"Jazz Language"

    5 Skills You Won’t Learn in School, Skill Three: The Secret to Great Time

    Ever feel like something is missing from your solos? You spend hours learning tunes and transcribing solos from your favorite recordings, you've memorized the chord progressions and diligently practiced the tricky fingerings, but when you...Read More

    Ever feel like something is missing from your solos? You spend hours learning tunes and transcribing solos from your favorite recordings, you've memorized the chord progressions and diligently practiced the...Read More

    Repetition: The Missing Link to Your Success

    Do you find yourself having trouble remembering the solos you've transcribed? Have you ever memorized the melody to a tune only to forget it a week later? Do you have trouble recalling the chord progressions...Read More

    Do you find yourself having trouble remembering the solos you've transcribed? Have you ever memorized the melody to a tune only to forget it a week later? Do you have...Read More

    How To Be Mediocre

    While we typically focus on ways to improve, this article is all about how to be mediocre. Now, chances are you don't want to be mediocre, so while many of these listed points are tongue-in-cheek,...Read More

    While we typically focus on ways to improve, this article is all about how to be mediocre. Now, chances are you don't want to be mediocre, so while many of...Read More

    4 Ways to Spark the Creativity and Freedom in Your Improvising

    How creative are you each time you play your instrument? Think about it for a second...are you actually creating new musical ideas in your solos? Are you actually free when you improvise?? As a creative...Read More

    How creative are you each time you play your instrument? Think about it for a second...are you actually creating new musical ideas in your solos? Are you actually free when...Read More

    The Secret Behind Every Solo that You Can’t Afford to Miss

    There’s a secret hidden in every great solo. You'll find it in those old records of Louis Armstrong and those videos of Bird and Diz that you watch on YouTube. You can even hear it...Read More

    There’s a secret hidden in every great solo. You'll find it in those old records of Louis Armstrong and those videos of Bird and Diz that you watch on YouTube....Read More

    Getting More From Transcribed Solos

    Transcribe, transcribe , transcribe. It is what you've been hearing since you started to learn how to improvise...and for a good reason. Transcribing is one of the best ways to learn the stylistic language of...Read More

    Transcribe, transcribe , transcribe. It is what you've been hearing since you started to learn how to improvise...and for a good reason. Transcribing is one of the best ways to...Read More

    The Jazzadvice Diminished Handbook

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    You've heard about the scales. You understand the music theory. And you've even played through the patterns in a few exercise books. But when it comes to actually improvising with the diminished sound, something is...Read More

    You've heard about the scales. You understand the music theory. And you've even played through the patterns in a few exercise books. But when it comes to actually improvising with...Read More

    Choosing a Music School That’s Right For You

    If you've read through Should I Go To Music School, and after some serious thought have arrived at the notion that you'd like to go to music school, the next step is finding one that's...Read More

    If you've read through Should I Go To Music School, and after some serious thought have arrived at the notion that you'd like to go to music school, the next...Read More

    How to Be More Creative Than A Deer

    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....Read More

    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...Read More

    Visualization One Key At A Time

    They say that time is money, but in jazz improvisation, it's even more than that! Time is what's passing by while you're desperately trying to recall the next chord change in a tune, the notes...Read More

    They say that time is money, but in jazz improvisation, it's even more than that! Time is what's passing by while you're desperately trying to recall the next chord change...Read More

    How to Put Chord Tones At Your Fingertips

    A reader writes: "I play trumpet and improvise fairly well, but mainly play by ear. How can I learn the chord tones and use them effectively to construct my solos? For example, it takes a...Read More

    A reader writes: "I play trumpet and improvise fairly well, but mainly play by ear. How can I learn the chord tones and use them effectively to construct my solos?...Read More

    Using Polyrhythms in Improvisation

    As melodic improvisers, we are naturally focused on the harmonic aspect of what we are playing. After all, there's nothing worse than playing wrong notes, right? Our minds are so concerned with what key a...Read More

    As melodic improvisers, we are naturally focused on the harmonic aspect of what we are playing. After all, there's nothing worse than playing wrong notes, right? Our minds are so...Read More

    Why You Should Share Your Musical Knowledge

    There exists a hidden trap on the path of learning improvisation. One that you can fall into without even realizing it. In music school practice rooms, jam sessions, and even in the performance hall, the...Read More

    There exists a hidden trap on the path of learning improvisation. One that you can fall into without even realizing it. In music school practice rooms, jam sessions, and even...Read More

    Why Giant Steps is Easier Than You Think… 4 Simple Steps to a Stellar Solo

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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...Read More

    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...Read More

    How To Create the Perfect Solo: A Lesson With Herbie Hancock

    Herbie Hancock is one of the greatest living improvisers. From his work with the great Miles Davis Quintet to his own musical explorations, he has spent decades evolving and pushing musical boundaries. But the thing...Read More

    Herbie Hancock is one of the greatest living improvisers. From his work with the great Miles Davis Quintet to his own musical explorations, he has spent decades evolving and pushing...Read More

    How To Practice Scales For Speed

    Several readers have written us lately asking how to practice scales. Simply practicing them is not difficult, but attaining a high level of speed and accuracy, while keeping your sound consistent throughout all registers is...Read More

    Several readers have written us lately asking how to practice scales. Simply practicing them is not difficult, but attaining a high level of speed and accuracy, while keeping your sound...Read More