The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
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  1. #1

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    Maybe this should be a sticky for all those interested in the art of improvisation, self included.


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    The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
     
  3. #2

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    Blows my mind that things havent gotten so fragile that Tim stated this could be considered a controversial take. As a beginner and as someone who is looking for real, down to earth, practical information, im not sure ive listened to anything better. That was pretty special.

  4. #3

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    Quote Originally Posted by DMgolf66
    Blows my mind that things havent gotten so fragile that Tim stated this could be considered a controversial take. As a beginner and as someone who is looking for real, down to earth, practical information, im not sure ive listened to anything better. That was pretty special.
    This could be Ted Greene (Tim is a student of Teds approach to music and guitar) Ted often said many of the key points Tim says in this vid.

    Ted had a very gentle approach to teaching..but he knew how to growl when needed...great ego tamer

    So if someone said to him..hey I know the dorian mode..Ted might reply..good..ok..what can you do with it..the question alone usually required the person to realize they was over their head and ask Ted for some help

    This kind of realization may take some time to digest..knowing all the scales etc is just the starting point as Tim emphasized several times in the vid

    and when I teach I tell the people... the most difficult thing to teach is to someone who thinks they already "know"

  5. #4

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    OK, I'll watch it. That video has been popping up in my FB feed for days. But the title "the last word" threw me off. Sounded very Rick Beato-is, lol. But I dig Lerch.
    Last edited by ruger9; 02-15-2021 at 09:11 AM.

  6. #5

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    I can’t imagine anyone less like Beato than Tim lol. Title is a little click baity though.

    But you have to that or you don’t get views and it’s not worth doing the video, so...

  7. #6

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    It’s a very good video btw

  8. #7

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    This guy is way to rational and reasonable to be on the internet.

    BTW one tune, "All of a Sudden My Heart Sings" has a melody that just plays up and down the major scale in whole notes. Jim Hall recorded it, and it was beautiful.

  9. #8

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    Quote Originally Posted by lawson-stone
    "All of a Sudden My Heart Sings" has a melody that just plays up and down the major scale
    "There will never be another you" comes to mind as well: Eb major scale with only one note changed towards the end of the melody...

  10. #9

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    Quote Originally Posted by christianm77
    I can’t imagine anyone less like Beato than Tim lol. Title is a little click baity though.

    But you have to that or you don’t get views and it’s not worth doing the video, so...
    I think if he had framed it "my final word...." it mighta been a little more reflective of his intention and feelings. Hes clearly not a guy whoever takes a "this is it, my way or the highway, etc, etc".
    In my eyes there wasn't a single second of that type of attitude. He NEVER talks down. He has a way and that "way" is maybe not for the lumphammer-to-the-head crowd that only responds to loud, strong conviction type ramblings. Truth is spoken if you are open to looking for it and listening to it.

  11. #10

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    The video was interesting and I found it to be more philosophical than educational. Tim's playing is always beautiful and I liked what he had to say for sure.

    For those looking for a similar philosophical approach, with some nice examples of applying that in context - watch some of Pat Martino's videos on YouTube.

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    Last edited by QAman; 02-15-2021 at 04:26 PM.

  12. #11

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    A very good video. Very balanced and sober look at the art of making music.

    He offers a lot of plain truths that undercut the business of selling secret music knowledge and magic formulas. At the same time he gives place to using music theory and learning technique to give yourself the tools to make music. I would summarize his philosophy as saying that you don’t have to reinvent the wheel, but in the end it’s up to you what you are going to put in the cart.


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  13. #12

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    Quote Originally Posted by rlrhett
    A very good video. Very balanced and sober look at the art of making music.

    He offers a lot of plain truths that undercut the business of selling secret music knowledge and magic formulas. At the same time he gives place to using music theory and learning technique to give yourself the tools to make music. I would summarize his philosophy as saying that you don’t have to reinvent the wheel, but in the end it’s up to you what you are going to put in the cart.


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    Also, well said!!!

  14. #13

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    been watchin' tims vids for years...a great student, teacher, player, informed tech and always heartfelt and thoughtful...

    i guess not surprisingly, i strongly agree with his views on this one...get all the building blocks you need, but then build your own house with them!

    bravo tim...per usual

    "live in the world of sound"...indeed


    cheers

  15. #14

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    "A finger pointing at the moon is not the moon. The finger is needed to know where to look for the moon, but if you mistake the finger for the moon itself, you will never know the real moon." Thich Nhat Hanh

    I developed an interest in jazz relatively late in life and dipped into a few online learning resources. You may disagree because their personalities are so very different but from where I sit Tim and Jimmy Bruno are pointing at the same moon. The same moon but with different fingers.

  16. #15

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    Quote Originally Posted by Michael Neverisky
    "A finger pointing at the moon is not the moon. The finger is needed to know where to look for the moon, but if you mistake the finger for the moon itself, you will never know the real moon." Thich Nhat Hanh

    I developed an interest in jazz relatively late in life and dipped into a few online learning resources. You may disagree because their personalities are so very different but from where I sit Tim and Jimmy Bruno are pointing at the same moon. The same moon but with different fingers.

    “It's like a finger pointing away to the moon. Don't concentrate on the finger or you will miss all that heavenly glory.” Bruce Lee, 1973 "Enter The Dragon"


  17. #16

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    Really enjoyed the video - I always do with Tim's videos. But the more I learn about jazz the more I realise why the greats all had those years of nine, ten, or fifteen hours a day. I can't see how one can fit everything in without that.

  18. #17

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    One of the thing Tim stresses here (and also in his "Road Trip" DVD) is that one needs to make melodies. Or string together phrases. Taste in melody may vary but it's crucial to realize (accept?) what one's taste is. (It may evolve but evolution is always from a previous point.)

    When Herb Ellis said "sing what you play" (or "play what you sing") he thought "we all have music in us" and this is the best way to let one's own music out. I think Tim is coming from that same direction: you can't find YOUR music somewhere else. It has to come from inside you. It may be simple or strange but it needs to come from you. It will be influenced by the music you love---perhaps in unexpected ways---but that's the thing, to get to where you're making your own music.

    Learning how to realize it on one's instrument may take much work and study but it is all toward the end of making your own music.

    Really, the answer to the question 'what do I need to learn?' is "whatever it takes for you to get your music out." For some that's a lot, for others, not so much.

  19. #18

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    One of the absolute best short videos on the subject! I think he’s saying you learn scales and arpeggios because they provide the safe notes and because you teach you to hear those scales in different context.
    You train your hearing and a direct connection between what you here and where your fingers go, without thinking.
    I’m still learning Whisper Not, cause I cannot hear the context at the en of thee we B part and I don’t know the way on the fingerboard around the 9-12 frets on g,a,and b strings.
    I practice only the C G and D harmonic minor and I can hear when I must play a flat 7 note.
    Of course with all that I can only keep it simple and produce mediocre melodies but I enjoy how theory and practice end up as hearing and playing.
    Oftentimes I cannot exercise on the guitar so I start humming the scales and chords without music which is excellent but it’s treacherous as it’s so easy to slip into the wrong mode that way.
    Note how I forgot about arpeggios, still quite a hiatus to be picked up and it will also help my fingerboard and hearing skills.


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  20. #19

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    Well, I just bought Tim's "Jazz Blues Pathways" Truefire course. Being a rocker/blues guy since I started playing, I've always had a hard time really learning jazz... even tho I've LISTENED to it my entire life (big band as a kid, thanks to my parents, then all kinds as an adult), it's like "my brain just doesn't work that way" while playing guitar, or something. Kenny Burrell is one of my 2 favorite jazz guitarists, no doubt because I can "relate" to his style more readily.

    I watched the into to the course, and saw that Tim came to jazz through the blues, and he likes his jazz "a little greasy", which immediately made me think of another favorite, Louis Armstrong, and I said "I need this course!"

  21. #20

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    Great vid!

  22. #21

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    Quote Originally Posted by ruger9
    I watched the into to the course, and saw that Tim came to jazz through the blues, and he likes his jazz "a little greasy", which immediately made me think of another favorite, Louis Armstrong, and I said "I need this course!"
    An old clip of Tim playing a classic Chicago blues.


  23. #22

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    Thanks so much guys for watching and commenting about this video. I am cautious about "wading into the fray" with vids along this line and I apologize for the "click bait-ish "title. Truth is, this video has gotten so many more views than my usual performance videos that i wonder if a provocative title isn't necessary to cut thru the dim a bit. Oh well, I probably won't be making a "The Only Scale You Need to Know to be a Genius Jazz improviser" video anytime soon but I do think it is important to be a quiet but firm voice of reason in response to the almost hysterical tone of online jazz teaching. From what I can tell from the comment section and the view count this type of balanced view is appreciated and helpful. So I will continue to make the occasional vid that addresses some of the more common mis-under-estimations that abound on the interwebs.
    all the best
    Tim
    (Don't forget to SUBSCRIBE and LIKE ) just kidding, i couldn't help myself.
    Last edited by TLerch; 02-18-2021 at 04:03 PM.

  24. #23

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    Quote Originally Posted by TLerch
    a quiet but firm voice of reason in an almost hysterical tone of online jazz teaching.
    That's all too rare and so much more appreciated!