20/2/2019 20 Jonathan Kreisberg Sequences | Mark McKnight

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20 Jonathan Kreisberg Sequences

With singing melodicism and technically advanced sequential development, Jonathan Kreisberg’s (http://www.jonathankreisberg.com) unique
playing style continues to expand the boundaries of modern ‘straight ahead’ jazz guitar improvisation.

This post outlines 20 signi cant sequential patterns seen throughout Kreisberg’s recordings as a leader up to and including the
album ‘Showdowless’, suggesting relationships and themes which unite each as part of a wider language.

The examples include ngering and harmonic information but leave picking and articulation to individual preference.

To create your own unique sequential vocabulary click here (http://mmckmusic.com/the-creative-method/), or to improve your sight reading click here
(http://mmckmusic.com/sightscribe/) . Otherwise, comment/share/enjoy and please support the artist by purchasing the recordings
from which these audio extracts are taken.

Ex 1 – A Child Is Born (https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/trioing/id300106531) (3:22)

Highlighted in grey, this 3 note triadic pattern moves through Eb melodic minor and G minor, with a neat pedal tone resolution
across beats 5 and 6 of the second bar.
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Ex 2 – Summertime (https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/nine-stories-wide/id328011621) (1:42)

The 5 note triad pattern below is performed in C melodic minor, tting 4 times through each 5/4 bar to create an engaging
polyrhythmic e ect.  A brief secondary sequence stacks fourths across the guitar’s top 3 strings.

Harmonies re ect accompaniment.

00:00 00:00

Ex 3 – JuJu (https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/nine-stories-wide/id328011621) (1:44)

Polyrhythms feature again with this bar-crossing augmented pattern, which places the descending 3 note triad gure of Example
2 after a 3 note scale run.

Harmony refers to the parent scale.

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Ex 4 – Summertime (https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/nine-stories-wide/id328011621) (3:20)

Kreisberg rejuvenates this standard with a variable 4 note triad pattern, altering the initial G major triad at beat 2 to imply E
Dorian.

Bar 2 concludes with the same idea reinterpreted using triplet rhythms, an e ect sustained for the following augmented triads.

Note the use of a melodic turn at beat 5 of bar 1 – we’ll see this recurring gure throughout a number of the examples to follow.

Harmonies re ect accompaniment.

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Ex 5 – Countdown (https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/trioing/id300106531) (1:59)

A straightforward descending and ascending triad pattern.  Notice a further instance of #11 for 5 during bar 2, rst seen as part of
Example 4.

Harmonies are speci c to melodic content.

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Ex 6 – A Child Is Born (https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/trioing/id300106531) (2:53)

Initially extending the previous sequence to a 9 note pattern, bar 4 returns to the 6 note gure of Example 5.

Harmonies are speci c to melodic content.

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Ex 7 – JuJu (https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/nine-stories-wide/id328011621) (3:14)

This sequence combines the descending 4 note triad and 4 note melodic turn seen rst during Example 4, extending the latter by
1 note to complete a 9 note triplet pattern.

Harmonies are speci c to melodic content.

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Ex 8 – Sweet and Lovely (https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/trioing/id300106531) (2:18)

Extending the previous pattern to 12 notes in bar 1, this line reverts back to the original 9 note form at bar 3, resolving the
polyrhythm at the end of bar 5.

Harmonies are speci c to melodic content.

00:00 00:00

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Ex 9 – Five Bucks a Bungalow (https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/new-for-now/id328152161) (3:02)

Example 8 is extended to a total of 16 notes through completion of the descending triad gure and a further partial iteration of
Example 4’s melodic turn. Triplets are substituted for 8th notes, aligning the pattern over 2 bars of 4/4.

Harmonies are speci c to melodic content.

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Ex 10 – Michelle (https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/nine-stories-wide/id328011621) (2:51)

Bar 4 contains a single iteration of the 4 note descending triad pattern seen rst during Example 4, interrupting the already
polyrhythmic application of Example 7’s 9 note triplet pattern.  This odd combination momentarily throws the ear, creating strong
rhythmic tension.

Harmonies are speci c to melodic content.

00:00
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Ex 11 – Strange Resolution (https://itunes.apple.com/be/album/the-south-of-everywhere/id264753768) (3:32)

One of Kreisberg’s most distinctive sequential patterns, this 5 note 7th arpeggio  gure is applied to C melodic minor.

Harmony refers to the parent scale.

00:00 00:00

Ex 12 – The Best Thing For You (https://itunes.apple.com/be/album/the-south-of-everywhere/id264753768) (2:13)

A rhythmic development of Example 11 applied to the diminished scale.

Harmonies are speci c to melodic content.

00:00 00:00

Ex 13 – New For Now (https://itunes.apple.com/ke/album/unearth/id171709637) (1:44)

Further polyrhythms, this time featuring the 5 note gure of Examples 11 and 12 performed using 8th notes in 4/4.

Harmonies refer to parent scales.

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Ex 14 – Kiitos (https://itunes.apple.com/be/album/the-south-of-everywhere/id264753768) (7:20)

Developing the 7th arpeggio theme, this example outlines a 9 note descending and ascending pattern applied in 3/4 as 8th note
triplets.  The sequence is preceded by its second note.

Harmonies are speci c to melodic content.

00:00 00:00

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Ex 15 – The South of Everywhere (https://itunes.apple.com/be/album/the-south-of-everywhere/id264753768) (3:26)

Example 14’s 9 note  gure extended by a further 6 notes to create a 15 note triplet pattern ideal for 5/4. This could be considered
a 7th arpeggio application of ideas from Examples 6 and 8.

Harmonies are speci c to melodic content.

00:00 00:00

Ex 16 – Funeral For The Ants (https://itunes.apple.com/be/album/the-south-of-everywhere/id264753768) (3:36)

Example 14 adapted to some less conventional settings.

Harmonies are speci c to melodic content.

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Ex 17 – Gone With The Wind (https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/new-for-now/id328152161) (2:32)

Another stylistically signi cant idea, one of Kreisberg’s most frequently employed wide arpeggio patterns (not presented as a
sequence here).

Harmony is speci c to melodic content.

00:00 00:00

Ex 18 – Gone With The Wind (https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/new-for-now/id328152161) (5:51)

Example 17’s wide arpeggio gure extended to  ll 1 bar of 5/4.  Notice the  gure’s adaptation to major (Lydian) and Kreisberg’s
use of the introductory second note as per Example 14.

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Ex 19 – Stir The Stars (https://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/shadowless/id413738693) (4:17)

A further development of Example 17, this time extending the wide arpeggio pattern to 16 notes.  Once again the sequence is
introduced using its second note.

Harmonies are speci c to melodic content.

00:00 00:00

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Ex 20 – From The Ashes (https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/new-for-now/id328152161) (3:18)

Example 20 combines individually identi ed patterns as an aesthetically consistent but melodically diverse improvised line.

The rst pattern is e ectively Example 6 adapted for 7th arpeggios and extended by 1 note to form a 3 beat gure.  The rst 2
beats of this pattern are subsequently reiterated and the phrase draws to a close with Example 17 in Ab.

Harmonies are speci c to melodic content.

00:00 00:00

Click here (http://mmckmusic.com/the-creative-method/) to create your own unique improvisational sequences!

Back to Lesson Archive (http://mmckmusic.com/lesson-archive/)

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