Practice Regime of an advanced jazz student

This is a practice plan created for an advanced jazz piano student. (She earned her Royal Conservatory of Music ARCT as a teenager.)

Jazz warmups and technique
Over the course of a week, she will review the major and minor scales, modes, and left-hand voicing systems: Bebop shells, rootless chords, and occassionally modal or quartal voicings. The scales can be played straight or swung starting on the leading tone upbeat. (see below) She will play these etudes with the metronome playing on beats 2 and 4. This builds an acute sensitivity to the jazz pulse.​

Repertoire retention and development
She reviews a piece or two to retain it. Furthermore, as she learns to techniques, she can apply them to her existing repertoire. 

Aural Training
Aural or "ear" training is the most important part of practice because jazz is an aural tradition. The training jazz musicians since 1917 has revolved around playing with recordings and "stealing" or lifting interesting ideas. One exercise it to play the melody, for example Satin doll, along with the recording and try to match the rhythm. This is trickier that it sounds.

Sightreading
Randomly open the fakebook and sight read along the chords and possibily the melody to a recording. Slow the recording down if it is tricky. 

Keeping the left hand alive
Jazz piano is not kind to the left hand because in most styles of mainstream jazz it doesn't get much of a workout. So, she keeps the left hand strong by returning regularly to some favourite classical piano tunes. In her case, Chopin. (For me it is Bach. )

If I can help you design a personalised curriculum call me. I will assess your skills, consider your goals, and plan a path forward for you too. 

​David
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