Stag

By Nick Briggs to celebrate #Wonderbrass25

Intro from Dr Rob

Improvising:

This is a common improvisation routing – a strong groove and a simple oscillation between two chords. We’re in D major and the chords are I and IV so we’re oscillating between D major and G major.
This sequence is the same as Hambo Nami and a few other tunes we do. So D major mixolydian works well, especially for upward moving melodic phrases, and blues scale in D (D, F, G, A, C, D – maybe add an E in too) works well for downward moving melodic phrases.

So have fun with it and remember – its all about the bass.

The only other chord in this piece is V – A major – and it only appears three times: in the intro and the outro and at the very end of the third solo, so be aware of that if you are working on the third solo. It’s only fleeting, but choose notes from the A7 or dominant scale.

Also, the flute is audible on the second (middle) solo. This is due to the way we recorded the piece in 2008 and I’m afraid it can’t be changed. It’s quiet, but it’s there.

Have fun!

Play along with the backing track:

Sheet music for the tune: