Inspiration for improvisers
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Jazz Advice and Tips, Jazz Standards
Some tunes seem to make absolutely no sense, like the chords changes are some random crazy collection of complex sounds…But with a little know-how, using the same tactics we showed you in our recent lesson on learning tunes quickly, even the most difficult tunes can be deciphered in just a few minutes. Today’s lesson comes …
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Jazz Advice and Tips, Jazz Standards, Premium Only
What if I told you there’s a simple little trick to learn chord changes to a tune in a just a few minutes? That the countless hours you’ve spent reading tunes out of the Real Book can finally come to a close and you can begin to have chord changes live in your head, where …
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Jazz Advice and Tips, Jazz Musicians, Jazz Standards, Premium Only
Have you ever wondered how the best players can play incredibly fast, regardless of the key, the chords, or the tune? I’m not just talking about running memorized licks and technical patterns…I mean soloing at breakneck speed with actual melodic lines over the progression. Trying to improvise on uptempo tunes can be frustrating and the truth …
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Jazz Language, Jazz Musicians, Jazz Standards, Premium Only, Transcribing
Kenny Garrett is an incredible musician. He’s arguably had one of the largest impacts on alto saxophone since Charlie Parker. In fact, when he started to gain popularity, most every alto player in the world had to rethink their concept. All of a sudden, copying Charlie Parker didn’t seem that cool anymore. But the thing …
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Chords, Composition, Ear Training, Jazz Standards
Learning a tune straight from a recording is THE way to learn it. But the most difficult part is always deciphering the chord changes. And it’s certainly not an easy task compared to the alternative of simply grabbing a fake book and looking up the chord changes. But there are huge benefits to learning the …
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How to Practice Jazz, Jazz Standards
Every musician has spent time in the practice room working on etudes. Diligently running through exercises that cover various techniques like articulation, the altissimo range, or diminished arpeggios. This is a good start for most players, but where does the jazz musician turn to develop the techniques that are essential for improvisation? After all jazz …
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Blues, Jazz Musicians, Jazz Standards, Premium Only
If you’ve ever listened to Mark Turner you’ve probably wondered the same thing as me…What the hell is he playing? Rather than coming from the mind of an improviser, his solos sound like the work of an ambitious architect. Complex structures reaching into the stratosphere, lines with impossibly wide leaps, columns of arpeggios, and winding …
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Most improvisers cringe when they hear the words Giant Steps. Their hearts start pounding and they frantically try to remember the patterns they’ve worked out over the chord progression. If you’ve ever tried to play over this tune, I’m sure you know the feeling… Chords flying by at a breakneck speed, awkward changes, and fingers …
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How to Practice Jazz, Jazz Advice and Tips, Jazz Language, Jazz Standards, Playing Techniques, Transcribing
Back in September we released a free presentation walking you through What You Should Practice. And in that presentation, we showed you and discussed the 3 essential pieces to practicing jazz improvisation… Getting new language Developing language Working on tunes But they’re not the easiest concepts to grasp… So, we thought it might be helpful …
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Every improviser has to face it at some point. We’re talking about those 32 bars of music that you know as Rhythm Changes. Sure it’s easy enough to sing the melody…And you’ve heard all the recordings of famous musicians playing circles around this familiar chord progression. But when it comes to improvising your own solos …
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How to Practice Jazz, Jazz Advice and Tips, Jazz Education, Jazz Language, Jazz Standards, Transcribing, Visualization
Nearly every day we get asked, “What should I practice?” And, this is not an easy question to answer. In fact, it’s pretty complicated. So, in an attempt to help everyone who has always wondered what to practice and what professionals practice, I began to put together what I had thought would be a quick …
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Chords, How to Practice Jazz, Jazz Advice and Tips, Jazz Education, Jazz Language, Jazz Standards, Visualization
Picture this. You’re backstage before a big performance waiting for your turn to step into the spotlight. A few steps away from the curtain you can hear the murmur of the audience and your pulse starts to race. You take a deep breath and confidently walk onstage. The heat of the lights hits you and you …