Both of these pieces have limited harmonic progressions. So What is played only in the dorian mode, the only harmonic change being the periodic parallel shift between D dorian and Eb dorian. Ravi Shankar's piece on the other hand is played only using the Sindhi Bhairvi raga. The lack of strict harmonic progressions in both pieces allow the improvisers a greater degree of freedom and thought in their playing; moreover, it places a greater emphasis on the melodies being created because the attention of the listener is diverted away from potential harmonic chord changes. There is less happening harmony wise in Ravi Shankar's piece: there are no shifts in tonal centers for the mode, and there is no rhythm section instruments playing chords to enforce the harmony- the drone of the tambura plays mostly roots and fifths (leaving out thirds and sevenths, which in western music defines the harmony) and the tabla plays mostly roots. This puts greater responsibility on the sitar playing of Shankar to communicate to the listener what mode he's playing, whereas in So What the given modes are already given proper context by the rhythm section.
Ravi Shankar's playing style has characteristics found in both Miles Davis' and John Coltrane's solos. These characteristics develop and change as the piece progresses structurally and build momentum and energy. Similar to Miles Davis, he uses a slower, more thoughtful approach in the alap and jor portions, in which we creates and develops musical themes.
Ravi Shankar's playing style has characteristics found in both Miles Davis' and John Coltrane's solos. These characteristics develop and change as the piece progresses structurally and build momentum and energy. Similar to Miles Davis, he uses a slower, more thoughtful approach in the alap and jor portions, in which we creates and develops musical themes.
The notation above shows a portion of Miles Davis' solo in So What. This portion shows the development of a phrase which begins and ends on the tonic. Several characterizes of these phrases are kept consistent, such as the upward fifth leap and turn that ends on a g (highlighted in yellow) as well as a fifth leap down to the root (marked in blue). As these phrases get developed, Miles Davis leaves plenty of room; for example, there are four beats of rest between the first and second statements (marked in black). Miles Davis briefly returns to this phrase later on in his solo (see 2:50')
Ravi Shankar uses similar phrasing techniques in his playing. The
notation bellow shows the key phrases between 36' and 56'. These phrases have
ample space in between them and have similar motifs/characteristics that get
developed. Like with Miles Davis' phrasings, they work together to add an
abstract progression to the improvisation.
While John Coltrane also uses phrasing in his improvising, he uses a higher tempo, more scalar approach. For example, at 3:54' he makes a stepwise run from an Ab to a C, spanning the distance of a 10nth in two seconds. This is the most striking example of scales being used in Coltrane's solos. An important note to make is that this approach does not take the place of a more thematic approach; rather, Coltrane incorporates these scales and rapid stepwise motion into themes he develops. An good example of this is from 4:11'-4:19'.
Ravi Shankar's improvising is in general quite scalar and stepwise, and as Raga Sindi Bhairavi gains momentum and Shankar's playing builds in speed and intensity, his improvising stylistically begins to resemble Coltrane's somewhat. At 5'08' there is a a very rapid string of notes that begin on the minor third degree, reach their highest point on the minor seventh, and come back down to the root note. Immediately following this, Shankar begins an equally rapid phrase starting on the tonic, going up a tenth with respect to this note, and coming back to the tonic. With these two examples given, Shankar does not play straight scales but uses many twists and turns in his phrases to add melodic complexity.
Ravi Shankar's improvising is in general quite scalar and stepwise, and as Raga Sindi Bhairavi gains momentum and Shankar's playing builds in speed and intensity, his improvising stylistically begins to resemble Coltrane's somewhat. At 5'08' there is a a very rapid string of notes that begin on the minor third degree, reach their highest point on the minor seventh, and come back down to the root note. Immediately following this, Shankar begins an equally rapid phrase starting on the tonic, going up a tenth with respect to this note, and coming back to the tonic. With these two examples given, Shankar does not play straight scales but uses many twists and turns in his phrases to add melodic complexity.
Both pieces have instruments to accompany the soloists. The roles of the accompanying instruments are slightly different, however. The percussion in So What is used to set the rhythm and groove, whereas the tabla in Raga Sindi Bhairavi, from where it enters in 5:20', is used to both create a rhythmic and structural foundation as well as create rhythms that interplay and compliment the sitar playing. (From where the tabla enters till 5:35', it plays a very similar rhythmic motifs as the sitar, which can be mostly characterized as multiple short bursts of notes.) Because the tabla is very active and even improvisational in some cases in its role, similarities can be made between it and the piano comping in So What, which interacts with the soloists by filling in the spaces left in between the phrases.