This week we are talking about pentatonic scales. The tough part about pentatonics are the fact that it's a five note scale and the majority of what we play is in 2 or 4 note patterns. Our job is to turn these five note groupings into something we can use in 4/4 or 2/4. Something that we can get into our playing almost immediately and see real results. The patterns in this episode range from extremely easy to much more complicated so make sure you really digest what a pentatonic scale is first, … [Read more...]

This week wraps up our series on upper structures. We have already covered major seventh chords and minor seventh chords. This week we'll focus on the dominant chord. It's important to realize that there are so many possibilities for dominant chords when it comes to altered notes and superimposing different chords over the top. We will cover some basics here but this is one chord quality where there is a lot more work to be done down the road. Have fun and enjoy the episode!   WANT … [Read more...]

This week I talk about accountability and what that means to musicians when we are usually only accountable to ourselves. … [Read more...]

This is the second in our 3 part series on upper structures. Last week we looked at the major seventh chord and this week we pivot to the minor seventh chord. The upper structure for this chord keeps everything diatonic and isn't very hard to understand. Again, we utilize the 9th, 11th, and 13th and learn how to play these notes as a substitute chord. Remember that you have to have the basic chord tones completely down and memorized before moving on to this material. These notes and structures … [Read more...]

I'm really excited for this week's episode as this is one of my favorite things to practice. Upper structures are the key to unlocking the most interesting sounds from any chord. This week, in part 1, we are focusing on the major seventh chord and what notes we can add to our playing to make things a little bit more interesting. I'll warn you that this material is a little bit more advanced than some of the other things I bring you on this podcast so get your basic chord tones down first before … [Read more...]

This week we are going to learn about one of my favorite sounds ever: Harmonic Minor. This scale is amazing because it contains the flatted 6th in combination with the major seventh. This gives us a minor third in the actual scale which is unique among sounds we can use. Make sure you check out the PDF that accompanies this week's lesson as it will give you the basic scale, the arpeggio, an exercise in thirds, and an 8 bar phrase that you can steal from like a pro! This sound will take some work … [Read more...]

Welcome back! I have been checking out a lot of Herbie Hancock this week so I figured I would bring you a great pentatonic pattern from his solo over Tell Me A Bedtime Story. Pentatonics are an essential part of any improvisors arsenal and this pattern will serve you well in any situation that contains minor seventh chords. The pentatonic scale can be tricky at times because it contains only 5 notes. This makes it a challenge to use over time signatures like 4/4 or anything even. Herbie does a … [Read more...]

This week features an awesome technique to use from one of the greatest who ever played the jazz language. We are going to focus on techniques straight from the playing of the jazz masters for the next couple of months on the show. Listeners seem to like this kind of episode, and we are in it for you, the 10 Minute Jazz Lesson faithful! Coltrane shows us a great way to chromatically approach diatonic triads and this will be a concept that can take you many places in your playing. Enjoy the … [Read more...]