I found this excercise quite challenging. More than some other music that I have learned by memory. Because if you think about it, learning by memory is actually quite easy. You just memorize the score and you got it. In this case you are making decisions while you are playing...I definitely have to practice way more my 7 chords. Thanks for sharing!
This video was insanely helpful. Previously I have only ever played classical music or hundreds of contemporary songs by ear. When I was asked to play jazz for an audition just now I was so confused. Watching this was so fascinating and I felt like it opened a door for me. Thank you
Hey - just wanted to let you know... watched this video in 2015 when it came out... it is now 2019 and I can FINALLY play it comfortably! Now - ready to move on to your next video from 2015... ;-)
I would liken the brilliance of this lesson to a book written by legendary jazz drummer Sonny Igoe named "Get Your Fills Together". Yes this stuff is complex, but when you explain the meat of the subject matter, there is an underlying simplicity that gets uncovered, helping newbies like me to grab on and start practicing in the right direction. Thank you so much.
I just wanted to add my thanks to all the others. I have finally got to the end with a lot of practice and now feel ready to play this fabulous melody with your chord patterns. Ready to improvise and take on the entire tune. Beautiful.
Thanks Leo. You might like more of Hayden's lessons. There's lots of free ones here: www.pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/ - click into the various courses and anything without the padlock sign is free to access. Cheers, PianoGroove
I’m a Bassplayer and I do understand the importance of the Bassplayer practicing with the use of the piano but I was looking for something else on my lab top and found you, I’m glad I found you enough said 😊
I love the calm & clear way in which you explain things! 👏👏👌Need to find your 251 chord video first to start I think..but I love your arrangements..Particularly your ‘Autumn leaves’ covered in another video! My favourite but a little too challenging for me just yet! Thanks for helping us all! 😁👍
I have learned a lot from this channel, but it was this video more than any other that combined knowledge gained with pure joy in learning to play a song. I have still not conquered the advanced voicings and have much work left to do, but I'm over the hump. That is what led me to go ahead and pay for a year's subscription to the site. A year from now, I know that I will have at least the 8 beginner jazz ballads under my fingers, hopefully much more. The dollar price is trivial in comparison for what I will get.
So great! Coming from a classical background I was doing exactly what you pointed out at the beginning and wondering why there was no jazz in the songs. Time to learn some new chord voicings
+Jonathen Bishop Thanks Jonathen - Awesome.... glad top hear you enjoyed the lesson. You can find more free lessons here if you are interested: bit.ly/get-5-free-lessons Cheers, PianoGroove
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This was great, been searching for "piano sheet music chords" for a while now, and I think this has helped. Have you ever come across - Nonason Ranincoln Genie - (Have a quick look on google cant remember the place now )? It is a great one off guide for discovering how to play the piano like a pro minus the hard work. Ive heard some interesting things about it and my partner got excellent results with it.
Thank you kind sir. Your videos help alot. If I could request a video, can you make one on properly interpreting a jazz-blues piece for solo piano. Thanks!
I've been looking for a lesson that can help me apply chord Voicing, 2-5-1, or whatever I practice to a lead sheet. Which note I should play on LH, which on RH to make them go together smoothly. Hardly anybody show me how or they are too difficult to follow. Finally, I found this one very helpful. Thank you so much.
+Beng OK Hi Beng, no problem. Check out the other free jazz standard lessons for more challenging tunes: bit.ly/jazz-piano-lessons Cheers, PianoGroove.
Yo, so I just finished learning this (without the chords extensions) and I'm wondering, as this is the first jazz standard I try to learn : how do I go from being able to play what you teach in this video to being able to play what's being played in the recording ? For instance if I want to improvise do I just loop over the progression with my left and play appropriate lines with my right ? Should I learn the walking bassline ? Any tips would be helpful, thanks
I feel so lucky to find such helpful tutorial!! Thanks a lot!! Anyway, about the A7 chord at the very last of the tutorial, you said you flat the 9th and the 13th. What is the theory behind this? Could you explain a little bit more when should we use it please?
+Thành Phạm Hi Thanh, Yes this is an altered dominant chord. Possible alterations include b9, #9, #11 and b13. You can add alterations to any dominant chord to create more tension. Check out this lesson for more information: bit.ly/altered-251s Cheers, PianoGroove
Thanks for this, immensely helpful for someone looking to get into Jazz piano. One question, why does P.C in the real book look so different in the real book to how it’s played? In the book it just says 1 chord for four bars at the start but plays very differently
The other comments mirror my impression watching this for the first time. We all feel like beginners and a bit overwhelmed @ improvising or pulling it together, and this video opens up the secret pathway. The tune is interesting, not a beaten up war horse, and we see the process - even tho we know it will take much time to work through the steps to get there. But once we push through, we will be on the way - hopefully.....
Thank you very much for this. I moved over to jazz (from electronica pop) five years ago. But, I still have the problem that my playing still sounds like 'pop' and not jazz. With your help, I believe I will overcome this.
Hey Anil, my pleasure, glad you're finding the lessons useful. After this lesson I would recommend watching the lesson on Tenderly: www.pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/tenderly-jazz-standard/ - All the best, PianoGroove
hey man, the thing is..II wanted to learn how to read notes, however I got so tired midway and just end up coyipng what you're doinf based on your fingers hahahhhahhaha cheers mate! my first time to try piano and I appreciate it more!
Hey :) hope you can answer here. I have the Berkeley jazz standards book and while they have sheet music similar to what I see in the video, they also have a bass clef. How do you read it then?
This is an amazing lesson for beginners. Even intermediates and advanced players can learn something from it. Your explanation and presentation is on point!! Thank you
That's awesome thanks for the comment.... glad to hear it's so useful to so many people. If you're interested in more lessons, you can sign up to get 5 exclusive ones here: bit.ly/get-5-free-lessons - they cover jazz standards, chords, voicings and improvisation :-) Cheers, PianoGroove
3:36 If I understand correctly, the basic A7=A(C#)EG; A9=A(C#)EGH; A13=A(C#)EGF, if we alter at will F into F# we have A13=A(C#)EG(F#). So, it could be A7 which includes A G B(H) C# and F# that we take from A7,A9 and A13 in the way we want it, right?
So the melody note does not have to be on top or the highest pitch note? Or is it? I am having a hard time following which finger is playing the melody?And is the the same technique as playing chord melody?
Thanks a lot for sharing!! It was super useful!! What about the 5ths?? I've seen that sometimes they seem to be avoided in the voicings... What must be done with them?
Same doubt here! Where did the 5ths go?? Please tell me if you have figured it out! edit: found come useful explanation: "Jazz harmonies often contain many notes, thanks to the common practice of extending the harmonies. Oftentimes, it is not desirable that all these notes be given equal weight in your voicing. It’s common to omit some notes when voicing these extended harmonies. The most common note to omit is the fifth of the chord. Because the 5th is an early pitch in the harmonic series (partial 3), it tends to strengthen the root of the chord without adding much character on its own." viva.pressbooks.pub/openmusictheory/chapter/jazz-voicings/
The fifth is the least important note in the chord , to piggyback on what Matheus said. The root is, well, the root! The third is necessary because it helps you distinguish Major from minor. And the seventh is what makes the chord a seven chord.
Forgive me as I come from a classical background, when you called out around the 3:30 mark "this looks like a 2-5-1 progression", that initially caught me by surprise since the key signature indicates C major and the chords in question weren't in that key (but rather in reference to the key of D major ). Since you identified additional 2-5-1 progressions that followed in other keys, it seems like the key signature doesn't really help as much in identifying chord progressions. Would you say this is true / typical? P.S. I've placed an order for your book recommendation - thanks!
@Spanish Moustache i asked the same thing yesterday... and his reply was spot on - in jazz - throw out the rules and allow for some "flexibility".... you don't need to play all the notes in the provided chord... and often, chords are modified with augments and addon notes. lifetime of learning!!
Hello I'm a begginer and I just wanted to know, so are the chordd always going to be played with the left hand or can it switch depending on what song and is the right hand always holding the melody
Nice video. But I want to understand how u will improvise on tunes. Eg how autumn leaves sheet music is less how to make it long in my play with improvisation.
Nicely done--I have the sheet on this one an love to play it--although not as professionally as you. Good explanation, what 3 chords are you playing post the EbMj7-->>going to EM7 --G-F-E? Great instruction.
I am simply taking the melody note and building a so what chord underneath. This is rehamonising the chord changes. When you move the same chord voicing around (parallel movement) it sounds great. The So What chord is also based on 4ths (which are harmonically ambiguous) and so these chords are great for rehamonising a melody line. Hope this helps and you can find more lessons here: bit.ly/get-5-free-lessons Cheers, PianoGroove
As a horn it is easy to voice lead. But on piano idk I feel like my fingering gets all messed up any advice on fingering? It just doesn’t compute with me right now
First thanks so much for these videos! I’m wondering why your lead sheet is different than mine. I also have The Real Book Sixth Edition but Tune Up is on page 418 in my book. The melody and the chord changes are also slightly different. I don’t get it. Any ideas why this would be?
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As a classical/jazz pianist I learned that jazz is always additional notes above the tonic chord. In Miles piece here the A note doesn't resolve down to the G but begins as E11, with the scale note of F# added. In the next measure the Eflat is a flat 5th in the A major scale which resolves up to the 5th. The 3rd measure goes straight to D major 7th. Meaning this song is in key of D.
When reading jazz music, do you do all of that thinking with the music in front of you at a gig right then and there or do you take the sheet music home first and study it then figure out how to improv over top of the changes.??? Seems like a lot of thinking to just do it on the fly!!!!
+MLong3524 Hi There, with lots of experience yes, you can do it on the fly. The same chord progressions (like 251s for example) occur over and over again in jazz so learning these progressions inside out will help you do it on the fly. Jazz musicians play the same standards for years so you do become very familiar with them. If you want to improv over a standard you would need to know the chord change and melody by heart so you can focus on improvising! Hope this helps :-) PianoGroove
