Jazz players: Howto and/or theory questions ?

[jazzguitar]

Hi everybody,

I am considering writing an instructional article series about playing jazz on guitar, mostly intended for advanced amateurs.

To collect ideas what topics to deal with, I would like everyone who plays jazz here or any similar kind of improvised music, to suggest questions he/she always would have liked an answer to.

Topics may include sound, equipment, genres, harmony, scales, music theory etc.

(I am not sure that I can answer them all here, the purpose is to collect ideas and make sure the most frequently asked questions will be covered and nothing of importance is forgotten).

Thank you very much to every one contributing,
jazzguitar

 

[Old Tele man]

Four note chords vs barre chords

Hinted chord via d7 & color note

Polychordalism (a simple 4 note chord from within larger 9, 11 or 13 chords): https://chordbook.com/guitar-forum/topic/1900-anybody-interested-in-learning-about-polytonal-chords/

Axum: "hold two, move two" in voice leading: http://www.angelfire.com/fl4/moneychords/letterfrearle.html

Tonal motions (up, down, or constant (pedal)).

Cycle of 5ths backpedaling and cycle of 4ths forward.

 

[ndcaster]

I wish I had had a teacher who'd have told me what *not* to do.

That would've saved me a bunch of time. Just like when a DIY guy at home tries to tackle some big project, a pro can come in and get it done a whole lot faster. At the very least, experience makes you efficient.

There are a lot of dead ends in instructional materials I see. If you could point out some things that would waste time and confuse various issues, that might help the youngsters.

 

[Old Tele man]

Very true, but learning the "tricks of the trade" straight ahead, rather than 'weeding' thru the 'try this/try that' jungle of learning, lets you sit closer to the front of the class (wink,wink).

 

[ndcaster]

here's an actual question: how do I comp effectively using 2 strings?

 

[Old Tele man]

here's an actual question: how do I comp effectively using 2 strings?

Alternating 5 and 7 notes in chords, the "tri-tone" chords. That is, the 5 and 7 notes of one chord, switch names to become the 7 and 5 notes in the next chord.

 

[ndcaster]

Alternating 5 and 7 notes in chords, the "tri-tone" chords.

what about a tune using quartal harmony?

 

[Old Tele man]

what about a tune using quartal harmony?

That's where the scalar notes forming a chord are 'quartally' stacked (layered), instead of triad-stacked:

TRIAD: C - E - G ...ie: R - 3 - 5

QUART: C - F - Bb ...ie: R - 4 - 7

With NO defined 3rd, they make great passing chords for resolving into the final or target (destination) chord. Think of them as jazz-version of heavy-metal "mu" chords.

 

[vintagelove]

The tonic/dominant system, and playing the cycle.

 

[BigDaddyLH]

Not a question but a suggestion: transcribe a solo (go crazy and make it not a guitar player!) and analyse it.

 

[BigDaddyLH]

Alternating 5 and 7 notes in chords, the "tri-tone" chords. That is, the 5 and 7 notes of one chord, switch names to become the 7 and 5 notes in the next chord.

Do you mean the 3rd and 7th?

Dm7: F and C
G7: F and B
CMaj7: E and B

 

[Old Tele man]

Do you mean the 3rd and 7th?

Dm7: F and C
G7: F and B
CMaj7: E and B

OOPS, yes [ sheepishly typed ]

 

[BigDaddyLH]

OOPS, yes [ sheepishly typed ]

I thought so -- we're all sloppy typers here! Leave them roots and 5ths for the bassist.

 

[Old Tele man]

I thought so -- we're all sloppy typers here! Leave them roots and 5ths for the bassist.

Yeah, that's another reason jazz chords seldom use more than 4 notes, lots of "unnecessary" notes can and are left out; hence d7 and "color" note are most important, with 5th and 3rd next in importance, but often/usually omitted too.

 

[peteb]

I am considering writing an instructional article series about playing jazz on guitar, mostly intended for advanced amateurs.

To collect ideas what topics to deal with, I would like everyone who plays jazz here or any similar kind of improvised music, to suggest questions he/she always would have liked an answer to.

Topics may include sound, equipment, genres, harmony, scales, music theory etc.

That's cool, sounds like a good use of time.

I broke down blues guitar, below, maybe it can help give ideas on breaking down the Jazz tecnnique and what makes it unique:





Blues Guitar:

Place of origin:
Mississippi Delta

Common Keys:
E, G, A, B, ?

Common song forms:
I,IV,V
12 bar blues

Common chord forms:
Major, minor, 1-5 (power), 7th, ?

Rhythms:
Syncopated
Shuffle

Scales:
Pentatonic
Blues scale
Blues Box - show picture here

Alternate scales:
Latin, Middle eastern, American Indian

Finger style techniques:
Slide, hammer on, pull off,
String Bending, vibrato, neck bending

 

[stringslinger]

Something that can be helpful is looking at jazz from a chronological standpoint. If you want to keep it to guitarists, move from Django and Charlie Christian to Wes to Jim Hall to Metheny to etc, etc. Obviously, those are just ones of many. In a way, this dives into historical styles but with specific faces attached to each period.

The BIGGEST regret I had with my jazz studies (15-17 yrs ago) is the obsession with harmonic expansion/alteration, and not melodic development. That, and honing in on alternate picking eighth notes. As someone else already mentioned, transcribe your favorite player. Doesn't matter the time period. I'm willing to bet the majority of the solo will be fairly diatonic, but with a sense of phrasing and development. The notes themselves aren't important, it's how you play them.

 

[Old Tele man]

This might prove useful: http://pws.npru.ac.th/silapachai/data/files/Jerry Coker - The Complete Method for Improvisation.PDF

The Jerry Coker book, "Improvising Jazz," 1964, is what introduced me to polytonal chords, as I wandered into playing chordal jazz.

Polytonal chords are briefly summarized like this (four note chords):

_I(9) = I(7) & iii(7) ...minor 3rd above Root.
I(11) = I(7) & v(7) ...minor 5th above Root.
I(13) = I(7) & VII(M7) ...Major 7th above Root.

 

[screamin eagle]

Think terms of context with a band. How to make it through a gig. Advanced amateurs can play a little. Don't focus on the practice room, focus on the bandstand.

 

[ndcaster]

The BIGGEST regret I had with my jazz studies (15-17 yrs ago) is the obsession with harmonic expansion/alteration, and not melodic development

so, so true

what is the simplest effective thing you can do confidently?

in the next chorus, how do you vary that rhythmically?

next, are there ways to insert new chords and thus new melodic material?

how do you build the next chorus to create more excitement?

how do you take the next chorus to church or shouting?

the education could be organic or "generative" or something -- with real-world tunes!

 

[Old Tele man]

TONGUE-IN-CHEEK: What is jazz? Playing every note but the right one (wink,wink).