Take Five Articulations

[Buescher]

I've been playing Take Five (Desmond) for a couple years now for fun and now I'm trying to get it to sound the way he plays it on the recording. My only problem is that I can't figure out how exactly to articulate the begining melody. I've been playing it swing style (dotted-eigth / sixteenth) but I'm starting to think it should be played straight. Can anyone give advice? Thanks a lot.

[Transcriber-arranger]

In my head, I'm hearing it as even eighths. If you have a recorder that can slow down the tempo, that can help you determine the notation.

[Lowell]

The sheet music I have shows it as dotted eighths to give it the "swing" feel. Since it is 5/4 and not 4/4 time it technically is not swing, but that is how it should be played. Take Five is the most recognised jazz tune and the least covered. I believe this is due to the fact that Paul Desmond's playing set such a high standard that players are intimidated by it. If you can give a faithful rendition and toss in a few improvs of your own, you are a good player.

[Ritchie]

To make the 5/4 swing is exactly the point of this piece :wink: There is more to swing than just playing more or less dotted eighths.
Listen to the original recording and try to play along with it to get the articulation right.

[jackr]

I've been looking for a transcription of this the only one I found is with 6 flats! Do you have a copy you can send me?

Thanks
Jack

[Ritchie]

6 flats is the correct key. If you transpose your transcription for tenor, only 4 flats are left, transpose it to alto and have 3 flats, which does not look as intimidating anymore.

[Harrell]

I have both the sheet music and the original recording. Paul Desmond doesn't "swing" it until the 'solo' startin on measure 29. The first 12 famous bars of this tune are not swinging. Neither is the bridge. To me the real genius of this tune is the lilt, lyricism. Play the recording while following along with the sheet music - see all the subtleness. Take Five is really a great tune.

My favorite Dave Brubeck tune is "Unsquare Dance" . I wrote a tenor line for it just for my own amusement - I hope this doesn't wind up on "DrH quotes"