A Shifty Turnaround by Brad Mehldau on “It Might as Well Be Spring” (LOTW #132)
Brad Mehldau demonstrates his individual style on his first album as a leader, “Introducing Brad Mehldau.” He spices it up by playing the standard tune “It Might as Well Be Spring” in 7/8 with a clave ostinato pattern. Listen how he navigates the odd meter while adding his own flavor to the turnaround at the […]
JPS Ep:139 – 7 Ways To Improvise Over Modal Minor Chords
Improvising over 32 measure of minor 7th chords can leave us scratching our heads. What do we play? How do we keep our solo interesting. In this episode I’m going to show you my 7 favorite ways to improvise over modal minor 7th chords so you can implement burnin’ colors, textures and atmospheres into your solo! Enjoy!
Phineas Newborn Plays the Blues (LOTW #131)
Hear how Phineas Newborn plays the blues on “Cheryl” from his classic album “A World of Piano” in 1961. His use of chromaticism and blues vocabulary gives his playing a modern edge that still cuts through by today’s standards.
JPS Ep:138 – 4 Ways To Spice Up Major 7th Chords
We ALL get stuck in our own ways of playing something the same way. Even me! Check out these 4 ways to add some spice, texture, and atmosphere to your major 7th chords.You can start to use these 4 building blocks to expand upon as well and create new sounds!
Sonny Clark’s Classic Improv Lines on “All of You” (LOTW #130)
Here is some classic hard bop vocabulary over the tune “All of You,” originally made famous by Miles Davis. Sonny Clark outlines the changes in his solo with clarity and grace from his album “Blues in the Night.”
JPS Ep:137 – What JPS Is Today & Where It’s Going
Jazz Piano School has come a LONGGG way since the days I first hacked together a terrible wordpress site. Now, JPS has helped, and is CURRENTLY helping thousands of people learn jazz piano freedom. In this episode I’ll explain my goals and ambitions that I’ve brought JPS to where it is. I’ll also talk about the AMAZING expansion, custom website, and teacher tools we plan to implement!Hold on to your butts cause here we go!
Quirky Polytonal Lick by Paul Bley on “All the Things You Are” (LOTW #129)
Paul Bley is known for his individual approach to creating melodies. Check out this line from “All the Things You Are” on a recording with Coleman Hawkins from 1963. He starts out with a chromatically ascending motive and cadences in A major, a half step above!
Bill Evans’ Swinging Two-Five Lick from “Peri’s Scope” (LOTW #128)
On his classic 1960 recording of “Peri’s Scope” from Portrait in Jazz, Bill Evans comes out swinging! In this phrase, he riffs on a C in rhythm over a 3-6-2-5 progression, and resolves it with a flourish outlining a D minor 11th chord. Quintessential Bill Evans right here!
JPS Ep:136 – Playing in 7/4 Meter with Claves
Playing in 7/4 meter can be a fun way to explore new rhythmic possibilities and comes with its own set of challenges. In this podcast lesson, we will explore ways of practicing 7/4 by using rhythmic claves to make it feel as natural as possible. Come along and feel the beat!
JPS Ep:135 – Learn Jazz Piano – Our 4 Step System
Learning jazz piano isn’t a guessing game, even that’s how I approached it for 15+ years. It’s a system. The majority of students, including myself start by learning tunes.This should be the LAST step we do. Before that we need jazz piano TOOLS. Would you try and read and write without learning the Alphabet? No of course not. Jazz Piano is the exact same way. In this 15 minute podcast I’m going to break down the 4 step system we use that is has successfully taught thousands of students jazz piano so you can use it too.
