Definitions
- Ad-lib: improvised vocal phrases (or written to sound improvised) added to the main melody: exclamations, repetitions, responses, held notes, commentary phrases. In rap they are the secondary voices between the bars (“yeah”, repeated words, signature sounds).
- Run (vocal riff): a rapid succession of notes on a single syllable (melisma) typical of gospel, soul, R&B and pop. Masters: Aretha Franklin, Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey, Beyoncé, Christina Aguilera, Stevie Wonder, Brian McKnight, Ariana Grande.
The scales of runs
- Minor pentatonic (1 b3 4 5 b7): the most used material. In A minor: A C D E G.
- Major pentatonic (1 2 3 5 6): in C major: C D E G A (the same set of notes as A minor pentatonic).
- Blues scale (adds the b5, or the b3 over a major chord): a grittier color.
- Full major or minor scale for more “classic” or gospel runs.
- Passing chromaticisms in virtuosic runs.
Building a run
- Start from a chord tone (often the fifth or the high tonic).
- Descent in groups of 3, 4 or 6 notes (descents are more natural than ascents).
- Arrival on a chord tone on the strong beat (often the tonic or the third).
Example in C major pentatonic, descent in sixteenth notes toward C: A4 G4 E4 D4 | C4. Variant with repetition: G4 A4 G4 E4 D4 E4 D4 C4.
Example in A minor pentatonic: E5 D5 C5 A4 | G4 A4 (arrival on the tonic).
Rhythm
- Groupings: sixteenth notes, sixteenth-note triplets, sextuplets.
- Many runs start slow and accelerate, or vice versa.
- The run must arrive on time: the arrival note on the strong beat is what makes it musical.
Ornaments
- Grace note (acciaccatura): a quick note before the main one.
- Scoop: entering from below.
- Fall: a drop at the end of the note.
- Turn: note above, note, note below, note.
- Flip / cry: a break into falsetto (R&B).
- Delayed vibrato: a straight note that then vibrates.
Where to place ad-libs and runs
- Ends of phrases and in the gaps (not over the important words of the melody).
- Last chorus and outro: maximum freedom.
- Bridge: a high held note as a climax.
- Rap: ad-libs on the final words of the bars, processed (pitch, distortion, different panning).
Golden rule: a run must serve the emotion, not demonstrate technique.
How to practice
- Learn famous runs at reduced speed (in FL Studio with Edison's time stretch or with a player that slows down without changing pitch).
- Sing with the metronome at 60 BPM in sixteenth notes, then speed up by 5 BPM at a time.
- Sing on open vowels (“ah”, “oh”), then on the lyrics.
- Record yourself and check the pitch note by note.
Production and mixing
- Ad-libs on a separate track, often panned slightly off center or in alternating stereo.
- More delay and reverb than the lead (delay throws on the final words).
- In rap: telephone EQ, pitch shift, distortion to set them apart.
- Runs should be corrected with caution: Melodyne note by note, never rigid Auto-Tune (it flattens the melisma and creates the “robot”).
Practice exercise
Over a C–Am–F–G loop at 80 BPM, write three 1-bar runs that end on the tonic: one of 4 notes in major pentatonic, one of 6 notes in A minor pentatonic, one of 8 notes with a chromaticism. Sing them first at 60 BPM, then at tempo. Add ad-libs only in the last 8 bars of the song.
Links
Pentatonic Scales and the Blues Scale, Call and Response, Gospel Choir, Vocal Registers and Breaks, Vocal Production: Comping, Tuning, Timing.