Study Collection

These original miniatures turn the book’s concepts into music worth practising. Every study is 8–16 bars, uses piano grand staff, and offers Full, Bass only, and Harmony only playback.

Use Harmony only to learn the form, Bass only to practise the line, and Full to judge whether the two parts make one convincing texture. The titles link to the complete notation, annotations, variation prompt, and reflection question.

Study Style Primary focus
First Foot Down Funk Grounding harmony with a memorable foundation
Blue Lantern Jazz Revealing chord quality from below, swung
Glass Stairs Fusion ballad Inversions and a continuous descending floor, in 6/8
Fixed Star Fusion Pedal point beneath changing upper harmony, in 7/8
Borrowed Ceiling Jazz-funk Reframing one fixed upper structure from below, swung
Redline Funk-fusion Repeated bass activity as forward propulsion, swung
Wide Shoulders Jazz-funk Deliberate simplicity beneath an active upper layer
Open Channel Funk Bass participation in an audible exchange, swung
Low Tide Funk Staying on one chord, then finally leaving it
Even Ground Jazz A continuously stepwise line under a moving Eb major ninth-chord progression, swung
Encircle Jazz Every arrival framed by an enclosure first, in E major, swung
Full Outline Jazz Ascending and descending arpeggios over an Ab major progression, swung
Reach and Return Fusion Leaps deliberately followed by a settled recovery, in A major, in 7/8
Complete the Map Fusion All eight Motion terms in one phrase, in B major, in 7/8
Common Thread Jazz Connecting fixed destinations through a Bb major ii-V-I-vi, swung
Corner Lights Jazz Chromatic approaches into a G major I-vi-ii-V cycle, swung
Crossing Lines Fusion Contrary motion between outer voices, in D major, in 7/8
Fine Grid Funk A sixteenth-note grid used for precision, in Db major
Grid Current Funk Written attack placement
Between the Numbers Jazz-funk Tied offbeats and metrical resolution
Negative Space Funk Active silence and accompaniment response
Afterimage Fusion ballad Long and short releases, in 6/8
Early Light Jazz Root anticipations across chord boundaries, in Gb major, swung
Riff Atom Funk One rhythmic cell carried through a C minor turnaround, swung
Same Bones Jazz-funk One cell varied by a single parameter at a time, in G minor, swung
Long Breath Jazz A deliberate density arc across eight bars, in Eb major, swung
What the Page Can’t Say Jazz-funk Closes Part III on notation’s honest limits, in Bb major, swung
Long Shadow Jazz-fusion A doubled hook releasing into independence, through a whole-step modulation and back
Loose Thread Jazz-funk A syncopated bass contour unlocked from the melody above, in G major
Single Weave Jazz-funk Continuous sixteenth-note interlock resolving into one shared attack, in D major
Turn to Speak Jazz-funk Clean chordal calls answered into genuinely vacated space, in Db major, swung
Give and Take Jazz-funk The busy layer and the sparse layer trade places, chord by chord, in B major, swung
Elbow Room Jazz-funk Constant density; only the vertical register gap moves, in F major
Change of Pace Jazz-funk Bass strategy shifts exactly when the chord-change rate does, in Eb major, swung
By the Book Jazz-funk Eight bars, eight distinct, traceable design decisions, in D natural minor, swung
Held Ground Funk One held chord sustained by repetition, mutation, and space
Four Destinations Jazz Every chord arrival voice-led from the note before it, in E major, swung
Fixed Point Fusion A fixed two-note ostinato reinterpreted by seven bars of moving harmony, in E natural minor, in 7/8
Slow Descent Ballad A falling bass line built entirely from chord inversions, in B natural minor, in 6/8
Long Horizon 6/8 fusion Compound-meter cell and a ten-bar phrase

A practical sequence

  1. Learn First Foot Down, Grid Current, and Negative Space to establish foundation, placement, and silence.
  2. Continue with Blue Lantern, Glass Stairs, and Common Thread for harmonic responsibility and motion.
  3. Add Corner Lights, Crossing Lines, and Between the Numbers for directional and metrical tension.
  4. Finish with Afterimage and Early Light, listening closely to note endings and phrase boundaries.

Long Horizon — 6/8 study

“Long Horizon” extends the collection beyond the eight-bar form. Its recurring long–short–space–short–short bass cell stays legible while the harmony travels through E minor. Its own engraving directive divides the ten-bar phrase into two five-bar systems.

Long Horizon. A ten-bar 6/8 fusion study with a clear final arrival.

Compound-meter harmony and monophonic bass, engraved as two five-bar systems so every bar stays visible.

X:1
T:Long Horizon
C:Alessandro Bessi
R:6/8 fusion study
M:6/8
L:1/8
Q:3/8=70
%%score { RH LH }
%%barsperstaff 5
V:RH clef=treble name="Harmony"
V:LH clef=bass name="Bass"
K:G
[V:RH] "Em9"[GBdf]6 | "Cmaj7"[EGBc]6 | "G6"[DEGB]6 | "Dadd9"[DEFA]6 | "Em9"[GBdf]6 | "Cmaj7"[EGBc]6 | "Am9"[CEGB]6 | "B7"[^DFAB]6 | "Em9"[GBdf]6 | [GBdf]6 |]
[V:LH] "^6/8 cell"E,2 B,1 z1 D1 B,1 | C,2 G,1 z1 B,1 G,1 | G,,2 D,1 z1 E,1 D,1 | D,2 A,1 z1 E,1 A,1 | E,2 B,1 z1 G,1 B,1 | C,2 G,1 z1 E,1 G,1 | A,,2 E,1 z1 G,1 E,1 | B,,2 F,1 z1 A,1 ^D,1 | "^arrival"E,3 B,2 D1 | E,6 |]

Do not judge a study only at full speed. Reduce the tempo until both staves remain clear, then restore the written tempo without changing the line’s durations or attack locations.