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The
Top Selling Jazz Improvisation Books...
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This well-organized book combines all of the techniques that jazz musicians practice into a comprehensive whole. It covers practice patterns and scales in all keys and tempos, transcribing solos of master improvisers, learning the jazz repertoire, and playing with other musicians. Chapter topics include how to practice, creatively improvise, and teach improvisation; major innovators; important contributors; women in jazz; chord substitutions; scales; and form. Each chapter also contains theory and ear exercises. Applicable to any instrument–or a classroom of varied instruments–this book is for jazz students and professionals at all levels of proficiency.
List Price: $62.40 Amazon Price: $62.40 Used Price: $47.07 Customer Review: Very useful on many levels
I worked with the 2nd Edition and can't comment on recent revisions, but I have to disagree with a couple of points made by prior reviewers. Regarding the "obscurity" of the transcribed solos, while the Smithsonian Collection that Reeves draws about half his examples from is, to my knowledge, no longer available, most if not all of the selections are available on recordings under the various musicians' names. Many are considered jazz touchstones and even masterpieces (i.e. Armstrong's Hot Fives and Sevens, Sonny Rollins Saxophone Collossus). I'd go so far to say that anyone interested in the broad scope of jazz history will probably have a fair number of the examples already in their collection. The other point I'd take issue with is the suitability of the book for self-study. Perhaps it's not a book for an absolute beginner as a player or a listener of jazz, but for musicians with the ability to read and an understanding of jazz feel, the book provides a wealth of material to explore in ways beyond simply following the text sequentially as you might do in a class. As a teenager, I spent hours practicing scales up and down to build finger dexterity, hoping against hope that the benefits would show up in creative playing. It didn't happen - though I got pretty good at playing scales, up and down. As an adult I regard that kind of practicing as a waste of time and creativity-numbing. I now see scales as sets of notes with particular tendencies. Playing an entire scale end to end is just one expression of those tendencies (and a very overused one at that). While Reeves gives you the scales and you can run them if you want, much more interesting to me are the patterns and transcriptions that draw on the scale set, in some cases using just a few notes, in others, the full set. Jazz melody (and the pop melody of standards) is built from motives and phrases rather than from whole lengths of scales. For that matter, so is most tonal classical music. It makes sense to me that if your goal is to create that kind of melody as an improvisor or composer, it's more productive to study how the smaller building blocks of motives and phrases work in the context of the tonality expressed by that scale. If you're willing to slow down and stop thinking in terms of "here's a chord now how do I fit this entire scale into this measure" this book contains a lot of useful and fun ideas to work with. Another useful book is "Connections" by Gary Campbell, which focuses exclusively on creating motivic material from scales as an alternative to simply running them. Why 4 stars? Well, one thing I didn't care for is the close tie-in with the Abersold play-along recordings. I used them years ago and now feel you'll learn more by recording your own backgrounds. Like bass players who practice with a full drum machine, it's too easy to ride along on top of a full sounding background and not notice your rhythmic weaknesses. If you play non-chordal instruments it'll help your harmony by learning some keyboard or guitar and a metronome can still go a long way.
Customer Review: Right for class, wrong for self-learning
This is an excellent text when used in a classroom environment, accompanied with audio examples from a teacher and selected recordings, annotated throughout the text (mostly references to J. Aebersold's Play-Along series). The high-level classification of important jazz innovators in the "Whom to Listen To" section alone is worth a long read. Coverage of the scales, progressions, rhythms and structures is well organized. I can't think of a better single book on which to base class-room teaching of jazz improvisation. Any criticism that this book is "unoriginal" is misplaced; that's not the purpose of the book. It is definitely less useful as a self-learning tool. For this purpose I believe there is no way around a few book-cd combos such as Ferrara's Jazz Piano and Harmony. Unless you want to spend time tracking down the recordings referred to by this Reeves book.
Melodies based on triads and melodic extensions sound more natural and musical than ones developed exclusively from scales. Triads - the fundamental building blocks of harmony - are a simple and effective remedy for scale dependency in improvisation. In Jazz Improvisation for Guitar: A Melodic Approach, explore the potential of triads and their melodic extensions and learn to connect them using guide tones. You'll learn to create solo phrases in the style of some of the world's finest jazz guitarists like Wes Montgomery, George Benson, Grant Green, Kenny Burrell, and Pat Martino.
List Price: $24.95 Amazon Price: $16.47 Used Price: $16.70 Customer Review: An Effective Approach
The method of using the triads and chord extensions, as taught in this book, in fact has been one of the fundamental improvisational approaches probably since the bebop era. Improvising using this approach is simply an effective way to imply the chord changes in a melodic manner.
To supplement the concepts related to this approach which are systematically taught along the chapters, the crucial concept in soloing: guide-tone is also clearly explained in terms of voice leading. Check out the neatly executed example or the etude of 3-note voicings that is based on the chord changes of the jazz standard 'Beautiful Love' (p.81).
Many etudes (with play-along tracks) in the book which elucidate the applications of this melodic approach, are based on the chord changes of: 'Just Friends' (p.64-65), 'Tune Up' (p.97), and 'Autumn Leaves' (p.120-121). The solos in these etudes sound great, and they are fun to play and not difficult for the intermediate guitarist.
One thing though, it is perhaps better to incorporate the materials in the Part III 'Harmonic Concepts for Improvisation', which are placed at the end of the book, into earlier chapters as the chapters that deals with dominant chords are good places to also learn altered tensions.
Those of intermediate level who has finished this book and want to study a broader concept of jazz improvisation may want to check out Intermediate Jazz Improvisation : A Study Guide for Developing Soloists : All Instruments, or the more advanced An Approach to Jazz Improvisation: A Step-by-Step Guide for All Musicians (Musicians Institute: Private Lessons).
Customer Review: Highly recomended
This book gives a fresh look at the subject of improvisation. The look at minor extension as a major triad built from the 7'th degree, is a great way to simplify the learning of arppegios. The minor patterns that force you to play in different possitions are great for learning the fingerboard.
A landmark in jazz studies, Thinking in Jazz reveals as never before how musicians, both individually and collectively, learn to improvise. Chronicling leading musicians from their first encounters with jazz to the development of a unique improvisatory voice, Paul Berliner documents the lifetime of preparation that lies behind the skilled improviser's every idea.
The product of more than fifteen years of immersion in the jazz world, Thinking in Jazz combines participant observation with detailed musicological analysis, the author's experience as a jazz trumpeter, interpretations of published material by scholars and performers, and, above all, original data from interviews with more than fifty professional musicians: bassists George Duvivier and Rufus Reid; drummers Max Roach, Ronald Shannon Jackson, and Akira Tana; guitarist Emily Remler; pianists Tommy Flanagan and Barry Harris; saxophonists Lou Donaldson, Lee Konitz, and James Moody; trombonist Curtis Fuller; trumpeters Doc Cheatham, Art Farmer, Wynton Marsalis, and Red Rodney; vocalists Carmen Lundy and Vea Williams; and others. Together, the interviews provide insight into the production of jazz by great artists like Betty Carter, Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie, Coleman Hawkins, and Charlie Parker.
Thinking in Jazz overflows with musical examples from the 1920s to the present, including original transcriptions (keyed to commercial recordings) of collective improvisations by Miles Davis's and John Coltrane's groups. These transcriptions provide additional insight into the structure and creativity of jazz improvisation and represent a remarkable resource for jazz musicians as well as students and educators.
Berliner explores the alternative ways--aural, visual, kinetic, verbal, emotional, theoretical, associative--in which these performers conceptualize their music and describes the delicate interplay of soloist and ensemble in collective improvisation. Berliner's skillful integration of data concerning musical development, the rigorous practice and thought artists devote to jazz outside of performance, and the complexities of composing in the moment leads to a new understanding of jazz improvisation as a language, an aesthetic, and a tradition. This unprecedented journey to the heart of the jazz tradition will fascinate and enlighten musicians, musicologists, and jazz fans alike.
List Price: $32.00 Amazon Price: $21.12 Used Price: $14.35 Customer Review: Great book, with a lot of musical examples
This is a very well written and thought out book. It is not really an instructional text, but it could be used that way. Most of the book is easy to understand, except for a few technical things here and there that only trained musicians would understand. I would recommend this to anyone who wants to study Jazz in a musical way or people who just want to expand their understanding of music in gereral. This would make a great book to use at universities. The last section of the book contains actual musical examples of what is talked about in previous chapters, so if you can read music this is a great tool for musicians of all levels.
Customer Review: Comprehensive Appraisal of Jazz
It is well written ....having a well documented base with a historical background and a didactic perspective...Very good book.
Specifically designed to teach jazz basics to students with 1 or 2 years playing experience, but with no prior experience playing jazz. Great for individual or classroom use. Teaches the basics of swing style in a step-by-step approach using well-known songs. Improvisation is made easy starting with simple 2-measure phrases. Scales and basic theory are introduced in a simple and easy to understand approach. 2 CDÕs are included with recordings of all exercises and arrangements. Other features: 7 full band arrangements, sample solos, jazz history and people.
List Price: $12.95 Amazon Price: $12.95 Used Price: $4.95 Customer Review: Covers all the basics for playing guitar in your high school's jazz band
This book is for learning jazz from scratch, in the context of a jazz ensemble with a rhythm section and horns. The Essential Elements for Jazz Ensemble series is really good for learning how to play in the jazz style if you've never listened to jazz before. The CD will be extremely valuable for hearing (ear training) what jazz should sound like as it swings. The Guitar Edition is written for guitar, but the melodic examples are played on the CD by a horn instrument. And it's all in standard notation without any TAB. Some rock guitarists unfortunately might be turned off by the lack of TAB, but stick with it. If you're dedicated to learning jazz, reading proficiency is mandatory. To make it a little easier, everything in this book is in the concert key of Bb (only 2 flats).
The comping rhythms have been adapted from keyboard comping. The piano was part of the jazz rhythm section long before guitar. Pianists are masters at accompanying. You'll learn the most common comping patterns as well as guitar voicings that fit in context of a jazz rhythm section with piano, bass, and drums. The chord voicings are diagramed, although not much theory is given so it's best to learn how chords are constructed with another book or teacher who can play jazz guitar. Blues scales and standard blues sounding tunes are presented first, along with explanations of Dorian and Mixolydian soloing. Arpeggios are explained and written in standard notation. You'll find horn players are much more adept at using an arpeggio approach to soloing than guitar players are. This is a great book for learning jazz from square one, but be very patient! This is probably at least a 2 year endeavor to assimilate all the material here.
Learn the essential concepts of jazz harmony and melody with Jazz Piano. This book and CD package contains a wealth of knowledge for any aspiring jazz musician. The accompanying CD holds 57 tracks for you to play along with and hone your improvising skills. It covers all aspects of jazz piano, including: seventh, altered and extended chords; progressions; rootless voicings; octave voicings; tritone substitution; functional harmony; chromatic harmony; scales and modes; what to play over various chord types; building melodies; soloing; and more!
List Price: $17.95 Amazon Price: $12.21 Used Price: $9.48
List Price: $19.95 Amazon Price: $19.95 Used Price: $9.76 Customer Review: A great book for the jazz starter, inter. and/or advanced!!!
This is a great book written by a great jazz player. It is easy to understand for the beginner, yet at a high enough level for the more advanced player. An excellent reference for scales, modes, or any other jazz techniques. I found that if I studied this book, it helped me out memorizing and remembering QUICKLY how to apply them to the piano. A must buy!
List Price: $42.00 Used Price: $192.67 Customer Review: It's the best book on melodic improvisation ever written.
This book explains the method for using chord tones (goal notes) to create melodic lines. This approach is far more flexible than the chord/scale approach. Scales are also covered in a no-nonsense fashion.
Customer Review: Fantastic book from someone who truly understands the art.
An excellent jazz book from the head of the U.S.C. Jazz
Studies Department. If you are interested in playing jazz I highly recomend this book.
In this lively book, David Brown locates jazz music within the broad aesthetic, political, and theoretical upheavals of our time, asserting that modern architecture and urbanism in particular can be strongly influenced and defined by the ways that improvisation is facilitated in jazz.
Improvised music consists of diverse properties that fail to register in the object-oriented understanding of composition. As a result, it is often dismissed as noise—an interfering signal. However, Brown asserts, such interference can bear meaning and stimulate change. Noise Orders identifies how architecture can respond to the inclusive dynamics of extemporaneous movements, variable conceptions of composition, multiple durations, and wide manipulation of resources found in jazz to enable outcomes that far exceed a design’s seeming potential.
By exploring overlapping moments between modernism and the cultural dimensions of jazz, Noise Orders suggests that the discipline of improvisation continues to open and redefine architectural theory and practice, creating a world where designers contribute to emerging environments rather than make predetermined ones. Comparing modern and avant-garde artists and architects with individuals and groups in jazz—including Piet Mondrian and boogie-woogie, John Cage and Rahsaan Roland Kirk, Le Corbusier and Louis Armstrong, and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM)—Brown examines how jazz can offer alternative design ideas and directions, be incorporated in contemporary architectural practices, and provide insight on how to develop dynamic metropolitan environments.
Interdisciplinary in its approach, innovative in its methodology, and unexpected in its conclusions, Noise Orders argues for a deeper understanding of the infinite potential inherent in both music and architecture.
David P. Brown is associate professor of architecture at the University of Illinois at Chicago.
List Price: $20.00 Amazon Price: $20.00 Used Price: $10.50
The
Top Selling Jazz Improvisation Books...
