We can see how John Clayton plays in 2 (half bass) at min 0:42 when Clayton says “I get my bass and we went for a walk” and starts to play in 4 (walking bass) and you can feel the strongest 2 and 4 pulsation.
Matteo: As a musician, do you think we should dance in two different ways, placing the accent in different moments if we are dancing the classical swing or the modern one?
Giacomo: Honestly, I think I can not say what is best for a dancer to do. Nevertheless, in my experience as a musician in the ballrooms, I have always noticed that it is important to know a little about the basis of the dance. You need to understand what the dancers need. At the same time, I think that even the dancers should try to get a little closer to the world of musicians. They need to understand to the origins of the music they are dancing to.
I believe that “the end justifies the means.” For example, to facilitate reading of the scores for big bands, when I was at the Conservatory, the director said to visualize the groups of notes in blocks on one and three. But this does not mean that the strong pulsation is on the one and the three.
So, if you feel the need to “visualize” the one and three in order to count the steps or teach, I don’t think it is entirely wrong. Try to remember though that the natural pulsation of that kind of music is on the two and four. Therefore it would be appropriate to emphasize the nature of that style.
I think any kind of music-related activity should pay attention to what the musicians are playing. Equally, the musicians should pay attention to the needs of those who are interacting.
Music, as we know, is a language just like dance is. Therefore, communication is essential and for good communication, it’s better to talk the same language.
Reference list:
- Marco Di Battista, (2014) Improvvisazione jazz consapevole (volume 1) Jazz Convention
If you have more questions for Giacomo, you can follow him on: