The Melody Lingers On — 24 Melodic Jazz Solos for 𝄢 bass clef instruments by Rich Willey

Description

“Learn by doing” with this melodic approach to jazz improvisation. Introducing The Melody Lingers On, a collection of 24 melodic jazz etudes by Rich Willey, written over 24 jazz standards. Each solo is two written choruses in a comfortable playing range. This book has a page containing a link for you to easily download 48 accompaniment tracks (two tempos for each study: a medium tempo and a brighter tempo). Play-along tracks contain no melody instruments, only piano, bass and drums.

Listen to Rich play the solos (with accompaniment tracks) on the chords to:
1) Old Folks

 2) Body and Soul

 View/print trombone (bass clef) PDF file of a page from this book:

The Melody Lingers On Volume 1 Bass Clef Sample

Solos are two choruses long, each written on the chord changes from the following standards:

• On A Slow Boat to China • Joy Spring • There Will Never Be Another You • Yardbird Suite • In a Mellow Tone • Here’s That Rainy Day • Body & Soul • I’ve Got Rhythm • Have You Met Miss Jones? • Tiny Capers • Like Someone In Love • Indiana • Just Friends • Stompin’ at the Savoy • Stella By Starlight • Old Folks • Green Dolphin Street • I Should Care • All the Things You Are • How High the Moon • Stardust • Gone With the Wind • Pennies From Heaven • Autumn Leaves

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This hard-copy book is forty-nine pages, printed on high quality paper, GBC comb-bound with heavy (10 ml.) mylar protective covers. When you order this volume in PDF format you will be able to download it immediately upon completion of purchase.

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Customer Comments

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“Wow! Rich Willey has done it again! His new book, The Melody Lingers On, is simply spectacular. Rich is not only a prodigious trumpet talent but also a remarkable composer and arranger. Evidence of his great improvisational technique and mastery of the bebop vocabulary is interspersed throughout these etudes, making each one a challenging composition that is fun to play. This is a great book for players of all proficiency levels and the accompaniment tracks are certainly a plus for the practice room. I highly recommend this to all players who are serious about their instrument.”
— RICK SIMERLY, Trombonist, Clinician, and Professor at Milligan College, Elizabethton, TN

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“Since my copy of The Melody Lingers On arrived I’ve been having a blast! The solos are musical; they feature real jazz melodic and rhythmic vocabulary on chord progressions that every jazz musician needs to know. The accompaniment tracks are a great feature. I especially like the fact that each etude can be played with the recorded accompaniment at 2 different tempos. The slower tempos are great for less experienced players. The faster tempos are a real kick in the pants for me. This set is also fabulous for working on sight-reading. Thanks, Rich!”
— PAT HARBISON, Trumpeter & Professor of Jazz, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN

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“These studies are great! Just the kind of material I’ve been looking for to help my students with jazz reading. They’re written in a comfortable range but include sophisticated rhythmic and melodic figures that aid in developing the ability to read figures in the jazz idiom. In short, a sensible, musical way to develop both jazz sight reading and soloing skills. I recommend this book to all of my students.”
— CHRIS BATTISTONE, Jazz & Trumpet teacher, Levine School of Music, Washington, DC

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“This new book by Rich Willey continues the tradition of excellence begun with his Bop Duets books! Thanks, Rich, for another great addition to trumpet repertoire! You’re the best!” — JEANNE G. POCIUS, Trumpet Teacher, Ayers Ryalside School, Beverly, Massachusetts

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“Just want you to know that I just received The Melody Lingers On and I think it’s GREAT! I am quite familiar with the tunes and changes, but your play-along tracks and music solos are a GREAT refresher and practice help. The accompaniment and the 2-pace tracks are great. You write some nice licks, too! GREAT job all around, man!” — NICK MONDELLO, Trumpeter, Long Island, New York

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“I regularly work from a number of books that incorporate jazz vocabulary into practice and technique exercises, and among those I highly recommend are books written and published by Rich Willey.

“I have just acquired Rich’s PFD download of ‘The Melody Lingers On.’

“I’m at my winter home in Salt Lake City and as usual I brought several trumpets and trumpet-like instruments and whole stack of exercise books. Just as I was getting really tired of licks in 12 keys, Rich put out a notice that this book, together with accompaniment in three tempos for each, was on sale at a discount via DropBox and www down-loads.

“I ordered the set; paid with PayPal; down-loaded the charts and the play-alongs, and printed the music in about 90 minutes total from decision to first toot on the trumpet.

“This work is a set of 24 ‘melodic jazz solos’ set to the changes of well known jazz standards. The sheet music, in addition to the written out ‘improvised’ solos, shows the chords in detail and the recorded accompaniment downloads are open and easy to follow piano, bass, and drum arrangements. For each of the 24 pieces, the printed music sets out an ‘improvised’ solo that sounds like a melody line, not like a series of riffs — this approach is discussed in the short introduction to the book.

“Humor is not absent — each of the pieces has been renamed. ‘Are We There Yet’ uses the changes from ‘On a Slow Boat to China;’ ‘There Will Never Be Another You’ morphs into ‘Unless You’re Cloned.’ As the final piece, ‘Winter Arrives’ as ‘Autumn Leaves.’

“I’ve only worked on the piece, ‘Are We There Yet.’ I know it well. I think it was my father’s signature theme from his dance band days from before and shortly after WWII. We played together in our City Band and in our church orchestra — Dad always played ‘On a Slow Boat to China’ as his warm-up. Confident of my familiarity with the changes, I started at full tempo.

“I quickly chose the slowest tempo for the rest of my initial session.

“Just playing these as jazz etudes is going to be good practice of important material. Playing with the accompaniments is going to be a fun way to do it. Rich’s introduction has some advice on the nature of the work and on ways that it can be used.

“I find that one of the great things about playing trumpet is that the work we have to do is downright fun when you find the right approach and, frankly, Rich does a good job of finding it for you.” — TOMMY TAYLOR, trumpeter, Deep East Texas

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“Rich Willey’s Jazz Improv Book provides a wealth of terrific materials, and his Melody Lingers On (new melodic solos written over the changes of well-known standards with accompaniments AT two speeds) provides a fun way of finding out how to put what the other books teach into practice.

“I met Rich at ITG in Harrisburg and heard him at the jam sessions and have to say that first-off he’s a terrific human being; warm, friendly and encouraging to the younger players, and secondly he definitely knows what he’s teaching in these books. His solos were very impressive and very musical.”
— DAVID BAILEY, trumpeter, composer & arranger, conductor, NH

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“I have really enjoyed your books, and have recommended them to several bone players in master classes at the Aebersold camp. I especially recommend your Jazz Improv  book and your Melody Lingers On  etude books as tools for developing their improvising and improving their sight-reading.” — RICK SIMERLY, trombonist, Aebersold clinician, Selmer artist