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Arrangements for small ensembles

Here are a selection of small ensemble arrangements for Duncan’s songs. The lead can be vocals or soloist. They will be displayed as PDF files unless you install the Scorch plugin which will allow you to hear and transpose the parts. This plug in is only available for Apple iPad or iPhone users from the App store. These scores are only available from scoreexchange.com.

Buy arrangements on ScoreExchange

Street fighter’s guide to improvisation

The book started as scales and exercises and wound up also covering arranging, composition, how to be an instant film composer, musician’s survival tips, ear training and how to play the piano in half an hour! I was thinking of including a snake bite remedy but thought twice about it!!
Basically the book is about freeing yourself and having options.

Musicians are quite often intrigued by my rather cavalier attitude to harmony! I find, especially in America, they ask questions such as What do you think about when you’re playing? – Do you have a system? – Did you study with George Russell?
My usual tongue – in – cheek answer was “If in doubt, go up a semitone” Then one day I sat down and analysed my sense of harmony and devised a set of scales and arpeggios which would let anyone find their own voice. This prompted me to write a book called The Street Fighter’s Guide to Improvisation.

I have admired Duncan Lamont’s constantly fresh approach to improvisation ever since I first heard him play some twenty years ago. In this book he not only explains how to go about achieving this sort of creative freedom, but also sets out his thoughts on composition, arranging and how to survive in the music business in general.

The first eight chapters include many amusing and thought-provoking anecdotes about Duncan’s experiences throughout his career (related as only he can!) whilst setting out the basic philosophy of the ‘Street Fighter’s Guide’. It makes use of a selection of polyphonic scales (which can be played over any chord) to break down the preconceived barriers of harmony and consonance and to avoid the ‘boring’ notes and the overused clichés. For me, just the first scale alone suggested a wealth of new musical sounds and ideas that I would love to have at my disposal and, much to my amazement, it really does work over any chord! Like Duncan’s many cartoon soundtracks (Mr Benn, King Rollo, Spot the Dog et al) this concept is ingenious in its simplicity.

Chapter Nine sets out all the different scales and patterns, providing hours of meaty practice material that is also great for ear training. The scales are written out in every key although I personally think that maximum benefit is gained from only reading the first one then transposing it in your head. Next comes a very useful chapter on how the scales can be used over standard chord sequences, and the final three chapters apply the principle to composition and arranging. The relative ease with which you can create dense and rich textures I found fascinating.

Duncan says that although he is not trying to set any ‘laws down in stone’, he would be very happy if just one phrase or sentence from his book stuck with us helped us become a better musician. Quite apart from musically, I can honestly say that there are lots of stories and one-liners that I have learned from and will carry with me. Definitely essential reading for the open-minded musician.

Available soon

The young person’s guide to the jazz orchestra

“Some years ago I played in a big band comprising of studio players We used to play at a pub called The Lord Nelson so the band was named Nelson’s Column. There were avid fans there, but because there was no leader, there were no announcements. I felt sorry for these poor people and it occurred to me that there should be something written to explain how a big band works. I thought of Benjamin  Britten and work he had composed, in which he had taken a composition by a seventeenth century composer named Henry Purcell,  and did precisely that.  He featured each section of the orchestra and wrote a variation with narration which showed how a symphony orchestra works.  I used the same Purcell theme as my model and wrote accordingly. We broadcast the suite with three hours rehearsal and then played it to a live audience, which says a great deal for British musicians. This is the music you will hear.”
(D. Lamont)

The personnel is as follows: Derek Watkins,  Ronnie Hughes, Eddie Blair, Henry Lowther & Alan  Downey (trumpets), Andy Macintosh,  Stan Sulzmann, Jimmy Hastings,  Phil Todd & Ronnie Ross (saxes), Bobby Lamb, Chris  Pyne, Malcolm Griffiths, Pete Beachill & Jack Thirwell (trombones), Gordon Beck &  John Taylor (piano), Frank Ricotti (piano), Neil Cameron (bass), Phil Lee (guitar), Art Morgan (drums).