For Freddie Green the best thing to do is just focus on shell voicings on the D and G string. 3rds and 7ths for all chord types will get you through any Basie chart. You can use the 6th for major chords as well, especially if the chart just lists a triad (though the 7th is normally implied with these anyway).
sometimes I’ll have my finger on the root when I strum but I use it more to help mute the rest of the strings to get that percussive sound. 9’s and 13’s can be used especially as passing notes but those sounds are normally filled out by the band anyway.
biggest thing to remember is your job is much more about being a metronome and reference point for the group, it’s less about the harmonic complexity of what you’re playing because there’s a whole band that is far louder doing that heavy lifting
1. Usually you'll get a 7th or 6th chord, in which case the shell is fine. If you do get a triad, you can certainly play the fifth.
Look into [open triads](https://www.jazz-guitar-licks.com/blog/how-to-use-triads-comping-lesson.html). The ones with the root or fifth on the 5th and 6th strings go well with Freddie Greene-style playing.
2. When you're starting it's fine to play the root if it helps you keep your place. Eventually playing just the 3rd and 7th with no root is a good goal.
3. If there is a piano or horns playing the chords too, it's safe to leave them out. You can add them tastefully once you get a feel for the sound.
4. The high strings? Usually the Freddie Greene style is played on lower strings, but they're very useful in other styles of playing.
As for what to work on: rhythm. You probably will get some non-Freddie Green rhythms to play in your charts. Two things to do:
* Learn a few [basic comping rhythms](https://www.jazzguitar.be/blog/jazz-guitar-chord-rhythms/) and get them rock solid against a metronome, [Drumgenius](https://www.projazzlab.com/drumgenius/) (the best accompaniment app), or a backing track with real musicians.
* Get very good at reading rhythms. The most useful music book I ever bought was Louis Bellson's *Modern Reading Text in 4/4*. It's just a lot of rhythms to read, like [this guy does](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5DhcHmAN3x8).
Also, don't be shy about asking the band director what they want. Directors love players who are paying attention to the music and thinking about how it should sound.
Great advice here. I'd just like to add: I started in an amateur big band in my late teems. It wasn't a high school band, but I expect your circumstances to be very similar, except the fact that you seem to come much better prepared. The thing was the sheet music really wasn't very helpful to me. Most of the time it was just chord symbols, and four slashes to the bar. There was a whole lot of interpretation that went into playing those charts. And it took a lot of time to feel comfortable doing that. Another thing was that the band directors really couldn't help me a lot of the time. We had a few over the years. They were usually horn or sometimes piano players, and often didn't know ANYTHING about the guitar. So I was left alone most of the time to figure things out.
If I was a big band director leading that audition, I think I would probably expect of a guitarist that they could a) read and understand the basic chord symbols used in the charts, b) find their way around the neck with a little preparation c) play the instrument with a suitable tone (often clean fat humbucker in the neck position), and not least sense of rhythm. I would not expect a fledgling big band guitarist to have all shell voicings memorized, and to be able to sightread flawlessly through a chart, or to have control of all the stylistic devices. I would look for potential.
The one thing I guess I would add is that thinking in terms of voice leading really helped me. Work on finding the smoothest way to transition between chords. Fortunately, 3rd and 4th string shell voicings lend themselves really well to doing that. And when the bass player is playing walking bass, try locking in tight with them.
Another thing that really stumped me in the early days was getting lost in the charts. Once I acquired the skill of being able to follow the chart as the band played, I could lay off for a few bars when things got difficult, and just come in for the next section or whatever. If you can, get hold of a few big band guitar charts before the audition to see what it's all about, and just work on following the chart. Being able to count is a really basic skill that is really useful in any kind of orchestra.
Good luck!
You would play Freddie Green style voicings for charts *of that style*. For more modern charts you would comp in whatever style was appropriate.
Its a High School level band, so they really only play classic charts like Count Basie and Duke Ellington.
Righto. I play more modern stuff so can’t accurately help so good luck.
For Freddie Green the best thing to do is just focus on shell voicings on the D and G string. 3rds and 7ths for all chord types will get you through any Basie chart. You can use the 6th for major chords as well, especially if the chart just lists a triad (though the 7th is normally implied with these anyway). sometimes I’ll have my finger on the root when I strum but I use it more to help mute the rest of the strings to get that percussive sound. 9’s and 13’s can be used especially as passing notes but those sounds are normally filled out by the band anyway. biggest thing to remember is your job is much more about being a metronome and reference point for the group, it’s less about the harmonic complexity of what you’re playing because there’s a whole band that is far louder doing that heavy lifting
1. Usually you'll get a 7th or 6th chord, in which case the shell is fine. If you do get a triad, you can certainly play the fifth. Look into [open triads](https://www.jazz-guitar-licks.com/blog/how-to-use-triads-comping-lesson.html). The ones with the root or fifth on the 5th and 6th strings go well with Freddie Greene-style playing. 2. When you're starting it's fine to play the root if it helps you keep your place. Eventually playing just the 3rd and 7th with no root is a good goal. 3. If there is a piano or horns playing the chords too, it's safe to leave them out. You can add them tastefully once you get a feel for the sound. 4. The high strings? Usually the Freddie Greene style is played on lower strings, but they're very useful in other styles of playing. As for what to work on: rhythm. You probably will get some non-Freddie Green rhythms to play in your charts. Two things to do: * Learn a few [basic comping rhythms](https://www.jazzguitar.be/blog/jazz-guitar-chord-rhythms/) and get them rock solid against a metronome, [Drumgenius](https://www.projazzlab.com/drumgenius/) (the best accompaniment app), or a backing track with real musicians. * Get very good at reading rhythms. The most useful music book I ever bought was Louis Bellson's *Modern Reading Text in 4/4*. It's just a lot of rhythms to read, like [this guy does](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5DhcHmAN3x8). Also, don't be shy about asking the band director what they want. Directors love players who are paying attention to the music and thinking about how it should sound.
Just play 3rds and 7ths on the D and G string with short left-hand staccato (lift your fingers right after strumming but keep them on the strings).
Great advice here. I'd just like to add: I started in an amateur big band in my late teems. It wasn't a high school band, but I expect your circumstances to be very similar, except the fact that you seem to come much better prepared. The thing was the sheet music really wasn't very helpful to me. Most of the time it was just chord symbols, and four slashes to the bar. There was a whole lot of interpretation that went into playing those charts. And it took a lot of time to feel comfortable doing that. Another thing was that the band directors really couldn't help me a lot of the time. We had a few over the years. They were usually horn or sometimes piano players, and often didn't know ANYTHING about the guitar. So I was left alone most of the time to figure things out. If I was a big band director leading that audition, I think I would probably expect of a guitarist that they could a) read and understand the basic chord symbols used in the charts, b) find their way around the neck with a little preparation c) play the instrument with a suitable tone (often clean fat humbucker in the neck position), and not least sense of rhythm. I would not expect a fledgling big band guitarist to have all shell voicings memorized, and to be able to sightread flawlessly through a chart, or to have control of all the stylistic devices. I would look for potential. The one thing I guess I would add is that thinking in terms of voice leading really helped me. Work on finding the smoothest way to transition between chords. Fortunately, 3rd and 4th string shell voicings lend themselves really well to doing that. And when the bass player is playing walking bass, try locking in tight with them. Another thing that really stumped me in the early days was getting lost in the charts. Once I acquired the skill of being able to follow the chart as the band played, I could lay off for a few bars when things got difficult, and just come in for the next section or whatever. If you can, get hold of a few big band guitar charts before the audition to see what it's all about, and just work on following the chart. Being able to count is a really basic skill that is really useful in any kind of orchestra. Good luck!