If you are waiting to get the PDF, here is the core philosophy of what Harris was teaching.
The Problem with Traditional Scale Practice: Harris observed that when musicians practice scales (playing Dorian, Mixolydian, etc.), their solos end up sounding like "scale exercises." The brain gets stuck dictating the next note in a sequence (1-2-3-4-5), rather than playing what the ear actually wants to hear.
The Intervallistic Solution: Instead of thinking about scales, Harris argued that you should think about intervals (the distance between notes).
Harris wanted musicians to practice manipulating intervals. For example, if you are playing a melody and the next note you hear in your head is a Perfect 5th away, you should be able to jump that 5th flawlessly, regardless of what key you are in or what scale the chord chart says you are supposed to be playing. eddie harris intervallistic concept pdf
To understand the Eddie Harris method, you must forget the key signature.
Traditional jazz education relies on the "diatonic system" (Do-Re-Mi-Fa-So-La-Ti-Do). When a traditional musician sees a Cm7 chord, they play a C Dorian scale. Harris argued that this creates predictable, "inside" playing.
The Intervallistic Concept is defined by three core tenets: If you are waiting to get the PDF,
Harris outlined specific ways to practice this. You can start these today on your instrument:
Exercise 1: The "Skips" Approach Take a standard scale (like C Major: C-D-E-F-G-A-B). Instead of playing it in order, play it using specific intervals:
Exercise 2: Random Interval Jumping Pick a starting note. Without thinking about a key, force yourself to jump a specific interval away. Harris wanted musicians to practice manipulating intervals
Exercise 3: Chord Tone Interpolation Instead of running scales over a chord, Harris recommended outlining chords using wide intervals. Over a Cmaj7 chord, instead of playing C-D-E-F-G, play the chord tones (C, E, G, B) but connect them with wide intervals. For example: C (jump up a major 7th to) B (jump down a minor 6th to) E (jump up a perfect 4th to) G.
Author: Eddie Harris (1934–1996) Genre: Jazz Pedagogy / Music Theory / Saxophone Method Core Subject: A systematic approach to mastering the saxophone fingerboard and expanding improvisational vocabulary through intervallic relationships rather than scalar patterns.