Here one of the tunes we played during our first gig last Thursday, "If I had You". We played many others but only this one was recorded entirely. Simple, no complicated harmony, not our best (some mistakes - ahem), but I'll remember this date forever as the first time I played 4 mallets in front of an audience, and without guitar or piano help ..., and as I owe this to VW, I think VW has to be the first to have access to the video !

Stephane Beuvelet - drums
Xavier Cortazar - Bass

Another great lesson. Make sure you know it really well!

Here's a video discussing some patterns that will help develop an ear for diminished sounds. Use the pdf for reference.

Behn

I've been a fan of Steve Swallow for a long time, and not only for his extraordinary bass playing but for his compositions too. Ladies in Mercedes has been recorded many times by numerous artists, including Steve Kuhn, Carla Bley, Gary Burton, and many others.

Steve's famous Falling Grace may be his most well known tune, but I also love others that are not as well known, including Peau Douce, Radio, and the one I'm introducing here, Ladies in Mercedes.

Hey guys, here's one we just taped last week at Berklee. It's an old classic that works great with the four to the bar feel. I recorded this song on my recording Swing On The Sunny Side with the great Herb Pomeroy. Herb's solo on that track is simply beautiful. This clip is also my nod to the great pianist Dave McKenna. If you haven't checked out Dave, I suggest you should. He has a lot of solo recordings out on the Concord Jazz label as well as some nice clips up on YouTube. Happy Holidays everyone! Ed