How to approach AL, total newbie

[Thaum1el]

So I'm totally new to jazz. I'm doing Autumn Leaves in Gm, and is coming down with the melody and some embellishments - yes, I'm really so green I actually think this is an accomplishment for me.

So, now over to trying to improvise a bit over the changes. These are the chords I'm using, format being AABC, of course.
A: Cm7 / F7 / BbMaj7 / EbMaj7
Am7b5 / D7 / Gm7 / Gm7
B: Am7b5 / D7 / Gm7 / Gm7
Cm7 / F7 / BbMaj7 / EbMaj7
C: Am7b5 / D7 / Gm7 - C7 / Fm7 - Bb7
Eb7 / D7 / Gm7

How do I approach it? What should I think about? What beginner-style scales should I try to use? Arpeggios?

How did you do this when you started out and approached this standard for the first time?

Keep in mind how newb I am.

Happy for any pointers, thanks in advance.

[mike walker]

Originally Posted by Thaum1el

So I'm totally new to jazz. I'm doing Autumn Leaves in Gm, and is coming down with the melody and some embellishments - yes, I'm really so green I actually think this is an accomplishment for me.

So, now over to trying to improvise a bit over the changes. These are the chords I'm using, format being AABC, of course.
A: Cm7 / F7 / BbMaj7 / EbMaj7
Am7b5 / D7 / Gm7 / Gm7
B: Am7b5 / D7 / Gm7 / Gm7
Cm7 / F7 / BbMaj7 / EbMaj7
C: Am7b5 / D7 / Gm7 - C7 / Fm7 - Bb7
Eb7 / D7 / Gm7

How do I approach it? What should I think about? What beginner-style scales should I try to use? Arpeggios?

How did you do this when you started out and approached this standard for the first time?

Keep in mind how newb I am.

Happy for any pointers, thanks in advance.

First off, Pick One position, say, over 5 frets. Really try to stay in position.
Play the chords in that position. Don't cheat. Stay there.
Find the 'important' tones, guide tones, 7th arpeggios. Learn to play each one after the other, fluently, not just in your head, but in your ears, and on the instrument. Sing them. Say the notes/chord tones out loud. This takes time. This takes time. This takes............time.

Then with just this info. Improvise. Very slowly. One note a bar, 2 notes a bar....etc. go balls out not to betray the info. Just stick to it.

That's a start, and something you can get into without talking scales, yet.

[billkath]

I found this useful-he does a few videos, showing comps, lead lines and shows you the scales and arps he uses

YouTube Video

[Jazzyteach65]

This should be your end-all answer. It helped me a few years ago
Music Theory & Analysis - Improvisational Study: "Autumn Leaves" - submitted by Jake Hanlon

this works too. Fred Hamilton was both my teacher at UNT, and Jake's (the guy who wrote the study above) teahcer

YouTube Video

and this

YouTube Video

he deals with the changes to AL

[derek]

Originally Posted by Jazzyteach65

This should be your end-all answer. It helped me a few years ago
Music Theory & Analysis - Improvisational Study: "Autumn Leaves" - submitted by Jake Hanlon

this works too. Fred Hamilton was both my teacher at UNT, and Jake's (the guy who wrote the study above) teahcer



and this


he deals with the changes to AL

I couldn't agree more. Those FH vids are stellar.

[frogeye]

Awesome post, thanks Jazzyteach65!

[Thaum1el]

There are all a great number of good ideas. With the approaches that are explained in the posts in this thread, I'm finally starting to understand how make stuff sound like movies, something I've been thinking about or a long while. Big thanks to everyone contributing, this is very much help!

[Patrick Brown]

Thanks,,just what I'd been looking for. FH said more in those two clips than I've seen in a long time.

[GuyB]

Autumn Leaves was the first tune for wich I learned the melody "as written" completely. After I could play it without even thinking about it, then I started improvising on it, from very near to very far from the original melody very easily. Don't have to think about scales, arpegios or anything else : once you have the original melody deeply internalized - hence, the chord progression - it seams that your fingers can move around and "play what you hear" easily.

[Patrick Brown]

Thanks for that Guy. I appreciate it. I need to remember alot of what I learned in the 80's, and then forgot, strangely, as I changed direction into acoustic/roots music, which led to a number of years on the fiddle. I've been playing guitar for 45 years, and know and read music pretty well,,'cept now, at 59, I can't see the notes on the page anymore. LOL, at least w/o reading glasses that don't work as well as they should,,,specially when holding a guitar or fiddle. But,,that's better for the ear, right? I have the Real Books, and my old Leavitt volumes II and III. I have Sheets of Sound, too, as well as my old Mickey Baker book. Just got to get down and play,,but I do that all the time,,bit of rudder changing, as it were. Been practicing Jazz Minor scales in all the Berklee positions. Diminished, Augmented, HM,,,I know them pretty well. Just knowing when to use. I can pretty much run at the board, and that's sort of the problem,,,need to slow down and reformat some things. Thanks again.

[Jake Hanlon]

Still love those Fred videos

[Jazzyteach65]

Originally Posted by Jake Hanlon

Still love those Fred videos

It does make me miss Denton, Fred bringing his Gibson to lessons and just being around the kind-hearted bearded man.