Take Five (see Diana's Performance below)
Take Five composed by Paul Desmond and made famous by the Dave Brubeck Quartet, is a jazz classic that is not only well known, but also offers valuable lessons for adult piano students.
Even though this piece is only 24 measures long and 16 of those measures only have two chords in each, the musical challenges contained within it make this jazz standard both catchy and magical.
Now I must admit that when I saw the Dave Brubeck Quartet in concert at Lincoln Center in the 1960s, not long after their album Time Out featuring Take Five was released, this wonderful piece sounded both exciting and complicated. What I didn’t know then was that playing jazz in 5/4 time was also new to the Brubeck Quartet.
When Joe Morello took his extended drum solo, Mr. Brubeck and bassist Eugene Wright kept the Eb minor -Bb minor chord pattern going constantly. The reason for this was so that Mr. Morello could be free to experiment with a variety of rhythmic patterns while never getting off track. The audience could also follow the song because of the Eb minor -Bb minor chord vamp. I was truly inspired a young jazz musician sitting among a packed house filled with Brubeck fans.
Fast forward about four decades: my various jazz trios and quartets often included Take Five in our performances. By this time, many jazz musicians we not only playing Take Five, but they were also much more comfortable and familiar with the 5/4 meter than the Dave Brubeck Quartet had been in the 1960s. As a result, musicians, including me, were able to improvise over the Eb minor -Bb minor chord vamp. During each solo, the other members of the group, including the drummer, were able to keep the 5/4 rhythm solid so the soloist could play freely about a solid musical foundation.
As I mentioned earlier, Take Five is a 24-measure piece. Most standards, jazz standards and many show-tunes are 32 measures long. The reason for this is that the first verse is 8 bars long, the second (often a repeat of verse one) is 8 bars long, the bridge is 8 bars long and the third verse (a repeat or variation of verse two) is also 8 bars long. By eliminating the second 8 bar section (2nd verse), Take Five avoids the confusion of “are we at the 3rd verse or at the 1st verse?” This issue i.e. location in the song, can sabotage even the most seasoned performers.
Besides this shortened form and its avoiding of confusion, the Eb minor -Bb minor chord pattern is all that’s required for each verse. As a result, from Brubeck’s original recording up to the present time, musicians have replaced the verse-bridge-verse formula for improvisation with the repetition of the Eb minor -Bb minor chord pattern going on to become the extended vamp in 5/4 time.
The middle section of Take Five is 8 measures long. Ironically, this bridge is really 4 measures long with a turnaround and repeat. Simple though it may seem, the syncopation in the melody certainly has some challenges.
Fast forward another decade and beyond when I was performing as a solo jazz pianist. Now I had the goal of navigating Take Five’s 5/4 rhythm with neither a drummer nor an ensemble to provide the foundation for my improvisation. If that wasn’t challenging enough, finding a way to teach my piano students to play this jazz standard in the solo piano format was no easy task.
The first thing students needed to do was to think beyond the usual 4/4 or 3/4 rhythms. Most of my adult piano students play a variety of accompaniment patterns in 4/4 time. This is the main goal of my free course: Accompaniment Styles to Energize Your Piano Playing In addition to this, I teach my students how to play the jazz waltz. Now we’re getting somewhere! The rhythmic pattern of Take Five’s 5/4 is in two parts: ¾ time and 2/4 time. The ¾ pattern is 8th note, 8th note, 8th rest, 8th note, quarter note (Played staccato). This pattern is followed by 2/4 pattern of oom-pah. Thus you can see that once a student can play a jazz waltz, she’s on her way to being able to play Take Five ……at least the melody.
As I’ve mentioned already, the improvised section (which lasted quite a while at the Brubeck concert) involves the 5/4 pattern using the Eb minor -Bb minor chords. When my piano student is new at this process of playing in 5/4 and improvising with the right hand, two approaches are valuable:
1. For practicing:
play the vamp with improvisation for 5-20 minutes per day to gain mastery over this challenge
2. When performing Take Five:
make the improvisation section short so you’ll have more control over the presentation and will still be able to include some improvisation along with the melody.
Here Are the Benefits of Learning to Play Take Five on the Piano
1. Mastering this irregular meter (5/4) can significantly enhance your rhythmic flexibility which will make it easier to tackle complex pieces in the future.
2. By working through these syncopated rhythms Take Five’s rhythmic accents that often fall on the off beats, you will develop a better sense of timing, which is essential for playing rhythmically flavored accompaniments and jazz.
3. Practicing improvisation over the "Take Five" chord changes can boost creativity and help you as a pianist to become more confident in expressing your musical ideas. Improvising over a two chord vamp required a great deal of imagination and experimentation which helps piano students to grow musically.
4. The repetitive nature of "Take Five" encourages you to have patience and precision in practice. By repeating the same rhythmic patterns and melodic phrases over and over, you’ll be able to focus on maintaining a steady beat which can be challenging.
Summary:Paying attention to the timing, syncopation and improvisation of Take Five will not only make you a more polished pianist, but it will also strengthen your rhythmic precision, making you a more confident, proficient and expressive musician.
Diana Mascari Plays Take Five
About Diana Mascari
Diana Mascari-Piano Teacher for Adults
Diana Mascari has taught piano to hundreds of students for more than 46 years. She is dedicated to enriching her students’ lives by supporting their individual musicality.
She has developed a teaching system called the Transformational Approach to Piano (TAP System). It offers her students colorful musical insights that broaden their experience beyond traditional methods.
Diana holds two Masters of Music degrees from New England Conservatory, taught keyboard harmony to music majors at Boston University, and was the music director of a multicultural Presbyterian Church for four decades.
Diana has performed as a solo jazz pianist as well as with her ensembles at many colleges and jazz clubs throughout New England. Many of these performances featured Diana's jazz compositions.
As a composer, she has explored the intersection of jazz and classical music. Her compositions reflect her deep appreciation for musical structure, enhanced by the spontaneity and emotion of jazz. Each piece has a timeless sense and is designed to move and inspire. Her works have been performed in Europe, Japan and the Eastern United States.
Diana’s vibrant personality infuses her teaching, performing and composing as she inspires piano students to achieve their musical goals.
To Get Her FREE Course: Accompaniment Styles to Energize Your Piano Playing, click here
To get Her FREE Course: Song Playing Starter Kit for Pianists, click here
To schedule your FREE 30 Minute Piano Lesson Consultation on Zoom, click here.