Assignment Archive
2026 January - June

Can you find the notes to the melody of popular songs? 🔎👀!?

Some links for your convenience:

Hallelujah

Old:

Give Me Everything - 0:15 - 0:30

Dream On - 0:36 - 0:56

Only Time - 0:12 - 0:24

Lean on Me - 0:27 - 0:53

Paparazzi - Excerpt is from 0:41 - 0:50

Mad World - Excerpt is from 0:11 - 0:22

Impossible - Excerpt is from 0:41 - 0:51

And of course don't forget the other papers - new practice log + GDAEB learning time

• 4 Chord Songs (Every pop song ever)
  "Playing the Changes #1" is based on this - it uses that progression lol.

• Carnival of the Animals
  I wanted to share this earlier with the motifs + phrases MuseScore (the Whale one). It's a great classical example of using motifs to represent animals. Another famous classical work that uses motifs for imagery is Mussorgsky's "Pictures at an Exhibition"

• Far East Suite
  Duke Ellington's "Far East Suite" is a great jazz example of using motifs to represent places. This album is inspired by the locations his group travelled to in Asia.

Sheet Music - YouTube Video - Backing MP3 - Amy Singing

Trying playing along with Amy Winehouse's singing! When you have the physical sheet, try writing notes + mark rhythms to match Amy. See if you like this approach. Consider the sheet music a suggestion that you tweak to make your own.

Playing the changes = Matching the chord changes within the harmony.

Backing Track - Thirds in C Major

1. Listen to the backing track multiple times. When do the changes happen? When do the changes repeat? Overall, what 'color' or feeling do you get on each chord? Can you predict what the next chord will be?

2. Noodle with the backing track. Can you match the chord tones? It's like a music mystery, just without words.

3. Read "Thirds in C Major". Play the examples. Bring any questions to lesson.

4. Try matching thirds within the chords. Every chord in this example is made of a pair of thirds stacked on top of one another. It would be great if you could figure out exactly what this pair is, but no worries, just try to find thirds that sound 'nice' and consonant with the harmony.

5. See if you can come up with a motif / phrase over this backing track. Feel free to write motifs down! (Lots of musicians that improvise take notes so they can refine ideas). Try to add structure to the song by repeating motifs and phrases. The human brain is pattern seeking, so repetion helps a lot with perceiving sound as music.

_______________________________________________________________

Additional thoughts / helpful background:

This example uses a Pop chord progression. Every genre has its own convention for harmony. Pop is simple, so it's a good starting point. When you're ready, we should branch out to different genres like Jazz, R&B, Blues, Latin music, etc. so you can be versatile.

Playing the changes requires both active listening to the harmony (typically piano + bass/guitar) and an understanding of the key when played on saxophone. It is tricky, because you have to simultaneously listen (input) while performing (output). Trying to handle input and output at the same time is mentally tough.

Musicians have realized a solution to this. When we practice and "grind out" exercises, it's meant to develop the patterns and skills in our brain so it becomes automatic. Musicians will spend hours practicing scales in a key so that way they don't have to think about it on the performance - their body has the muscle memory to just do it. Similarly, actively listening to lots of music and lots of chord changes eventually internalizes what they sound like in your "inner ear" / "mind's ear". Then it becomes automatic to know what chord is what and how to handle it. This is particularly useful when there is no sheet music to reference.

All of this to say, don't be afraid of the grind. This is the tried and true method to perform effortlessly. Ideally, you'd listen to music you'd enjoy, choose exercises you find fun, and make practicing very enjoyable :) Soon enough you'll be able to automatically 'click' with the harmony and it will feel like magic.

Please download this Musescore file. The file explains music structures vital to composition. Technically, it's not really about rhythm, just how we group notes musically. After reading the file and listening to the examples, do the following:

Setup) Create a new score in the key of B Flat major with instrument = Tenor Saxophone. In the bottom right of MuseScore, turn off Concert Pitch. This way the notes on the page will match sheet music that you play as a saxophonist.

Create motifs for the following. Each motif should be between 3-12 notes, with 4-8 notes being the sweet spot.
The idea is to come up with a motif that creates a mental image.

1) A chicken
2) A castle (or a medieval scene)
3) Being stuck in traffic (the feeling of it or a literal scene)
4) Wildcard: Think of something and write a motif for it!

Create phrases for the following. Each phrase should be around 4-8 measures. Use multiple motifs in the phrase. Again, we're trying to conjure up mental images.

1) You see a UFO in the distance. It comes closer and sucks you up!
2) You're running late, then realize you're early.
3) A whale slowly rises, breaches the surface, and crashes back into the water.
4) Wildcard: Think of a complete, but small idea and write a phrase for it!

EXTRA: As always, feel free to write more! Just write lots and lots of stuff! Try different interpretations of the same prompt. For example, what would a happy chicken sound like? What about an angry one?

Please download this Musescore file. The file explains key note choice concepts that are important for music composition. After reading the file and listening to the examples, do the following:

Setup) Create a new score in the key of B Flat major with instrument = Tenor Saxophone. In the bottom right of MuseScore, turn off Concert Pitch. This way the notes on the page will match sheet music that you play as a saxophonist.

1) Create a 4 to 8 bar melody that mostly uses the C Major scale

2) Create a 4 to 8 bar melody that mostly uses the A Natural Minor scale

3) Create a 4 to 8 bar melody that mostly uses the C Major Pentatonic scale

4) Challenge: Create 16 bars of melody. Have the first 8 bars be in one scale (major, minor, pentatonic) and have the last 8 bars be in a different scale, but it still sounds like the same idea - just varied.

As always, feel free to write more! Having a large volume of ideas is better for these kinds of exercises.

Please download this Musescore file. The file explains key rhythm concepts that are important for music composition. After reading the file and listening to the examples, do the following:

1a) Create a short (4 to 8 bars) music passage that has the most chaotic, unpredictable rhythm you can make. You may use any notes.

1b) Listen to your short passage with the metronome turned on for playback. (Open Mixer at the top, unmute the metronome). Do you perceive the music differently? Does it feel different?

2a) Create 2 bars of music. The rhythm must be a mix of consonant and dissonant beats (you must use some blend of on-beats and off-beats).

2b) Copy that 2 bars of music three times. You should have a total of 8 bars. Give it a listen. What do you think? Does the repetition add something to the music or does it take it away?

2c) Experiment with different examples! Try creating 2 bars of dissonant rhythm. When you copy them into 8 bars, how does that sound? Try creating 2 bars of consonant rhythm. When you copy them into 8 bars, does that change the feel?

3) Challenge: Can you create an interesting line that is 8 bars but it only uses 1 note? (For example, choose only middle C). Use the concepts of rhythm consonance and dissonance to generate interest. Use repetition to create structure if the line feels a bit too unstable.

Old:

Try making some sheet music! Be creative and make whatever random things you can. I want them to sound weird / bad / good / all over the place.

Make at least 20 bars of music. It's pretty easy once you get into it. (Bonus: if you make it sound bad, in the future you can look back and say 'wow I improved so much' haha. Make your future self happy!)

Do you like this version of Take Five? I thought it was nice; slightly darker / sultry but still recognizable.

Video - Sheet Music

Sheet music - Backing Track (Fixed) - Backing with Sax

WHY ISN'T MY "C" THE SAME "C" A GUITAR PLAYS? WHAT DO YOU MEAN SAXOPHONE IS A "B FLAT" INSTRUMENT?

Video: Why do Instruments Transpose?

TIME TO IMPROVISE AND I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT TO PLAY. WHY DO PEOPLE SAY "PLAY WHAT YOU HEAR"? I DON'T HEAR ANYTHING EXCEPT THE VOICES IN MY HEAD REEEEEEE

Video: Bob Sheppard: "How I REALLY Learned to Play the Saxophone!"

WHY DO SOME PLAYERS SOUND JAZZY BUT I SOUND LIKE A HONKING GOOSE KAZOO? HOW DO I IMPROVE MY TONE?

Video: Dave Liebman - Saxophone Embouchure

Okay I'm done screaming can I watch something cute?

Video: Important Interview With Clodsire

Video for you to play along with: link here

Sheet music and backing track available in Music Catalog: link here

New Video - I explain how to use chord progressions quick and easy:

https://youtu.be/9nes1O9yqFE

For other elements like rhythm, drum tracks, and effects, keep searching YouTube and online tutorials! (Sorry I am not an Ableton user but we'll try our best!)

Here's a nice, 20 minute video I found to get you started making lofi music with Ableton:

https://youtu.be/gFPoITY_ioA?si=dxptgvJNr_tmEWNG

For next lesson:

1. Watch the video

2. Create at least 3 beats in Ableton (separate files. They don't have to be polished)
   The goal is to noodle with the software and get a feel for it. The more you create the more you will learn.

3. Sample your own playing and add the recording to Ableton (might need to use your phone or something). Noodle with this. You do not need to add the sample to every beat, just add focus on the technical aspects of using the software.

4. Audio Interface: You need something to plug the mic into, so I'll bring my Scarlet 2i2 interface next lesson. You can borrow it for the remainder of this month.

Do not worry about music theory too much (yet). In lesson we can delve into concepts that will help create the song. But before music theory was refined, folks would just play what sounds good and experiment. So take that approach!

NEW: A guide to playing backing tracks with JJazzLab:

• Playback Controls

• Transposition (You must set the transposition to Tenor Sax when playing along)

--

At our last lesson I showed you the JJazzLab software which can play custom backing tracks - essentially a 'Rhythm Section Simulator'. Since you have a Mac PC the installation instructions are bit more complex but I think I figured it out. Please follow along:

1) Open the MacOS Terminal (the black and white thing that lets you type in a command)
One way to do this is: Press the Command (⌘) + Spacebar keyboard shortcut. This should open the search. Then type "Terminal".
Stuck? Try Googling how to open the Terminal - but I think you got this!

2) Install Homebrew
Just copy and paste this entire line into the Terminal:
/bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/HEAD/install.sh)"
Press Enter to execute the command, then confirm the changes. You may need to enter your computer's password. Be sure to run the two commands it spits out at the end of install. This will unlock the "brew" command on your PC for the next step. (It's a command that downloads apps)
If that command didn't work or you want to see how to do it: there is a YouTube tutorial which has install steps (just watch the first two minutes). Or visit the homebrew website and see if it has advice. Sometimes command lines are tricky so if you get stuck we can troubleshoot at next lesson or Google Meet before then (I don't have FaceTime).

3) Install Fluidsynth
Copy and paste this line into the Terminal and press Enter:
brew install fluidsynth
Confirm any changes it prompts you with. This enables the sound for JJazzLab.
If that command didn't work: visit the Fluidsynth Github Page for more information to troubleshoot.

4) Install JJazzLab (Almost done!)
Use the link below to download the JJazzLab file:
https://github.com/jjazzboss/JJazzLab/releases/download/4.1.2/JJazzLab-4.1.2-mac-aarch64.pkg
Then open the file and go through the prompts (if any) to install it. If it worked you should see the JJazzLab app on your computer.
If that is giving you trouble: visit the JJazzLab website for troubleshooting advice. Or we can Google Meet / talk next lesson.