DAMIAN ERSKINE : The musician & groove Transcriptions

This month I chose to write about a phenomenal bass player, who is one of my major influences. He does not need any introduction, but I will post some biographical information in case you never heard of him.

Damian Erskine, a Berklee College of music graduate, is probably on of the most versatile as well as sought out bass players and musicians. He is very well known for his ability to fit into any musical style and situation.

Damian has performed in the studio or on the stage with the likes of:Peter Erskine • Teri-Lynn Carrington • Gino Vannelli • John Ellis • Shawn Pelton • Sveti w/ Marko Djordjevic • Luis Conte • Brandon Ross • Les McCann • Jeff Lorber • Vardan Ovsepian • Charmaine Neville • Jessy J • Luis Perdomo • Tony Furtado • Kate Schutt • Bobby Torres • Alan Jones • Patrick Lamb • Dan Balmer • Klezmocracy. Whether playing as a sideman or with his own group, he is known for his rock solid bass work, virtuosic solos and thoughtful chordal abilities.

This spring, Damian recorded a trio album with Peter Erskine and Vardan Ovespian (piano) at Big City Studios in California.  This album is a personal milestone for him as he mentioned during our conversation. Recorded and immediately after the recording he went on a brief South American tour. I highly suggest this album because is very musical, it is beautifully recorded and as Damian said:  ”This is the album I’ve always wanted to be a part of”
The recording of this superb trio is to be released on Peter’s “Fuzzy Music” label in 2011 with dates in Europe soon to follow.

If you observe Damians playing you will notice how comfortable he is on the bass as well as how strong and rock solid technique he has. Damian already has a couple of instructional books available online. His latest book, “right hand drive” is a great instructional aid. It helps take the reader at step closer to beginning to grasp an understanding of “how it all works”. Add to that his discussion of chord connections and their applications, and chord shapes to enhance a visual perspective.Damians transcriptions are also included to examine and dissect, which is a well founded tactic recommended by almost every schooled player, and helps complete this books authenticity as far as being a trustworthy option to check out. I personally own Right hand drive as well as “Erskine perspective” and I highly suggest them to bass players of every level.

Damian’s unique tone is achieved by using Skjold basses. As Damian brought up, he was working with Pete Skojld for about a year in order to create the Damian Erskine signature bass – a bass that would fir Damians excessive needs. It features an extremely deep cutaway for 100% un-hindered access to the upper register_- over-wound pickups for a deep and rich tone_- brand new pickup mold design to incorporate the finger ramp into the pickup design (2 pickups in one pickup mold so ramp players will have a completely unified and comfortable setup)_- East pre-amps for complete tonal flexibility, very stable design and neck for action as low as you want it. _-Those features, coupled with some stunning good looks lead to a win/win situation.

www.skjolddesign.com

www.damianerskine.com/2009/08/skjold-damian-erskine-signature-series-bass

In addition, Damian pointed out that he is also in works with GruvGear developing a double bass strap that actually works well and helps redistribute the weight of your bass on long gigs while also allowing you to keep the bass where you want it when playing. I am really looking forward to that one!

Lastly, I am posting three Damian Erskine groove transcriptions. Enjoy!

Bass Transcription: Santa Fe from the Musical Rent

Rent is a musical with music and lyrics by Jonathan Larson based on Puccini’s opera La boheme. It tells the story of a group of impoverished young artists and musicians struggling to survive and create in New York’s Lower East side.

It is one of my favourite musicals. It has a couple of very interesting bass lines. I am posting a transcriptions of the basic groove of the tune called Santa Fe.

For more information you can check

www.rentmusical.net
www.jericaproductions.com

Observations in Ornette Colemans' music during the period of 1957-1963 : Analyses of "Invisible", "Lonely woman" and "Ramblin'"

I am just informing you that my book is finally published! I am so excited.In this book I examine the music of a pioneer of free improvisation in jazz: Ornette Coleman. Besides emphasizing the melodic language of this musician, this study presents analyses and transcriptions of his compositions and improvisations, focusing on the period from 1957 to 1963. In addition, Coleman is a rather controversial figure in jazz history, therefore, this study addresses to most commonly asked questions: Does Coleman's music have inner logic and structure in spite of the fact that its ostensibly naive and chaotic surface? Was Coleman a genuine modernist and innovator who was ahead his time? This study hopes to benefit students, professional musicians, theorists, musicologists and jazz aficionados because it will help them study, observe as well as deepen their understanding of the music of Ornette Coleman during that specific period.


It is available in selected bookstores as well as online in websites such as amazon, booksonemand, or bod etc. you can check it out at 


http://www.amazon.com/Observations-Ornette-Colemans-during-1957-1963/dp/384431850X/ref=sr_1_12?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1302672034&sr=1-12

Tom & Jerry

This is one of my favourite T&J episodes since i was a kid. I guess i was always attracted to the bass - before i even knew what a bass is.

Bass Transcription by Andreas Farmakalidis: Motown Bass Lines in Today’s Music – Love by Joss Stone

L-O-V-E” is a Jazz song written by Bert Kaempfert and Milt Gabler for American singer/pianist Nat King Cole’s 1965 album L-O-V-E.

I recently discovered that Joss Stone covered this well-known tune in 2007 for the sound track of the short film Coco Mademoiselle, which was made as an advertising campaign for Chanel “coco mademoisel” fragrance.

Joss Stone and Raphael Saadig, gave a new, more pop, sound to this classic tune. Saadigs bass line acts as the centerpiece of the song. This strong, “Motown like” bass line drives the tune and support Joss Stones vocals perfectly.

Enjoy!

“

Transcriptions of Jeff Berlin’s Forever Until Sunday and One of a Kind

 Andreas Farmakalidis 

Jeff Berlin is the living proof that the electric bass can be a viable jazz instrument. His melodic phrasing and soloing is hornlike and his walking bass is as propulsive as any upright bassist’s. Many bassists think like bassists when they solo; Berlin thinks music and plays flowing legato lines and builds solos that excite and build through their own musical logic. He is able to speak the language of his influences: Sonny Rollins, Keith Jarrett as well as John Coltrane.

Jeff Berlin’s bass playing is somewhat similar to that of Jaco Pastorious though Berlin usually plays a fretted bass. Jeff is also well known as a particularly outspoken supporter of music education. He was a founding member of the Bass Institute of Technology in Los Angeles and later founded the Players School of Music in Clearwater, Florida.

Jeff Berlin is still one of my major influences therefore this month I am transcribing “Forever until Sunday” as well as “One of a kind” which are two tracks that can be found one the album titled “one of a kind” by Bruford. Bruford were a band that former “Yes” and “King Crimson” drummer Bill Bruford formed and led in the late 1970s.

The transcriptions are my favorite excerpts of the bass groove.

For more information you can check
www.jeffberlinmusic.com
www.cdbaby.com/cd/JeffBerlin1

aika : CD review

“Aika… The purpose of Music is to give us a completely different idea of the things we know best.”

A single piano with the backing of strings gives way to one of the most electrifying voices of the current Californian as well as Japanese music scene, singing words of pain, self-knowledge as well as strength. The words work their way to a climax accented by thriving harmonic progressions as well as strong rhythm section, which gently fades away again, leaving the listener in stunned silence from the beauty of the moment, as well as the memories that will be awaken. This is “You told me you loved me”, the first track of aika’s (Aika Hirahara) self titled limited edition single.

“You told me you loved me” originated out of aika’s desire to record a song about relationships. She asked collaborator Nicolas Farmakalidis (NeilaProductions) to help out and the outcome is a tribute to the pair’s symbiotic teamwork. The final touch, was made by Grammy award winning mix engineer Dave Reitzas who gave the song depth that shares similar distinctiveness as the famous “I will always love you” by Whitney Houston, which is also mixed by him.

“You told me you loved me” is the type of big production that does not always fit easily into the typical pop radio play list, however the song is already taking off some airplay in most of the local radio stations and college radios around the country as well as various public and commercial Japanese radio stations. It is a song that is very likely to generate significant listener requests. Don’t be surprised if “You told me you loved me” is near the type of the pop singles chart by the early spring of 2011!

Aika is telling us a story about personal struggles in the second track of the single titled “Sinking – Caress Me”. Here, producer Nicolas Farmakalidis created an admirable stab of a unique retro 40′s circus atmosphere. Despite the fun and engaging feeling that this exceptional track creates, the background vocals and the brilliant use of strings produce certain unhappiness and a feeling of desolation. The producers explained that this song is trying to describe social isolation in the modern society. Nicolas specifically said that “Every true artist- whether it be Mozart, Bob Dylan or El Greco- it doesn’t matter what they do or how they do it. Important is that they understand the human condition better than anyone else. ”

Aika described this work with an Oscar Wilde quote “Some people come into our lives and quickly go. Some stay for a while and leave footprints on our hearts – and we are never, ever the same.”

For more information about aika and her upcoming tour dates, as well as the album release be sure to check them at:

www.myspace.com/aikahirahara
www.aikahirahara.com
www.neilaproductions.com