Jazz Curriculum for Beginners
photo by Yuske Frutate at Array Studio 2017
A partial listing of tunes students are currently playing
General Outline of my Jazz Curriculum
Jazz Improvisation. There are no “secrets” to learning to improvise, but there are techniques and experiences that will help you down this road. In the “old days” musicians learned to improvise by playing with experienced musicians. We start there too: jamming together, learning through “call and response” with an experienced, and very patient Jazz musician: me. Depending on your current level of skill we usually start with the blues for beginners. We quickly move into learning simple “licks” to give us something to work with idiomatically. Next up improvising over chord changes in Jazz standards. Namely how to improvise on tunes you want to play. I guide beginners in choosing repertoire that is at an appropriate level to help reduce the cognitive load and up the fun.
Technique. One of the foundations of musicianship. I think of technique as a form of meditation. A time to explore the beauty your hands can make. Wynton Marsalis says to students, “learn to play your instrument”. I paraphrase, he put it much more colourfully.
You will learn:
Repertoire development. Learning tunes. We work from fakebooks, ear, and written arrangements. Students have a lot to say here so bring your list.
Sight-reading. Strong fakebook sight-reading skills makes everything easier. Sight-reading is about pattern recognition. And, in Jazz, comping chords at sight. There are modern ways to go about this that are effective. Fun, too.
Ear training. If you can hear music analytically it is easier. Forget your preconceptions of your own skills here. It's a learnable skill. Jazz ear training will help you not get lost while improvising. As your ears evolve so will your confidence at the piano because ultimately Jazz is played by ear. I encourage students to read Jerry Coker’s jazz books to help you hear what is going on in a Jazz performance.
Theory. Knowing what you are doing is one of the most effective shortcuts there is. A solid grounding in theory assists our ability to sight-read well and communicate with the teacher.
You will learn the Jazz chords, the various voicing systems, and modes.
You will learn how to play major, minor, tri-tones, and dominant 7th chords to accompany yourself through the tunes. We will cover the five types of Jazz chords (major 7th, dominant 7th, minor 7th, minor 7th flat 5, and diminished 7th).
We will explore song forms (AABA) and various kinds of Blues forms.
Key signatures, time signatures, scale construction, intervals, 7th chords, and the foundational Jazz harmonic patterns namely the ii7-V7 major and minor keys
Theory bonus: YouTube Jazz videos will start to make sense and so will the unread but much loved jazz “how to” books that populate so many students’ bookshelves.
All students are offered the opportunity to play in our jazz trio workshops.
Technique. One of the foundations of musicianship. I think of technique as a form of meditation. A time to explore the beauty your hands can make. Wynton Marsalis says to students, “learn to play your instrument”. I paraphrase, he put it much more colourfully.
You will learn:
- Blues scales in the keys of C, Bb, and F and some basic licks to get your started improvising idiomatically.
- Major scales, minor scales, formula patterns, broken chords, and arpeggios as appropriate.
- Basic skills in using a fakebook effectively.
- The Jazz chords, Sonny's thumbs, rootless voicings, and quartal chords.
Repertoire development. Learning tunes. We work from fakebooks, ear, and written arrangements. Students have a lot to say here so bring your list.
Sight-reading. Strong fakebook sight-reading skills makes everything easier. Sight-reading is about pattern recognition. And, in Jazz, comping chords at sight. There are modern ways to go about this that are effective. Fun, too.
Ear training. If you can hear music analytically it is easier. Forget your preconceptions of your own skills here. It's a learnable skill. Jazz ear training will help you not get lost while improvising. As your ears evolve so will your confidence at the piano because ultimately Jazz is played by ear. I encourage students to read Jerry Coker’s jazz books to help you hear what is going on in a Jazz performance.
- Intervals
- Playback “lick of the week”
- Chord Identification
- Counting and staying in place
Theory. Knowing what you are doing is one of the most effective shortcuts there is. A solid grounding in theory assists our ability to sight-read well and communicate with the teacher.
You will learn the Jazz chords, the various voicing systems, and modes.
You will learn how to play major, minor, tri-tones, and dominant 7th chords to accompany yourself through the tunes. We will cover the five types of Jazz chords (major 7th, dominant 7th, minor 7th, minor 7th flat 5, and diminished 7th).
We will explore song forms (AABA) and various kinds of Blues forms.
Key signatures, time signatures, scale construction, intervals, 7th chords, and the foundational Jazz harmonic patterns namely the ii7-V7 major and minor keys
Theory bonus: YouTube Jazz videos will start to make sense and so will the unread but much loved jazz “how to” books that populate so many students’ bookshelves.
All students are offered the opportunity to play in our jazz trio workshops.
"Sing the bass lines" Aaron Goldberg, Poland 2018
Topics and Sequencing of the Curriculum
I use a modified outline from Berklee College of Music, my alma mater, to organize the sequencing of the different concepts of learning in Jazz. I’ve adapted it for my adult jazz enthusiasts. You will get a link to your individual spreadsheet that charts your progress.
Part 1 We explore an overview of Jazz History as we learn to swing and play from a fakebook.
Part 2 How do Jazz Players think? Exploring chord progressions and melodic interpretation.
Part 3 The Blues: Boogie woogie, Swing Blues, and more.
Part 4 Creating a richer Jazz sound with chord tensions and other harmonic concepts.
Part 5 Jazz Voicings and Practice Techniques: Bebop, Rootless, and more.
Part 6 How to create walking bass lines in the left hand.
Part 7 How to play a Bossa Nova.
Part 8 Minor keys, happy or sad?
Part 9 Advanced Jazz—Modal voicings and contemporary Blues.
Part 10 How to improvise over chord changes.
Part 11 Solo Piano Techniques to create that “piano bar sound”.
Part 12 Arranging a Song: how to start and finish.
Part 13 How to Jam
Part 1 We explore an overview of Jazz History as we learn to swing and play from a fakebook.
Part 2 How do Jazz Players think? Exploring chord progressions and melodic interpretation.
Part 3 The Blues: Boogie woogie, Swing Blues, and more.
Part 4 Creating a richer Jazz sound with chord tensions and other harmonic concepts.
Part 5 Jazz Voicings and Practice Techniques: Bebop, Rootless, and more.
Part 6 How to create walking bass lines in the left hand.
Part 7 How to play a Bossa Nova.
Part 8 Minor keys, happy or sad?
Part 9 Advanced Jazz—Modal voicings and contemporary Blues.
Part 10 How to improvise over chord changes.
Part 11 Solo Piano Techniques to create that “piano bar sound”.
Part 12 Arranging a Song: how to start and finish.
Part 13 How to Jam
"Go deeper on fewer pieces" Aaron Goldberg, Poland 2018
What and how to Practice Jazz Piano
Our overall goal should be to work on our time, tone, and repertoire. Using a metronome, recording yourself, and playing with others is very effective. For more information see the practice blog.
What to Practice:
What to Practice:
- Playing from written music to keep our hands developing or to preserve the skills you have acquired over the years.
- Memorising a simple repertoire of Jazz standards, perhaps a blues in F and Bb, a ballad, a standard or two, and a bossa.
- Playing your repertoire along with the great recordings.
- Acquiring simple licks, 2 or 3 notes to start, by ear and transposing them into the keys of your memorised repertoire.
- Attending live Jazz events to stay motivated. This might include Jazz camp for adults.
