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Beginner Jazz Improvisation

Your Path to Learning Jazz Improvisation

Written by: Jamie Holroyd

Edited by: Hayley Lawrence

Cover design: Bill Mauro

Copyright 2019 Jamie Holroyd Guitar


Table of Contents

Introduction

How to Use This eBook

Chapter 1 - Practice

Chapter 2 - Major Scale

Chapter 3 - Arpeggios

Chapter 4 - Chord Tones

Chapter 5 - Harmonic Minor Scale

Chapter 6 - Transcription

Chapter 7 - Rhythm

Chapter 8 - Phrasing

Chapter 9 - Sight Improvisation

Epilogue

Blank TAB

Blank Manuscript

About the Author


How to Use This eBook

Welcome to Beginner Jazz Improvisation!

Glad to have you here.

You're in the right place to learn how to improvise.

Let's face facts.

There's no shortage of improvisation techniques, but learning them in a structured and methodical way seems impossible.

This eBook will systematically teach you beginner jazz improvisation.

You will learn the art of improvisation by studying the essential techniques that are used in the majority of jazz improvisation.

So, you do not have to learn a bunch of scales.

You're actually only going to learn two scales in the entire book.

You'll be amazed at how much mileage you're going to get from them.

This jazz course should take you anywhere from a few weeks to a couple of months to complete depending on your level.

Remember that jazz improvisation is trial and error.

In other words, you are you not going to sound like Joe Pass over night.

But, you can learn to improvise if you want to and are willing to commit.

Please carefully read though the practice section on the following pages before picking up your guitar.

Good luck with your studies!


Arpeggios Now that you can play the major scale, let's look at arpeggios. Arpeggios come from the major scale. Using arpeggios will help you harmonically outline chords. Jazz improvisation usually means outline different chords. What is an arpeggio? An arpeggio is a four note sequence. For the purpose of this section you are going to learn a four note arpeggio with the following formula: Root - Third - Fifth - Seventh You are going to learn how this four note formula is applied to the four primary jazz chord types: ➢ Major 7th Chord ➢ Dominant 7th Chords ➢ Minor 7th Chords ➢ Minor 7b5 Chords

You will learn two-octave arpeggios for each chord type to get them under your fingers and in your ears. Finally, you'll learn how to apply these over common jazz progressions and improvise with them.


Major 7th Arpeggio

Let's begin with the major 7th arpeggio. Each of the notes from the major 7th arpeggio comes from the major scale. You can use major 7th arpeggios to improvise over major 7th chords.

Major 7th Arpeggio Intervals: R, 3, 5, 7

C Major 7th Arpeggio Notes: C, E, G, B


Dominant 7th Arpeggio

Let's move onto the dominant 7th arpeggio. The dominant 7th arpeggio has one note that is different from the major 7th, the seventh which has been flattened.

Dominant 7th Arpeggio Intervals: R, 3, 5, b7

C Dominant 7th Arpeggio Notes: C, E, G, Bb


Minor 7th Arpeggio

The next arpeggio you are going to learn is the minor 7th arpeggio. There is a one note difference between the dominant 7th arpeggio and the minor 7th arpeggio, the third which is now flat.

Minor 7th Arpeggio Intervals: R, b3, 5, b7

C Minor 7th Arpeggio Notes: C, Eb, G, Bb


Minor 7b5 Arpeggio

The last arpeggio you are going to briefly learn is the minor 7b5. There is a one note difference between the minor 7th arpeggio and the minor 7b5 arpeggio, the fifth.

Minor 7b5 Arpeggio Intervals: R, b3, b5, b7

C Minor 7b5 Arpeggio Notes: C, Eb, Gb, Bb


Arpeggio Fingerings

The next few pages contain fingerings for arpeggios across the guitar neck. You can either learn these now or come back to this section after the musical exercises. Jazz chord progressions usually contains at least one chord per bar. That means you need to be able to use arpeggios on the fly. Two-octave arpeggios help develop your technique, but single octaves are often more accessible when chords are moving by. Because of this, the arpeggio fingerings contain only single octave fingerings. The fingerings suggest two ways of playing a single octave arpeggio with the root on each of the bottom four strings of the guitar. Like with the major scales, you can combine these single octaves to create two and three octave scale shapes. Each of the fingerings are suggestions! So, feel free to change and experiment with the fingering suggestions. Practice each of these slowly and in all 12 keys. This exercise is a big task, but by sticking with it you will learn arpeggios thoroughly across your instrument. The minor 7b5 is not included here as you will be learning how to use it later in the book. But all you have to do is change one note in the minor 7th chord to get the fingering.


Major 7th Arpeggios


Dominant 7th Arpeggios


Minor 7 Arpeggios


Minor 7b5 Arpeggios


Arpeggio Practice

These two practice exercises will ensure that you learn arpeggios thoroughly so that you can improvise with them. Move on to the next section when are you comfortable with each exercise. Practice arpeggios in all 12 keys. Why? Firstly, playing arpeggios in all 12 keys will give you the technique required for improvising. Say and sing the intervals when you are playing the arpeggios. Singing and saying the intervals will ensure that you connect your ears with your fingers.

Arpeggio Quick Tips

➢ The fingerings are suggestions, so feel free to change them if there is a fingering that you prefer

➢ If you play a major scale and miss out every second note, you will be playing a major 7th arpeggio

➢ Make sure that you can separate each of the octaves, so that you do not get locked into to a two octave fingering.


Arpeggio Exercises

Now that you have arpeggios underneath your fingers, let's look at how to make them "sound like jazz".

The three elements of music are rhythm, harmony, and melody.

Amongst these rhythm is considered the most important.

So, you are going to learn how to make arpeggios sound like jazz by adding rhythm.

Each rhythm exercise can be applied to any type of arpeggio, such as major, minor, and dominant.

Each exercise is in the key of C and uses the same position on the neck.

But you should aim to practice these exercises in different keys and in different positions.

Arpeggio Study 1

As you know from the major scale licks, syncopation is used in jazz.

So, the first example starts on the and of 1.

Another way that you can sound musical when improvising with arpeggios is by starting on a note besides the root.

This exercise demonstrates starting on the 7th of the arpeggio.

Each of these ideas are applied to the three main arpeggios.


Audio Example 10


Arpeggio Study 2

The second arpeggio study emphasizes the triad before introducing the seventh for each chord type.

Due to the skipped string there are a variety of picking techniques that you can use.

Experiment with them and do the one that feels the most natural to you.

Audio Example 11

Arpeggio Study 3

Using triplets adds musicality as you know from the major scale lines.

Study three uses the same harmonic sequence as example 1 but with which a different rhythm pattern.

Playing the same harmony with different rhythms helps you get more mileage from one idea.


Audio Example


Arpeggio Study 4

The next arpeggio study teaches you a common rhythm used by countless jazz greats.

This example combines what you learnt in studies 1 and 3; starting on an off beat and using a triplet to add interest to an arpeggio.

Like the earlier example, there is a variety of ways this study can be picked.

If you have not used down strokes or sweep picking then this study will help you feel confident with these techniques.

Use consecutive down strokes when the arpeggio ascends and down strokes when the arpeggio descends.

Arpeggio Study 5

The final example teaches you a rhythm that alternates between quarter notes and eighth notes.

This rhythm was used by players such as Wes Montgomery and it's particularly effective to use with descending arpeggios.

Pay attention to the fingering on the minor arpeggio on the B and G strings.

Move on to the next section when you can comfortably play all five arpeggio studies.


Audio Example 13


Audio Example 14


ii V I Exercises

Let's now look at applying arpeggios over ii-V-I progressions. The ii-V-I is the most commonly played progression in jazz. You can hear it in almost any jazz standard. So, let's learn how to improvise over the progression with arpeggios. You will learn how to use one octave arpeggios over the ii-V-I in C. What are the three chords in a ii-V-I in C? Dm7, G and Cmaj7. You now have three chords to use arpeggios over instead of one. The following diagrams show the notes for each of the chords you are going to improvise over. You should feel comfortable saying and singing each note and naming the interval.

D Minor 7 Arpeggio Notes: D, F, A, C

G Dominant 7 Arpeggio Notes: G, B, D, F

C Major 7 Arpeggio Notes: C, E, G, B


ii V I Exercise 1

Exercise one teaches you how to ascend over each chord using quarter notes. Make sure that you have no stops when switching between each shape. Audio Example 15

ii V I Exercise 2

Once you can ascend through each arpeggio try descending. Audio Example 16


ii V I Exercise 3

Exercise 3 challenges you to ascend and descend through each arpeggio using eighth notes. Audio Example 17

ii V I Exercise 4

Exercise 4 teaches you how to descend down one arpeggio and ascend up the next. Audio Example 18


ii V I Exercise 5

Now that you feel comfortable ascending and descending, let's start each arpeggio on a note besides the root. Audio Example 19

ii V I Exercise 6

The last two exercises focus on applying rhythms to arpeggios. Exercise 6 applies the same rhythmic motif to each chord. Audio Example 20


ii V I Exercise 7

Now let's look at using different rhythms over each chord. The final exercise uses a mix of rhythms that we have looked at so far to create a complete ii-V-I using arpeggios. Audio Example 21

Once you feel confident with the seven exercises, repeat the same steps in different positions and keys. The following etude is over the first eight bars of Tune Up and uses all the rhythm techniques that you have studied. Two-octave arpeggio shapes are used through the etude. Hopefully this will give you an idea of how effective arpeggios are when improvising over chord changes.


ii-V-I Etude

Audio Example 22

Can you locate any of the following arpeggios in a few seconds?

✓ Dmaj7, root on the 5th string ✓ G7 - root on the 6th string ✓ Abmaj7, root on the 6th string ✓ Gbmaj7, root on the 5th string

If you failed to locate any of these within a few seconds, go back to the beginning of the chapter and revise them.


3rd To 7th Pattern

To finish off our lesson on arpeggios, here is a classic piece of language that uses arpeggios. In a ii-V-I progression, the 7th of the ii chord drops down a semi-tone or one fret to become the 3rd of the V chord. Jazz greats frequently highlight this movement in their improvisation which makes it an important part of jazz language. You can hear this technique used frequently in Thelonious Monk's composition Round Midnight. The following diagram shows how this technique can be applied to the arpeggios you have just learned. Practice this movement in all 12 keys across the fingerboard. Audio Example 23


About the Author

Jamie Holroyd is a guitarist, educator, and author based in the North of England.

As a performer, Jamie has performed across the UK and USA at jazz festivals, clubs, and radio stations with musicians such as Adrian Ingram, Jim Mullen, and Pat McCarthy.

Jamie holds a BA and National Diploma in Jazz Studies from the Leeds College of Music.

As a teacher, Jamie has a 100% pass rate in preparing international students for jazz guitar diplomas.

Jamie's students range from complete beginners to world class professionals.

Guitar Player, Guitar Tutor, and Just Jazz Guitar Magazine have featured Jamie's teaching and playing.

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