The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
  1. #1

    User Info Menu

    Hello!

    Well I will do this in a camp in the end of august, and going to have 1 week with these talented classical pianist kids. They already have been in this camp and have been learning pentatonics, and blues scales, and playing those lines under 1-4-5 progressions. Its the first time I go there, so I dont have any experiences with classical kids, especially not with pianists.

    I am going to be with them for 2-3 hours long a day, must teach them orchestral practice, and they have to show in the end of the week what they have learnt in a performance.

    So question is: what would you do with these kids in 1 week?

  2.  

    The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
     
  3. #2

    User Info Menu

    What is the mission statement of the one week camp? What are they being told they'll learn? "Talent" aside, what level are they? (Compared to say, ABRSM levels as a reference).

  4. #3

    User Info Menu

    Well, they are going to learn mostly classical, but we will have a well known jazz pianist on the board and he also will teach them how to improvise. This part is only for introducing these little guys to the base jazz improv. But they arereturning guests, and they already learnt pentatonics, and blues. Of course, they maybe forgot those...

  5. #4

    User Info Menu

    Everybody thinks of improvisation as 'which notes you play' and forgets about all the other elements of music that are also improvised - rhythm, articulation, dynamics, timing. For players who are married to the score, the idea of choosing your own notes can be unsettling. I'd consider approaching improvisation with these players by showing them how much they already improvise when interpreting a piece of music. The only thing they're not improvising on a regular basis is note choice.

    Take something as simple as an accent. How much do you stress a note marked with an accent? You make that decision in the moment.

    How soft to you play a PP marking?

    How legato or staccato do you play the notes when marked?

    How fast do you take an accellerando?

    How long do you hold a fermata?

    How loud do you take a crescendo?

    Etc....

    .

  6. #5

    User Info Menu

    Quote Originally Posted by mrblues
    Hello!

    Well I will do this in a camp in the end of august, and going to have 1 week with these talented classical pianist kids. They already have been in this camp and have been learning pentatonics, and blues scales, and playing those lines under 1-4-5 progressions. Its the first time I go there, so I dont have any experiences with classical kids, especially not with pianists.

    I am going to be with them for 2-3 hours long a day, must teach them orchestral practice, and they have to show in the end of the week what they have learnt in a performance.

    So question is: what would you do with these kids in 1 week?
    very often classical students are most open to textural or free improv. You could explore mobiles, loops, systems music and so on. ground basses like Chaconne too (A-G-F-E)

    Maybe using images as an inspiration too.

    Focus on simple strategies that seem accessible. Be careful of presenting a classical student with too many options they are used to being told what to do. Give them small amounts of freedom and slowly increase.

    Don’t necessarily give them a scale and ask them to make something up. They’ll probably shut down, but some might enjoy it. Really depends on the group!

  7. #6

    User Info Menu


  8. #7

    User Info Menu

    Show how to make two simple phrases speak to eachother.

  9. #8

    User Info Menu

    Do ask yourself the question am I teaching primarily jazz, or improvisation? Two different things with overlap.
    Last edited by christianm77; 07-21-2020 at 06:49 PM.