Can someone please explain Jazz to me?

A guy warned me about learning scales, he said that i would eventually go into 'scale mode' where i think every style and song must fall into a certain scale.

I want to start learning jazz guitar but 6the whole Jazz concept now confuses me. At times i will hear a jazz piece that sounds as if it was played solely witha the major scale and then another that uses the minor scale and so on and so forth.

My question is this; what gives jazz that 'jazzy' sound? what kind of scale do jazz musicians use, what kinds of chords do they use and all that? I'm gonna take jazz guitar lessons but i want to know at least the basics of what gives jazz taht unique sound?

Two of the most used modes are Lydian and Mixolydian, both are major keys; and they work pretty good with Maj7 chords.
As far as techniques avoid bending, and use chromatic passing notes.

(I believe...)...it was a Howard Roberts article I read years ago where he shared a letter that asked;"...how do I play Jazz guitar without learning Scales and Arpeggio's?"........the answer........."play Drums!!!"
Ian

As I'm now branching off into "jazz exploration" mode myself I'll give you my two cents.
VERY basic jazz concepts include:
- the use of 7th and 9th chords. You won't hear tons of major chords in jazz.
- the use of the arpeggio, which is another very jazzy item. Basically (correct me if I'm wrong) an arpeggio is a scale-like pattern using ALL the notes of a given chord. So, no matter where you are in the pattern you are always hitting a chord note, and it will sound "right".
- the Circle of Fifths. There's probably lots written about this on the site, but in terms of jazz chord progressions, one of the absolute fundamentals is following the Circle of Fifths. I'm not very good at explaining it, so go do a bit of reading! :D

Hope that helps a wee bit. I'm no expert!

First of all, the predominant feature of jazz is the swing feel. In most forms of jazz (swing, bebop, hard bop, east coast, west coast, dixieland, etc...), the eighth notes have a swing feel, where the down beats have a longer duration than the up-beats. That's what drives the music forward.

Playing with a "swing" feel almost instantly makes you sound more jazz. Play a simple major scale in swung eighth notes, and it will sound jazzey.

Now, you said you were confused about how jazz goes through so many key centers, and such... Here's a few things to look up and research (they should reveal a few things about why jazz goes through different keys) -

secondary dominants, tritone substitution, chordal extensions, qualities, chord substitution, dissonance, scale substitutions, rhythm changes.

I would suggest going to jazzbooks.com and getting books such as "The Scale Syllabus," "Gettin' it together," "Major and Minor," and "Volume 1 - anyone can improvise."

A lot of times you'll find that the scales that are played are in someway related to the chords they are played over. As said before, chromatic passing tones are used to a great extent. Dissonance also plays a huge part - sometimes a minor third will be played over a major chord, in order to produce a desired "sound." Listen to a lot of jazz, buy a fake book, listen to the solos, and find out why they do the things they do. Slowly but surely, jazz will become demistified.

:confused: Think man think! :rolleyes: First off, take into consideration where you're at playing wise. My theory is this, start with the basics and work your way up. What is the basics? Theory and practical application. Jazz music has evolved and to play it with skill and confidence, you must also evolve. Believe it or not, it all starts with one scale, the major scale. Everything branches from the major scale. Before you branch, you must first take root. The major scale is where you start. Learn your major scale harmonies in C first. Cmaj7, Dm7, Em7, Fmaj7 etc. Learn your theory behind these harmonies. Learn your intervals. Train your ear everyday. Of course, all this has to be tied in with learning the neck. There is and excellent book called "Diatonically Speaking" available for download as "GT's Musician's Toolbox" at www.guitarthumper.com for free. An online version of the book will be up shortly. Most jazz wanna beezz have never discovered this simple yet oddly profound truth (the basics). Most jazz wanna beez know all the modes and scales and jazz lingo, but still can't play. Why? Theory + Ear training + learning your instrument (many angles and dimensions) + heart + vision + tools + guidance + inspiration (different sources) + desire + humility - ego + experience + time + reality checks (often) + etc. Do you have the right ingredients? Are you ready to get some? Good luck friend!