Musical Practice and Performance Stack Exchange
Musical Practice and Performance Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [jazz]

An original American music style that originated in the early 20th century by improvisation and syncopation.

Some of its distinctive elements include a "swung" or syncopated rhythmic feel, an emphasis on live improvisation, and an adaptability that lends itself both to be influenced by and to influence other musical styles.

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How can a classical pianist learn jazz piano?

I'm a classically trained pianist. Took lessons all through my childhood. I've continued to play and read classical literature all my life. But I never learned anything about jazz piano. I also know a lot about music theory, am a good sight reader…
mfamous
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Which notes are optional in jazz chords?

I have a question on jazz chords, and what notes can be removed from the chord. My understanding is fairly superficial - mostly from what I've read in books. This is what I understand: In some chords, it is necessary to omit some of the notes in…
asgeo1
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How to turn any (pop) song into a jazz song?

Quite often there are pop songs wich get covered in a jazz style. These covers are seen from youtube to tv. Now I tried doing something like this, with for example Bad Day by Daniel Powter. It's basically a D-G-A chord progression (1-4-5), wich is…
usealbarazer
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How do jazz players communicate while playing?

When a jazz group is playing and improvising, how do they communicate so as not to produce cacophony? Somehow, one player's choices and intuition need to guide the other players so that they can change keys/tempos/sounds in concert. I've heard…
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What are some common jazz chord progressions?

What are some common progressions for Jazz improvisation? I have been playing with ii-V-I and variations -- what are some others? Is the answer here just to really dig through standards until I've 'internalised' this stuff a little better?
Joseph Weissman
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How do I become better at "playing outside"?

One can spend an enormous amount of time playing melodies "in" the tonic. For example if you are in A major, you might favor A major or A lydian. However, there is a term called "playing outside" in jazz which means you play notes "outside" of the…
piofusco
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What is Voice Leading?

In both classical music and jazz, we often encounter the concept of voice leading. What is it?
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Playing a Coltrane polychord and the limits of space

As I was the reading sheet music for John Coltrane's A Love Supreme, I noticed a chord I had never seen before. It looks like this: I'm familiar with slash chords, but never had to practically encounter a polychord like Gm over Fm7. The notes…
Aryeh
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Randomly and Programmatically generate a "good" next chord?

I am a Software Developer/Musician who has free time before summer classes start up. I wanted to sharpen my chord reading and improvising skills. What I would like to do is generate a phrase of variable length that has pseudo-randomly generated…
sntrenter
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Where can I get started with my improvisation?

I have been playing the alto saxophone for a while now. I have also improvised from time to time and have some theoretical and practical background on the instrument, harmony, scales, etc. I have played several pieces from the Real Book in many ways…
Edgar Gonzalez
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Properly fingering jazz chords?

I've seen these come up in a few places (Crazy Train and a couple of Jimi Hendrix songs come to mind offhand), however I've never figured how to work them in fluidly;the fingerings always seem awkward, especial when the shape changes from one chord…
Kaji
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Am I allowed to add a b9 to a maj7 chord in Jazz?

On Jazzology chapter 2, exercise 6, example 2, I have to identify this chord (if it exists): I thought that it was Cmaj7(b9). My train of thought was (from the lowest to the highest note): C -> 1st E -> 3rd B -> major 7th Db -> b9. But I looked at…
Shevliaskovic
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Problems With Learning a Second Instrument

I’m trying learn jazz piano. For about ten years I played the violin; solo and in orchestras and quartets. I’ve also absolutely no trouble enjoying for instance Keith Jarrett’s more complex solo pieces (Radiance, La Scala, etc.) in addition to more…
Frans
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What to do when you get lost in a jazz song?

A problem a lot of beginners in jazz have is that they tend to get lost in the solos (theirs and their bandmates' solos, where they accompany the soloist). Trying to follow the chord progressions with their many modulations, while thinking about…
Shevliaskovic
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How to improvise a walking bass line

When improvising or writing a walking bass line the bass note (usually the root of the chord) is played on the chord change, but how do you choose the other notes for a walking bass line? Is there a pattern or technique that is used to…
Dom
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