Ron Carter Esperanza Spalding - Downbeat

solo
Woodshed | By miles osland
Ted Nash’s Expertly Crafted Alto
Sax Solo on ‘Organized Crime’
Ted Nash’s latest CD, The Creep (Plastic Sax
Records), is the freshest sounding recording
by an alto saxophonist that I have heard in a
long time. Track one, titled “Organized Crime,”
is a composition that came about from a film that
Nash acted in and wrote the score to. The film is
still in production and features a free-jazz alto
player loosely based on Ornette Coleman, so
Nash wrote a few pieces to suggest Coleman’s
music, and “Organized Crime” is one of them.
Nash says, “It has a strong form, but allows for
a lot of freedom. I also wanted it to be bluesy
and melodic. I think a lot of people overlook the
blues and melody when dealing with free-jazz.”
Instead of the traditional 12-bar blues song
form, Nash doubles it up and the improvisation
section is over a 24-bar form. “Organized
Crime” follows the conventional blues form, but
with unconventional changes. In the alto sax key,
the changes are eight bars of C#7, four bars of
E7, four bars of C#7, two bars of D7, two bars of
E7, then four bars of C#7. During the statement
of the melody, the first C#7 is actually only six
bars long, creating a harmonic and melodic elision
into the E7. But during Nash’s four choruses
of blowing, the first C#7 becomes an eightbar
phrase.
The lineup on The Creep is a quartet of alto
sax, trumpet, bass and drums—no piano. An
ensemble without a comping member tends to
allow the soloist to open up harmonically and
play with a more “free” approach.
Nash starts his solo with a melodic motif
that he repeats and slightly alters four times
before going on (note his use of the “palm D”
fingering). By the third occurrence of the motif,
Nash is already stretching the harmonic boundaries
by implying a tritone substitution (bar 5).
He solidifies his harmonic intentions by arpeggiatting
a G major triad in the beginning of bar 7.
In measure 19, Nash uses an articulation pattern
that I refer to as “the Coltrane.” This pattern
is a shape-oriented phrase where the player,
within a four-note cell of eighth notes, slurs the
first two notes, tongues the third, and tongues
the fourth, slurring into the next two notes of the
next four-note cell. Think “Giant Steps” with the
1–2–3–5 pattern that John Coltrane liked to play.
In measures 21–22, Nash utilizes an articulation
pattern that I call “the Cannonball.”
Within the four-note cell, the player tongues the
first two notes, and then creates a slur into the
last three notes. After decades of transcribing
Cannonball Adderley’s solos, I have found that
he loved this shape.
In measures 27–28, 39 and 59–60, Nash
uses an articulation technique that I call “subtongue”
(sometimes referred to as “muffletongue,”
“dun-tongue” and “tongue on reed
technique”). This occurs when the tip of the
tongue touches the tip of the reed, but the note
still sounds. It’s a nice, almost “ghosting” effect.
Also reminiscent of Adderley is Nash’s
usage of vibrato on long notes at the ends of
phrases. It’s a “terminal vibrato” effect where
vibrato is added at the end of the note, which
gives the phrase forward motion (see bars 20,
29, 45, 55, 72, 85, 93).
In measures 66 and 68, Nash introduces a
harmonic fingering technique (also known as
fake or false fingerings) where an A is sounding,
but a D is actually being fingered. The harmonic
A has a different timbre than a regular A, so it’s
a nice repetitive sonic effect.
Nash’s improvisation on “Organized Crime”
is an expertly crafted solo, loaded with harmonic
and melodic twists and turns and advanced
techniques. His highly individual voice on alto
saxophone is something to be dealt with and
revered for a long time to come. DB
Miles Osland is Director of Jazz Studies and
Professor of Saxophone at the University of
Kentucky. His students and ensembles have won
multiple DownBeat Student Music Awards.
104 DOWNBEAT DECEMBER 2012