Improvisation on Happy Birthday

Hello YC, I was playing around on my keyboard just now and recorded a little thingy I was improvising. My friend's birthday is coming so I tought it would be a good idea to record this and send this piece to her.
This piece was meant to sound a little jazzy, I was aiming for the "Smooth Jazz" kinda feel. Very tonal from my point of view. I am neither good in jazz nor improvisation. Just got some jazz cds and learnt from there.

Have a listen and tell me where I can improve in my improvising.

Link: Happy Birthday Improvisation - eSnips, share anything

I can upload to other sites if you can't open eSnips.

I like it very much. It sounds very Jazzy. I like your attempt for the chords as this piece is very difficult to find the exact chords....
its better than the one I arranged for my ex girlfreind with beethovens pieces and the one I composed for her....

I like it very much.

I am not into jazz much (yet I play trumpet in Jazz band at school)....but I have really liked your improvising and I am playing it for a second time again....I really like it. It could of been a little longer, and developed more that is the only thing I had to say.....you could develope it more, and make it a little more exiting....but other than that, great job....I am going to show my ex gf this...she is a pianist and improvises classical music...she is not into jazz either, but I want to see what she says about this....I like it.

This was really nice to listen to, Nigel.

You got the whole "Easy-Listening" style going here and it makes for a pleasant rendition of the song. I kept having images of Disney movies go through my head while listening to this, so I'm not sure what to make of that - especially the higher bits.

In terms of what to improve on, I don't have too much to comment on but I'll give you what there is. Right now, your interpretation falls flat because, as an improvisation, it really doesn't say much of anything about YOU. It retells the piece as you intended to, but it lacks personality in terms of the arrangement. Your performance is what gives it character now - it's very well played.

So the next time you do an improvisation recording, my suggestion to you is to be more free about it. Let the music take you where it wants to go and don't necessarily return back to a theme just because it's your "main" one - see if any new ones come up and then play around with those. Don't limit yourself: the whole point of improvs is usually to have them be nice and freeform.

Anyhow, that's my two cents. Very nice interpretation

Keep posting!

Yes... I was for the most part easy listening, but this one place where you took the first three notes of the song and repeating going upwards (you did this more than once) reminds me of something out of Chopin prelude or something of the like.

The only suggestion I have is that to me it sounded like you need to make everything link together a little more. What you did when you stated the theme in the beginning was very much like some light jazz (maybe the chords could be a little softer, but hey, details, details ), but in the middle you lost that feel and went to another one. That is just what *I* heard, I'm not saying what I say is true, it's just my personal perception.

And yes, I do like. But I wouldn't listen any more than twice... piano sound seems kinda.... well, you must know what I mean.

Originally Posted by RM Clarinet

I like it very much. It sounds very Jazzy. I like your attempt for the chords as this piece is very difficult to find the exact chords....
its better than the one I arranged for my ex girlfreind with beethovens pieces and the one I composed for her....

I like it very much.

I am not into jazz much (yet I play trumpet in Jazz band at school)....but I have really liked your improvising and I am playing it for a second time again....I really like it. It could of been a little longer, and developed more that is the only thing I had to say.....you could develope it more, and make it a little more exiting....but other than that, great job....I am going to show my ex gf this...she is a pianist and improvises classical music...she is not into jazz either, but I want to see what she says about this....I like it.

Thanks. This is a recording straight from my speakers. If I make mistakes I will not be able to erase them unlike recording via a sequencer. Therefore, I played carefully and kept it short.

Originally Posted by Marius

In terms of what to improve on, I don't have too much to comment on but I'll give you what there is. Right now, your interpretation falls flat because, as an improvisation, it really doesn't say much of anything about YOU. It retells the piece as you intended to, but it lacks personality in terms of the arrangement. Your performance is what gives it character now - it's very well played.

So the next time you do an improvisation recording, my suggestion to you is to be more free about it. Let the music take you where it wants to go and don't necessarily return back to a theme just because it's your "main" one - see if any new ones come up and then play around with those. Don't limit yourself: the whole point of improvs is usually to have them be nice and freeform.

Anyhow, that's my two cents. Very nice interpretation

Keep posting!

I will keep your advice in mind. I shall find some licks that sound good and next time when I improvise, I will add those licks into the piece. Limiting is, IMO, something that should be done, albeit moderately. If I don't limit myself, I will go all atonal and avant garde during improvising.

Originally Posted by EnigmusJ4

The only suggestion I have is that to me it sounded like you need to make everything link together a little more. What you did when you stated the theme in the beginning was very much like some light jazz (maybe the chords could be a little softer, but hey, details, details ), but in the middle you lost that feel and went to another one. That is just what *I* heard, I'm not saying what I say is true, it's just my personal perception.

And yes, I do like. But I wouldn't listen any more than twice... piano sound seems kinda.... well, you must know what I mean.

Yeah I agree with the linking part. Thing is, when improvising, I have to use a second or two to decide where I wanna go next, so that's where the music "unlinks". The piano sounds are from a VST, I personally think it sounds good (it's a jazz piano), only thing is I need to lower the volume of the left hand.

Anymore comments?

Very beautiful interpretation. I was a little wary when I read it was an improv based off the Happy Birthday Song but I have to say this exceeded my expectations. I really can't complain at all about this piece. It kept me interested the whole time. It was different enough from the original but didn't stray too far from it and the chords you used were quite pretty. Nice work. I'd like to hear more piano improv from you.

Nice job, Nigel. It sounds like you are still getting the ear-hand coordination thing going, and are in a semi-"search-mode". But clearly you have talent and will get better with practice.

I like how you worked with the descending second, which is so important in the theme, in the very nice section between :24 and :37.

I liked how you got the left hand more involved at 1:18. You may want to expand your explorations of LH activity in your future improvs.

Nicest section: between :45 and :57. You sound like a real smooth jazz pianist there. Your melody sounds like an "American Classic". Bobby Short at the Cafe Carlyle. How does it derive from "Happy Birthday"? Wellll... we might call its little asscending triad theme the retrograde of "(Happy) birthday dear...". And the rhythm seems based on the words "Happy Birthday". Maybe it was subconscious, like much in music that is only "figured out" in analysis after the fact.

You must have been surprised to hear what came from your fingers at 1:02- 1:06. But you soldiered on and got on track.

Best lesson from all this... exploring how to work with themes in composed compositions as well as improvs. And I agree with Marius.... hang loose and don't worry so much about guiding your hands to fit your theme.... use The Force! (Will a young person today get that reference???) Your little new theme at :45 is a good example of the way to go. It fits with the spirit, if not the letter. But I understand your concerns about abandoning "limits". As you gain more experience, your hands will learn the language, and the connection to what you want will be more direct, without going "Elliott Carter" on us!

Keep at it!

Originally Posted by camaysar

Nice job, Nigel. It sounds like you are still getting the ear-hand coordination thing going, and are in a semi-"search-mode". But clearly you have talent and will get better with practice.

I like how you worked with the descending second, which is so important in the theme, in the very nice section between :24 and :37.

I liked how you got the left hand more involved at 1:18. You may want to expand your explorations of LH activity in your future improvs.

Nicest section: between :45 and :57. You sound like a real smooth jazz pianist there. Your melody sounds like an "American Classic". Bobby Short at the Cafe Carlyle. How does it derive from "Happy Birthday"? Wellll... we might call its little asscending triad theme the retrograde of "(Happy) birthday dear...". And the rhythm seems based on the words "Happy Birthday". Maybe it was subconscious, like much in music that is only "figured out" in analysis after the fact.

You must have been surprised to hear what came from your fingers at 1:02- 1:06. But you soldiered on and got on track.

Best lesson from all this... exploring how to work with themes in composed compositions as well as improvs. And I agree with Marius.... hang loose and don't worry so much about guiding your hands to fit your theme.... use The Force! (Will a young person today get that reference???) Your little new theme at :45 is a good example of the way to go. It fits with the spirit, if not the letter. But I understand your concerns about abandoning "limits". As you gain more experience, your hands will learn the language, and the connection to what you want will be more direct, without going "Elliott Carter" on us!

Keep at it!

Thank you for the detailed comment. You just analysed the whole piece for me. Thanks for that. I will check out the smooth jazz pianist Bobby Short you mentioned as well as working on my left hand improvs. 1:02-1:06 was where I tried adding a few more black keys into the mix, it didn't sound too good, but I felt it's good to have something a little different in the piece.

Thanks again.

You are aware this is illegal in the US and Europe (etc.)?

Originally Posted by ArcticWind7

You are aware this is illegal in the US and Europe (etc.)?

Huh?