the alternating rhythm excercise is something i recognize from dr. nathan bogert. wonderful human and player, and i still utilize that technique to this day.
Been watching you for years and it's really nice to see how much you've improved. I can really hear the precision in your technique. You should post more of you just playing over tunes or smth, I'm sure a lot of us would love to hear.
I’ve been getting into transcribing solos initially due to the Mario Kart licc, and learning how to identify chords and sight read. Thanks for all the videos, keep it up!
Excellent I can listen to your motivational analysis all day. To me, you come across as an astute musical psychopathologist, which I adore. Thanks, champion 🏆 🥇 🎉
Thanks Nathan. You’re awesome! Got some of your swag for Christmas, so stoked! Happy New Year and God bless! Your videos rock, please keep them up. Peace.
hey there! so i've heard that the boston sax shop just released TWO alto mouthpieces, the M-series and the S-series. do you think you could give those two a try and compare them with your nexus edge and your meyer?
Hey guys, I'm a pianist and I've been trying to get into jazz I've tried looking up but couldn't find anything conclusive list on the most important/well known/whatever standarts - what standarts should I listen to and try to learn?
Great video! I love how it tackles a common question on how to incorporate - into your playing and this hits one of those potential questions. I think a big point that could’ve been emphasized a little more is that it takes time. In Jon Irabagon’s masterclass at FSU a few months back, he emphasized that whatever he practiced took about six months to start showing up in his playing, and after hearing that we were shocked because he’s absolutely killing! Also, I love how you give variation on your examples and exercises! Thanks for the info!
Another nasty metronome thing to really work on feeling pulse is using the random beat silencer metronomes. TE tuner has one of these, as does a silly metronome called time guru.
I love it when you give so much useful, practical content!!!!!! Of course, I have many books from JLV I sleep on, but osmosis doesn’t work. Guess I’ll keep working on execution. 😂
Thanks for the post! I love books myself! I’m running of space and time. I’ll be 81 in a few months. I enjoyed your presentation. Have a good New Year!!
I learned part of a Clifford Brown solo on alto a while back, by now I can't remember it, so I struggle to grasp the importance of transcribing when I will just forget what I memorized. That goes for licks in general as well. This is a genuine issue coming from a sincere place. I am still trying to figure out how to actually practice jazz improv, since I have just gotten by with the bare minimum through college jazz band. I teach now and do not have a good answer for kids who want to learn themselves. You can't possibly just pull out all memorized chunks to make a solo right? You can only have so much memorized at one time that you would run out of material pretty quick, so I think, but this ends up not being the case. What am I not getting? PS, what neck strap is in this video?
I think over time you'll see a lot of the cats use the same language? You'll see similarities over time it's just where they use it and what the connecting material is before and after. Sometimes just get the line shape in mind? Ive been at this a long time and I always go back to basics and firm things up. Always helps too use what u learn even pieces of it then forget it, u never know maybe it'll come out next month, next year etc we're not computers we don't wanna just be lick machines. My last yrs at Berklee all the old jazz cats kept telling me keep that idea going? Longer ideas? It's more memorable imo anyway keep at it
Pretty cool tip(s) ! NG can you tell me a music program or software I can use to input notes and it will play it back ? I can read pretty well , but one of my main issues is understanding the rhythmic value/notation of what I’m reading . Thanks
Good tips! I usually find myself taking a tiny little idea or concept from a book and then running with it. These books are filled with so much stuff, but you can often get a lot out of just a single piece of material.
Dude, love love love your content for ideas on how to broaden your training routines. After working on the same line over and over again, I find myself naturally playing with the timing of the notes and it does feel like a completely new line with the same notes.
I have a great saxophone you should research about, it’s ortwein woodwinds he makes saxophones for a really good deal, they are based on mark sixes and Yamaha customs, he is a very amazing musician I got my tenor from him I would share a picture but I can’t through RU-vid.
rly dig your technique, very inspiring. i guess tho i won't be able to utilized much of the information in this video, let alone your courses because like most people I don't suffer from a lack of available information but from a lack of brain and chops/ time already spend practicing diligently
And it sounds boring as hell. You need books on creativity and neurotransmitters and stress and mindfulness. People don't say they got worse at almost anything except running - even those people delete their past PRs and pretend to beat their speed from that years off season for an illusion of improvement in old age because they cannot take it. But people get worse. Sooo much worse. Most musicians peak around 25. A select few keep getting better into their 50's (Hillary Hahn, Rostropovich ...) but people like Yo Yo Ma went from being some of the best to being rather mediocre. Ma at 35 didn't even sound like the same cellist from when he was 25. He regained some of that in recent years but not all. He also failed at composing. Composing is the hard part. Well ... that is IF you manage to get over the impossible hill first of not being told how music works correctly and either starting early enough that you can actually figure it out eventually or never getting it and staying shitty no matter how many hours you practice while the people who "do it" automatically are of zero help to you. If you already have talent and come from a music family maybe a theory reference is useful - but why wouldn't I just go to the library ? Your last point on improving memory could use the info I dropped in the comment as you don't actually address HOW to memorize. You just tell people to do it, lol. You are not teaching people music ... you're just mucking up the search results and filling up server space. And you would get better at transcribing by transcribing so you get used to associating keys memories with musical feel. Then you actually begin to work like one of those 'talented' people. Some have it easier in the beginning and usually everyone else gives up (their early music classes don't even touch working by ear properly for years anyway leading to total disconnect and worse musical capability) You don't observe your life. Your craft. Thinking. Music perception. Playing. You know what is interesting ? There is free code out there which will write you all the etudes in better variety and which ever ones you want. For any one with basic even awareness of HTML ... you don't have to know much ... there are free guides step by step for it all. Even saw websites which just give access to arpeggiators with the user interface done up nicely. Noobs at music have no idea that you're not even teaching them audiation or what audiation is and without that you will never truly improve your abilities.... you are leading them into darkness
I actually largely agree with what you're saying and enjoyed many points you made! But, I think you might have missed the point of this video. It's talking about strategies as to how we can use books to serve elements in our playing that will enhance our improvisation over time. No where did I mention that books are required/mandatory, nor did I mention that they transcend transcribing or doing or composition. I actually made sure to give a preface that books don't replace those things. The inspiration behind this came because with beginners, there is a common misconception/hope that if you just buy a certain book, read it from start to finish, then you'll be able to improvise by the end of it. But, when done, everyone quickly sees that's not how it works. However, when you have come to a point of acceptance that improving at jazz is a long-term daily project, and you are consciously aware of the current weaknesses in your playing you want to address, then yes, sometimes books actually can serve in improving upon those weaknesses if you are intentional with what you are looking for. As far as the memory bit, the process of memorization can be subjective and vary from level to level. What works for me may not work for 75% of the audience. I can show you how I memorize in step by step detail, but I think I would be better off saving that for an entire video on that subject itself. In this video I talked about the objective benefits of committing an etude to memory, which does serve the title of this video - How to Actually Use Books to Improve at Jazz.
