Eddie Harris Intervallistic Concept Pdf May 2026

The is not just a collection of finger exercises. It is a philosophical manifesto: Melody is the horizontalization of vertical intervals. Conclusion: Do You Need the PDF? If you can find the PDF, treasure it. It contains handwritten diagrams, specific "Harris Licks" mapped out by interval number, and a unique humor (Harris claimed the concept came to him in a dream about a clock).

Traditional jazz education relies on the "diatonic system" (Do-Re-Mi-Fa-So-La-Ti-Do). When a traditional musician sees a Cm7 chord, they play a C Dorian scale. Harris argued that this creates predictable, "inside" playing. eddie harris intervallistic concept pdf

If you have searched for this PDF, you are likely looking to break out of predictable patterns and enter a world of "non-cliché" chromaticism. This article will explore what the Intervallistic Concept is, why it matters, and where the legacy of that elusive PDF lives on today. To understand the Eddie Harris method, you must forget the key signature. The is not just a collection of finger exercises

Connect that cell to the next one by a half step: Ab - A - D - G - C. If you can find the PDF, treasure it

Forget the 8-note scale. Practice a 5-note cell based on Perfect 4ths: C - F - Bb - Eb - Ab.

Artists like Steve Lehman, Kamasi Washington, and even avant-garde guitarists like Mary Halvorson utilize techniques directly traceable to Harris’s 1970s booklet.

Introduction: Beyond Bebop Scales In the pantheon of jazz innovation, Eddie Harris occupies a unique throne. Known primarily as the master of the electric saxophone and the composer of the fusion anthem "Freedom Jazz Dance," Harris was also a profound musical philosopher. While many jazz musicians focused on harmonic progression (chord changes) or modal scales, Harris looked at a more granular building block: the interval .