In this second part, we will cover soloing techniques and endings. Using the soloing techniques in this lesson, you will be able to create a basic solo over most swing standards. The endings can also be used on multiple songs.
In this lesson, I will show you some important soloing techniques for organ. Since the organ is so different than the piano, these techniques will help you create a solo that sounds more full and grooving.
Improvisation over the song "Bring Him Home" from Les Misérables.
In this 2-lesson series, I will break down my basic steps for learning cocktail piano techniques. We will use Fly My To The Moon as a learning vehicle to breakup concepts into: Introductions, Accompaniment & Style, Soloing and Endings. By working on these 4 concepts, you will start to unravel how to play a cocktail piano style.
In this 2nd part, we will be covering soloing techniques that you can use over Rhythm Changes. These techniques can be applied to all styles of improvised music, so blues players, church musicians, rock players and jazz players can ALL use these techniques. In addition, I cover some really fun bassline in 10ths techniques along with advanced sounding (but easy) constant structure improvisation concepts.
In this arrangement we will learn how to go from a groove to adding the melody. By learning a few key rhythmic patterns, you can apply the melody on top and create a cool sounding arrangement. We will also cover 16th-note broken chords that give the song a lot of momentum and excitement. I will give you some improvisation tips and show you how to create your own arrangement by re-arranging the form.
In this part 1 of 2, we will cover different exercises that you can use to build up your improvisation over rhythm changes. We will also cover left-hand chord structures and how to play at uptempo speeds. Part 2 will cover applications over bass or chordal patterns and how to improvise over these changes in a group or solo piano situation.
In this lesson we will cover gospel piano basis that we will expand upon and use as a foundation for future lessons. These important ~tricks~ come in handy in many different styles of music. Broken apart like this, these ideas will be easier for you to incorporate into your own arrangements and use them as a springboard for your own music or improvisation.
In this lesson, we will focus on creating a beautiful arrangement using our shells and melody technique. Much like the My Romance lesson, this lesson will go step-by-step through the song so that you can see a finished arrangement using these techniques. Picking apart this arrangement and the techniques used, will be a valuable exercise for students of all levels.
In this important lesson for ALL styles, we will talk about the core ingredients of a 2-5-1 progression and chord voicings. Once you understand these core concepts, it is easier to add upon them to create richer and fuller voicings. We will also discuss voice-leading and show you how to smoothly move between chords. There will be a followup to this lesson with several progression examples.
In this part 1, we will cover the form, chords and bassline of the song. We will cover a bit of improvisation, but the bulk of improvisation will be covered in part 2. This is being classified as a "beginner" level lesson. You should know some basic triads and know your way around the keyboard before doing this lesson.
A quick story, years ago when I was first learning improvisation, I was always confused and frustrated with those chord/scale charts. You know the ones that tell you which scale you should play with which chord. It seemed impossible to learn all those scales and so limiting. In this lesson, I'm going to show you a technique that I use in my improvisation everyday to quickly improvise over chords without "over thinking" the scale that I am playing. Using this technique, it is easy to improvise over chords even if you don't know which scale to use!
In part 2 of Blues, Basslines, Re-harm, Chords & Comping, we will cover 3 new blues variations. These new variations allow you to create numerous blues progressions of your own! These new variations will include tritone substitutions and other re-harmonization techniques. I will also cover the bassline fingering in detail.
In this lesson inspired by the playing of Dr. Ethel Caffie-Austin, we will learn a simple gospel bass pattern along with right hand gospel chordal and melodic grooves. This lesson is the first part in a series of easy-to-follow gospel lessons which are perfect for all levels.
In this advanced lesson, I am going to show you some interesting ways of breaking up, and practicing, your pentatonic scales. We will also cover some McCoy Tyner like left hand voicings to add to these pentatonic patterns. With practice, these patterns will become fluid to you and change your soloing!
Using techniques from our step-by-step standards series you will learn how to create an easy bossa nova arrangement for "The Shadow Of Your Smile." We will also cover some advanced techniques to add some spice to your playing.
In part 1, I am going to cover some of the most common requests that I have gotten from students. We will learn more about creating a walking bassline, how to form rootless chords and comp chords over that bassline. This approach makes it easier to learn many concepts over a form that you'll use again and again. In addition, you'll learn a new harmonization for the blues!
Learn an easier version of Ben's Blues in this class I did for Suzuki students.
In this 10 tips lesson, we are going to focus on the left hand. Using the first four-measures of Night And Day, I’ve created 10 different left-hand accompaniment examples that you can add to your arrangements. This will give you 10 different options when approaching a lead sheet.
In this Dorian-based song, I'll show you how to play the song solo or with a group. You'll learn the melody as well as improvisation. We will break down some of Ray Manzarek's licks and talk about bringing in some advanced techniques like tritone-substitutions into the arrangement.
In this song lesson, we will use our step-by-step standards technique (similar to My Romance) to create an arrangement. In three steps (plus analysis) we will go from melody to complete arrangement along with some advanced tips to help you apply these techniques to other standards.
In this lesson we will continue to build upon our grooves with 3 new grooves. We will also expand our progression and talk about how to combine all of these concepts into an improvisation. We will also cover effects and processing like phasers, chorus and wah.
If you want to learn improvisation, this is the lesson for you. These concepts are VERY IMPORTANT for creating both bebop lines and general improvisational lines. Think of a line as a lick or phrase. In this lesson we will cover several lines and their construction. These ideas will quickly help you in 2 ways: 1) it will make your playing sound more sophisticated right away and 2) you will start to understand how to create and "weave" an improvised line through a set of chords. (Faster Fingers 3c)
In this second part, we will cover over a dozen different melodic approach techniques and was to practice them. Using these approaches, your improvisation lines will sound more sophisticated, you will gain a lot of dexterity and you will get to know your chords inside and out! In part 3, will put together parts 1 & 2 to show you several more ways of creating lines using these techniques. (Faster Fingers 3b)
For this lesson, I transcribed (3) choruses from a YouTube video featuring a Ray Charles bebop blues. In the lesson I will teach you step-by-step each of the choruses and also show you how to practice the song so that you can incorporate these ideas into your own soloing. If you like the bebop and blues sound, you'll love this lesson.
In this lesson I will show you how to take licks and patterns that we have learned to create your own personal blues statement. A student asked me "What do I do with all the licks I've learned?" Well, this lesson explains what to do!
In this lesson we will use the classic jazz standard "Have You Met Miss Jones" to discuss different approaches to reharmonization and improvisation.
I've been wanting to do this song for a while! Take 5 was written by Paul Desmond and performed by The Dave Brubeck Quartet on their 1959 album Time Out. In this lesson I'll break down the arrangement but we will also cover a bunch of improvisation and reharmonization ideas to make the song "your own."
9 Secrets of the Blues We will be going over: Use Blues Scale Simple Left Hand Important Chords and Form Rhythm Driven Licks 3 Licks and Repeat Slide and Crush Notes Swing or Straight Break Down.
In this beautiful ballad, I'll take you step-by-step through my arrangement. I will also give you arrangement tips along the way. We will cover a bit of improvisation at the end. However, this lesson is mostly about learning the song.
The best-selling version of this Eddy Arnold song was taken to #2 on the charts by Ray Charles in 1962. We will brake down Ray Charles arrangement and pull out some fun phrases and licks. I will also give you some improvisation tips and different endings. This song has a nice modulation at the end, so it is a great practice for direct modulation.
In part two we will be focusing on endings. I will teach you eight important endings that you really need to know. These are classic endings that work in a variety of styles like jazz, blues and rock. I also branch off into some gospel groove endings that are great for 'shouting' sections or if you want a gospel 'flair' to your ending.
I will teach you my arrangement of the Lennon-McCartney song "Blackbird." I will explain the harmony and arrangement to you while also showing you how to create a flowing, arpeggiated style. We will also discuss ways to create your own signature style on this and other songs. In this lesson, I recorded an improvisation with a click track to make it easier to transcribe.
In this second part of "Use Me" we will talk about how to create some interesting improvisation ideas using different scales and arpeggios. Using some simple concepts, we can get some really cool sounds that will "perk up" your improvisation. We will also talk about taking your improvisation "outside."
Wondering how to start that song? Need a cool ending? This series will teach you some of the intros and endings that I have come to love. We will break each example down so you know the theory behind it and how to transpose it. Best of all, I used the songs from the site as material so I will show you how to apply these intros/endings to songs you might have already learned!
In this first lesson we will be covering scales in broken thirds, free-style practice, bebop scales, scale approaches and more improvisation using the 1/2-whole diminished scale. These exercises are a great way to improve your jazz improvisation skills. (Faster Fingers 3a)
This is a fun New Orleans groove! In this lesson I break down the form of "Tipitina" measure-by-measure. These are the licks and grooves that Dr. John plays. I will also show you how to transpose these patterns to new keys and create new combinations.
In this second part we will cover in detail the minor 2-5-1 progression and you will learn some really cool improv licks. We will also cover how to create chords using the Melodic Minor scale and apply the scale to real songs. Song snippet "A Foggy Day" will be used as an example.
In this first lesson, we will cover some basic funky grooves. The goal of this lesson is to keep you grooving with both hands. We will cover a dozen pattern variations that you can make you own unique combinations. These "basics" will prepare you for part 2. In part 2 will dive into elongating the progressions, creating a more advanced harmony and I will use the Nord Electro.
In this first lesson on Melodic Minor Harmony, we will go through each mode of the scale. I will give you examples from some jazz standards, but also show you how I like to use these chords in my playing. You will find a lot of interesting sounds in this lesson and it is great to learn this scale no matter what style of music you play.
In this traditional spiritual, I have created an advanced arrangement which includes a change of rhythm, tritone substitutions and some really fat-sounding chords. The gospel sounds created here are similar and complementary to those you learned in the Richard Tee Tribute lesson while also teaching more about how to create an advanced arrangement of a traditional song. Improvisation will be covered in depth in part 2 of the lesson.
In this lesson we are going to cover some very hot rock solo licks and grooves. The ideas in this lesson will turn heads when you start to solo. We will cover double-stops and other improvisation techniques, but you will also learn about sextuplets and how to create some smoking grooves using this rhythm.
In this first volume of Deep Purple's version of the Joe South song, "Hush," we will be covering the groove and form of the song. We will spend a lot of time breaking down different ways of using the organ to create a groove over the chords. Volume 2 will work on improvisation.
Learn the iconic piano part to this classic rock song. We have another lesson on this song in the site, just do a search.
In this lesson we will take all of the techniques we learned in the previous lesson to create a full arrangement. I'll teach you the entire arrangement step-by-step.
In this lesson we break apart sections of Miles Davis's song "All Blues." We will learn the groove section and I'll also show you how the melody lines up with the groove. However, our main focus will be on improvisation and some advanced concepts like maintaing flow while improvising over the baseline. We will also cover Four "over" Six rhythms and how to incorporate them into the song.
This lesson teaches you how to play a basic stride piano pattern along with improvisation. The stretches are challenging, but once mastered with the pentatonic scale, you will have a nice stride pattern that I'll show you how to combine into several combinations to improvise for minutes. Topics covered are improv with the pentatonic scale and 4 different stride progression "options."
This fun song has been played by many and is a very popular and famous cuban song. In this lesson I will teach you several different left-hand accompaniment patterns and how to create an arrangement. I broke this song into modules, making it easier to create your own arrangement. You will enjoy moving between modules, creating your own improvisation (which we discuss) and "jamming" on this groove.
In this lesson we are going to work through an arrangement for Auld Lang Syne in 8 steps (The 8th step is Special Reharm pt 2). In each step we will add a new technique that we can use for reharmonization of this song and countless others. If you are interested in reharmonization, want to create your own arrangements or need more help with concepts like Dominant motion, related ii's, tri-tone substitution then this lesson is for you! Even beginners can benefit from this lesson...just remember to go slow and re-watch the chapters!
In this lesson you’ll learn When Sunny Gets Blues using my step-by-step standards approach. This is a perfect lesson for all levels, especially beginners. You'll learn how to analyze the song, which makes it easier to memorize, while also learning improvisational flourishes to make it sound more full.
