Jazz theory of improvising over melody, chords and structure. Some improv styles may combine elements of all three areas Improvise on the Melody Paraphrasing Adding to the Melody Changing the Rhythmic content Ornamenting or Embellishing Improvising on the Harmony Harmonic Generalization Tonic Triad Diatonic Major Blues Scale Minor Blues Scale Cliches & Quotes Harmonically Specific…Continue reading Jazz theory of improvisation
Month: January 2013
Jazz improvisation at fast tempos
When playing over a fast tune, don’t get caught up in the chord progression that much. Just keep in mind key centers. If you try to play each individual chord/scale association , then it will just sound like you are playing chord by chord instead of thinking of the tune as a whole. Often when…Continue reading Jazz improvisation at fast tempos
Beethoven on dynamic markings
There is a story I read (can’t remember which book) where some famous pianist/composer sent Beethoven a letter asking him about dynamic markings for a piano piece. He received no answer so he wrote again and again a 3rd time. Finally Ludwig answered him scathingly with words to the effect of “Do you think I’m…Continue reading Beethoven on dynamic markings
Swing Analyzed
From: New Scientist vol 168 issue 2270 – 23 December 2000, page 48 “It don’t mean a thing if it ain’t got that swing. But what is swing? Whenthe musical West Side Story opened in London in 1958 the producers had a real problem. They didn’t know who should occupy the drum stool. Leonard Bernstein’s score was…Continue reading Swing Analyzed
Performance Anxiety
Different people respond differently to stress as we all know. Some thrive while others worry, deflate… One thing we all have in common however, is the we all need to breath to stay alive. As simple as it may sound, ‘don’t forget to breath’! You have probably heard it from lots of people. Here are…Continue reading Performance Anxiety
Sight Reading
Don’t look at your hands: keep your eyes on the music. If you have to look, glance with your eyes, but don’t move your head. Learn to look one beat ahead: quickly memorize each beat before you play it so that you can already be looking ahead while you are playing. As you get better,…Continue reading Sight Reading