In this podcast, I discuss some practice ideas that may help you improve your musicality on jazz guitar.
These ideas have helped me and/or continue to help me.
All the best!
While there’s tons of different ways to convey feel and groove, I believe jazz guitarists can really imbue their playing with an extra-dollop of right-hand feel & technique.
The key to crafting a great jazz solo lies in focusing on the concepts of Groove, Melody & Variations, Space, Structure, and Story (G, M & VSSS). Jazz improvisation, while conceptually simple, requires mastery for complexity in music. Beginners are advised to start with simple elements, practice grooves, create simple melodies, use space effectively, and construct their solos with clear structure and storytelling. Starting with blues and basic standards can aid in developing improvisational skills, progressing to more intricate melodies and harmonies over time.
This post provides a comprehensive guide to jazz guitar, including chord substitutions, turnarounds, and chord extensions, with practical examples and a focus on both theoretical understanding and developing musicality by ear. For further study, it references the Jamey Aebersold Jazz Handbook, offers FAQs, and encourages a balanced approach to practice.
Great tools can help any artist create.
Check out a few digital tools I use regularly.
If you haven’t already, these apps can really help you improve aspects of your musical practice!
Kreutzer wrote a series of etudes entitled 42 études ou caprices for violin in the late 1700s.
This beautiful etude is in C major. And a great piece to study for guitarists, violinists, violists, piano players and whomever else that may be interested in practicing scales in a musical way!
Heres a more challenging montuno and tumbao for guitar. To play the bassline properly, please tune down to Drop D. All the best!
Here’s the sheet music for the D minor Gigue, Partita II, JS Bach, Solo Violin BMV 1004.
I love to play this piece. It’s fun to play and I think a lot of guitarists would enjoy and learn a lot by playing it, whatever genres of music that they usually tend to play.
I added a little bit of analysis towards the end, Bach has so many different cool ways of weaving together melodic fragments. And I think as improvising musicians, we can learn, study and enjoy a lot from these ideas.
I also made a jazz chart of the gigue, to see what it would look like, and maybe get folks seeing (and hearing) more of the bebop-baroque connection …
This Double in B minor is a wonderful piece to both play and study on guitar.
Within the framework of the 1st Partita for Solo Violin, the Sarabande and its corresponding Double use the same chord progression & similar melodies.
Here’s a video I made a while ago talking about ways of looking at things (in relation to the glass of water). In any case, best wishes and hope you have a wonderful day! Different ways to perceive a glass (or spoon) The glass is half full of water An optimist It’s a true statement, […]