JAZZ IMPROVISATION

Every now and then, do you feel like you’re just incessantly playing the same licks, scales and arpeggios without saying anything? Furthermore, do you sometimes feel like they don't even sound jazzy? In this lesson I teach you a seldom taught line construction...

I don’t know about you, but I’ve always been fascinated by the symmetrical diminished scale!  And I know that this is also the case with so many jazz musicians we all look up to. For example, the late Pat Martino used the symmetrical diminished as the source from...

On February 2nd 2022, I was saddened to hear that we lost a great jazz guitar pioneer...Joe Diorio. As a result I have decided to dedicate this lesson to his memory and share with you a sample of his unique contribution to the ongoing evolution of jazz guitar. When I...

Did you know that one of the primary ways in which great musicians incorporate new ideas such as licks into their vocabulary, is by first writing their own solos over a standard? As a matter of fact, the more they do this, when the time comes to improvise, the easier...

Whether or not you are a John McLaughlin fan, I’m sure you agree that he is an awesome musician! When I first heard him with the Mahavishnu Orchestra, I remember thinking he was from another planet (lol). And that’s because as a teenage rock guitarist who had just...

Did you know that a few wrong notes played with great timing over a tight groove will often go by unnoticed by many, whereas the opposite, a great melodic line played with bad timing will be apparent even to most musically uneducated ears? In this lesson I demonstrate...

If you watched and enjoyed my 18 Bebop Licks videos by both Charlie Parker and Wes Montgomery, you’ll love this one. And although Grant Green shouldn’t need an introduction, let me just say that he was one of the most recorded jazz guitarists, particularly during the...

Do you ever feel like you’re playing the same old ideas over and over again every time you take a solo? If you answered yes, you’re not alone! As a matter of fact, when I graduated from Berklee College of Music in the early 80’s, I was one of those players that knew...

Have you ever transcribed or simply tried to analyze a solo by one of your favorite players and found that in more than one measure, there were notes that absolutely did not relate to the prescribed chord?  Strangely enough, you listen to the recording in context and...

If you want to grow your bebop vocabulary, you need to resort to its most respected source…Charlie Parker! And that is exactly what I did for this lesson. I carefully analyzed various Charlie Parker heads and extracted 18 licks which I believe embody the essence of...

This post includes the 3 Part Series: "5 Practice Habits of Great Jazz Musicians". Part 1 covers Habit 1: "Great Jazz Musicians Push The Envelope" and explains how they use the concept of "deliberate practice". Part 2 covers Habit 2: "Great Jazz Musicians Are Always...

When teaching rhythms in jazz improvisation there is an important 2 note rhythm cell that very, very few players seldom mention. Nonetheless, in this lesson I tell you all about it so you too can start using! And believe me when I say...it is guaranteed to make your...

If you’re like most guitarists who got into jazz coming from a rock-blues background, and you still play a solid body, you’ve probably entertained the question..."To bend or not to bend?” After all, string bending has been an integral aspect of playing electric...