showcase – Initial thoughts and groundwork
Well there’s been no rest as we had gotten started with Showcase arrangements during the production run last week. I’ve gotta say though I felt a huge sense of relief the day after Pippin closed and I was able to focus on this project – I’m back within my comfort zone and it feels far less stressful than the past month or two.
The Task
We have been assigned a number of songs to arrange for a 5-piece band (Drums, Bass, Keys, Reed, Cello). The songs are cut to 1.5mins and are all musical theatre pieces. It is unclear if we are to recreate the original sound as best we can or whether we can create new ‘takes’ on each song, so I’m sure a varied approach will be necessary depending on the song.
Implementing Previous Lessons
As I got started on this task I already had some ‘lessons’ or feedback comments running through my mind that I wanted to incorporate into my process this time…
- Get charts/tracks out quickly – My Cabaret group said that having their charts and tracks prepared a bit sooner would’ve helped them feel more comfortable on the gig.
- Clearly label versions/revisions – I anticipate a number of updates throughout this process and so I have been careful to name and label my files and charts clearly to reflect these potential changes.
- Write Keys parts, not Conductor Scores – I remember that in the cabaret project my PV charts were quite full, which was great for in rehearsal as I could cover all the instruments, but it meant that I was somewhat busking a piano ‘part’ when it came to the gig. This time I’ve decided to write a piano part that fits perfectly into my arrangement, and then I’ll just ‘busk’ the other instruments during rehearsals. Adding chord symbols will enable me to do this, and I’m confident that it’ll lead to better band arrangements.
Getting Started
I began copying out vocal lines and referencing PVs right away, and so far I have one first draft arrangement. The rest are all underway, because for me sometimes getting started is the hardest part. Now that all of my current arrangements are started however, it’s easy for me to revisit them and work at them in turn.
Here is my first draft piano/vocal score for ‘Trina’s Song’ from the show Falsettos. There are some examples in here of how I’ve written a piano part rather than a Score (omitted bass in bars 7-10), and labelling the chart (top right), although this should really read ‘v1’ or something. The chart is not perfect yet, but it is a flying start and it fits into my arrangement nicely. Below is the midi reference track that I’ve sent to the performer so that she can start work on this, and so that we can discuss edits/teaks going forward.
This afternoon I have rep sessions with each of my allocated performers, so I needed to make sure that I had charts that I can play from by today.
Here is an example of a different style of chart that I’ll develop for this gig. The original features a (reduced) big band sound with lots of sectional interplay and punctuation. I anticipated that it would be difficult to recreate these big band elements with just our 5-piece ensemble, so I think I’ll shoot for more ‘cocktail jazz/blues’ style which maintains the feel and intention of the original. This will allow for more pianistic punctuation as opposed to brass or woodwind sectional interplay. Then I can write intuitive parts for our blower and cellist – parts to ‘celebrate the instrument’, instead of being part of a ‘section’ that doesn’t exist.
For this piano part I’ve given myself chords to play from and I’ve started to write in a bass line just for reference. I don’t anticipate playing this line but it will give me guidance on where to ‘comp’ and ‘punctuate’ throughout the song. I’m excited to explore adding in the other instruments as I work more on this. Also, it’s forcing me to revisit my hip jazz voicings in some of more horrible keys, as well as getting familiar with altering them to cater for the b9s and b13s and whatnot – what great practise!