How did YOU learn Jazz? How did you start?

[Mace]

Hello everybody,

I'm a Jazz-Beginner and I'm very interested, about your Jazz-History! How do you learned Jazz..? How do you started?

I'm glad to hear your stories!

your mace

[hot ford coupe]

The way I learned to play jazz was to find as many jazz records as I could and listened to them extensively. Then I decided which style I liked the best and then started my music theory and chord theory. From there, I practiced the chord forms learning about the extentions and adding and subtracting notes. Then I started to learn all the songs I liked and applied the principles I learned. Improvisation then came next. That was the hardest part to make sound right. Be prepared to spend time working on all of this. There's no magic secret toward becoming a guitar hero, just time, perseverance and hard work. If you do it right, the hard work will turn out to be a lot of fun. If it's not fun, there may be a problem. Then let us know what's going on and we'll be happy to help you out. The guys here are more than generous with their knowledge and glad to help you where you need it.

[Mace]

Thank you for your great post! I really appreciate it! I think I started to learn "easy" Standarts like Autumn Leaves.. Thank you for sharing your experience!

[pierre richard]

Learning the instrument...how it sounds when you do something...and how you made that sound and remember how to do it again...listen to song and the improvisation....hum it sing it...then guide your fingers through it...you should work to a point that you can play what you sing...learn chords and progressions...scales and arpeggios...listen..listen...playing the tunes are easier ...I started with mickey baker books and almost memorized them....mel bay always had some good jazz oriented books...now abersold has play alongs (these are great)...and many books..just keep playing and listening....time on the instrument...pierre.....

[Mace]

hello pierré!

Thank you very very much for your help!
Huming and Playing is a good exercise, I guess! Thank you for the hint!

I check the mickey baker books out!

Thanks for all your help!

[Jake Hanlon]

I grew up around the music. My brother is a prodigy in many ways on the piano and when he was 14 or so he got hooked on Jazz. In 2 years he was playing recitals with Seniors in the local college, had played in their improv classes and big bands before finishing Highschool. It was all over our part of the house (we had rooms in the basement, he always was listening) and it just eventually trickled into my own interests full time.

How I learned to play was through exposure to great musicians in University. Then playing all the time and most importantly playing with more experienced players then I. I think in a lot of ways I learned on the band stand, and while it wasn't anything akin to the "golden days" I learned my most important lessons on the gigs and through my "mistakes".

I hardly ever used books, I transcribed, I listened and I contemplated.

[Mace]

And do you got all the theory from your mother?

[Jake Hanlon]

Mom is tone deaf

[derek]

I wanted to take up guitar since i was a preteen (10 or 11). Due to financial circumstances, I didn't get one until 17. Got a pop/rock song book and started banging out tunes playing open chords.

Took a variety of lessons over the years in rock/blues stuff, played in cover bands for years, and began playing in a church that had a choral guy as the musical director. We wound up playing cantatas and such, with orchestral charts. Many of the chords dictated I was unable to play. I knew I had lots of holes in my knowledge and wanted to fix it.

I had taken classical for a couple of years some time back, and knew I could take that up again, but I was attracted to the freedom of jazz. I studied with a local guy for 6 years, and attended the National Guitar Workshop each summer for a week the past 5 years to study jazz with Jody Fisher. I also studied online via streaming video with Tony DeCaprio for a year.

Now just playing weekly, teaching and trying to integrate all this info I have accumulated.

[pierre richard]

Never had a lesson...self taught...went to any means available to get books and sheet music and just spent "time on the instrument"...I also play sax,clainet,flute,drums,piano,trumpet,violin,5 string banjo,mandolin,electric bass,some trombone...all self taught...some can and some can't learn it by themselves...harmony/theory/composition/arranging is all self taught....time on the instrument...pierre...

[big bang]

I had been playing guitar for 10 years but got more serious and begin learning jazz from this year . for me reading music ( have been doing for 1 year only ) is an important key to unlock the mysteries.I do sight reading exercises 3 painful hours a day. 1 hr for technique and 30 for jamming with Bb or jam tracks. and then dig into some chord substitution theory stuffs and then I'll listen to some records and pretend like I'm listening to myself. for minutes I'm Joe pass, then John Scofield or sometimes our own Mr.Beaumont..

and I've gained so much knowledge from this forum too.. I'm not very good and i can only improvise over simple progressions ( to be more precise Bb blues, F blues, satin doll, autumn changes.. kinda basic stuffs).i dont know about the others but i sometimes copy licks and rhythms from the great players and I'd modify it and employ them to my playing( with Bb or free download jam tracks! ) .

Almost all guitarists I've known ( except me an a friend of mine who already turned pro.) in our small City plays screamin Rock guitar stuffs,but I'm very optimistic coz I'm in love with jazz so much and ill keep on looking for more knowledges.. and I'm learning English here too..

[skei]

Learning jazz, well, by following the lessons and tips from the seniors here, among other things, and by seniors Imean those more experienced than myself, which covers a lot of people, not necessarily older in years than me (as I'm pretty old in years myself), and by practicing a lot of hours every day. I also took Chris Standring's PWYH course, which added a lot of feel to it all. And listen to all Miles Davis and Charlie Parker and John Coltrane etc, I can get my hands on. I was a trumpet player from the beginning, so you might understand my fondness of the horn section. Started out by christmas one year ago, said I'd have at least a basis by christmas (in three weeks), and I'm on my way, now a couple of years of training and it'll be ok. I fell in love with jazz when first I heard Coltrane's 'Blue train' album, since then there has been no return. I'm in it for life.
Peace
Skei (the on my way one)

[Mace]

Thanks to all, for the great stories and hints!! Thanks you very much! @big bang: can you tell me, where do you download free-download jam tracks for jazz? i only found free blues jamtracks.

[hubert54]

seems familiar to me...

but what are "instruments"?
I tried a violin, would do it twice
the problem for me is, what is the sound, what do I intend to do?
I'm a rather good singer,bariton
but I don't concentrate my time on it
piano, sax(alto), several guitars, even trombone and nonetheless
a Fagott (hautbois basso?)
the guitar became my front challenge.
Never mind about that posting
it's morning here in Austria
perhaps a little sleeping might help

Hubert

[Banksia]

I started with the Mickey Baker book (didn't everyone in the 60's & 70's). One important thing for me was learning Billie Holiday songs. Most are very simple chords (by jazz standards) but when you're listening to Teddy Wilson and LesterYoung play them you certainly learn the "feel" which is a huge part of jazz.

[big bang]

don't know if i can say this, lots of aebersold playalongs are here
Under Construction: Aebersold

[mazza24]

Hey big bang,
that is a very BIG BANG.
this accumulation of playalongs is great.
Thanks for sharing.

Antonio

[hubert54]

hi there,

I know Jamey Aebersold, but I'd like a little advice to get them alive on
guitar. Any hints?

all the best
Hubert

[hubert54]

hi you,

a appreciate that hint,
spend time on the instrument...
what to do,if you can't?
You're an autodidact, aren't you?
Me too. But I'm realizing that I suffer from a little bit of "stagnating".
A friend of mine, with whom I did some "exercises" on the guitar, by the way, a fabulous guy, is too busy doing his profession as a math-teacher
and I've to look forward, never give up thinking of inspiration that comes the other way...

My voice blames me all day long,it's much better than my
trying to play the guitar...


all the best
Hubert

[miann]

Hi, i found useful the NGW training material, especially the one from Jody Fisher, to me it looks logic and clear to follow.
https://www.guitarworkshop.com/store/home.php?cat=41
Of course it doesn't mean that the books will do a miracle, mastering requires time and repetition.
John Mclaughlin in an old interview use to say: If i don't practice for one day, during the concert i will notice it. If i don't practice for 2 days some of the audience will notice it.. if i don't practice for more than 3 days.. than everyone will notice!
On the other hand.. practising is playing! Enjoy it! There is no arrival point.. more you practice more you achive

[hubert54]

nice advice,

I wonder about people, who practise up to 10(!) hours a day..
Charlie Parker did, didn't he?
on one of my guitar necks I realize a little dust...
You know Mickey Baker? What's the kind of your practicing?
(oh God, I don't even know if that's written with a "c" or "s"...)

have a nice time

Hubert

[miann]

yes the greats practiced 10 hours a day for at least 10 years, but it doesn't matter, what it counts is what the music give you while you play. it can be a practice session, a jam with friends .. all the sudden it pops up something and you know you are on the right path.
About learning, honestly i have never found "the book", or "the trainer" but there are a lot of bits that you put together on your own learning curves .. it's like a puzzle, more pieces you put together, a better view of the big picture will appears
About my practicing, it changes a lot according to the mood, usually, start with scales (i try to practice different tonality every time), than i like to match the arpeggios on each note of the scale, and of course the chord (frozen arpeggios for me the challenge is to understand where i am and where i can go from there.
Mickey baker i don't know well, it's blues (i personally love it, but i think the hardest challenge is the jazz, because it contains all the other style, a jazz player can play anything) if you like the rhythm than you may approach something like " mastering chord and melody"

[merseybeat]

I came from a rock-blues background (20 years). I had sort of mastered the diatonic modes,arpeggios etc. Then when I moved to the middle east I met lots of musicians who wanted me to play jazz funk. My very first score to learn was Affirmation by George Benson and this opened up a whole new approach, the middle solo was so melodic I was addicted! Now I see chord shapes everywhere and no longer the same old boxes. I have also discovered that a simple Major Pentatonic (with a few chromatic passing tones) can still be a great anchor for a jazz solo. In fact there is actually something called the extended blues scale I found on a site somewhere! The same shapes work absolutely fantastic when played over a major progression. So a B extended blues scale played over a D Major progression would be a sort of B Major Pentatonic with lots of nice passing tones. Anyone know what this is called??? I hear it everywhere!

I am also now heavily into chord harmonies.

Eddie

[pierre richard]

many many many books available today...some are expensive...some are not...chord books....single string playing..chord melody..impovising...etc..etc...the most important thing is time on the instrument...you can have 50 of the greatest books but do you have the time to work through them...if you put one hour of practice time you get one hour back...if you play two or three or more you get that much more out of it...we all can't spend as much time on the instrument as we would like but we spend as much as we can when we can....priorities is another factor...do you really want to see that new movie or do you want to spend two hours on your instrument...it's up to you...the more you put into it the more you get back...it's a matter of mathmatics...play on and as much time in the guitar as you can...pierre...

[Sailor]

When I go to the aebersold site and click on the covers, nothing downloads???

Sailor

[big bang]

click on book names.. like this
Under Construction: Methods - Jamey Aebersold - Vol. 019 - David Liebman
and click on the book or audio buttons

[woyvel]

I took "jazz" lessons from a Berkeley grad 30 years ago for less than a year. I had other teachers, but always come back to the material I got from him:
1. technique exercises and some basic scales (major, minor, melodic minor, mixolydian, pentatonic with tensions).
2. "drop 2" chords, all positions
3. Standards basics ("All The Things You Are", "Tune Up", even "Moondance" to learn comping and soloing)
4. Transcriptions - he liked Metheny so had me try to do some for him, also some Steely Dan & Steve Lukather stuff
5. Reading. Since I'd had a head start with music in school I went to the Berkeley 2 book.
Now if only I'd practiced consistently since then...
Other than the Berkeley book, most of the material for getting started can be found for free online, including here. Next is to play with real people.

[Scrybe]

I'm just learning - my pops taught me to play cowboy chords and fingerpicking when I was a young teen, then I got into electric blues (for some odd reason, I discovered 1920-50s blues first, then worked forwards through music, weird...) and rock and grunge and wot not.Discovered Kind of Blue aged 15 or so and became utterly entranced by jazz, but never learned to play it - a mix of not feeling good enough yet and not knowing a damn person who played it.

Cue moving south for uni, a fairly intensive degree from Oxford, short lived yet highly successful and highly unsatisfying career in Westminster, coupled with regular trips back oop nawf to see to my very ill father and I literally didn't have time to play my guitar. So I didn't for a few years. recently looked around at my life and realised it wasnt what I wanted at all. Cue return to Liverpool, armed with little but the declaration that I'd learn jazz even if I was the only person in the world who wanted to do that (not nec as a career path, just a "this is the most important personal goal I can achieve for the foreseeable future"). Cue finding this place, currently practicing around the clock, discovering there is now a strong local jazz scene full of seriously kind and helpful older musos (incl. some top notch players - check out Tony Ormesher, Jr and Sr, for example) and, as of later today, starting lessons. That's gonna be tough - I'm feeling pretty weak right now; hate my technique, shoddy ear, inability to sight read, etc., etc. But I def need some structured guidance to my development and regular feedback from a guitarist, and my tutor's music is awesome, so I'm looking forward to working hard - I'm hoping that 6 months from now, a year from now, etc., there'll be big changes in my playing. One key long term goal is to really seriously develop my inner ear; I want big ears, truly big, so I can just be free in the music and express myself as clearly there as breathing, even if I'm just playing something simple. Above all else, jazz to me means playing with integrity and being authentic to what you hear/feel at that moment. I want that, but it takes big ears to do right. Not to mention some serious brushing up on technique....

[merseybeat]

I'm feeling pretty weak right now; hate my technique, shoddy ear, inability to sight read, etc., etc. But I def need some structured guidance to my development and regular feedback from a guitarist

Hi Scrybe
Tony Ormesher, Jr and Sr (Or Llandudno As we call them - Great Orm & Little Orm) are almost family to me! I too am from Crosby! These guys are always up for a Jam! Also too are may others (Gary Potter was our inspiration). I have always found that guitar life in general is full of highs and lows! I go thorough phases of (Wow look at me) to (Man I know nothing). Sometimes when playing live I have a great experience then others (Like yesterdays outdoor gig for around 800 Expats here in Jeddah) my fingers where just not responding??? It happens! Guitar playing is a window to your soul so expect a few dark days every now an then! Keep looking ahead and seek out nice ideas (YouTube can be inspirational). And learn things within reasonable limit and more importantly things you can enjoy!

Final hint, get Sweet Georgia Brown under your fingers and go and sit in with the Ormesher's or Gary Potter! The amount of personal fun you will have with these guys is more than worth the effort!

Keep Jamming mate

Eddie

[Scrybe]

Hooked up with a couple lessons with Tony Jr after seeing him at s2 Parr St, seriously good guy, and he overran our lessons by ages, v nice of him. Met his dad briefly too, great player. I offered to record the two of them (I have a small basic recording setup, but it means they can get some decent audio of the two of them going for it without having to book studio time - I'm just gonna enjoy observing and trying to get a good sound if/when it happens). Tony Jr just got hitched to Rachel, btw. If you're around these ends anytime, we should def jam some, fam.

So, do you also know the rest of the Liverpool scene, then? Dbl bassist Johnny Mac, tpters Martin Smith and Tony Peers, etc., etc? They're schooling me every time I go sit in right now, but it's fun!

Lmaoo at the smallness of the world....