Early McCoy vs Late McCoy: How McCoy Tyner’s Playing Style Evolved Over Time
McCoy Tyner is unquestionably one of the most influential jazz pianists to date, with one of the most clearly recognizable sounds. But McCoy’s sound changed drastically – arguably more than any other jazz musician – as he evolved from a mainstream hard-bop player to an innovative post-bop player who defined a new approach to improvisation […]
Jazz Piano School Ep. 96 – 8 Different Ways To Add Rhythmic Variety To Improve Your Improvisation
Most of the time I hear beginner and intermediate players stop at using quarter notes and eighth notes. This greatly hurts the sound of your improvisation. Remember, jazz was and is a dance music! Rhythm is like the oxygen to jazz. Without it, your solo is going to die. Here’s how to start adding rhythmic variety to your improv.
Jazz Piano School Ep. 93 – Minor 2-5-1 Rootless Voicings & Improv
We continue our series on minor 2-5-1’s as I explain rootless voicing options and different ways to improvise along with the notes and scales that you can choose from. With a little practice you’ll feel confident about playing minor 2-5-1’s in standards in no time!
Jazz Piano School Ep. 92 – Minor 2-5-1 Basics
Playing minor 2-5-1 is usually a mysterious process for most. There is a lot of harmony that surrounds this subject and how to approach it. Rest assured these Minor 2-5-1 basics will allow you to feel confident when playing this type of harmony.
Jazz Piano School Ep. 91 – Benny Green “Celia” Transcription Analysis Series Part 2
We continue our Benny Green Transcription Series with a minor 2-5-1 into some very nice rhythmic motifs and harmonic development lines. This is the 2nd part of his solo on “Celia”.
Jazz Piano School Ep. 90 – Benny Green “Celia” Transcription Analysis Series
I absolutely love Benny Green’s playing. His lines are very clear, solid, and connect with the harmonies perfectly. In this podcast series I’m going to walk you through a Benny Green solo and point out the building blocks for you to practice in order to build freedom within your improv.
Jazz Piano School Ep. 82 – Connecting Harmonies With Ease
Connecting harmonies during improvisation is very simple when executed properly. Watch as I breakdown some ways to work on connecting harmonies and show you how to put everything together.
Jazz Piano School Ep. 81 – I Should Care Improv Analysis Part 2
This is part 2 of I Should Care Improvisation Analysis. We got a lot of great feedback on this type of podcast so we’re going to release a couple more as well. Watch as I break down my thought process while creating a solo from scratch.
Jazz Piano School Ep. 80 – I Should Care Improv Analysis
Watch as I build a solo from scratch talking about the importance of specific and harmonic changes you should add. I also add my thought process at approaching your connections through the harmonies.
Jazz Piano School Ep. 78 – Improving Your Bebop Through Structured Integration of Approach Notes
It’s hard to know exactly what to do to improve our improvisation right? Most of the time we just spend time learning licks and transcribing but this doesn’t really create the freedom we want. Learn how to systematically approach improvement at bebop!
