When I was in grammar school (many years ago) it was customary for the teacher to ask us to write a composition called “How I spent My Summer Vacation”. With this in mind, it certainly seems appropriate that the last selection in my summer songs series of blog posts calls to mind the transition from summer to fall.
There are two particular renditions of The Things We Did Last Summer that have particular significance for me. The first one dates back to my high school days when if first heard this song on a record by jazz organist Richard “Groove” Holmes. This particular LP featured Groove’s million selling up tempo version of Misty (which I mentioned in my blog post featuring Misty).
One of the goals that Groove had was to differentiate himself from the majority of jazz organists who modeled their Hammond B-3 style and sound settings after the “Incredible” Jimmy Smith. On his beautiful ballad version of The Things We Did Last Summer Groove combined the organ stops in a way that created a colorful array of sounds that sent goose bumps down your spine.
The other version of The Things We Did Last Summer was included on a solo piano recording by jazz pianist Marian McPartland (b. 1918) who continues to host her award winning Piano Jazz Radio Series on National Public Radio. I had the opportunity to purchase this album entitled Willow Creek and Other Ballads and have it autographed by Ms. McPartland at a jazz club in Boston back in the 1980s. This was the second time I had spoken to her informally while she was on a break between sets at a gig.
Always anxious to learn from the great musicians first hand, I asked Ms. McPartland if she had any difficulty adjusting her piano playing when going from a trio setting (with bass and drums) to a solo piano setting. She candidly responded, “It doesn’t make any difference”. As an aspiring jazz pianist I was amazed by her answer. Today, more than 25 years later, I understand what she meant.
When my students tell me that they wish they could be freer with their playing of songs, I can certainly understand their frustration. As I so often tell them, our goal at the Ed Mascari Piano Studio is to provide you with the tools, techniques and knowledge that will help you become comfortable with a variety of song playing styles. The more consistently you apply what you learn over an extended period of time, the more likely it is that your personally developed musical language will become intuitive, spontaneous and inspired.
The words and music of The Things We Did Last Summer were written by the team of Sammy Cahn (1913-1993) and Jule Styne (1905-1994). This collaboration is somewhat different from many of the other songwriting teams. Whereas it is often customary for one partner to write the words and the other to compose the music, the Cahn/ Styne collaboration consisted of two songwriters who combined their talents to create standard tunes. Although Styne focused more on the music and Cahn on the lyrics, their roles tended to mingle more than those of many of their peers.
Regardless of who contributed what, this team who may be familiar to you as the writers of Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow and Time After Time, provided us with yet another great standard. The Things We Did Last Summer follows the customary A – A – B – A form of verse 1, verse 2, bridge and verse 3.
Other than slightly varying the final two bars of each verse, these are all exactly the same. My piano students often enjoy working on songs of this structure. The reason for this is that the repetition provides them with the opportunity to maintain one accompaniment style for all of the A sections, a contrasting style for the bridge (B) and then changing the left hand part to something else for playing the piece a second time.
My composition teacher, William Thomas McKinley, once told me that an important principle of orchestration is to give the orchestral performer at least two opportunities to play a particular melodic line by having it repeat. Why? His answer offers great advice for the piano teacher: be sure that the selections that you teach offer your piano students the chance to play something more than once within an arrangement. This will help them to develop confidence as the repetition increases the likelihood of accuracy.
The Things We Did Last Summer certainly follows McKinley’s principle due to its form. At the same time, this Cahn/Styne standard employs the customary I-vi-ii-V, ii-V and ii-V-I chord progressions which can easily be adapted to a variety of accompaniment styles. This is especially effective with the addition of a good walking bass. You can also find some additional help in my blog article It’s All About the DNA, Your Key to Better Piano Playing.
At this point, I guess we all need to realize that the fall is really here.
If your son’s or daughter’s teacher (if you’re like me, you may remember from your school days) asks him or her to write a composition called “How I Spent My Summer Vacation”, you can think of this great 1948 standard The Things We Did Last Summer. Pull out the music, listen to a recording and start developing your personal rendition of it. You’ll be able to use this opportunity to make the transition to the academic year as the fall season begins.
Whether you want to play The Things We Did Last Summer or give your son or daughter the chance to do something you wish you had done, contact us today to find our all about taking piano lessons at one of our conveniently located studios in Natick and Hudson, MA.
Now is the ideal time to sign up for piano lessons. Take a few moments now to think about doing something you’ve always wanted to do.
The teachers at the Ed Mascari Piano Studio are looking forward to helping you Learn to Play the Music You Love!
