Spontaneous Harmonic Improvisation for Brass and Woodwinds

Spontaneous Harmonic Improvisation or "Shi" for Brass and Woodwind or better stated, “What the heck do once my solo is finished at an open jam session?”

When a horn player shares the stage with a band during an open mic or jam session, they will generally have to know how to maneuver between two independent methods of improvisation, improvising melodically and improvising harmonically. One type (by far the most used by horn players who don’t know better or just love the sound of their own horn ringing in their ears) is improvising melodically. Melodic improvisation is where the individual makes their own statement and becomes a lead voice that “sticks out”, whereas harmonic improvisation is to improvise with the goal of becoming part of the harmony section and to “not stick out”. Harmonic improvisation requires the horn player to listen to the background and ask oneself “how can I make something up that allows me to become part of the harmony section?”. The harmony section (keyboard, bass, drums, guitar) is very familiar with floating between the two styles. The harmony section works as a team and when one of them is required (ex, guitar) to improvise melodically, they perform a solo that sticks out from the rest and floats above the harmony section like a lead voice. However, unlike most horns, the guitar player knows how to float back into the harmony section, blend, and not stick out. Unfortunately for horns, and through no fault of their own, often have no methodology of how to become part of the harmony section. Why is it like this? The answer appears to be deceptively simple. Most of the songs performed at an open mike or jam session do not have horns on the original recording (ex; Stormy Monday, or Goin’ Down, Free Bird). With that said, the harmony section and the vocalist have a blue print (the original recording) but the horn player is left to make something up throughout the harmonic section. The requirements for harmonic playing should be; a. playing sparsely, b. blending with the harmony, and c. not constantly soloing in the melodic section.

One way of addressing such an issue or at least a way to start learning how to compliment the harmony section instead of the melody section can be accomplished by using Spontaneous Harmonic Improvisation (SHI) pronounced like Shy. Harmonic improving is performing in a way that “Compliments” or “blends” with the harmony section (keyboard, drums, bass, or guitar) instead of competing with and stepping on the lead voice. It should be noted, that the horn player can have unbelievable skills but, technical skill is not the issue. The issue is “horn players have little knowledge about how to float from blending with the harmony and not sticking out to playing melodically and sticking out and when to do it”. The truly amazing thing is just how easy SHI is. Why is it easy? The harmony section is already supplying the rhythm, chords and a pattern. All that needs done is to blend with what they are already doing

Generally, here’s how to get started;

1.For the vast majority of the time, DO NOT play your horn during the first verse because the soloist needs to state and establish the song.

2.During the first verse, the horn player has the advantage of listening to the harmony section and get some ideas on what and where to play in the harmony section when the second verse starts.

3.Long tones are your friend.

4.Play long tones that compliments the harmony section especially during chord changes and turnarounds. Play the long tones of the chord especially the fundamental notes of the chords (ex. The chord C7 = C-E-G-Bb, play the fundamental “C”. Later, when the horn player becomes familiar with Harmonic Improvisation and the notes in the chords, any of the notes that fit the chord can generally be used.

5.The horn player can create their own rhythm as long as it “compliments the harmony.”

6.For advanced horn players, if they have another advanced horn player to engage in SHI by one person playing a little harmonic pattern on stage that compliments the harmony section and It could be as simple as the riff on C Jam Blues pending it fits. Whoever came up with the pattern, plays the pattern first to establish what the pattern is and when to use it.

7.Then the other horn player plays the same harmonic pattern in unison and then the two horns play the pattern a few times to establish it. Then, perhaps play the same pattern in unison but one person plays a 3rd or 5th apart. Once the advanced horn players learn what to do, it’s just a matter of one of the two horn players coming up with little harmonic patterns that does not overwhelm the harmony but becomes part of it.

8.It is encouraged that once the first riff grows old, make up a different harmonic pattern and go through the same process as the first pattern.

9.Remember the Rule of Proportion; “Most of the time horns don’t play. When horns do play, its mostly as part of the harmony section. The section that will occupy the least amount of playing time for the horns is the melody section. The melody section is when the horn(s) job is to stick out from the rest of the instruments and solo because at that time, the horn is the main voice in the song.

An example of how it sounds when the horns play harmonically is the 2015 CMA awards with Justin Timberlake and Chris Stapleton performing “Drink You Away” (horns as harmony only), Born to Run by Bruce Springsteen (horn uses both harmonic and melodic approaches) or Urgent by Foreigner (uses both). All three songs can be heard and watched on YouTube. Granted, chances are, these are written out parts but notice the difference when the horn(s) are playing with the harmony section verses horns playing in the melody section. More often than not, the horns are silent or playing with the harmony section and very little time soloing in the melody section sometimes as little as 12 bars.

S.H.I. is a methodology created to instruct the horn player on how to improvise with the goal being part of the harmony section verses improvising melodically all the time also known as riffing. A literature search suggests that S.H.I was first developed by Dr.Mark Shellhammer but it would not have come to fruition without the musical assistance of Gregory Seel

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