Inspiration for improvisers
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Composition, Jazz Advice and Tips, Playing Techniques
I can’t understand why people are frightened of new ideas. I’m frightened of the old ones – John Cage. At some point as an improviser, whether you welcome it with open arms or avoid it like the plague, you’re going to be faced with the chance to compose. That’s right – you, alone in a …
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People have been writing in a lot lately asking us what’s okay and what’s not okay to transcribe. With all the different styles of jazz and genres of music, people are entirely confused as to what’s acceptable to transcribe. I have to admit, upon receiving these questions, I was a bit confused. I thought to …
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Chords, Composition, Jazz Advice and Tips, Jazz Standards, Playing Techniques, Premium Only
The process of learning to improvise is a journey. A long and rewarding journey and one that is punctuated by a series of milestones. This can be hard to see from that comfy seat inside of your practice room, but take a step back from your daily routine and look at the path that brought …
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How to Practice Jazz, Jazz Advice and Tips, Perspectives
Despite what everyone thinks, being creative isn’t easy. You don’t just suddenly find yourself with talent one day and immediately start creating great works of art. It takes years of hard work to develop artistic skills and once you have these skills, it’s no guarantee that your artistic vision will always find a way to …
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Chords, How to Practice Jazz, Jazz Advice and Tips, Jazz Language, Transcribing
Play it slow. Feel every beat. Subdvide. Hear every note. Concentrate on every single detail. There are dozens of different ways to describe the process of slow practice, yet it seems that the majority of successful musicians in any genre are saying “practice slowly!” Every teacher that I’ve ever had, from classical players to lead …
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Ear Training, How to Practice Jazz, Jazz Advice and Tips, Jazz Education, Jazz Language
Jazz is smart people music! I first heard these words from the great pianist Harold Mabern. Walking through the practice rooms at school one day, as was usually the case, a group of eager students was huddled around him as he told a story. An impromptu musical lesson that didn’t involve scales or chords, but …
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This is a box. This is your mind in a box. Many people’s minds never leave the box. Why? Thinking creatively is something we all do naturally. It’s our instinctive and ordinary way of being. To be creative is nothing less than being human. You can’t help but be creative. But back to the box. …
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How to Practice Jazz, Jazz Advice and Tips
It’s already May and before you know it those lazy months of summer are going to sneak up on you. And just as quickly they’ll be gone, leaving you wishing you had more hours in the day to devote to your music. Before you find yourself in this all too familiar situation, here’s a quick …
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Chords, Ear Training, Jazz Advice and Tips, Perspectives, Playing Techniques
Each day when you get your instrument out of its case and set out to practice improvisation, your goal is to play the right notes. Whether it’s playing with great technique and great sound or finding the best line to play over that new tune, you’re looking for the fastest way to sound good over …
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Inspiration, Myths, Perspectives
If there is one thing about playing jazz that’s shrouded in mystery, it is improvisation. Improvisation exists in other types of music, even in musical traditions from the far reaches of the globe, but in jazz it goes much deeper. It is somehow vitally tied to the spirit of the music, and it’s not just …
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Chords, How to Practice Jazz, Jazz Language, Transcribing
So you want to learn how to improvise jazz and that’s great, but where on Earth do you start jazz improvisation?!?! There’s so much information out there that figuring out where to begin playing jazz is a complete nightmare. But I’ll tell you this right now…If I could start jazz improvisation again today, I’d do …
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Jazz Advice and Tips, Jazz Standards
As an improviser, you can transcribe solos. You can improve your technique. You can listen to your favorite recordings for hours each day. You can practically live in your practice room. But, no matter what you do or how much time you spend, at the end of the day you still have to deal with …