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Learn Jazz Improvisation With Chord Exercises

Posted by admin2 on August 30th, 2010 Comments Off



If you’d like to learn jazz improvisation, or learn to improvise in general, you’ve come to the right place!

Jazz improvisation is often viewed as the hardest part of learning jazz. The masters have left behind many tips and exercises though. Unfortunately people often hear these tips but never act upon them. So please take action on these tips to “learn jazz”.

When you have a song you’d like to improvise on, follow these preparatory exercises.

1. Listen listen listen! Buy CDs and vinyl records and listen to the jazz masters. Get as many versions of the song as you can.

2. Find sheet music (chord changes are the important thing). Try memorizing the changes, and just go through them in your head.

3. Figure out what the chord is for each chord change. Finding the chord and scale of each change will help you learn to improvise.

4. Once you know the chord, run up the chord 1-3-5-7 in eight notes over the change.

5. Then do 1-3-5-9. These steps may seem silly, but it will help you learn jazz, learn jazz improvisation, and learn to improvise.

6. Try both step 4 and 5 backwards. Go 7-5-3-1 and 9-5-3-1.

7. Then invert the chord as many ways as you like. Go 3-5-7-1, 5-7-1-3, 7-1-3-5, 3-1-5-7, etc. etc. Do every possible combination.

That’s a lot of work right there. And these are just preparatory exercises. And of those exercises, these are just chords! We still have scales AND scale tones to worry about.

This seems like a lot of work, and it is. If you follow this, you will quickly learn jazz improvisation, and learn how to improvise.

By: Bobby Jackin

Posted in Jazz Festivals

Improvising a Song on your Jazz Guitar

Posted by admin on December 16th, 2009 No Comments

1) Know the genre you want to learn for improvisation.

One of the best ways to find out the genre that appeals to you is by listening to a few styles (i.e. jazz, blues, rock, folk, country, pop, etc.). The ones that stick in your mind are the ones to start off with. Like with anything you learn, learning becomes easier when you’re interested in it. As you listen to the various styles, one thing to keep in mind is that the blues genre relates to most all the other genres. For that reason, if you learn to improvise in the blues genre, it will ultimately end up helping you improvise across all the genres.

2) Build up a foundation of jazz guitar licks and riffs.

Successful players have built up a memorized library of licks and riffs. During their jazz guitar lessons, they have absorbed and practiced these licks from a variety of sources so that when it comes time to perform solo or lend an improvisation, they are ready to practice and apply what they have learned. Improvisation becomes easy because they know how to blend tunes on their gypsy jazz guitar.

3) Knowing the scales is the foundation for improvisation.

No jazz guitar player can improvise without knowing their instrument and how to craft the melodies together. When learning to play jazz guitar, you can’t ignore this important step. You don’t have to learn all the scales. In fact learning just a few scales like the major scale and the blues scale will be sufficient for a lot of improvs and solos. For example if you can see a lick in and filter it through the major scale, you’ll have mastered what makes a jazz guitar player a jazz guitar player and your audience will appreciate your talent and effort!

4) Transcribing tunes are a great source for improvisations.

Transcribing involves learning a tune by ear and then working it out in different chords if you choose. Transcribing really helps any serious player and should be a regular part of their solo practice. It involves trial and error practice where you’ll discover what works for you and what doesn’t work.

5) The best part is hearing yourself play.

Inspire yourself during your improvisation by recording yourself (you might also consider hooking up jazz guitar amps). When you listen to the recording, you’ll be able to hear even better the areas that need work. At the same time, you’ll also hear the areas that work very well and demonstrate the progress you’ve made as a jazz guitar player.

Improvisations and solos are like a string of musical ideas that you have gathered along the way through your learning career. You’ll get these “musical ideas” by learning and mastering the scales, learning to key licks and riffs and by transcribing tunes that you enjoy. You’ll soon see your creativity and skills take off!



By: Logan Young

Posted in Jazz Festivals

Tips to Learn Jazz Music

Posted by admin on December 11th, 2009 No Comments

There would barely be any human being on earth who doesn’t like music. God has been veritably benevolent for his creations like this. One form of musical art originated in African American cultures is jazz, a lively music with ultimate rhythms. It was formed when some African slaves experimented to contrast folk music with American music. Unlike other music, jazz requires immense interpretation by those who want to learn to play jazz music. The tremendous variety comes in jazz music because of the fact that its rhythm has a forward momentum, commonly referred as “swing”. The musical assembly affiliated with jazz music is big band jazz music.

Jazz has gained so much of importance that people want to learn this music, specifically practice jazz piano, guitars and jazz bass lines. To learn jazz music one needs to follow certain things which will be beneficial for becoming a true music lover. Those who want to learn jazz music must adopt the habit of listening. Do the researches for the type of music you like i.e. old musicians such as Art Tatum, Count Basic etc or some new musicians and try to listen what you like as much as you can. Listening to the solo musicians will give the clear idea of the notes, for beginners this is the good option. For those who want learn to play jazz piano, they must get themselves familiar with all the 12 scales and when you get comfortable with them, learn pentatonic scale for the key you like the most. This will help them like wonders if they are dedicated. Have a start with playing very small notes and basic stuff.

The more you will practice; more you will sound like the things written in front of you while practicing, without knowing them. At last, improvisation is the key for learning the music, after learning one instrument it will be easy a lot to learn another. You should know what you want. Finding out how to play necessary chords at what time and how to sound the strings of the rhythm will make you master of the art.



By: Akhila Choudhary

Posted in Jazz Festivals
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