Tag: BACH

Hanon 61 For Piano

Although i am just a lowly jazz saxophonist, it is important for all of us musicians to have a working knowledge of piano. So i found an excellent teacher, Dawn Martin, who is really excellent at helping undo my bad habits which cause muscle strain. Two areas that particularly stymie me are:

Skips of an octave or a major seventh
Quickly returning the five fingers into the new position after a large skip

The 60 Hanon exercises are awesome, as is working through the 12 major scales, two hands, three octaves. I wrote the exercise below to help with the problems described above. For lack of a better name, i call it “Hanon 61.” Maybe it will help you as well. (Press “CONTINUE READING” below to see the chart.)

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How to Learn Songs

Is there a more effective, efficient method for learning and retaining a large repertoire of jazz standards? Continue reading “How to Learn Songs” →

A Jazz Lick From Bach? Yes Indeed!

A recent biography of jazz tenor sax giant John Coltrane verified that he had indeed studied the wonderful Bach Cello Suites. The suites, though quite challenging, are a joy to play, and they provide numerous opportunities to build your tone, technique, and conception. As it turns out, they also contain some amazing phrases which can be adapted as jazz improv “licks.” What do you think of this one? It’s from Bach Cello Suite Number 2, “Allemande,” bar 21. Play it through in all 12 keys (see chart below) and let us know whether Bach gives you ideas for your jazz improvisation.