Getting into Jazz

I have been messing around with jazz for a while....but now I want to get really serious about it.

What kind of things should I look at? Any book reccomendations?

I really want to get serious about jazz. My theory knowledge is OK...(ABRSM Grade 5) but I have trouble applying all of it to guitar.

I listen to a lot of jazz and really like:

Joe Pass
Wes Montgomery
Emily Remler
Al Di Meola
Ella Fitzgerald (is she jazz??)

Any help??
Sophie

i would alwatys suggest buy a good book. you need to know the rules before u break them at least thats my opinion.

i have a book called

the contemporary keyboardist buy john novello and yes i know its a keyboard book but it was good to work through. although i didnt get far enough. its brief with the simplest parts of theory but is pretty detailed when it comes to melody harmony and improvisation. its also writen for a jazz and a bit of blues perspective so i would suggest it. it would probably open a few doors for you.

at the end of the day jazz is hard, so if u wanna do it be prepared for a bit of work. and remeber its not enough knowing things theoretically you have to know how thhey sound feel and play and they have to come naturally. tis only comes with practice. but dont completely not think but also dont think to much.

bit of an odd one that las one. just try not to overanylise or get stuck cos the theory says its wrong. theorys a guid. if u ignor it u will sound like crap and if u follow it to religiosly there will be no soul.

again rwemeber the goal of understanding theory is not to go go "i need to play the fith of the chord to give a stong sound followed by a sharp nith for a bit of tension, so thats the fith fret followed by the 7th" its hearing the music and playin those notes naturally. sadly sometimes the only way u can get this is to plow through ith boarin theory, but dont get stuck and also do some ear trainin. the worst way to anylise theory is by fret numbers and the best by ear.



um i realsie that was a bit of a waffle hope it helps though.

The only way to get any proper skill in jazz is to play with other people and learn from them. Jazz is a very social music, and much of it is improvised, playing off the other members of the band. In jazz, the theory comes after the music happens, not before.

Ella Fitzgerald is jazz by the way.

Hello Sophie,

Good discussion! A couple of questions come to mind. What is jazz? People from different generations might define it differently although IMHO, you are not going to go wrong with Ella Fitzgerald, Joe Pass, Wes Montgomery or the others you mention.

The really good jazz players, no matter what their instrument, can take a simple, simple song and "jazz it up", as it were. The songs of (probably) the first great American songwriter, Stephen Foster from the mid 1800's were done in an album by Dave Brubeck in the most jazzed up way you could imagine. I'm sure Stephen Foster never dreamed his songs could sound the way Brubeck did them. You should hear Brubeck's version of "Camptown Races."

Another thought comes to mind--the jazz players of today got their material and inspiration from the jazz players of yesterday. I highly recommend Diana Krall. I realize she plays the piano--second to none by the way--and is IMHO a great jazz vocalist as well. In a great deal of her later stuff, she carries 3 other pieces with her, bass, drums and guitar. Listen to Anthony Wilson play guitar--he is quite a player. I highly recommend her CD, "Live in Paris."

On some of her albums, Diana does songs from those who inspired her such as Nat King Cole. Probably an easy song of her's (his) to learn and a good place to start would be to learn the song "Frim Fram Sauce", a jazz standard. Check it out.

Also, find some easy jazz songs you like and try to copy them. That's what I did--that's what a lot of players try to do.

You might also find some help from these listings:

http://www.guitartricks.com/tutorial.php?input=245
http://www.guitartricks.com/tutorial.php?input=235
http://www.guitartricks.com/tutorial.php?input=238

I hope this information helps.

Best wishes,

Bobby Howe

I spent several years studying jazz at Malaspina University/College, also on guitar.

If you want some chord inversion charts to work on, I have posted some on my site at http://www3.telus.net/public/wsalter/guitar/ . It really helps with jazz to know inversions for the sweet voicings and shared notes available.

All the best,
SarinaJ :)

im kinda of jazz noob i guess. i like jazz but its not something i listen to very much. if there is one thing i notice about good jazz is it not like most other kinds of music. frist the drums get a good bounce then the bass joins in and lays some soul then the piano/clarinet/trumpet/trombone lays in voice, then after all this the guitar fills in the body. then the singer comes in a colors the whole thing painting the picture that the audiance hears.

becomming a good jazz player for any instrument must be harder then just about anyother style of music because its a very fast moving style (not played fast but it can change fast). if you dont have a very good grasp of the theory of your instrument you cant keep up. alsoit seems to me jazz never seems to follow a guide set of rules, heavy metal can be very predictable just like the blues and country,because the theory behind them has a set rule to follow (not totally like youll die if you dont). but i have heard jazz that ranged from very bluesy to funky to even almost hip hop like.

so dont get stuck on the rules and try every tthing and see how it sounds.

Hey,
I have a few book recommendations for you.

The first one is called Forward Motion: From Bach to Bebop
http://www.amazon.com/Forward-Motion-Corrective-Approach-Phrasing/dp/1410712141

Its a great book and really details a good line of thought in jazz improv.

The next book is a standard among true Jazz musicians and that is the Real Book 5th ed. You can buy the 6th edition real book in stores and it has all the copyright info in it but the 5th edition is the one they always go for in the jazz world. You will need to hook up with a few jazz musicians and ask them where you can find the real book. And when I tell you that its the drug deal of the music world, you will never fully appreciate that comment until you go and buy the 5th edition and see for yourself.

The last book I can recommend is a really good chord book. One that will show you several voicings of more advanced chords. The reason for this is simply so that you can follow the charts and know the chords and so that if you are playing with a big band or a piano you can get out of their way and play the chords in a different voicing to help clean up the sound. If you have piano horns and a guitar all playing chords in the same range then it just sounds muddy.

Hope that helps.

I think finding a great teacher would be of great benefit to anyone wanting to learn jazz.

I'm not saying you cant learn it on your own, but having someone that already has been down the road of jazz-guitar teaching you what he know is very valuable.


Antony

Oh,
Make no mistake, having a teacher would be beneficial beyond any book you may read. However, theres a lot to the learning by rote method. Look at all the reat jazz players. They learned by immersion into the art form. Good comment though.

Originally Posted by: SophieMI have been messing around with jazz for a while....but now I want to get really serious about it ... Any help??

I did two tutorials on playing in the style of the great Joe Pass:

Jazz Ala Joe Pass
http://www.guitartricks.com/tutorial.php?input=149
More Jazz Ala Joe Pass
http://www.guitartricks.com/tutorial.php?input=268

Bobby Howe's Xmas songs are good stuff, also!

Gavin Audagnotti's tutorial on walking bass lines is good info.
http://www.guitartricks.com/tutorial.php?input=187

A good, knowledgable teacher is invaluable. But in my personal estimation, the first and foremost thing to do if you are serious about jazz is to learn tunes. As in "standards" from the "great American song book". Real Books of tunes are a great resource in this respect.

Learn to play the melody and chords (separately at first, then together later as a "chord melody") to tunes by George Gershwin, Duke Ellington, Irving Berlin, Richard Rogers, Fats Waller, W.C. Handy, Jerome Kern, Cole Porter, etc.

Also, I can't let this opportunity go by without mentioning my personal jazz hero, Art Tatum. Get one of his Solo Masterpiece CDs (there are 8 to pick from and a "best of" compilation). Just listening to Tatum is an education in how to play jazz. :)

Hope this helps. Let us know how it goes.

Actually Girl From Impanema and Autumn Leaves make really great and easy chord melodies along with One Note Samba.

It provides the aspiring jazz guitarist a comprehensive knowledge of the compositional and performance techniques of jazz through an understanding of key-center music, improvisation, and visual-tactile relationship with the guitar. Writing in a casual, conversational style, Jackie takes you through examples, etudes, and exercises combining the use of chromaticism, arpeggios, scales, and modes. You will explore effective, new concepts that will surprise and inspire you. The companion play-along CD includes a "live" rhythm section. Written in standard notation and tablature.