Q. I play alto in my school's Jazz Band, and I wanted to replace the senior piano player at my school. I've played classical piano on and off since I was 6, but never was to serious with it. My teacher is clueless about jazz, but i have previous chord knowledge from improving on sax. What could I do to help improve my transition into the jazz piano world, reading more complicated jazz rhythms, and comping chords?
A. PRACTICE! is the short answer. As with anything musical, and especially improvisatory and spontaneous music like jazz, developing to the point of sounding competent will take time and dedication and perseverance.
Transcription and listening is important. That's something you should be doing already for the saxophone. Pay attention to pianists on your favorite records, particularly how they comp behind others, since that will be your biggest job in a large jazz ensemble. Transcribe comping rhythms that are attractive to you as well as ones you hear often; even if you don't transcribe the exact voicing, you can still practice using the same rhythms over the changes to standards.
Practice comping in time with a metronome. If you can consistently and accurately play on a steady pulse, you can decidedly play around it. Set the metronome slower and slower while increasing the beats; for example, start with 120 bpm and play one chord every two metronome beats, then decrease it to around 85 and play on every beat, then set it around 50 bpm and treat each pulse as a full bar, playing four even notes between beats. Practice playing in this way to get your time rock solid.
If you are able to get together and play with the rest of the rhythm section from the band, I'd recommend doing so. Get together and play through standards. Work together on building a communication while playing behind (supporting) a horn soloist. Aebersold play alongs are also good for practicing comping "with a band" at home.
Another vital thing for jazz pianists is effective chord voicings. Check out Dan Haerle's book on voicings and work through his exercises. Phil DeGreg also has a really nice progressive (step-by-step) book that's great for getting good-sounding voicings under your fingers. I've studied both.
The only way to get better at reading rhythms is to do it. Sight-read through a hymnal, old songbook, whatever. If you can find piano charts for big band that only have rhythmic notation with chord symbols, those are great for practicing reading rhythm and chord progressions. Start slow and methodical; remember you are striving for accuracy, not speed. Eventually, you'll recognize rhythms from having read them so many times before, and it will come easier to you.
Above all, technique is king. If you don't know how to touch the instrument and can't get around it, all the internal theory and knowledge and tasty licks won't do you much good on the bandstand. Classical lessons aren't necessary, but they challenged me in ways that I wasn't challenged in jazz lessons. Consider taking lessons regularly (either classical or jazz or both, if you have the time).
Good luck!
How do I learn what guitar chords to play in order to jam in a certain key.?
Q. I know scale positions on a guitar but how do I learn which chords can be played in a certain key? I want to be able to jam with chords, not just play solos.
A. Doing this well requires a good knowledge of music theory, but here is a basic stuff to get you started:
You first need to find the relative major scale of key you are using. For example, G is the relative major to E min because they have the same notes, just a different order. C is the relative major to A min, ect.
If you are in a major key, the distance between the notes should be as follows
I-whole-ii-whole-iii-half-IV-whole-V7-whole-vi-whole-viidim-half-I
The "wholes" represent two half steps (two frets) and the "halfs" represent one half step, or one fret. For example, F# is one half step above F. G is one whole step above F.
When counting up, remember what a piano looks like - there is no black key between B/C and between E/F. This means that F is one half step up from E.
Now that you have your scale, you find the chords. If you look at the spacing chart above, you'll notice some roman numerals are capitalized - this means they are major chords. The lower case are minor chords. The V7 means a 7th chord (you can do major or minor depending on the style of music [ie jazz uses min7]) You can also just play a major chord if you don't want to get fancy. The viidim is a tricky chord. It is REALLY hard to figure in melodically. Many people just use vii instead.
To sum it all up, let me give an example. Let's say we have the Emin scale. I'd want to find the relative major scale - G. The notes in G are G-A-B-C-D-E-F#-G. The chords, therefore, are G Amin Bmin C D (or D7) Emin F#min (or F#dim) G.
There is quite a bit more to this on when to use 6th chords, and augmented chords, and more....but you need to know the basics first. Every song can be jammed to or played with basic chords. Making them more complex will add style once you get the basic chord progression down.
What is the best piano method for beginning adults?
Q. I am an adult who wishes to take piano lessons - is their a clear concensus on piano teaching methodology? I desire to be able to play classical pieces, as well as be able to read down a jazz chart!
A. Play Piano In a Flash - Even If You Don't Know Where Middle C Is
So, you've been dying to play the piano. But you don't want to spend years learning how to read music. Of course you don't! And you won't have to IF you learn a chord-based approach to playing the piano.
Here's a method I use to get my students playing piano in a flash. First, you need to learn a few chords. But not just any chord type. No. The chord type I have my students learn first is something called the open position chord. And with it, you'll be able to create your own unique music right away!
The open position chord is exactly what its name implies. It's a chord structure that covers more than 2 octaves of the keyboard AND uses both hands right away. If you don't know what an octave is, not to worry. Suffice it to say that 2 octaves are over 16 white keys. It's a handful to play this chord structure but once you master it, you'll be well on your way to unlocking the secrets of keyboard harmony.
So, how exactly can we use this chord to create music with? Easy. Take a look at my free piano lesson "Reflections in Water" (available by clicking below.) The first thing you notice about this lesson is that it's unusual. It's not your typical piano lesson by far. In fact, you might even think it looks like an art lesson - and you'd be right! I specifically designed the lessons using a step by step approach that many art instruction books use.
The lesson contains four open position piano chords with fingering diagrams. The beautiful thing about this chord structure is that once you master it, you can easily use it to play ALL the chords in all 12 keys. The first thing I ask you to do is play the chords - first all tones together (solid chords) and then with the tones broken up (broken chords.)
Once you have this chord structure under your fingers and you've developed a muscle memory for it, the rest is easy!
In the lesson "Reflections in Water," we use this chord structure to improvise a few minutes of music. The chord progression is laid out for you and all you have to do is simply follow along. I also provide audio examples so you can hear how I used the same chords to improvise with.
If you really want to play piano in a flash and don't want to wait, try the open position piano chord. You won't be disappointed!
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Title : How do I get better at Jazz Piano?
Description : Q. I play alto in my school's Jazz Band, and I wanted to replace the senior piano player at my school. I've played classical piano ...