This online course is the first of four on playing jazz piano. It is aimed at playing modern jazz piano in a group context. It’s ideal if you can already play the piano, play your scales and have a basic ability to read music. The course utilises an overhead camera to show you exactly what is being played. So firstly it is a “How To” course: “Watch what is being played – now try it yourself”. In addition it relies on using “playalongs”, that is pre-recorded bass and drum tracks which you can play along with. The course concentrates on the blues first and then looks at playing a jazz standard.
What topics will you cover?
- The three principal chords of Jazz and Blues
- Practicing with playalongs
- The 4 routes to improvisation: scalic, chordal, motivic and special devices
- The major seventh, the Ionian scale and basic voicings
- Improvising on a Jazz standard: The Blue Room
What will you achieve?
By the end of the course, you’ll be able to…
- Demonstrate your ability to play and improvise on three blues in C, F and B flat using a playalong
- Demonstrate your ability to play and improvise on a jazz standard using a playalong
- Explore the art of improvisation using the four routes: scalic, chordal, motivic, special devices
Who is the course for?
This course is for any interested pianist, but may be of particular interest to university or college piano students studying music.
What software or tools do you need?
You’ll need to have access to a piano or keyboard and a computer, tablet or smart phone set up next to it.
