Maybe youre a vintage-minded

keyboardist, camped-out behind a Ham-

mond organ and funky EP, looking to
update your sound. Maybe youre a
jazzer with a secret jones for prog rock.
No matter what genre of music you play,
theres always room for a sonic supple-
ment. Thats what synthesizers are really
good at and what our new column Synth
Sense is all about.
PLAY I T! SYNTH SENSE
HOT SYNTH LICKS
FOR NON-SYNTH
PLAYERS
by Matt Beck
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Atari Nostalgia
Being a child of the 80s, a lot of the first synth sounds I recall were from grainy, 8-bit video game music. For this example, I used the default program on Vacuum (a
virtual analog soft synth included with Pro Tools 8, reviewed Oct. 09). The alternating of the whole-step interval with a fifth makes it sound a lot harder than it really is.
Keep the notes even and play it fast! Ill sometimes break this line out if things are sounding too safe, or Im looking for something kind of jarring and from left field.
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Emulating ELP
In my teens, I really got into Emerson, Lake, and Palmer. I loved Keith Emersons soaring and fluid lines. This descending arpeggio, alternating between D and A sus
chords, reminds me of something Keith might play. I dialed up a Vacuum patch called Lucky Man to get a sound close to Keiths you could crank up portamento to
get closer still. The line is a bunch of quintuplets, which gives a five-against-four feel.
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Jan Hammer Time
Fast forward a few years: Im discovering jazz, but what I really relate to is fusion because it still retains a rock aesthetic. At the time, I got familiar with Jan Hammer
who played all these great, guitar-like lines with Jeff Beck. Heres a line similar to what Jan might have played back then. The trick with this one is to use pitchbend to
play the second and third notes of each grouping. Anywhere you see three notes with a slur mark over them, you strike the first note, bend down for the second, and
release the bend for the third.
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No Place Like Home
In the early 90s, I heard Totos Pamela, which inspired this example. In the middle, a synth line exploded over the A minor funk groove, so tasty and fluid that I had to
learn it. Try to hear the notes in the main measure as happening in groups of five thats what gives the line its cool wandering feel. To layer like Totos David Paich, I
dialed up Pro Tools Xpand and layered a brass/woodwinds sound with a blended brass/flute, plus a Rhodes-style EP for attack. Good fingering was crucial to playing this
one cleanly; what I figured out is notated on the example.
Matt Beck, known for his burning keyboard and guitar work with pop icons Rod Stewart and Rob Thomas, just released his latest solo CD,
Anything Which Gives You Pleasure. Learn more at myspace.com/mattbecktwenty. Hear Matt play these licks at keyboardmag.com/lessons.
Matt flyin high onstage with
Rob Thomas.
32 K E Y B O A R D 0 2 . 2 0 1 0
Pioneering keyboardists (such as Joe
Zawinul, Chick Corea with Miles Davis,
and Billy Preston with the Beatles)
brought the Rhodes electric piano to the
forefront of modern music. Soon it was
the go-to keyboard of the 70s and early
80s. Jazz and rock players flocked to the
Rhodes sound. Its dynamic range, per-
cussive quality, and ability to play ghost
notes are just some of the things that
make it a stellar funk instrument as well.
This quick lesson will help you get your
Rhodes funk on.
The slow funk beat is a great way to
start grooving. In a band, drums and bass
set the pace, so by the time you come in,
much has been decided. Traditionally, funk
has a very strong one, and a syncopated,
two-bar repeating pattern. Be aware of how
heavy the drums and bass are playing the
first beat, and how hard the sixteenth notes
are swinging.
Scott Healy, who authors our Session Sensei column,
is known for his burning keyboard work on The
Tonight Show with Conan OBrien. Hear Scott play
these lessons at keyboardmag.com/lessons.
PLAY I T! FUNK
GET FUNKY ON
THE RHODES
by Scott Healy

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C7
Ex. 1. Heres a bass line with an accented first beat (called a heavy one) and a slow, swinging, sixteenth-note feel. Theres a little space in the middle of the bar, and
a pickup at the end to play off of or not. Check out Cissy Strut by the Meters or Up for the Down Stroke by Parliament for a similar feel.
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C7
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C7
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Ex. 2. Lets hit pretty hard on the one here. Hold it for two beats, then pop a few chords off the beat at the end of the bar. Since the pattern is a two-bar phrase, vary
the second bar, letting the chords go downward. Simple three-note gospel voicings work great on the Rhodes, and the tone around middle C is punchy and full.
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Ex. 3. With your second finger, add a blue grace note on the beat. You can finger grace notes (finger 2 to 3) or slide them (2 to 2) from a black key to a
white key. On the fourth beat, the riff follows the bass line.
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Ex 5. Heres some jazz thrown onto the funk groove: chromatic half-step movement from Db13 with a backwards grace note (B to Bb thank you
Herbie Hancock!) to C13. In the second bar, slide your left hand under the right on beats 2 and 3.
Ex 4. If you play syncopation off of the hard one, lighten up on the articulation. The sixteenth notes off of the other beats should be light and rhythmic also
try to articulate long-short, or do-dat. On a Rhodes. you may find you actually have more dynamic range than on an acoustic piano, especially if you turn up the
volume and play light.
34 K E Y B O A R D 0 2 . 2 0 1 0
You hear that the government is
contemplating another multi-billion dollar
stimulus package. Thats an intimidating
number I cant even digest. A much kinder,
gentler number is 12 the number of notes
in the chromatic scale. This month, well
scratch the surface of combining those
notes into chord colors appropriate for dif-
ferent styles of music.
The chord chart for what I play could be
the same for accompanying a number of
different artists, but how I voice those
chords may be radically different depending
on the music. To illustrate that, Examples
15 present the same eight-bar chord pro-
gression in a variety of contexts proof
positive that the same chord can sound
completely different depending on how you
voice it. Example 6 gives you hands-on
practice material to start expanding your
chord comfort zone. The ultimate goal is
that regardless of whatever curve the music
throws you, you can choose your next voic-
ing without overthinking.
One last thing: Notice the simple left
hand parts in the bass clefs throughout.
Its good to practice more than one thing
at a time, and you dont want an idle hand.
By playing a bass line, you give the right
hand a musical context, while developing
hand independence. Youre also working
on your timing.
Hear audio examples for Examples 15 at
keyboardmag.com/lessons. Carter played them on
the Yamaha new CP-1 stage piano, and thanks to
Yamahas Chris Gero, Avery Burdette, and Phil
Clendennin for their support.
PLAY I T! THE CHORD DOCTOR
EXPAND YOUR
CHORDAL
COMMAND
by Clifford Carter


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C F G Am

Dm F G F C

Ex. 2. Id play in the second verse with more character and

rhythmic action. By simply using the ninth of each chord,
we get a new sound, moving the piano a little more to
the forefront.


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C F G Am

Dm F G F C
Ex. 1. Heres an eight-bar progression Id play on, say, the
first verse of a Patti Scialfa song. Its simple and sparse
with not a lot of movement a nice bed. All chords are
either triads or four-note chords with one of the triads
notes doubled. The exceptions are bars 3 and 6, where Im
just playing the root and fifth in each hand. Why? Because
Nils Lofgren is next to me playing some fat, soulful chords
unique to the guitar, and I want to get out of his
harmonic space.
Session and touring ace Clifford Carter has been one
of New York Citys most sought-after keyboardists
for the past three decades, anchoring the bands of
James Taylor, Patti Scialfa, Betty Buckley, and Art
Garfunkel. Carters recent projects include co-
producing Dallas singer-songwriter Emily Elbert,
touring with Harry Connick Jr., and performing Too
Hot to Handel, a contemporary adaptation of Handels
Messiah with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra.
Learn more at cliffordcarter.com. Jon Regen
S
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N

S
M
I
T
H
36 K E Y B O A R D 0 2 . 2 0 1 0
PLAY I T! THE CHORD DOCTOR
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Triads Triads with ninths Triads with fourths Triads with ninths and fourths
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Dominant seventh chords Gospel voicings Cm11 voicing

Ex. 6. This exercise helps you gain command of the key-
board. Each measure is a set of inversions for a different
chord structure. Theyre written in C, but you should prac-
tice each one in all 12 keys. Ive been in situations where I
was playing in G, feeling really creative. If the singer or
bandleader changed the key to, say, Ab, I was out of my
comfort zone. Expand your zone by changing keys as you
play according to the circle of fifths, up in minor thirds,
chromatically, or in whole steps, and so on its cardio
for your fingers and brain!
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Ex. 3. In this variation on Example 2, I add the fourth in

addition to the ninth. Its similar in style but adds new
harmonic identity. This style of adding fourths and ninths
(or twos and fours) is very guitar-like, and a signature
sound of guitar bands like the Byrds and Tom Petty and
the Heartbreakers. Many pianists have taken cues from
guitar-oriented voicings when playing triad-based music.
Listen to Elton John, Billy Joel, Matt Rollings, and the E
Street Bands Roy Bittan.
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Dm F G F C
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Ex. 5. This is how Id play if accompanying Betty Buckley,

whose eclectic taste runs from Broadway to standards to
pop to jazz. She likes a pianist to re-harmonize the tradi-
tional chord structure using jazz voicings, whether shes
singing Gershwin or Joni Mitchell. Now Im using ninths,
11ths, and 13ths. A thorough knowledge of the melody is
essential to knowing what voicings will support the vocal.
In all of Examples 1-5, the chord chart may look identical,
thus its up to me to know what voicings work for the
singer Im accompanying.
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Dm F G F C

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Ex. 4. Heres the same basic progression, played with a
gospel or R&B style. I recently played in the Baltimore
Symphony Orchestras Too Hot To Handel, a jazz-funk
adaptation of Handels Messiah. If the chord progression
from Example 1 appeared in this show, it would sound like
this. Im using dominant seventh chords and triads that
define the rhythm and connect one chord to another. The
late, great Richard Tee played this style masterfully, on
hundreds of records.
38 K E Y B O A R D 0 2 . 2 0 1 0
Finding time to practice is difficult for
all of us. Whether youre on the road, run-
ning from one gig to the next, or dealing
with distractions at home, it can be daunt-
ing to keep your chops up. Whether at
sound check or the beginning of a session,
its always important for me to get my
hands and ears moving in as little time as
possible, and often, only a few minutes are
available. Thats why Ive come up with
these exercises for myself, each of which
focuses on a different element of my play-
ing, depending on what kind of gig it is. Try
the ones Ive outlined here, then make up
your own to incorporate your favorite licks
and runs in your daily warm-up routine.
PLAY I T! TEN MI NUTE TECHNI QUE
WARMING UP
UNDER THE GUN
by Josh Dodes
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with pedal
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Left hand arpeggios. The idea here is to get a fluid, expressive left hand arpeggio moving under an ostinato pattern in the right hand. Ill usually go up a half-
step at a time, periodically altering the right hand phrase in the fourth bar.
Blues licks. I typically start this exercise in F, then move down a half-step at a time to C, then start again at F and take it up by half-steps to C. Different licks feel
better in different keys, so Ill often do variations on these runs as I move around the keyboard.
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Pedal points. I often end up playing a pedal point on one note with accented chords around it. You can do this in any key, with different accent chords. The important
thing is to keep the single-note line as fluid as possible across both hands, even with the chords moving around it.
New York City keyboardist Josh Dodes has toured
and recorded with Marc Cohn, Toby Lightman
(shown), and Julian Velard, as well as with his own
Josh Dodes Band, featured on VH1s Bands on the
Run. He currently writes for thisisyoursong.net, a
custom songwriting service he co-founded in 2005.
Hear Josh play these lessons at keyboard
mag.com/lessons. Jon Regen
40 K E Y B O A R D 0 2 . 2 0 1 0
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Two-handed percussion. This is based on my song Shakespeare Monkey, and is a good way to focus on syncopation and rhythmic precision at fast tempos.
Ill usually loop this, moving up a half-step every four bars.
Pop-ups. These kinds of percussive pop-ups are particularly good on funkier songs if youre playing solo. They bring a little bit of slap bass feel to your left hand. You
can play this exercise in any key; the important thing is for the right hand part to feel like its being propelled by your left thumb.
PLAY I T!
41 0 2 . 2 0 1 0 K E Y B O A R D