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Songs in 6/8 or 9/8 usually move fast.
It's not necessary for the pianist to play
every word. I usually play melody on the
first couple of words to support a confident
entry and then I start my accompaniment.
Editor notes for today's example:
"Heavenly Sunlight"
In general:
I try to vary my rhythmic patterns
throughout for variety.
I use full chords on accented beats:
(one, four and seven) to enhance the
accented beats' therefore producing
a steadier flow.
Empty octaves (octaves without notes
in the middle) are used on fast words.
Why? Easier for hand to move quickly
Notice the staccato notes here and there.
A light staccato relieves hand tension.
I also release pedal on these staccato notes.
On first two words: Walking in....
(I start with contrary octaves for contrast.
Special note: Playing the same octaves in
both hands would create parallel octaves
which is a big no-no in improvising.)
Why? Because it sounds too plain.
Words: all of my.....
(The melody is transfered to the left hand
The right hand played the harmony in
octave format.)
Word: journey
(Left hand plays broken C chord tones.)
Words: Over the...
Notice the chord changes to an F. I'm already
in the C chord prior to that and don't want to
disrupt my accompaniment pattern....so.....
I just play a C in unison with both hands.
(Neat trick!)
Word: mountains
Just decided to improvise with a new fill-in idea
to break the monotony of previous patterns.
I just simply used a stepping note method that
leads me into the next chord.
Try these improvisational ideas out on similar songs
in 9/8 time.
"We're Marching to Zion" is a good start.
Adding more notes gives stability to the congre-
gational singing!
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