12 February 2010 ~ 0

Understanding the Characteristics of the Jazz Guitar Style

Understanding the Characteristics of the Jazz Guitar Style

What is the jazz guitar style?
The easiest way to begin is to describe what is not the jazz guitar style. Power 5 chords, simple open chords, steady strums, static chord progressions, a lack of key modulations, heavy bending and vibrato, slinky thin strings, distortion, excessive volume, huge amplifiers … these are a few characteristics that [...]

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29 January 2010 ~ 0

Jazz Improvisation – Just a Conversation Between Friends

Jazz Improvisation – Just a Conversation Between Friends

Improvisation is at the heart of jazz. Too many people consider it a mysterious art that they can’t appreciate.
In reality, this art form is simply spontaneous conversation between friends. A listener no more has to understand the intricacies behind it, than they have to understand the details of brush strokes to appreciate a painting.

Just listen [...]

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07 February 2009 ~ 0

Jazz Guitar Solos

Today’s blog will be very brief but important.
Jazz guitarists are, like many other guitar players, obsessed with speed. Although speed is a good measurement of how much you’ve practiced, it’s not a good measurement of how musical you are.
Today’s advice is simple. Remember that whole notes , half notes, dotted half notes and quarter notes [...]

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12 January 2009 ~ 0

Jazz and Promotion

This is a copy of an E mail that I sent to Ben Ratliff, jazz critic for The New York Times It’s in response to a question concerning the market for jazz.
Ben,
I am a veteran jazz guitarist, born in Chicago but based in suburban Philadelphia.
I appreciate how you handle sensitive topics related to the Art [...]

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