John Coltrane’s musical career only spans 12 years between 1955 (the moment he first got noticed as a sideman) and 1967 (the year of his death). Despite his short-lived career, John Coltrane was one of the most influential improvisers in jazz and there is a lot to be learned from his musical legacy, also by guitarists. […]
John Coltrane For Guitar Read More »
Chromaticism is an important concept for any jazz guitarist to study and master in his playing. In this lesson, we’ll look at how you can take all of the scales and arpeggios you have learned over the years and turn them into “jazzy” sounding phrases by using chromatic approach notes. This is a big obstacle
Chromaticism – How to Add Chromatic Notes to Scales and Arpeggios Read More »
Joe Pass is undoubtedly one of the greatest jazz guitarists to ever play the instrument. He could play single-line solo, chord soloing phrases, perform in a trio, duo or solo setting with the best of them, and always be instantly recognizable by his tone and approach to the melodic and harmonic sides of jazz guitar
Joe Pass Jazz Guitar Licks Read More »
Quartal chords were made popular by McCoy Tyner and Bill Evans. They have a jazzy sound and work very well in modal music, but can be used on any jazz standard.
In this lesson, you will learn how to construct quartal chords, how to use them on guitar and you’ll also play through some comping and soloing examples.
Quartal Guitar Chords, Harmony & Voicings Read More »
Pat Martino is one of the greatest players to ever pick up the guitar, and studying his material may seem like a daunting thing to tackle. But, by breaking down his solos into phrases, analyzing those phrases, and taking the underlying concepts to your own playing, you will be able to get that legendary Pat
10 Pat Martino Jazz Guitar Licks Read More »
Learning jazz guitar licks is an is essential when learning how to play jazz guitar. By studying classic jazz guitar licks, you learn how to phrase and develop rhythmic as well as melodic ideas.
In this lesson, you will learn 30 classic jazz licks over major, minor, and dominant chords.
Easy Jazz Guitar Licks Read More »
Patterns are small melodic or rhythmic units that are very useful for improvising and easy to memorize. When moving beyond scales and arpeggios in your guitar studies, the next logical step is to build your vocabulary by learning these common jazz guitar patterns. By learning how to play and solo with these classic jazz patterns,
Jazz Guitar Patterns Read More »
One of the most successful, and sometimes controversial, jazz guitarists of all time is George Benson. While he began his career as a pure jazz guitarist, taking up the lineage of Charlie Christian and Wes Montgomery, Benson later branched off into the pop world where he achieved worldwide success with albums such as Breezin’. George
George Benson Jazz Guitar Licks Read More »
There is no doubt that Wes Montgomery (aka The Thumb) was one of the most legendary players of all time. He was one of the best single-line soloists in jazz history, on the guitar or otherwise. His lines had driving rhythm, interesting note choices and always had a sense of melody and melodic development that
Wes Montgomery Jazz Guitar Licks Read More »
In this lesson, you will learn how to play traditional blues rhythm guitar.
You will study an essential blues rhythm riff to add to your blues playing + chords that will help you move beyond open and bar chords.
Blues Rhythm Guitar – Chords and Riffs Read More »
Though closely related in form and harmonic movement to its major blues cousin, the minor blues requires an understanding of a number of new scales and modes when first learning how to solo over this common jazz form. In this lesson, you will learn all the scales needed to improvise over a minor blues. Though
Jazz Guitar Scales For The Minor Blues Read More »
The harmonic minor scale is a seven-note scale that has the same notes as the natural minor scale with the exception of the seventh note that is raised by one semitone. This seventh note works as a leading tone to the tonic, that’s why it is used often on dominant chords going to a tonic
The Harmonic Minor Scale for Jazz Guitar Read More »
All of Me is a great jazz standard to practice your solo and improvisation skills on.
In this lesson, you will combine chord comping and improvisation over the changes of All of Me (in the style of Joe Pass). Being able to mix single-note solos and chord comping is an essential skill for jazz guitarists of all levels.
All of Me – Chord and Single Note Soloing Read More »
Working on guitar technique can often seem as separate from your soloing workout. You learn technique, put that away, then work on soloing concepts, keeping both separate in the woodshed. But, it doesn’t have to be that way. When you choose the right exercises, you can build your chops and increase your soloing vocabulary at
String Skipping – Guitar Technique Builder and Soloing Read More »
Learn how to play jazz guitar arpeggios and discover how they can improve your solos. Arpeggios are the best tool to improvise over chord progressions and jazz standards and give your solos that instant “jazzy” sound. In this lesson, you will learn all you need to know to start using guitar arpeggios in your solos.
Guitar Arpeggios For Beginners Read More »
Guitar modes are a type of scale that you need to master to be able to improvise in jazz.
Modes can be a bit confusing at the start, but once you get your head around the basic idea, you will notice modes can be quite simple and very useful for improvisation.
In this lesson, you will learn the modes of the major scale. You will learn the theory behind guitar modes, the different fingerings on guitar, and how to use them in your solos.
The Beginner’s Guide to Guitar Modes and Scales Read More »
Being able to analyze jazz harmony is an important skill for any jazz musician.
In this lesson, you will learn how to use Roman Numerals for musical analysis and transposing on the guitar. This essential music theory lesson includes full song examples.
How to Analyze a Jazz Standard Using Roman Numerals Read More »
Learn these 7 guitar scales and you will be able to solo over almost any jazz standard. Understanding and knowing how to play these scales is essential for any beginning jazz guitar player. This lesson includes diagrams, audio, scale patterns, exercises, and solo examples.
7 Easy Jazz Guitar Scales For Beginners Read More »
Rhythm Changes is one of the most popular song forms in jazz and essential to get under your fingers.
This doesn’t mean that it is an easy chord progression. Playing an inspired jazz solo over a Rhythm Changes can be hard because of the many chords and the fast tempo it is usually played in.
Introduction To Rhythm Changes (+ Chord & Solo Study) Read More »
The ii V I chord progression is the most common progression used in jazz, that’s why it is important to master this progression.
In this jazz lesson, you will learn 20 ways to play through 2 5 1 chord progressions, in both major and minor keys.
20 Ways To Play ii V I VI Chord Progressions Read More »
In this music theory lesson, you will learn how to construct jazz guitar chords from scratch.
Understanding this essential theory will make finding chords on the fretboard much easier and it will take the guesswork out of playing jazz chords.
Besides learning this essential piece of theory, you will also learn how to apply the theory to the guitar. After all, that’s what you are here for!
Jazz Guitar Chord Theory – How to Construct Chords? Read More »
Autumn Leaves is a must-know jazz standard.
In this lesson, you will learn a chord/melody version of Autumn Leaves. You will also learn how to solo over Autumn Leaves’ chord changes.
Autumn Leaves Melody & Solo Study Read More »
When learning a new tune, one of the first things guitarists work on is the chords and rhythm. This is especially true for jazz waltz tunes, which challenge your counting and sense of time with a 3/4 time signature. One of the most popular jazz waltz tunes to learn is Bluesette, a fun 24-bar 3/4
Bluesette Chords and Rhythms Read More »
Summertime is another one of those popular jazz standards that every jazz player needs to know.
In this lesson, you will learn a chord/melody arrangement of Summertime. You will also learn to improvise over the chord changes and learn a few soloing concepts.
Summertime Melody & Solo Study Read More »
Learning how to play jazz chords on guitar is often a tough and tedious process involving memorizing shapes and hoping they sound good over tunes. You get a bunch of cool sounding chords down but have no idea how to link them together to make them musical over songs. This is where chord studies come into
In a Sentimental Mood Chords Read More »
Phrasing is how we shape a line. But it’s actually more than that. In the bigger sense it is how we tell a story, and telling a musical story in a conversational sense is how we express ourselves. When we have a conversation, in the traditional sense, we use words to help get our meaning
Jazz Phrasing – Target & Approach Tones Read More »
Four on Six is a great jazz standard written by Wes Montgomery in 1960 and is a lot of fun to play.
Besides learning the theme, you will also learn how to improvise over Four on Six’s chord changes.
Four on Six Theme & Improvisation (Wes Montgomery) Read More »
A definite must-know standard, Autumn Leaves is one of the most commonly called tunes at jazz jam sessions. It can be played in Em or Gm, and therefore is an introduction to tunes that are commonly played in more than one key, forcing you to learn it in both keys. There are also major ii
Autumn Leaves Guitar Melody for Beginners Read More »
When learning jazz guitar, the blues is an essential topic that any guitarist should tackle. But, how do you move beyond the standard 12-bar form? One of the tunes that get called at jam sessions and is blues related (but not 12-bar), is Watermelon Man. Watermelon Man, a jazz funk classic written by Herbie Hancock who
Watermelon Man – Guitar Chords, Chord Melody, and Solo Read More »
Learning how to play chord melody is one of the most sought after skills by jazz guitarists of all levels and musical tastes. It’s one of those concepts that’s both alluring and intimidating in its design. In this video, jazz guitarist Greg O’Rourke demonstrates the possibilities that studying chord melody produces on the guitar. He
After You’ve Gone for Solo Guitar Read More »
