop processing of trumpet. Peter is currently researching this area of improvisation as part of a DMA at Queensland Conservatorium. Features live sampling and processing of micro sound worlds created using the trumpet – stretched and squashed with Ableton Live. Listen to Peter’s music here Peter’s solo trumpet project on myspace [...]

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