Tag Archives: intervallic improvising

Serious noodling

The whole point of having an intuitive instrument is to be able to follow the promptings of your Inner Ear without having to stop and think. Which scale is this? What note am I starting from? And much less: which … Continue reading

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MOVES: Melodic Freedom for the Classically Chained

Followers of this blog (both of you) will have noticed that I like to quote the NLP adage: “The Map is not the Territory”. And one of my main beefs about most traditional musical instruments, when it comes to learning … Continue reading

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The ingredients of improvising musicianship

So you want to build your massive improvising musicianship, and I hear you ask: what does that consist of? And how do I go about getting it? Inspired by coach John Wooden’s Pyramid of success,  I came up with the pyramid you … Continue reading

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Musical theorems: a bluffer’s guide

The idea of musical theorems is all about drawing simple conclusions from your basic knowledge about notes, and putting them to use in your playing. An example. You know every major scale contains three notes from one wholetone scale and … Continue reading

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How to work a lick

So you can’t get that lick or turnaround out of your head. You wonder how anyone can just come up with something that cool –  just like that! – in the middle of a solo. You realize it’s time to … Continue reading

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Reading Between the Dots

One of the commonest exercises in  jazz improvisation methods is the transposition exercise. You are given a lick or an arpeggio, usually in the key of C, and you are required to practice it in all twelve keys. The assumption … Continue reading

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A Kind of Hush

A Kind of Hush {-1 -9* +5 +4 -2 -3 -3 +6 -2 -8* +5 +3 -2 -3 -3 +6} x 12 This is an exercise that is easy to hear in you head, as it comes from the hook … Continue reading

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