Donna lee in Ab

guitarshark

Anyone got any suggestions for gypsyfying it?

I know it's not your standard gypsy fare but
There's a few really interesting recordings I found on spotify...(Frank Vignola) for one.

I don't play it full speed....Maybe like 200bpm.

I'm trying to improvise solos but I get lost trying to come up with something orignal after the head of the tune. Probably gotta look at some scales.

If you haven't learned the chord changes for this one it's a must!!!! (Or so says the new guy) ive had fun trying to djangoizie it so far.

Any tips?

Also....any other bebop tunes that are good for gypsy?

BluesBop Harry

There are tons of gypsy versions... There's also The Rosenberg Trio's but I couldn't find it on youtube

Try using arpeggios instead of scales for improvising... Much more gypsy
The tune is based on the chord changes of Back Home in Indiana in case you didn't already know... You can hear Adrien Moignard quote the original melody at 3:00 in the video

Scoredog

I don't have the tune or a guitar in front of me but I'd try and simplify as much as possible to get it going.

Hopefully I remember the tune well enough.
The song stays in a Ab key center for a while then does a II V into Db so that's your first negotiation. I'd next negotiate the Bb7 which takes you back into an Ab key center and the tune basically starts again. The last key center to negotiate is the Fminor and then back to Ab. So break it down into those 5 areas and it shortcut you through the tune.

guitarshark

Thanks for the video links! And scoredog that sounds right. Hopefully I can postell a video soon or something.

Scoredog

If you want to keep it super simple you can play Ab blues over the whole bloody thing except when the F minor area shows up, then play F minor or Ab major scale...of course you can get way more complicated.

Elí Saúl

Well, speaking for myself, it works to sing melodies over the chord changes as i play them, memorizing the structure and "alert spots" where i must emphatize modulations, and then playing over such ideas.
as i remember it, A goes something like
| Ab | F7 | Bb7 | % |
| Bbm | Eb7 | Ab | Ebm Ab7 |
| Db | Dbm | Ab | F7 |
| Bb7 | % | Bbm | Eb7 |
so for starters, i'd go with Ab Major for the 1st 6 bars, next 3 maybe Ab mixo , arpeggio for Dbm or some superimposition, and back to Ab
And try to rotate ideas every now and then.

Uiltimately, use your ear a lot. I'd say plans like this are useful for analysis prior playing, they dont work for me so well as i improvise if i think of them much, but surely give me lot of tools to use while doing it so!

Happy playing

Josechiky

Would anyone be so kind to transcribe into tab what is Benoit Convert playing when he is acompanying with chords. He has left me a bit lost.

guitarshark

http://www.mathiaslang.com/2015/07/donna-lee.html?m=1

I know it's not the same. But I used my ear first than this tab....some youtube videos....friends...ahahha. it's a fun and challenging tune.

Josechiky

guitarshark wrote: »

http://www.mathiaslang.com/2015/07/donna-lee.html?m=1

I know it's not the same. But I used my ear first than this tab....some youtube videos....friends...ahahha. it's a fun and challenging tune.

Thanks, Shark! I have seen someone started to transcribe the solo by using Soundslice but it remained unfinished. Hope that person would return and continue with the transcription :-).

https://soundslice.com/tabs/8031/benoit-convert-adrien-moignard-patrus53com-django-in-june-2013-tab/