Playing a Rhodes- Technique

[Rhodesman]

I'd like some information on what exactly the Rhodes technique is, you know, just to make sure I'm getting the most out of myself, and my instrument. It seems pretty well known that Rhodes' requires a unique technique, but how would you best explain it?

[jim]

less notes in voicings?

[andi85]

maybe that.
just listen to recordings  - and to your rhodes itself. it'll tell you how it likes to be played.

[Ben Bove]

different styles for different music.  basically watch out washing out with the sustain pedal.  you can hold down the pedal on a piano for example and play a number of notes, but if you hold down the pedal on a rhodes and start banging away it'll probably sound like one massive cluster.  less notes on chords bigger than pop chords, focus on the middle register really.

[reginaldo]

all depends on the music being played, but in general when comparing to piano, i find myself using more rythmic stabs, and accenting them with "wrong notes" flat 5th for example when playing the rhodes, it gives a nice funky sound

[BJT3]

Rhodesman, that's a tough one. I agree that it depends on the style of music your doing. Try going at it with the only criteria being to try and play something that sounds good on it. Don't worry too much about wrong or right, just what you like. Maybe you'll create the next Rhodes style/sound that everyone wants to emulate! That said you could go at it from the other angle of listening to every "master" rhodes player you can and trying to cop a few tricks from them, then add to that.
-Ben-

[Etnier]

I notice (and my action's in good shape) that single-note solo work is very hard to pull off because not all the notes will sound properly, pretty much at random. Some notes just 'choke'. I've devleloped a 2-note approach that covers this, but I'm wondering if this is common  or if my piano needs yet more work.

[reginaldo]

I notice (and my action's in good shape) that single-note solo work is very hard to pull off because not all the notes will sound properly, pretty much at random. Some notes just 'choke'. I've devleloped a 2-note approach that covers this, but I'm wondering if this is common  or if my piano needs yet more work.

that happends with me too, you can hit the same key 4 times in a row and you will get 4 different levels of attack, or the lack of attack (ghost like you said)  i don't mind it tho, after playing your personal board you will learn to work with it, thats when you have that intamacy with your instrument thats priceless, brass and woodwind musicians know this too well.

[andi85]

yes, i even discovered those choking notes on a recording with herbie.
what i also found out is that you have to work completely different with the sustain pedal if you intend to play a sequence of notes while the pedal is down. for me it's much more difficult than on an acoustic...

i suppose that's just how a rhodes works, isn't it?

[Ben Bove]

surely is.  Every instrument has its flaws that gives it its uniqueness, like the hammond keyclick.  Hammond tried to get rid of it but couldn't, now it's a desirable part of emulation.

Another Rhodes glich from the mid 70s, There's a recording from Eumir Deodato (album deodato2) called Superstrut.  Throughout the intro it's solo rhodes, and you can clearly hear the dampeners kissing the tines with a high pitch "grab" instead of just the tine hits.  This i'm sure was a factory teched rhodes for this big label recording, and it's just natural.

[andi85]

i've got to check that i like deodato anyway.

[Rhodes Math'ar]

There's nothing like in the middle of a jazz solo on rhodes when the player just grabs a cluster of notes on purpose or the notes choke, like you were talking about.  It adds to the sound, similarly to how Coltrane might squeak out a high altissimo note.  That's an effect that you can't really do on the piano, and one of the advantages to rhodes!

As far as technique, what you might be hearing as not sounding like the "recordings" is that your rhodes is not adjusted properly.  Open it up and take a philips head and adjust your screws around till it sounds what you want, if its uneven, a normally fat chord that you decide to play might come out sounding not so good because certain notes and timbres stand out.  I found that when I started playing mine the first time.  Other than that, its pretty much like playing a piano, all the guys who first started recording rhodes (i.e. bitches brew and all that fusion stuff) pretty much played it like a piano.  Exploit the qualities of the Rhodes that differ it from the piano, like the contrast between the sweet bell tone and bark or  the thing I started this post with when you just grab a cluster in the middle of a normal line!