Samba two-beat feel
Lesson time: (2min 32sec)
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This lesson is part of the course Play Authentic Latin Trumpet
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Lesson transcript:
Fiesta Siesta: Understanding the Samba 2 Beat Feel
Let's get started with Fiesta Siesta.
Samba 2 Beat Feel
We're going to talk about the Samba 2 beat feel.
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Time Signature:
- If you take a look at the music, you'll see that it's written in cut common time.
- This looks like a C with a line down the middle of it.
- You can count this in four, but the actual feel of this music is two.
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Minims:
- If you look at the little box above that indication, you'll see that there are some minims written:
- Two minims per bar.
- So, we can actually use this as the key to our feel.
- If you look at the little box above that indication, you'll see that there are some minims written:
Listening Exercise
- Listen to the backing track of the introduction.
- You'll hear that two beat feel in the rhythm section:
- One, two... one, two.
Let's think of that pulse as we play the first little phrase.
Clapping the Pulse
- I'll play that for you now and you see if you can clap that pulse:
- Did you hear the two beat feel?
- 1, 2, 1, 2, 1, 2.
- Did you hear the two beat feel?
I'll play it one more time.
Accenting the Beats
- There I put some accents on the main beats of the bar.
- I'll play it one more time, and this time you can copy after.
When we're playing in this two beat feel, you can accent the main beats of the bar.
- In that last performance that I did, you probably heard me playing an accent on the first full bar, the minim at the beginning of that bar.
- And then the next note, which is a dotted crotchet, goes da da.
Practice playing that straight away.
Creating the Dancey Feel
We start to get in this nice dancey feel.
- We want to feel like it's a dance and that we're having fun.
About the instructor
Mike Lovatt studied at Trinity College of Music, where he was awarded the Jon Kelly Jazz Scholarship. He has performed and recorded across a huge range of styles with artists including Quincy Jones, Robbie Williams, Eric Clapton, the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House Covent Garden, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Michael Buble, Oasis, Michel Legrand, Tony Bennett, Shirley Bassey and Danny Elfman, among many others. As Principal Trumpet in London's West End, Mike has performed in Jesus Christ Superstar, Evita, The Producers, Billy Elliot, Guys and Dolls, Saturday Night Fever, My Fair Lady and Spamalot, amongst others. He has played on movie soundtracks including the James Bond films, Harry Potter with the London Symphony Orchestra, the award-winning Chicago, Kevin Spacey's Beyond the Sea, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Madagascar and The Corpse Bride. He is featured on trumpet and cornet in George Fenton's Mrs Henderson Presents, and on trumpet in Looking for Eric. Mike is principal trumpet with the Grammy-nominated John Wilson Orchestra and has been featured in their celebrated BBC Promenade concerts and recordings. Mike is sought after as a teacher and clinician, and is a professor of trumpet at the Royal Academy of Music and the Royal College of Music. In April 2013 he was proud to be awarded the prestigious Derek Watkins' Chair of Trumpet at the Royal Academy of Music, London. In his MusicGurus courses, Mike shares the secrets behind his versatility, showing you how to nail authentic swing, rock and Latin trumpet styles so you can play any of them with confidence and the right feel. read more