Jazz Guitar Technique

Jazz Guitar Technique

A truly interactive and structured course to give you the tools to succeed as a jazz guitarist

In this masterclass you will learn the fundamental of Jazz guitar playing. At the end of this masterclass you will have a better technique and have improved your soloing and accompanying. You will also learn a study routine that will help you internalise the material discussed in this course.

 

Video's: 4 hours

Skill Level: Intermediate-Advanced

Backing Tracks: 40 Backing tracks especially recorded for this course

Language: English

Get personal video feedback every week and earn a certificate from the Conservatorium van Amsterdam: Visit the Course page!

 

How it works:

This masterclass is a series of related video lessons, each structured around a specific topic or topics. By the end of this course, you will have developed a strong sense of direction in your daily study routine.

Weekly video lessons: after joining the course, you will be able to view a new video lesson weekly. Each video lesson consists of:

Examples that musically define the sound of the topic you are studying in each video.

A study routine section in which we first discuss how to study the specific topic of each lesson. We will then play several exercises specially written to show you how to structure your daily study routine.

Assignments that will help you consolidate and practice what you have learned in each video.
Weekly assignments: after each lesson, you will be asked to study, practice and then video record yourself playing an assignment which may consist of several exercises. The process of having to record yourself every week, significantly helps to internalise the material discussed in this course - quickly and naturally.

Weekly feedback: This function is only available in the "course" mode.

Certificate: : This function is only available in the "course" mode.

 

Content of this course:

Lesson 1: Right Hand Technique

In this lesson we will talk about right hand technique and we will focus on few of the universal principles that work for all people in right hand picking technique, regardless of the style of music you are playing. The topics we will talk about are:

Posture. 

Rotary Wrist Action. 

Economy of Motion.              

Alternate Picking.

Where to Pick.

Angle of the plectrum.                

Dynamics.

 

Lesson 2: Using the major triad for your single note improvisation.

In this video you will learn a study routine and several musical examples that will help you internalize and embellish the sound and the shapes of the major triad for your single note improvisation. The topics we will talk about are:

Using Triads for single note soloing. 

Examples in the style of J.Coltrane, C.Parker, B.Evans and C.Adderly.

Using the “approach notes”.

Diatonic approach notes.

Chromatic approach notes.

Combining diatonic and chromatic approach notes.

Improvisation assignment: Trading four bars improvisation with me.

Assignment 1:Etude in the style of B. Evans.

Six phrases based on the F triad that you could use in your improvisation.

Applying what you have learned to a blues in F.

 

Lesson 3: Using the minor triad for your single note improvisation.

In this video you will learn a study routine and several musical examples that will help you internalize and embellish the sound and the shapes of the minor triad for your single note improvisation. We will also discuss several harmonic applications of the minor triad. The topics we will talk about are:

Examples in the style of S.Rollins, B.Evans and C.Adderly.

Using the “approach notes”.

Diatonic approach notes.

Chromatic approach notes.

Combining diatonic and chromatic approach notes.

Improvisation assignment: Trading four bars improvisation with me.

Harmonic applications of the minor triad.

Assignment 1:Etude

Four phrases based on the C minor triad that you could use in your improvisation.

Applying what you have learned to a chord scheme.

 

Lesson 4: The Bebop Scale

Widely used from hundreds of players this scale is a must for any jazz improviser.

We will study several examples based on the great jazz tradition, defining a study routine that will enable you to musically use this scale in any key and everywhere on the fret board. Some of the topics we will discuss are:

Fingerings

Combing the bebop scale with arpeggios.

Use of enclosures.

Harmonic applications.

Through the use of several exercises and assignments you will assimilate this scale.

 

Lesson 5: Accompanying using the guide tones of a song in the style of Jim Hall.

Welcome to these lessons about rhythm guitar playing. In these videos you will learn several techniques that will make your rhythm guitar playing sound even more musical, functional and steady.The topics we will talk about are:

Developing a study routine.

Finding the Guide Tones of a chord on the whole fret board.

Connecting the Guide Tones of a chord moving horizontally through the fret board using only the D,G and B string.

guide tones are the basic of any chord shape.

Examples.

Accompanying using the “Guide tones” of the chords.

Assignment 1,2,3,and 4

Examples in the style of Jim Hall.

 

Lesson 6: Enriching the sound of the guide tones of a song.

We will study two techniques that will enable you to enrich the sound of the Guide Tones shapes you learned in the previous lesson. The topics we will talk about are:

Enriching the sound of the “Guide tones”.

Approaching chromatically the Guide Tones of the chords of a song.

Assignment 1: Applying this technique to a Jazz Standard.

Using the chromatic approach for accompanying a modal song.

Assignment 2: Rhythm guitar part on the song “My Funny” in the style of Jim Hall.

Adding a subdominant chord to enrich the sound of the Guide Tones.

Embellishing the Guide Tones of the chords of a “Rhythm and Change” using this technique.

3: Applying these techniques to a “Rhythm and Change”.

 

Lesson 7: Enriching the sound of the guide tones of a song.

We will proceed by studying two techniques that will enable you to to enrich the sound of the Guide Tones shapes you learned in the previous lesson. The topics we will talk about are:

Enriching the sound of the “Guide tones”.

Approaching the Guide Tones of the chords of a song using the so-called “Flat Five” substitution.

Harmonic applications of the Flat Five Substitution.

Example 1: Applying this technique to a Jazz Standard: “Autumn”.

Example 2: Applying this technique to a Jazz Standard: “All The Things”.

Analysis of the previous examples.

Assignment 1: playing together. Using the Flat Five substitution to accompany a soloist.

Changing the character of a chord to enrich the sound of the Guide Tones.

Example: Embellishing the Guide Tones of the chords of a I-VI-II-V chord progression, using this technique.

Assignment 2: playing together. Changing the character of a chord when accompany a soloist.

 

Lesson 8: Rhythm guitar lesson 4: Creating a three parts harmony rhythm guitar part.

In this lesson you will learn to melodically connect three notes voicing’s gaining unity and musicality in your rhythm guitar playing. The topics we will talk about are:

Accompanying using three notes voicing’s.

Examples based on a “Blues” in G and on the chord progression of “Someday”.

Study Routine: Step 1: Imagining a melody to use as top note of your three notes voicing’s.

Step 2: Learning and connecting the shapes of Dominant, chords horizontally.

Step 3: Harmonizing a melody with the voicing’s you have learned, creating a rhythm guitar part.

Assignments: Playing together with me trading four bars accompanying guitar parts.

Assignments: Learning and connecting the shapes of minor 7 and Major 7 chords horizontally, harmonizing every note of a mode.

Assignment: Applying what you have learned to a Bb blues.

 

Lesson 9: Expanding and organizing your rhythmic vocabulary.

In this video you will learn a study routine, several examples and a rhythmical vocabulary that will help you improve your rhythm guitar playing. So let’s have a look to the content of this lesson. The topics you will study in this video are:

The Charleston Rhythm pattern.

Shifting this pattern in the bar obtaining other 4 rhythm patterns.

Study Routine: Internalizing five rhythm patterns.

Combine these rhythm patterns creating longer rhythmical patterns.

Examples.

 

Lesson 10: The major scale

Develop two practicing routines that will enable you to visualize the scale in relation to a chord shape placing automatically the chord tones of any desired chord on the downbeat, gaining harmonic clarity in your improvisation. Develop a solid horizontal overview through the whole fret board and challenge yourself playing any key in only one position. The topics you will study in this video are:

Naming and reviewing the seven fingerings/modes of the major scale.

Assignment 1: Improvising using seven scales in one position.

Practicing the major scale with the chord tones on the downbeat: Study routine N1 and N2.

Exercises: Combining the seven fingerings/modes of the major scale with chords and arpeggios.

Assignment 2: Applying the study routine you have learned in this video to the Eb major scale.

Using the study routine you have learned in this video for your single note improvisation.

Example in the style of J.Coltrane.

Applying Study routine N1 to the chord scheme of “Donna”.

Examples: Applying Study routine N1 to major and minor II-V-I’ s.

 

Lesson 11: The Melodic Minor scale.

In this lesson about the melodic minor scale you will learn a study routine that will enable you to practice and connect these fingerings placing the chord tones on the beat, gaining harmonic clarity in your daily practice routine. You will also learn to connect seven fingerings of this scale horizontally using pattern in the style of J.Coltrane. You will then improvise with me, applying the study routine to a V-I chord progression. You will learn to connect the scale fingerings with chords and a musical phrase and several musical phrases based on this scale,which will serve as an example and inspiration. Five harmonic applications of the Melodic Minor scale.

 

Lesson 12 through 15: Arpeggios

Arpeggios are the backbone of many solos in jazz. These lessons will help you familiarizing with the shapes of many arpeggios and, especially, they will teach you a practice routine that will enable you to make music while studying the shapes of several types of arpeggios.

You will learn 4 techniques that will enable you to translate into melodies the arpeggio shapes you already know.

Inverting the order of the notes.

Adding the ninth and a chromatinc passing tone to the arpeggio shapes.

Combining two different arpeggios to improvise on one chord.

Using drop two voicing’s to build wide sounding single note lines.

You will learn to apply these techniques to modal songs and chords schemes of several common Jazz tunes.

 

Lesson 16: Etudes.

Several comprehensive etudes reassuming the whole course.