There are several ways to play outside - here are some of them (explanations below)... Implying changes that aren't being played by the band. Sidestepping. Approach tones. Sequences. Tonal substitution.
Implying changes that aren't being played by the band: John Scofield is the master of this style - check out Uberjam which is full of one chord vamps - because the band is grooving on one chord, you can easily hear when Scofield is moving in and out of the tonality. For example - the band is grooving on an Am chord, so instead of just playing A Dorian, you can pretend that the band is actually playing Am and then playing C7b9 / F#7#9 / Bm7b5 / E7#9 - you play those changes, but the band just plays Am for those four bars. Your lines are "outside" Am, but follow a common III VI II V jazz chord sequence - a very strong sound that the listener can follow and that makes musical sense. A simpler example would be to imply Valt / Im / Valt / Im etc, so play E7alt licks for one bar followed by Am licks for one bar. Sidestepping: A bit simpler this one - just move sideways for a bit, so if you're playing over Am, play Bbm licks for a bit, or Abm licks for a bit - as with all outside playing - be tasteful and always try to end on a chord tone so finish your outside lick on an A, C, E or G note. Approach tones: This a a bebop technique - Scott Enderson and Holdsworth are good at this - approach chord tones with a note that's a semi-tone above or below your target note, so in Am, approach an E from Eb or F. These sound good if you play the approach note on a weak offbeat. They sound even better if you use lots and play really fast! A slightly more advanced version of this is "double chromaticism", where you play an approach tone, like Eb (going to E), but instead of playing E as your next note, you play another chord tone and then play the E. Sequences: Man, you could spend your entire life studying sequences... There are basically two types - diatonic and non-diatonic. Diatonic sequences involve playing a pattern of 3, 4 or 5 notes and then cycling that pattern through the parent scale - keeping all the notes within the scale (the intervals in the sequence will change to keep all the notes "in" - non-diatonic sequences step outside the parent scale by keeping the intervals in the sequence the same.
For example - the band is grooving on Am and you play C B G A you now have a choice and you decide to play a diatonic sequence moving through each note of A Dorian, so you follow that up with D C A B, E D B C, F# E C D etc etc (you're not stepping outside the scale of A Dorian). In an alternate universe you decide to play a non-diatonic sequence that cycles all the first notes of the sequence through all the notes of an Am arpeggio, so you play C B G A, E Eb B C#, G F# D E, A Ab E F#. The first notes of each group of four notes = C E G and A = Am arpeggio. If you wanted to sound more outside then the first sequence of notes could have contained outside notes and you could have cycled it through the arpeggio of an Em chord... Or the first sequence could have contained notes from an E7 alt chord and you could have cycled it nondiatonically through the notes in an E diminished scale... Hopefully you're beginning to see that this is a BIG topic! One very effective way to use sequences is to move them chromatically - so shift a lick by semitones, tones or minor thirds, or even major thirds for a hip bebop sound. You're not implying another key by doing this, but the chromaticism forms the basis of your logic and the listener will pick up on it. Tonal substitution: Basically substitute the scale you're using for another one - The band continues to vamp on an Am (bless their cotton socks!) and you're happily using an A Dorian scale. But then you decide to use an Eb Dorian scale for 2 bars, you go back to A Dorian and then you play C Dorian for two bars (you've kept the same mode, but changed the root). You could play C# Lydian, C Altered or B Locrian (changing key and mode) - almost anything, really...it depends on what you like the sound of and how far "out" you want to go! This technique can become too obvious if overused, so only dip into it once during a solo for maximum effect... The keys to "outside" playing are: • •
Conviction: you have sound like you know what you're doing Logic: if there is an inner logic to the line, the listener will be able to follow that without being disturbed by the clashes with the underlying harmony
The principle is inside - outside - inside . You start in, go out for a while and then come back in. In this way you establish normality, then create tension and ultimately the tension is followed by release. We are going to look at some common techniques for "outside" playing. These are seqencing, fourths, triads, altered cadences, chord substitutions, "Coltrane Changes", mode substitution and playing a half-step up ( side-slipping). Sequencing
Take a small motive, a seed. Repeat it, transposed up and down and you get an interesting line for playing "outside":
An interesting fact about the above line is that it is very rich pitch-wise. It happens to contain every note of the chromatic scale except one: g#/ ab... Mike Stern used this idea to great success in his rhythm changes tune Suspone. This is discussed in detail in lesson 45. Fourths
A fourth is a very strong interval. This makes it ideal for "outside" playing. Check out this I-VI-II-V lick:
Triads
Triads are also very strong. This makes them very suitable for "outside" playing. Check out this II-V-I lick:
this II-V-I lick:
and this I-VI-II-V lick:
Altered Cadences
Check out this II-V-I lick:
or what about these two sequenced I-VI-II-V licks:
or this one:
The I-VI-II-V/ III-VI-II-V cadence can be varied in a million ways. Check out lesson 7 where this is discussed in detail. Now check out these two II-V-I licks:
Chord Substitutions
Here's another way to look at the II-V-I progression:
and here's still another way:
Side-Slipping
Here's an easy II-V-I example using side-slipping with the pentatonic scale:
Check out this ingenious II-V-I lick by Bob Russell using side-slipping with the pentatonic scale:
