Inspiration for improvisers
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Composition, Jazz Advice and Tips, Jazz Standards
In a recent post: A Blueprint for Building Your Repertoire, I outlined some ideas to ponder while creating a repertoire of tunes. Concepts like how to learn, listen to, and how to approach the Great American songbook as you prepare to build your own repertoire. However, the real work begins when you get into the …
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Jazz Advice and Tips, Jazz Musicians, Premium Only, Tunes
Every musician dreams of creating solos full of flowing melodic lines. To play compelling ideas over fast tunes, ballads, complex chord progressions, and standard forms like the blues or rhythm changes… The only problem is that most of us are trying to achieve this melodic vision with the same old scales and exercises, piecing them …
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You’ve seen it on TV or maybe you’ve even done it yourself. Trekking into the wilderness alone, armed with just a few essential tools and your own courage. Find your own shelter, find your own food, find your way out. You vs. Nature. To make it out alive, you need a few tools that will …
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Inspiration, Myths, Perspectives
Learning how to improvise is not nearly as clear as people think. And what makes it worse is that there are quite a few myths about it. Today, in no particular order, we’re going to dispel five myths about jazz improvisation for you right now! Myth #1 When it comes to improvising, you either got …
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Chords, Composition, Jazz Advice and Tips, Tunes
Here’s something that you’ve probably realized by now on your musical journey…that jazz improvisation can get very complicated, very quickly. In the blink of an eye your enjoyable musical hobby can transform into something that feels a little bit like homework – a tricky exercise with right and wrong answers. Suddenly the simple act of …
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Doxy is one of those classic Sonny Rollins tunes that gradually made its way into the jazz standard repertoire. Originally recorded in 1954 and released on the album Miles Davis with Sonny Rollins, its compact form and changes make for a great improvisational vehicle. And today, Doxy has become one of the most recommended tunes …
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Ear Training, Jazz Advice and Tips, Transcribing
Transcription can be a real struggle sometimes. Some days it feels like you can spend an hour trying to learn a few measures, and after a dozen frustrating attempts, you end up in exactly the same place you started. If this feeling rings a bell with you, you are definitely not alone. Many of the …
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A recurring theme on this site seems to be language – acquiring, practicing, and applying the jazz language. There is a reason behind all the repetition, however. Language is a very powerful concept when it comes to improvisation and it’s an idea that can drastically change your mentality about the music. But, even before you …
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Blues, Chords, Jazz Advice and Tips
One thing that gets lost in the day to day mentality of practicing jazz improvisation is this simple fact – you don’t have to solve EVERY musical problem each time you walk into the practice room… Contrary to all the stories you hear or the pressure you might feel, you don’t have to conquer huge …
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Jazz Advice and Tips, Jazz Language
Your mother probably taught you not to steal…That taking something that wasn’t yours was wrong or that pocketing an item from the shelves of a store could land you into a world of trouble. But what you or your dear mum might not realize is that some of your favorite improvisers are cold-blooded thieves. And …
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If jazz is all about being in the moment, but all our practice time is dedicated to figuring out what we want to play when we perform, then how are we supposed to be in the moment when we perform? There’s this strange dichotomy… On one side, jazz improvisation is very rehearsed. And on the …
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Transcribing is the single most effective method of learning how to improvise…or so everyone says. The only problem is it can be a mystery figuring out what the transcription process actually entails. You have your instrument and a collection of your favorite recordings – now what? The standard jazz resources are good at teaching the …