I am a bass player and I am in my first year of playing my high school's jazz band. I know all my scales (keys and modes) and arpeggios, and I can improvise very well. We have been offered the chance to audition for solo spots in a funk piece we're playing for our next concert. The only problem is that when I practice improvising, the diatonic scales sound a bit awkward when I think of the song. I know that one can use the pentatonic/blues scales, and a ton of people do, which is why I want to try to go a bit further. Besides, improvising on the pentatonic/blues scales gets a little boring and limited. The piece is in F minor, so I want to try to add in G and Db (or D for those in preferance of the Dorian mode) as well as some Bebop chromaticism. Does anybody have any advice as to how I can make these notes fit?

Many thanks to anyone who can provide me with some helpful tips!

James Dowdy Moose

Get loose, get Mingus


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