Jazz Blog Archives - Page 9 of 11 | FreeJazzLessons.com

7th Chords Guide Part 2

Welcome to our second free piano tutorial on 7th chords! In today’s piano chord lesson we’re going to continue our exploration of basic 7th chords. If you’ve always wondered how to play minor major 7th chords, fully diminished seventh chords, or minor 7th flat 5 chords this will be the lesson for you! (Youtube video…

7th Chords: A Basic Guide Part 1

In today’s free jazz tutorial we’re going to learn how to build and play basic 7th chords like the major 7th chord, minor 7th, and dominant 7th. These types of chords are used in almost every single jazz standard, lots of rock songs, R&B songs, and even classical music too. So, getting comfortable with them…

Happy Holidays!

Hey everybody. This will be probably the shortest post in the history of free jazz lessons (so far). I want to give a well deserved thank you! 2012 was an amazing year for this site. A year ago today we were only getting about 1500 unique visitors per month. By participating, sharing, and experiencing the…

1 of My Favorite Jazz Piano Chord And Reharmonization Tricks Revealed

Want to learn some great sound jazz reharmonization? Are you sick and tired of the same old boring chords and stock arrangements you find in your average fakebook or chord chart? Well, in today’s free piano lesson we’re going to learn one of my favorite techniques for reharmonizing the chords to any of your favorite…

Don’t Explain – Solo Jazz Piano Video Performance

Hey everybody! I wanted to share a quick video performance I just made of the great jazz standard ‘Don’t Explain’. This tune was written and made famous by the late great Billie Holiday. In my opinion she is an extremely underrated songwriter and should absolutely be in the same conversation with other great jazz writers.…

Minor 7 Flat 5 Piano Chords Video Tutorial

In today’s free piano lesson we’re going to learn how to play the minor 7 (flat 5) chords in a fun and interesting way. After teaching piano lessons for over 15 years now I’ve noticed an overwhelming trend in regards to this chord. Many people who are learning piano either… a) Don’t know how to…

How To Make Your Jazz Song Endings Sound Cooler

In today’s lesson we’re going to learn a technique you can use to make the endings to your jazz arrangements and songs much more interesting. Most jazz songs tend to end with the typical II-V-I chord progression (2-5-1). We’re going to mess with this! 🙂 (Video piano lesson, tips, and music notation below). Now, I…

Jazz Piano Improvisation: Build Great Licks

Do you wish you were better at jazz improvisation and jazz piano improvisation? Do you wish you could improvise over major 7th chords better than you do now? Do you find yourself lost when major 7th chords come up in your favorite jazz and rock songs? Well, in today’s lesson we’re going to explore some…

Jazz Masters Method Special Video Blog Thank You

Hey everybody! Today’s post is going to be short but sweet. I’m truly humbled right now. I’d like to thank everybody who’s ordered the Jazz Masters Method DVD so far during this launch week. The response has been simply been AMAZING. I am truly blessed! Thank you!! I prepared a quick little video blog as I…

Stride Piano Lesson: Free Video and Tips

Want some stride piano tips? Would you like to learn more interesting ways of playing your favorite jazz standards and chord progressions on piano? In today’s jazz piano lesson, we’re going to study a classic rhythmic way of doing this called stride piano. (Video lesson, notation, and tips below.) This particular style was made famous…

11 Tips On Playing Piano For Your Career

A few days ago I received an interesting email from a reader of this site by the name of Jake. Jake asked,“Hey Steve! What are the basic skills a piano player needs to play piano for a living, even a very basic one?” I knew this would be a question many of the readers here…

Bill Evans So What Jazz Piano Chords Lesson

Hey friends! Hope you’re having a fantastic day today. Ready to learn some new jazz piano chords? Cool! Let’s get started. In this jazz piano chord lesson we’re going to learn 2 of the most famous piano chords in jazz music. These are the chords that Bill Evans played on the classic Miles Davis tune…

Gold Medal Jazz Piano Practice Challenge FAQ

Hey everybody! Hope you’re having a fantastic day so far. Ok, so far I’ve received a ton of emails asking me questions about the Gold Medal Jazz Piano Practice Challenge. (If you’ve new here you can check out the link right above.) I find it very cool that there are so many people interested in…

Dominant Bebop Scale Video Lesson

In today’s jazz scale lesson we’re going to explore a very sweet jazz scale. You’ll be able to add it into your playing right away when we’re done. This powerful scale is known as the dominant bebop scale. This 8 note scale can actually can be thought of as a chord and a scale at…

The Gold Medal Jazz Piano Practice Challenge

Hey jazz fans! Hope you’re having a fantastic day today. Ok, in today’s post I’m going to share an exciting new practice challenge I’ve just taken up. This is something I’ve wanted to do for a long time. Some people will call me crazy after this but that inspires me even more! 🙂 I’m sharing…

Chet Baker Jazz Improvisation Lesson

In today’s jazz lick lesson we’re going to learn a very simple but cool Chet Baker lick. You guys are going to love this one. Chet’s jazz improvisation style is very minimalist but full of tons of great jazz vocabulary, articulation, swing feel, and soul. Plus, he was an awesome singer too. I know you…

Clifford Brown Jazz Improvisation Lesson

I always tell my jazz students if they really want to learn jazz improvisation and master the bebop language then they need to go directly to the source. They need to learn from people like Charlie Parker, Clifford Brown, Bud Powell, and Sonny Stitt. So, in today’s jazz improvisation lesson we’re going to do just that!…

7 Inspirational Books For Musicians

Hey fellow musicians! I hope you’re having a very musical day today! So, after I released the latest article on building more creativity as a musician I received a ton of follow up questions. Many people asked me if there were any inspirational books I could recommend that were written specifically for musicians. As you know,…

How To Nurture Your Creativity As A Musician

– Have you ever felt stuck in your development as a musician? – Have you ever felt blocked creatively, energetically, or even uninspired? – If you’re like most serious musicians your answer will most likely be YES! You’re Not Alone All serious musicians have felt this way as they progress through their journey of improving…

How To Add The Major Bebop Scale To Your Playing

Have you ever heard of the bebop scale? Do you wish knew more ways to bridge the gap between the scales you know and what real jazz musicians actually use in their jazz solos? One of the best ways to go about doing this is to learn the method behind the major bebop scale. When used…

How To Play 4 Different Major Jazz Piano Chords

Are you sick and tired of playing generic piano chords? Do you find yourself playing chords the same old way whenever they come up in a chord chart? If so, then this jazz piano lesson was designed for you! In today’s lesson we’re going to take a look at 4 unique ways of playing major…

Why Do You Play Jazz?

Hello my fellow jazz fanatics! I’d like to welcome all 21,879 subscribers to the free jazz lessons subscription list. We’re growing by leaps and bounds every day and I’m thrilled to have you here! Today, we’re going to help you solve some of your musical problems. In order to do that I’d like to share…

Altered Scale – A Simple How To Guide

Are you curious how to use the altered scale? Are your dominant chords getting a bit boring? Do you wish you knew some more interesting scales to use over them? Well, in today’s jazz scale lesson I’m going to teach you a very cool sounding scale you can play over your dominant chords. This scale…

5 Recommended Recordings That Have Made Me A Better Jazz Musician

You’ve heard the common phrase, You are what you eat before right? Well, when you’re learning to play jazz you are what you listen to! If you want to learn this style of music you’ve got to listen to the right music! So, today I’m going to talk about some recommended jazz albums that helped me…

4 Different Ways To Play Minor Jazz Piano Chords

In today’s free jazz piano lesson we’re going to take a look at 4 different ways of playing minor chords. Once you learn these sweet chords you’ll have the ability to play a lot more interesting sounds every time you see minor chords written in a chord chart. Start by watching the video lesson first. Then…