In so many jazz workshops I have been told the 'proper' way to solo
over changes, including Giant Steps, which I think every musician can
appreciate as challenging. However, my being a self-taught musician,
I decided to one day utilize my own 'home-grown' technique to navigate
the tune, and I eventually recorded this rendition.
The recording was done at my home studio, and took around 4 hours to
record, and about 10 days to master. All solos are in real time, and
I did the synth guitar takes first, leaving spaces for the bass solos
which I later added.
The technique is a combination of pentatonic majors and minors, mixed
with slides, hammer-ons and pull offs. Also, I approach a line vertically
in 3rds, which gets me to 'places' on the neck quicker and allows me
to conceptualize the layout of the fretboard in patterns.
When I play the synth guitar, I maintain my 'bass fingering' on both
the right and left hands. In other words, I play the synth guitar as
I would the bass; therefore, as I solo I never use the high B and E strings.
I find this MUCH easier to navigate since I know where certain 'patterns'
are located on the lower four strings of the snyth guitar.
I have played bass as a hobby for about 18 years. I recently switched
to synth guitar around 3 years ago. Now, however, I cross between the
two according to the demands of my own personal studio projects. I am
only a serious-hobbyist on the bass and have never really played professionally
at all. I just enjoy the spirit of the instrument and the joy it brings
me. Enjoy!
