My Jazz Piano Journal

Confusing my hands

Learning New Songs

• Transcribe

  • Melody
  • Chord Names
  • Chord Numbers
  • Group and name chord progressions for memorising later

• Struggle with the LH

  • Root Chords
  • Inversions

• Memorise using chord progressions

• Struggle with the RH using root chords

  • Syncopation
  • 3 note enclosures
  • 4 note enclosures
  • 5 note enclosures
  • Shell

• LH 1 + 3 or 7, RH 3 or 7 + melody

• Improvise

  • Dynamics
  • Chord Extensions
  • Bass & Chords
  • Bass & Shell

Chord Numbers

• Major
  • I ii iii IV V vi vii
• Natural Minor
  • i ii bIII iv v bVI bVII
• Harmonic Minor
  • i iidim bIII+ iv V bVI vii

Chord Progressions

• 6 2 5 1
• 4 2 5 1
• 3 6 2 5 1
• 3 6 2 5 1 4
• 2 5 1 4
• 4 5 1
• 1 4 5
• Aeolian / Mario Cadence
  • bVI bVII i
  • bVI bVII I
• Irregular Resolution
  • v bIII
• Backdoor Dominant / 2 5 1
  • iv bVII I
  • IV bVII I

Chord Substitutions

• I IV or i iv
• Tritone: x dom7 -> x +- 3 tones dom7
  • used for tension
  • usually subs the V
• Picardy Third: x min -> x Maj
  • used for resolution

Harmonic Patterns

Cycle of Fourths

• Play 2 5 1 with 7th chords in descending motion, starting on C, then Db, then D, etc. only 2 fingers should be moving between each chord
  • Major
    • ii V I
    • iihalfdim V I
    • iidim V I
  • Minor
    • iihalfdim V i
    • iidim V i
• Repeat starting with a different inversion
• Repeat with different chord extensions
• Repeat with leading notes
• Repeat with ascending motion

Cycle of Fifths

Note Clusters

• Prefer 4 note clusters
• Clusters of >4 can be broken down into 4/3/2 clusters
• If you land on finger 5 you are going the other way

Standard Chromatic

Chromatic Cycles

4 Note Cycles

3 Note Cycles

Use index and third finger

5 Note Cycles

6 Note Cycles

7 Note Cycles

Chromatic Cycles on C Thirds

Chromatic Cycles on Chromatic Scale

Repeat previous drills on all major scales

Advanced Cycles

Interval Cycles on C scale

• semitone+tone
  • tone-semitone-semitone
  • semitone-tone-semitone
  • semitone-semitone-tone
  • tone-tone-semitone
  • semitone-tone-tone
  • tone-tone-tone

4 Note Cycles on Diminished Scale

Built from notes in C7b9 + Cdim7 + C#dim7

Chord Cycles

• 2 octave Chord Cycles on C scale
  • 7th
    • dim7: m3-m3-m3
    • halfdim7: m3-m3-3
    • maj7: 3-m3-3
    • dom7: 3-m3-m3
    • min7: m3-3-m3
  • 9th
    • halfdim7 b9: m3-m3-3-m3
  • 11th
    • halfdim7 b9 11: m3-m3-3-m3-3
  • 13th
    • halfdim7 b9 11 b13: m3-m3-3-m3-3-m3
  • Add more chords

Hand Independence

Bud Powell's Un Poco Loco

Right Hand Independence

Left Hand Independence

• Async with Right Hand
  • Draw circles
  • Swipe back and forth, left and right

All scales are just a permutation of the following clusters

Adding more Complexity

Add physical transposition to Fm7

Add physical transposition to G7

Two Handed Voicings

Pentatonic Voicings

• Stack perfect fourths until you reach the 2nd octave
• Start from C (F minor / Ab pentatonic scale)
• Play inversions ascending/descending
• Start from different notes in the scale
• Change direction every x notes
• Skip notes
• Improvise
  • Wiggle fingers differently
  • Make rhythmic variations
  • Sustain F and/or Ab in the left hand and improvise
  • Reset hands after every chord by moving each hand to extreme end of keyboard
• Passing notes
  • Chromatic Outer Voicing
    • Right pinky does chromatic walk, all other fingers stack fourths towards the left
    • Left pinky does chromatic walk, all other fingers stack fourths towards the right
  • Chromatic Inner Voicing
    • One of the inner fingers does chromatic walk, all other fingers stack fourths towards the left and right

Licks / Runs

Whole Tone

• Resolve chords
• Move between phrases

There are only two whole tone scales on the piano

Oscar Peterson - Body and Soul

• Built from notes in F7b9 + Fdim7 + F#dim7.
• Play F7b9 in left hand.
• Alternate between E and Eb for different fingering permutations

Art Tatum - Tea for Two

• Diatonic 3rds from Db scale
• Start from F on right hand + C7 on left hand

Bud Powell - Bouncing with Bud

• 6 Note Cycle of Gbdim7 + Bdim