I’ve just had two videos filmed by excellent film maker Carlos Boellinger from Visual Dreams Production! Carlos and his colleague, Anya shot the videos at the Brunswick Pub in Hove then Carlos got to work editing the videos. Here’s the results!
solo guitar montage
jazz duo montage
Sussex Jazz Guitar School prep is here! Happy new year! As you know, we will be looking at the harmonic minor scale, it’s most important modes and arpeggios.
Ever struggled on how to improvise complex yet meaningful lines over a minor 2,5,1 ? Well I was stumped for years. I first tried using three melodic minor modes and diminished stuff but I could never improvise fluidly over this progression. I investigated harmonic minor scale devices and this was groundbreaking for me, and will be for you as well! We will be looking at other approaches (melodic minor etc) in future classes.
We will be using this to improvise over altered dominant chords, minor 2,5,1 progressions and to create a varying palette of colours to make our playing sound more exotic. We will look at ways of how to incorporate passing notes and use twists and turns within the scale linking it to arpeggios. So our jazz guitar lines will sound jazzy, hip and fresh! So no more running up and down the scale producing a “Carry on follow that camel” sound. We will be looking at jazz guitar practise techniques and also how to link our single note lines with block chords. These ideas will open up many possibilities for soloing over a tune like “Caravan”! Also tunes like “Minor Swing” and “Spain”.
First of all, for C harmonic minor
The scale degrees are;
1. C
2. D (natural 2nd)
3. Eb (minor 3rd)
4. F (Perfect 4th)
5. G (Pefect 5th)
6. Ab (flat 6th)
7. B (natural 7th)
In the guitar class, we will be learning the tricks and examples in this given position on the guitar neck. It’s in 3rd position. First in this video, I demonstrate the scale from root to root then I play all the available notes in that given position. If you are not already familiar with this scale on the guitar, learn this scale and memorize it. (you may have to refresh this page after each view to watch the same video again)
;
If you like and have time you can compare the notes of this scale to the notes of the Cmajor scale in the same area of the guitar neck. For a reminder, here is the video of the major scales and the scale position is the first one demonstrated.
And remember, in the key of C major, the chords we superimpose over a G7 chord are;
G7 from the root – G7 pure and simple!
Bm7b5 from the 3rd – Giving 3rd, 5th, 7th, 9th
Dm7 from the 5th – 5th, 7th, 9th, 11th
Fmaj7 from the flat 7 – 7th, 9th, 11th, 13th
If you are fluent with C harmonic minor in the given position then learn all the other fingerings. You can go through the major scales and drop the E to an Eb and A to an Ab.
This class should get us off to a good start to the new year with our jazz guitar voyage. The following classes will be packed full of useful new information, applications, practise techniques and also looking at breaking out of positions and learning how to master the guitar neck.
Remember! All ability levels are catered for! I will provide basic, easy to understand activities from the start of the concept and build on those with each student working at their own pace.
There are spaces left for 11th Jan class, but as always they get taken up leading up to the class. We had 16 at the last session, so I’m limiting numbers, so book now to secure your place! Contact me if you’ve forgotten the sign up details. See on the 11th!
Next three classes 11th Jan, 22nd Feb, 22nd March.
This is a no nonsense jazz guitar course with the aim of giving you the necessary skills to become the musician you want to be.
I will be providing specific information in key areas by introducing concepts and rinsing those concepts for all they’re worth and providing countless ways of practicing them from many angles to make learning fun whilst progressing at your maximum potential. No more plateaus, no more frustration with practice and development – but plenty of ” eureka” moments and a focused route for improvement as a jazz guitarist.
Practicing:
I always found I never knew what and how to practice when learning jazz guitar. I would get frustrated and overwhelmed by the sheer volume of material to work on. Should I practice licks from books? transcribe solos? How should I practice scales and arpeggios? How can I learn and memorize tunes? “There’s just too much, I’m never gonna learn all this!”
Improvising with arpeggios & scales:
When I asked musicians about how to solo over this tune, chord progression, chord whatever – I’d always get responses like, “Well, you can play D Dorian over that D minor chord” or ” To get an altered sound over C7 alt, whack Db melodic minor over it” or “play the arpeggios of the chord”etc… And I’d always think, yes fine, but HOW should I play these scales and arpeggios? How do I make it sound like JAZZ? How do I get the twisty, turny, zig zaggy melodic lines that sound jazzy? How do I apply this to tunes and make it come out in my playing ?
Time is precious, and how do I make the most of that time to learn and improve as a musician? So over the years, I started investigating concepts. I’d listen to recordings, watch live jazz gigs, read books, get the occasional lesson off a high profile jazz musician and through practice and hard work stumble upon certain concepts. I had many eureka moments finding these concepts. But the main point is that I take a concept and think of as many exciting ways to exploit it so that I practice it in countless ways using different approaches.
Exploring concepts:
So rather than saying as mentioned above ” whack Db melodic minor over C7alt”, I’d explore all the possible permutations of that scale, which are the important notes, how I can incorporate passing notes, targeting and enclosure of notes, what are the arpeggios built off the scale degrees, superimpose arpeggios over the chord, which arpeggios sound best over the chord, how to link these arpeggios together, ooh well I could play the arpeggios in all possible inversions, which inversions sound best? How can I mix the scale and the arpeggios – so I devised numerous devices to mix scales and arpeggios, what interesting rhythms /time signatures can I use? Play it scacatto, legato, loud, quiet, fast, slow, standing on my head upside down, make it sound classical, baroque, old Skool, modern, jarring, nice, ‘orrible! , beautiful, sleazy, twee, anything! I want my practice to be fun and I want to sound good when I play live. I’m still learning, and am no where near where I aspire to be, but I am meeting my goals over time and am actually now where I aspired to be sometime ago when I set my old goals. So any, here’s the plan Stan!
COURSE CONTENT:
Soloing over chord changes using single note lines:
We’ll be thoroughly exploring concepts using scales, arpeggios, triads, playing the melody of a tune and embellishing it, guide tones, targeting and enclosure and more to develop fluency when soloing thru the “changes”.
We’ll start by looking at the common chord types- minor, major, dominant and getting our gnashers around soloing over vamps over these chords.
We’ll move onto chord progressions such as the 2,5,1 in both major and minor keys and how to create interesting lines through the chords using guide tones and other devices.
We’ll analyse tunes, breaking them down into chord progressions and key centres and I’ll provide countless ways of practicing over the tune to gain fluency in creating meaningful lines weaving through the progressions and key changes.
We will leave no stone unturned in our quest for mastery of the fingerboard so will be practicing in all areas of the fretboard (including the dusty end!) and all string sets so that you are not limited by your easy familiar patterns. You’ll soon be flying all over the shop.
Chords:
We’ll be looking at triads and 7th chords, inversions of these chords up and down the neck, quartal chords stacked in 4ths for that oh so modern sound, chord substitutions, tritones – tri what? Chord alterations, superimposing cheeky chords over chords, Voice leading, different ways of comping and of course – APPLYING it to TOONZ, it’s got be be used in context in real life.
Chord melody:
The guitar is a solo instrument. As well as playing single note lines and chugging chords in a band, you can actually play it on your own playing the melody, chords and walking bass lines. It’s true! Check out Joe Pass, Martin Taylor, Fred Greene, Lenny Breau, Francecso Buzurro, Diego Figuerido and you’ll see!
And even if you don’t aspire to be a solo guitarist, this will still help fill out your playing in a band setting. We’ll be looking at how to come up with chord melodies by analysing the melody notes of a tune in relation to the chords, exploring which chord inversions can be used and various other techniques such as inner voice movement, baroque counterpoint and classical guitar stuff so your arrangements don’t all end up sounding like clumpy chords with the melody shoved on the top. Let’s make it sophisticated.
Threads running through the course:
There will be threads running thought the subject areas. For example, it is common for jazz guitar students to learn all the info n bumpf then wonder why they can’t execute it. So I’ll be providing support on guitar “Technique”, a commonly neglected area. Minimal movement and pressure, proper hand positions, left and right hand techniques, playing with and without a pick. All the stuff that’ll help you play well and cleanly, develop speed, chops and avoid the dreaded RSI and tendonitis.
Making practicing fun so you actually want to practice and look forward to it rather than regarding it as drudgery and hard graft. As I mentioned, taking concepts apart and wringing them out, rinsing them for all they’re worth and practicing in as many fun ways as possible. Getting the most out of your valuable time, reaching your goals but most importantly practicing concepts over jazz standards, Latin and bebop tunes. Yes, I’ll show you drills, exercises and the like but when we find ways of practicing these concepts over tunes, it’ll come out in our playing.
Analysing / performing jazz standards, be-bop & latin tunes:
We’ll be getting our teeth into jazz standards by analysing the chord progressions, key changes, melodies and heads so that you can play fluently through them. We will also work on MEMORIZING tunes and transposing them into all 12 keys so for example if a singer says “let’s play ‘Just Friends (or just fiends, teehee!)’ in D” you’ll be able to play it instantly without faffing with your iPhone to transpose it. I’ll be showing you techniques for this both on the guitar and AWAY from your instrument. If I’m ever in a boring que in a bank or something, I’ll take a standard and go through it in my heed in all 12 keys, stuff like that.
Course venue, structure and times:
Each session will run for 2.5hours with me demonstating the material, answering any questions and you practicing it with the other students. I’ll be showing you how to play effectively in jazz guitar duos and other practical situations. I will provide students with Prep work before each class – these will be key areas to look at and be aware of, which we will explore in detail during lessons so we’re all singing from the same hymn sheet. I will email the link to the Prep work to students which will be found on the Blog section of my website ; http://paulrichardsguitar.com/blog-new/
The course will be run at the Brunswick Pub (where I run the Brunswick jazz jam, which I will encourage you to play at!). The Brunswick is a buzzing hub for the local community, providing various events and workshops. It’s a great environment to learn in with lovely friendly staff and the venue will be an ideal place to meet fellow jazz guitar nuts and hang out afterwards and talk jazz guitar and other stuff over the Brunswick’s great selection of beers and wines and gorgeous meals (which are often only a fiver).
Course dates, prices & info: 2014
£20 per class / £55 for 3 classes
Sat 11th January
Sat 22nd February
Sat 22nd March
11am – 1.30pm
The Brunswick Pub 1 Holland Rd Hove BN3 1JF
Sussex Jazz Guitar School will be taking a break over December and returning on 11th January 2014. Since June, our monthly classes have covered a great deal of material concerning different aspects of jazz guitar performance. We have delved into a variety of different concepts on how to build single note jazz lines when improvising over chord changes, solo guitar concepts, chord melody playing, how to practice effectively over entire jazz standard tunes, movement of chords on the guitar and how to produce intricate inner voice movements and contrapuntal ideas with different voices of chords moving independently to each other. We have spent time really trying to nail the chord changes when soloing over them in a tune rather than just mindlessly noodling around in any given key.
Our last class focused on building concise bebop jazz lines over II, V, I progressions. We looked in depth at mixing up bebop scales with superimposed arpeggios and looking at how both chord tones and colour tones can be placed in a bar focusing on down and off beats.
The next class on 11th January will be looking at the Harmonic Minor Scale and it’s applications. We will be looking at the modes of this scale and what arpeggios are contained within these modes. We will be applying the information to II, V, I progressions in a minor key and how to creatively improvise over half diminished and altered dominant chords. We will also apply the information to vamps such as in the tune Caravan and to tunes such as Chick Corea’s “Spain”. The learning objective will be to be able to weave creative jazz lines using the Harmonic Minor scale and it’s arpeggios. This is also ideal for guitarists who have a particular interest in Flamenco, Spanish Rhumba or Flamenco Fusion! It’s also quite useful for those students who wish to pursue a career in snake charming – just come to the class, buy a basket n a snake then go busking in the Laines.
Again, don’t worry if all this sounds complicated! As usual, in class, I will break it down into manageable steps explaining everything clearly. I will also provide different challenges for different students in the class depending on ability level. By tackling the challenges set out in the class you will improve in other aspects of your guitar knowledge and discover valuable nuggets of useful knowledge along the way.
For those of you who have been attending regularly, you will see that the main theme running throughout the course is me passing on my approach to exploring concepts and practising effectively. I know it’s been arduous (but fun!) at times, but I am trying to instill into you how to really improve as a jazz guitarist and not to gloss over anything. It’s all about taking a concept and really really exploring it for all it’s worth, taking it apart, wringing it out and giving it a good ol’ rinsing! That is the path to true mastery my grasshoppers. I’m still learning myself and exploring new concepts in these precise way. But again having fun practising in creative ways!
I have seen some great performances of Sussex Jazz Guitar School students at my Jazz Jam night (Brunswick Jazz Jam). Some of you are really flying, impressing both fellow musicians and audiences at the Brunswick! So well done!
The last class in November was a good solid foundation for the up coming work in January. So those students who wish to book a one to one lesson in advance can do so and I’ll give you plenty of information and practise work.
The dates for 2014 are Saturdays – 11th Jan, 22nd Feb, 22nd March – 11am til 1.30pm (£20 per class, £55 for three)
I will send out the prep work before the class. In the meantime here’s two mighty guitar legends, flamenco guitarist Paco de Lucia and jazz guitarist John McLaughlin to get you in the mood for next class!
Hope all is well in Jazz guitar land with all the practising! As mentioned, we will be looking at more in depth ways to get through changes, create long flowing yet “concise” lines and develop an understanding of how to get through difficult chord changes in a jazz standard tune. This work is of real help in lead up to the January and February classes (Next three classes after this one are 11th Jan, 22nd Feb, 22nd March). In the January class we will focus on the harmonic minor/ Spanish Phrygian to play over minor II,V,I chord progressions and also static dominant chords found on the jazz tune caravan or even more contemporary tunes such as Chick Corea’s “Spain” which is also widely played in Flamenco fusion bands. We’ll be employed the use of bebop scales fused with the Spanish Phrygian! We will then go further and look at contrasting approaches using modes of the melodic minor scale! There is lots of scope here for advanced students and also beginners who wish to give their playing a different flavor as there will be easily broken down exercises for differing ability levels. These classes will apply the same movements we are going to cover in this class, where we will thoroughly examine the bebop scales and arpegios to create interesting melodic cells from specific various points in the bar. You’ll soon be playing “authentic?” (for want of a better word) lines, weaving in and out of chord changes like a whirling dervish or Tasmanian Devil. We’ll take some jazz standards with key changes and look how to use this info in a real life jazz situation!
Right! Many of you will be familiar with bebop scales but not the structured process we will use to create meaningful lines with them. Again, it’s the same old thing when I was starting out – “What can I play over G7?” Answer “G dominant bebop scale!” Well thanks a lot, you’ve answered all my questions! I used to think “so what” its just a scale with an added note. It wasn’t until about 10 years later through detailed study of in depth approaches including the work of legend Jazz pianist Barry Harris brought to my attention through a few lessons with jazz trumpet virtuoso Gary Kavanagh who studied with Barry Harris. We need to know WHAT to do with the scale and HOW to use it!
1. Dominant bebop scale. Take all positions of the Cmajor scale and play the fifth mode G mixolydian. Now add an extra note an F# which is a major 7.
G A B C D E F# F
Run up and down this scale in all positions.
2. Revise the facts the the arps contained in G7 are.. G7, Bm7b5, Dm7, Fmaj7
3. Major Bebop scale. Add the note Aflat which is a flat 6th. Even just adding this note will make the scale sound “jazzier” even before we look at how to use it.
C D E F G Ab A B
Run up and down in all positions. Again revise the arps built off each degree of the chord.
This shouldn’t really be a lot of work but is good to look at before I show you all the material employing these scales. Feel free to plough through all the previous prep work blogs which will have.
The next classes are 11th Jan, 22nd Feb, 22nd March so this is the last class of the year with a rather large break before the January class!
