CHORD MELODY
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NOTE: Click on “Older Entries” at the bottom of this page for more lessons or see the complete Chord Melody list on the PREMIUM page.
Peter Bernstein’s Chord Melody Snippets
If you’re a jazz guitarist or aspiring to be one in this day and age, you’ve most likely heard of Peter Bernstein. If not, it’s time you check him out as he is one of the finest and most influential players of the day! If you’re already familiar with his playing, and...
“Tenderly” – Chord Melody
If you enjoy jazz ballads, here is my chord melody arrangement of a classic..."Tenderly" written by Walter Gross and Jack Lawrence in 1946. If you're not familiar with it, be sure to check out the numerous renditions of this beautiful standard which includes Sarah...
La Vie En Rose- Chord Melody
I’m sure many of you guitarists have heard this tune countless of times even though you’ve probably never actually played it...and I’m referring to “La Vie en Rose” written by french vocalist Edith Piaf back in 1945 right as World War 2 was ending. And it’s...
Sleigh Ride
Here are two jazzy arrangements of a holiday favorite: "Sleigh Ride"! I like to think of this tune as "Santa's Rhythm Changes" because it features a fast recurring "I-VI-II-V" progression over the A and C sections. Maybe that's because it was written in 1948, and the...
White Christmas
It’s that magic time of the year again, and I just posted a new jazzy chord melody arrangement of a holiday favorite! I’m referring to Irving Berlin’s classic “White Christmas”. It’s a solo guitar piece with lots of nice chord voicings. If you start practicing it...
God Only Knows
Brian Wilson may not be a jazz musician, but among the great compositions he wrote during his career with the Beach Boys, there is one that is as harmonically sophisticated as any of the standards included in the Great American Songbook! And I’m referring to “God Only...
I Fall In Love Too Easily – Chord Melody
If you like ballads, please check out this chord melody arrangement of “I Fall in Love Too Easily” written by Jule Styne and Sammy Cahn. It was originally introduced by Frank Sinatra in the 1945 film, Anchors Aweigh and was nominated for an Academy Award for best...
Chordal Planing
So what on earth is planing? It is often associated with a practice that was frequently used in the music of Debussy and Ravel. During the late 19th century, composers started experimenting with the use of upper extensions in their harmony and ended up creating large...
Monk Chords for Guitar
Do you like bebop? Do you like Thelonious Monk? Are you looking to expand your jazz chord vocabulary? If so, read on... In my newly posted lesson I share several snippets of Monk transcriptions I’ve done, in order to adapt some of his unique piano chord voicings to...
Ravel Chords for Jazz Guitar-Part2
In this 2nd installment of Ravel Chords for Jazz Guitar, I go deeper into Ravel’s impressionist harmony and its application to jazz standards. For starters, I play and analyze an excerpt from a composition that many believe influenced John Coltrane to compose “Giant...
Ravel Chords for Jazz Guitar
Did you know that the bebop pioneers discovered how to use upper extensions from analyzing the music of the impressionists...namely Debussy and Ravel? But the exploration of impressionist harmony on behalf of jazz musicians did not end there! Post-bop musicians have...
One Note Samba
If you’re a fan of bossa nova, Antonio Carlos Jobim needs no introduction. Almost every one of his compositions is pure jazz harmony! And in this video I am happy to share with you my solo guitar arrangement of one his most beloved pieces: "One Note Samba". In the...
Ed Bickert’s Solo on Manha de Carnaval
I recently posted a lesson teaching various chord melody segments by Ed Bickert, one of my all time favorite guitarists who sadly is no longer with us. As underrated as many of us feel he was, I was happy to learn from the comments that he has a small cult-like...
I’ll Be Home For Christmas
Here's my chord melody arrangement of “I’ll Be Home For Christmas” and I have to admit, I’ve never had so much fun improvising over a Christmas standard! I hope you will take a couple of minutes to check it out. You’re still in time to learn it for Christmas... And if...
Ed Bickert’s Chord Voicings
In this lesson I explore the unique chord melody style of one of my favorite jazz guitarists whom I've always felt deserves much more recognition. I’m referring to the late Canadian guitarist, Ed Bickert (1932-2019) who not only is known by hardcore jazz guitar fans...
Let it Snow!
Here's a jazzy chord melody arrangement of a holiday season classic, which needless to say, I’m sure you’ve heard a gazillion times... “Let it Snow”. The beauty of these Christmas classics is that they were written by many of the same composers that wrote those...
Desafinado
If you like bossa nova, here's my chord melody arrangement of the AC. Jobim classic... “Desafinado”. This one is full of gorgeous harmony and several interesting key modulations here! It is also said that he was partly inspired by the 2 initial chords of “Take The A...
Killer Joe
For this lesson, I have prepared a solo chord melody arrangement of saxophonist Benny Golson’s “Killer Joe”. And I’m dedicating it to the memory of my 3 favorite Jazz Joe’s: Joe Henderson, Joe Diorio and Joe Pass! In case you’re not familiar with this standard, it...