Inspiration for improvisers
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Jazz ear training – What makes it different from general ear training? That’s a great question and when a reader recently asked this, it definitely made me think. They both focus on intervals, chords, root movement, and have other common ground, but how are they actually different? Over the years, I’ve taken quite a few …
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Composition, Ear Training, Jazz Standards
Bebop “heads,” what jazz players sometimes call the melody of a tune, tend to be some of the trickiest and most technically demanding strings of notes you’re likely to encounter. Much busier than classic jazz standards, these intricate melodies are generally more difficult to learn, understand, and commit to memory. So what do you do …
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Chords, Composition, Jazz Advice and Tips, Music Theory
When I started learning how to improvise, the one thing I really wanted to figure out was how to create improvised lines like my musical heroes… Listening to players like Miles, Bird, Coltrane, and countless others, I wanted to learn exactly which notes to choose on a chord and how to turn these notes into …
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Remember the first time you played a modal tune like Impressions and how fun it was to wail over a minor chord? Maybe you’ve had this experience, or maybe it’s in your near future, but one thing is for sure: it’s fun just to let loose on a minor chord vamp and solo for hours! …
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Ear Training, Jazz Advice and Tips, Tunes
As a musician you know should be learning tunes…After all it’s the backbone of how you play with other musicians, speak the language, and share your musical ideas. But, the big question is: How exactly should you go about doing this? Right now you might be wondering this as you work to build your repertoire …
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Ear Training, Jazz Advice and Tips, Jazz Education, Perspectives
You’re a trumpet player. You play the piano or the guitar. Maybe you’ve taken up the saxophone. Out of a dozen different instruments, this is the one that you’ve chosen to amplify your musical voice. You identify with it, you wield it with pride, and you strive to follow in the tradition of the fine …
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Every musician knows the feeling…You’ve picked out a tune to learn in the practice room. You’ve figured out the melody and memorized the chord progression. And you’re ready to start improvising your solo. Then it happens…you hit a wall. All of a sudden you can’t seem to find the right notes to play, no matter …
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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 art of improvisation can frequently devolve into a petty competition. Rather than sharing information and focusing on musicality, some musicians …
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Chords, Playing Techniques, Premium Only
Ever wonder how the best players seem to improvise brilliant lines without any effort? All while you’re struggling to make even the simplest chord tones sound good. If you’re like most players you know this frustration. However, the solution doesn’t lie with a hidden secret or advanced music theory – it all goes back to …
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Chords, Composition, Ear Training
In the recent article Hearing in Color, we discussed how to develop the technique of hearing individual chord tones in the context of triads and 7th chords. Just as the individual chord tones in a chord have identifiable colors, the chords themselves have distinct sonorities that set them apart from one another. The key to …
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Ear Training, Jazz Advice and Tips, Premium Only
Hearing larger intervals is difficult for most people. After a couple weeks of practicing your intervals, half-steps, whole steps, major and minor thirds, perfect fourths, perfect fifths, and major sixths fall into place, but the remaining few linger on, causing us trouble for eternity. There’s no reason why we can’t isolate these more difficult intervals …
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Chords, Composition, Jazz Advice and Tips, Premium Only, Scales
After you’ve been improvising jazz for a while, most chords are pretty familiar. You’re used to major, minor, dominant, and half diminished…but just as you thought you were getting a handle on things, a chord comes out of nowhere that makes you go “What is that?!?!” And not only do you have to figure out what …