Archives for October 29, 2008

I”ve received a new date from Ed Englerth for the Monte Montgomery concert that was called off last month. Monte was scheduled to play at the Intersection in downtown Grand Rapids, Michigan, but had to cancel due to illness. Ed”s quartet, which includes me, was slated as the opening act, and since Ed hadn”t been feeling all that hot either, the postponement was timely on our account as well as Monte”s.\r\n\r\nMark this new date on your calendar: Tuesday, March 3, 2009.\r\n\r\nAt the risk of sounding cliched, this is a concert you absolutely don”t want to miss. Monte is an astonishing guitar player, rated by Guitar Player magazine as one of the top-fifty all-time greats. Come on down and find out why. I promise you, you”ll be convinced. And our little unit is pretty decent, too–well worth a hearing, I think.\r\n\r\nI hope to see you at the Interesection in March!

Would you like to be able to play jazz well? Have you wondered what it would take to be able to improvise with color, inventiveness, and freedom? Perhaps you”ve got some basic jazz ability, and you”d like to take it to the next level?\r\n\r\nAfter giving the matter some thought, I”ve decided to create an e-book on jazz improvisation. The initial thrust will be geared toward the needs of beginning improvisers. It will cover such things as\r\n* basic theory: essential scales, modes, and chords\r\n* the hows and whys of practicing your instrument\r\n* adopting a jazz style versus a classical approach\r\n* circle of fifths\r\n* the blues\r\n* rhythm changes\r\n* solo memorization\r\n* and more\r\n\r\nMost lessons will give you a mix of theory and practice material. One of my focuses will be to help you take an analytical approach to your practice that will help you create your own exercises, and hence, your own style.\r\n\r\nIf you”ve wondered how to go about connecting what you”ve already learned on your instrument to the art and discipline of jazz, consider this your first heads up. And–ahem–stay tuned. I”ll keep you posted as this project progresses from concept and moves toward implementation.