| LearnJazzPiano.com archives: Introductions | |
| Whacky -- 01/24/2004, 08:13:06 -- #1074960786 | |
| test? | |
| hmmm??? | |
| Scot -- 01/24/2004, 11:28:52 -- #1074972531 | |
| Who is Scot? | |
| Scary, I feel like I'm walking out on stage without my pants on. I'm Scot, and I put LearnJazzPiano.com up in 1996 because I had a lot of time on my hands. I lived in Aspen at the time- played music at the Ritz every night, skied or went mountain biking every day dependingon the season. My professional experience started in 1989 and since then, due to house gigs overseas and in the states, I've had over 2500 nights on stage. That's a lot of playing! So, all that stage playing, the real school of music, helped my fingers know the keyboard and made my playing "smooth". However, during that time I really didn't practice the kinds of things I needed to in order to get >really< good. For the past two years I've been putting a lot of time into the things I missed back then and I feel my playing has really started to expand. Hopefully the people who I play with and the people who listen to my music feel the same way! Anyway, playing and composing music is one of the things I get up for in the morning. Too bad money is such an issue, eh? It would be nice to put out a real CD, set up a tour, go back to Asia and play some concerts, but these things will happen at some point in time. These days my electronic gear includes a Yamaha S90, an Edirol pcr50, and a Roland JV2080. On accoustic gigs I prefer a 9' Steinway, but usually get stuck with some out of tune bar piano with several keys stuck to the strings because of a beer someone spilled a few weeks before. Well, I think that covers the basics for now :) | |
| Rick -- 01/25/2004, 05:07:35 -- #1075036055 | |
| Hi, from Rick | |
| Hi, I'm Rick, and im afraid im quite a wee kid of 18. I've been playing jazz piano for a little over two years now, when someone lent me a Chick Corea CD and i fell in love. I'm going to study a degree in Jazz at the Guildhall School of Music in September '04, which will be great fun. My heros are Kenny Wheeler, Keith Jarrett, Bill Evans, John Taylor and Dave Holland. And of course, the usuals, Monk, Ellington etc. Im also a big ECM freak...drool. Peace | |
| New Guy -- 01/26/2004, 00:40:40 -- #1075106440 | |
| Hi, I'm the New Guy | |
| This is my first time here and I've already left two messages and had some fun looking around. I love this site! I play piano for fun. What I really do is study chemistry all day long and wish that I could play piano at some restaurant at night. Sigh, chemistry study takes away all free time. In a few years I'll graduate with a degree that will hopefully give me enough liesure time to play the piano even more. Nice to meet all of you! | |
| Jamie Cullum: Twenty-Something | |
| flicklers -- 01/26/2004, 12:34:33 -- #1075149272 | |
| Hi, My name is Bert and Congratulations! | |
| After over a year of lurking you have forced me out into the semi-open since it appears one now has to logon. I haven't posted because I'm basically a novice with nothing much to add plus I'm still trying to learn the basic blues. I'm an older guy who had "lessons" (basically just sight-reading) from little old ladies then dropped it for years. But I kept my piano, Kimball student upright, and after I retired decided I ought to play it or get rid of it and the blues seemed just simple enough to get me going. When I get lazy I still sight read songs I enjoy, Beethoven, Beatles, Doors etc. One thing I don't quite get yet is the universal contempt for arrangements. I have the two Beatles books and I'm seldom able to improve on Lowry's work. Perhaps because I'm not trying to jazz the songs up? The site has always been great and I've gotten a lot from it; it's certainly the best I've ever seen. I thought I'd hate the new format but with this threading improvement it actually does seem better. My career was computer programming and this is truly an impressive achievement but then it's well known that musicians often make great programmers. | |
| Magnus Hjorth -- 01/28/2004, 01:20:28 -- #1075281628 | |
| Hi | |
| Nice work scot, but a question, where do you f9ind the old forum...???/M | |
| Smooth Jazz: David Benoit, Spyro Gyra, etc | |
| albetan -- 01/28/2004, 07:14:02 -- #1075302842 | |
| Old forum | |
| When you open LJP, Old forum is in Main page. | |
| Scot -- 01/28/2004, 10:14:05 -- #1075313645 | |
| Yep- old forum is in main page. You can't use it anymore, but you cna read all the old messages. | |
| David -- 01/28/2004, 12:19:42 -- #1075321182 | |
| First time on the site | |
| HI, My name is David age 61 and I have been involved with music since my teen years. I spent a lot of time organizing rock groups and playing keyboards. I have done some recording in the 1970s with known people in the rock world. I never really got totally excited about playing until I tried playing jazz using the book/cd combination available with note for note transcriptions by such artists as Lou Stein and Bill Evans. Now that I can play a few tunes I want to learn Jazz theory, so I have jumped into the Jazz Piano Book by Mark Levine and spend a few hours daily with it. Anybody else working in this book? | |
| julie -- 01/28/2004, 19:36:02 -- #1075347361 | |
| Hi, I'm Julie | |
| I'm a 17-year-old high school student living in the midwest. I have been studying jazz piano for three years, and it is the love of my life. I plan to major in it or emphasize it in college, wherever that may be (ha!). I also do a lot of theatre and play the viola (weird combination- jazz piano and viola). Jazz is my favorite, but I also love music from the 60s-80s and Stevie Wonder and Billy Joel. I love this site; it has been really helpful to me in this last year! It's really incredible! | |
| Ultimate Latin Songs sheetmusic book | |
| Billy Miller -- 01/30/2004, 13:02:44 -- #1075496564 | |
| Me | |
| Im Billy Miller, im a 16 year old junior in highschool. I found this site several years ago before the forums, and i loved it. And, then i ran out of lessons here to do, so i left for a while. And one day mabe a year or 2 ago, i was verry supprised to find a forum here... Ive pretty much played the piano my entire life, but not seriously. My dad is a piano tuner/rebuilder so theres always been pianos around the house, and i started pickin up on it as a kid. I took some lessons when i was in about 1st grade, and then around 3rd grade i dropped cause my teacher was mad that i didn tpractice enough. Its really only been over the past 4 years or so that ive really made huge gains in my playing. I also make electronic music for fun. I love pretty much all music. But, i cant read music either, so now im starting to take lessons soon here to learn and stuff...well, thas all there is to me..love the site! | |
| Ziggy -- 02/02/2004, 10:44:35 -- #1075747475 | |
| What a great site! | |
| Wow! I've been playing jazz piano for a few years now, and during that time I've never come across a site on the net that's anywhere close to as informative as this one. I hope this site lasts a long time, I'm impressed. About me: I consider myself to have a good handle on the basics of this craft and I've been playing regulary in a combo every week for awhile. Right now I'm just starting to groove with all my voicings, theory, and basic understanding under my belt. Nice to be here. Ziggy | |
| Smooth Jazz: David Benoit, Spyro Gyra, etc | |
| dentona -- 02/02/2004, 15:40:25 -- #1075765225 | |
| Hello, I am Denton. I'm 32 and pretty much a beginner but have been messing around with piano for years. I am going to try working through Levine's book also, it's coming in the mail any day. I have played guitar fairly decent for a long time and I know basic music theory, love messing around with jazz chords. Thanks for this site, Scot. I have already gotten a little better from it! I don't have a piano though, just a big keyboard! | |
| pianogirl -- 02/04/2004, 08:51:17 -- #1075913477 | |
| Hi, I am Sandra and I am 41 (ack- how did that happen?) and a grad student. Lots of classical clarinet (a few decades worth) and then the past five years or so I have been focusing on jazz piano. I live in Toronto where I am fortunate to have a wonderful teacher and opportunities to hear some great jazz. I play regularly in a combo as well. Dabbling in a bit of singing too. | |
| 7 -- 02/08/2004, 22:58:14 -- #1076309894 | |
| 7 | |
In the beta version I gave this really snazzy blurb about what a cool guy I am. But it wasn't as blatant as that! There was something about languages and whistling and world wide wild adventures. I wish it hadn't been wiped out. I'll never achieve that level of eloquence again. (As you can see). Oh yeah and I'm poor (sorry girls). 7 | |
| sid -- 02/09/2004, 05:33:01 -- #1076333581 | |
| 7 - your old introduction lives | |
| Greeting from "7" In addition to being a multi-instrumentalist, vocalist and Jazz fan, I'm a linguist fluent in French, High German, Swiss German and Spanish. I have also seriously studied Arabic for more than twenty years (but I'll probably never get fluent in it) and I can get along pretty well in Italian. A major focus of my life has been documenting the Whistling Language of the island of Gomera. A task which I may never complete, but in the Library of Congess there are several of my tomes on this subject as well as my English translation of Ramón Trujillo's book on the Whistling Language of La Gomera entitled "Silbo Gomero: Linguistic Analysis" (original title: "EL SILBO GOMERO: análisis lingüístico"). I spent my youth traveling the world over (all paid for by music) in search of adventure and wild experiences. How I came out unscathed remains a mystery to me. Other than that I'm just your standard issue white trash. 7 | |
| Ultimate Latin Songs sheetmusic book | |
| sak -- 02/11/2004, 07:42:19 -- #1076514139 | |
| sak | |
| love your site. it is great site that help me to learn and understand Jazz. I hope all the lesson files still remain since the latest up-date. I could not find some of lessons that i used to practice with. Perhalph i should look more carefully to find them back. It a great site for mankind to learn Jazz i think. thanks for your generous to shair and help other to learn music. keep up a good work sak | |
| Scot -- 02/11/2004, 09:06:57 -- #1076519216 | |
| Just go to the "lobby lounge" and click on the "lessons" hall. Then all the lessons pages are available in the left menu. Or alternately, just click on Rooms and select which room you'd like to go to. | |
| Smooth Jazz: David Benoit, Spyro Gyra, etc | |
| hackney -- 02/11/2004, 14:32:51 -- #1076538771 | |
| absolutly lost | |
| is it possible to learn to play jazz from this website im a beginner also i have tried to find a room on the website for beginners can someone point me in the right direction hackney | |
| albetan -- 02/11/2004, 14:48:24 -- #1076539704 | |
| Search on "Rooms" "personal rooms" "Albetan's Area" There you will find some tips for learning jazz from beginning... "Jazz Kinder" "The classical & jazz musician"... ando other topics. | |
| Scot -- 02/11/2004, 16:07:53 -- #1076544473 | |
| If you are a piano beginner, you will need to take some lessons from a teacher. If you already know classical music but are a beginner in jazz, then there are literally hundreds of posts and files on this site that can help you. You will need to explore around, search the forums, search the files, etc. | |
| Guillaume_Haydn -- 10/03/2004, 01:55:35 -- #7678 | |
| May I introduce myself... | |
| Hello everybody, I am a 34 year old pianist and piano teacher living and working in Vienna/Austria. I started classical piano lessons at the age of 6, the mid-80's with their jazz revival/"new jazz" lit my jazz fire. After highschool I attended vienna university's law school for some years, but soon began to focus on the Vienna conservatory's jazz piano class. I have played lots of gigs with a variety of ensembles and solo ever since and spend my days sharing my knowledge obtaining teaching positions in two local conservatories. I love old watches, fresh pizza, writing sitcoms for small theatres, italian wine, Bösendorfer grands and the music of Elvis Costello, Herbie Hancock, Jackie Terrasson, Esbjörn Svensson, Edgar Varese, W.A. Mozart, Lyle Mays, F. Chopin and this site. From the heart of Europe, Haydn | |
| Ultimate Latin Songs sheetmusic book | |
| jbl81 -- 10/03/2004, 19:04:00 -- #7696 | |
| Haydn, I was in Vienna this spring visiting a [now ex-]girlfriend who was studying there at the time. One of my favorite nights there involved a great performance at the Porgy & Bess jazz club (or something to that effect). I have to say, that's one of my favorite places I've ever had the pleasure of catching a few sets. Great atmosphere, very smooth and dark, not a bad seat in the house, and the music was pretty tight. I'm living in Chicago now, where there are more than enough great venues to keep me content, but someday I'd like to head back to Wien and do some more exploring. | |
| Scot -- 10/06/2004, 13:13:51 -- #7817 | |
| Welcome to LJP! I'm glad to see so many new faces. This place just keeps getting better and better with all of you posting and discussing jazz piano. Pretty cool, eh? | |
| Smooth Jazz: David Benoit, Spyro Gyra, etc | |
| breakster -- 10/06/2004, 16:37:44 -- #7829 | |
| heyup from Nottingham | |
| Hello, I am a 30 year old chap who plays a bit of piano. When I was younger I studied classical piano up to grade 5. Then I left off because I got bored, I just wanted to improvise. I've been producing electronic music for 10 years, playing at clubs and venues occasionally. Trance, techno, breaks. Recently I've felt I wanted to get back to the keyboard and jazz is something I have always been interested in but scared to start learning properly as it seemed so hard. I've digested the book Jazz Hanon by Leo Alfassy (Amsco) and memorised the last 20 exercises. I've also been practising circle of fifths and taking tunes I know around all the keys. Its slow work, but I'm getting there... I think... ish. Recently ordered a jazz improv book and a massive fake book - yes all the chords will be wrong I'm sure, but it will be something I can refer to. So having perused this site I'm seeing that transcription is being recommended as a good thing. I've never tried this, but perhaps I should... but then again perhaps it wouldn't suit everybody. What I really want to be able to do is just sit down and improvise. I want to be able to store sets of progressions, riffs, licks, rhythms and styles in my head which I can call up. A kind of modular approach if you like. I remember hearing a guy in Exeter (Devon, England) in a since vanished music shop, on a piano. He was playing some fast and beautiful jazzy stuff. This amazing tune. When he'd finished I asked him what on earth it was. An he just came out with something incomprehensible like: its just minor pentatonic in Ab over VI V II IV VII I III with Locrian G. That struck me as very cool, though I didn't have a clue what he was talking about. Anyway this is just to say thanks for a great site. I shall definitely be spending time on the piano from now on, so I'm sure I'll be back here. Cheers, Paul Breakwell, Nottingham UK | |
| Akram Maximos -- 10/19/2004, 04:54:01 -- #8166 | |
| Hi All... | |
| Let me introduce myself, I am Akram Maximos, civil engineer / a humble piano guy living in Cairo, Egypt. Basically, I started taking my first piano lessons (classical style) back in 1979, when I was 18 years old, with private Italian music teacher, so I have classical background to some extent. I had read several books on music theory and taught myself the rules. I am somehow familiar with some, but certainly not all, of those rules; yet, I always like to break many of them, or in other words, enjoy improvising freely according to what I have been previously listening to, but with my own style. I like much listening to different styles of jazz/blues and I wish that one day I could reach a professional level in jazz piano like most of you do. I used to perform piano accompaniment with the church choir, but not regularly at present. With the church choir, I have always been enjoying improvising chord progressions for melodies/hymns that I did not hear before, and provide my own arrangement especially if there was no transcription or arrangement for them. I am uploading a transcription named "Mn'thal'lathy" into the “Master Classes” hall / “Composition” room, on a Finale-2005 file format (*.MUS), for one of my compositions, which I have composed back in 1986 for the choir to sing at Easter. Honestly, it has been very long time since I made a transcription, as I am very lazy in doing that by pencil and paper. But with the Finale program, which I have found its hyperlink from one of the LJP lobby lounge threads, I started to refresh my memory with transcription. Perhaps you will find some missing articulation symbols that I should have put in my transcription, but anyway I have wrote it to the best of my transcription knowledge that I still remember. Actually, I hesitated to upload my composition, as I thought it might be ridiculous to upload a piece of music which does not have a true jazz/blues style or mood, and with only some bits and pieces of jazz chord progressions with neither jazz licks nor grooves. I know that most of you guys are very professional in jazz piano playing, so please take some time to listen to this piece and provide me with your comments. I would appreciate your suggestions and please feel free to edit my attached finale file in accordance with your suggestions/comments and re-upload the edited file in order that I can benefit and learn from you guys. I have visited hundreds of web sites related to jazz piano before using this site and I do not access them any longer, as our site is definitely the best. Thanks much Scot for creating this great and rich site, and many thanks to every one of you folks for sharing and contribution to this site with his/her high level of professionalism and immense experience in music. One cannot get more info than what is available through various halls/rooms on this system. Anyway, I need to start working seriously on the valuable material that I have been gathering since I joined the LJP website. I know this would take me some time to reach an acceptable level, but I will keep trying. Scot, 7, Albetan, Mike, Whacky, Barry, Sid and the rest of you folks: Need your comments on my uploaded transcription please. Thanks, Akram | |
| dharminor -- 10/21/2004, 23:10:27 -- #8242 | |
| discovered the site a couple months ago but only found this page tonight | |
| hey i'm a berklee student studying mostly music business but obviously alot of jazz piano. cause i love it but also love that i have the opportunity to have it in my curriculum. I think thise site is awesome and have been able to use alot of the discussions here to supplement my own learning and school learning on jazz piano. also if anyone is trying to further there career i have collaborated with a friend at the school to start a booking/promotion company and we're also trying to turn into an indie label, so drop an email if your in need of some help cause were looking for acts hvbouz@hotmail.com thanks and keep playing. | |
| Whacky -- 10/22/2004, 06:54:32 -- #8244 | |
| Call me an old fart, but it sure makes it easier to read if y'all would use caps & paragraphs now and then:) | |
| Ultimate Latin Songs sheetmusic book | |
| Barry -- 10/22/2004, 07:09:14 -- #8245 | |
| You old fart Whacky! u got 2 get wid da tymz man ;-) | |
| dharminor -- 10/22/2004, 12:13:40 -- #8258 | |
| grammar is old school man. J/k sorry wrote in a hurry | |
| Smooth Jazz: David Benoit, Spyro Gyra, etc | |
| Barry -- 10/23/2004, 02:35:22 -- #8278 | |
| shouldn't that be 'old skool'? Only Joking! Barry | |
| dharminor -- 10/23/2004, 22:08:44 -- #8298 | |
| yeah yeah yeah, i cant win huh? j/k | |
| japee -- 10/28/2004, 03:02:43 -- #8393 | |
| help | |
| i'M japee and I play the keyboard.I mean gosple stuff.But I want to plat jazz and R&B.BUT I am not good at sight reading any help? | |
| Scot -- 10/28/2004, 10:23:57 -- #8403 | |
| You must practice sight reading to become good at it. If you play gospel music, then jazz isn't that far away- use your ears like you do with gospel but listen to jazz and try to copy what they play. | |
| Ultimate Latin Songs sheetmusic book | |
| camoon -- 11/08/2004, 08:51:03 -- #8759 | |
| Hello, my name is Caroline. I have returned to this site after two years spent learning about the keyboard from David Sprunger's site. I hope you don't mind me dropping his name here, as I have found his pattern piano lessons instrumental (terrible pun I know!) in getting to grips with some of the basics in a way that is not off putting. Now I have returned to your excellent site, drawn by the emphasis on practice, and more practice, with a bit of keyboard knowledge under my belt. I work as a gardener but spend as much time as possible on the piano during the day. Thankyou for putting your time into this site! | |
| Scot -- 11/08/2004, 12:17:30 -- #8762 | |
| Welcome back! That's great that you spent some time working on the basics of your piano technique. It's really important, especially for jazzers, to get a good basic technique for the simple reason that it helps the entire process of learning music on the piano. What is David SPrunger's site? Maybe we should post it in the links section. | |
| Smooth Jazz: David Benoit, Spyro Gyra, etc | |
| camoon -- 11/12/2004, 09:49:34 -- #8884 | |
| Thanks! | |
| Thanks so much for writing back! Don't know whether to post another message here, but with regards to the site mentioned previously, its David Sprunger at playpianotoday.com. I really can't praise this site enough, it made the fundamental stuff incredibly easy to understand. I did the original course which was really good value (about £25), and teaches you to play by ear. It basically uses patterns to learn chord structures, and has you playing straight away with movement! I'd tried for some time, wading through different books, and had become quite despondent. Now I'm a piano addict, and starting to work my way through your site. I'm sure a link would benefit others and compliment your site. Thanks again, caroline. | |
| Blinky -- 11/13/2004, 13:52:23 -- #8904 | |
| Hi | |
| Hi my name is henry i am at music school at the moe and i am 13 years olf. My first study is tuba and my second voice and 3rd piano. I am getting bored of classical piano tho and so my friend in my room who is a first studie pianist who is a AMAZING jazz improviser and so he is showing me some stuff and i am learning of here...i wanna get to about grade 5 classic piano then give up and move to jazz and i am getting grade 1-5 jazz scales and i gonna learn them to help myself a little | |
| peterh -- 11/18/2004, 07:35:23 -- #9054 | |
| Intro | |
| hello all you jazz cats ! I found this site a few weeks ago and have found some of the articles and discussions really helpful. I have played piano for many years, started with classical, ran a jazz-rock group at college and played in a few pop/club bands. I've always experimented with jazzy playing, composition and improv but purely from ear. This year i went to a jazz summer school to learn a bit more theory etc. It was quite interesting and sort of opened up new directions and ways of thinking. I thought however that the "educators" could have organised it better. I also found some of the advanced players were in some way arrogant. This kind of seems to be a trait in the jazz community. Finding the right kind of teacher is difficult. My classical teacher couldn't recommend anyone and thought that i should be teaching it myself! Maybe I will soon. I think that i've probably got enough at the moment to study a load of techniques and improve my listening skills. I am using the Jazz theory book by M.Levine and the Sher real book + other internet stuff. I am also using the Miles Black multi-media course. Its all helping. I now work systematically doing exercises in all 12 keys. Its hard to start with. I always have tended to sight read, rather than memorise. Now having done 2-5-1s and basic progressions, its starting to make it easier to remember song structures. I can now do fly me to the moon in all 12 keys. I can also remember quite a few standards now. But how you guys can remember all that stuff ? I found some free ear training tools on the Internet and have been using them during lunch hour at work. It's tricky at first, but its amazing how quickly the brain can learn unconsciously. I am hoping this pays off soon. My aim is to be able to listen to a record and work bits out in my head without a keyboard. I'm in the process of starting a trio or quartet for fun. I'm based in Scotland U.K. Anyone want to be a buddy ? | |
| Whacky -- 11/18/2004, 07:50:02 -- #9056 | |
| Welcome peterh! Interesting observation about arrogance. I find that to be true in all areas of music education. It's also common that creative folks, like jazz musicians, are sometimes unorganized. Ya kind of have to accept that and realize there can be a wealth of inspiration underneath. Sounds like you're on the right track to me...sorry I don't know anything about the buddy stuff:) | |
| Ultimate Latin Songs sheetmusic book | |
| Barry -- 11/18/2004, 09:29:50 -- #9058 | |
| The interesting thing I've found about arrogance amongst musicians in general, is that the really good players are more often than not, really friendly and helpful. The arrogant one I seem to come across most often are the sort of so-so players who think they're a bit special - Big Fish In A Small Pond kind of mentality. Nearly every really good player I've met has been down-to-earth and helpful. Anyone else found this to be the case? | |
| Whacky -- 11/18/2004, 11:28:36 -- #9065 | |
| Absolutely! I should have elaborated.:) | |
| Smooth Jazz: David Benoit, Spyro Gyra, etc | |
| MetroPhil -- 11/27/2004, 09:46:30 -- #9262 | |
| Hi I am Philippe, based in Montreal. Amateur jazz pianist (hobby). Not that good... | |
| Scot -- 11/28/2004, 20:59:21 -- #9309 | |
| Welcome! If you stick around here for a while and practice the things that are found in the files on this site you'll get better, no question about it. Go to the Personal Rooms hall and check out all the files there. Albetan, Mike, SMG, and all the others have uploaded a LOT of really good material that will give you enough stuff to work on for the rest of your life, pretty much. | |
| africasessence -- 12/01/2004, 09:30:44 -- #9378 | |
| new gal in town!!! | |
| hello all...i'm not only new to this room, but to the love of Jazz. I'm a musician at my father's church...and being the only piano/keyboard player, i have no one around to help me "hear" music differently. so, i'm searching for sites and tapes and videos and great minds in search of inspiration. | |
| Scot -- 12/04/2004, 17:35:34 -- #9471 | |
| Hi there- there's a lot of inspiration on this site. People getting started, old pros working out new bags, it's a place that gives me something new to practice every day. Enjoy yourself and ask lots of questions in the forums. Scot | |
| Ultimate Latin Songs sheetmusic book | |
| anu adekoya -- 12/07/2004, 02:59:25 -- #9522 | |
| introduction | |
| my name is anu i am from nigeria ,i a have a dream of be coming the greatest palyer | |
| betarnau -- 12/13/2004, 09:16:31 -- #9643 | |
| hola | |
| fghhfgghjfgh | |
| Smooth Jazz: David Benoit, Spyro Gyra, etc | |
| benoit -- 12/30/2004, 15:01:04 -- #10001 | |
| I'm Benoit from Montreal. I barely play piano, but I'll be starting on some lessons soon, to get the basics. I'm looking forward to playing jazz! I just need to get my fingers up to speed, so I can start practicing. | |
| comrade c -- 12/30/2004, 20:51:07 -- #10008 | |
| salut benoit! that's great to hear, welcome to learnjazzpiano. You'll find this place is an AWESOME resource. Montreal is a GREAT city for jazz:D I'm jealous:0 | |
| Sweep88 -- 12/31/2004, 10:08:40 -- #10012 | |
| Hi fellow piano players | |
| Hi everyone. My name is Steve and I live in Ohio. I've been playing the piano for 16 years now, and just started playing professionally on the side last summer. Like most of you, my music is the love of my life and I think this is a cool web site. My style is stride jazz influences being Fats Waller, Jelly Roll Morton, and Don Ewell. I have been blessed to become good friends and student of one of the top jazz piano players in the world from New Orleans. I am looking forward to learning more from this site, and am happy to help anyone out there if I can. | |
| Scot -- 12/31/2004, 14:12:21 -- #10015 | |
| Welcome! Who's your New Orleans friend? Maybe you could get him/her to login here and give folks a few words of encouragement. | |
| Ultimate Latin Songs sheetmusic book | |
| Sweep88 -- 01/01/2005, 10:45:07 -- #10032 | |
| Hey Scot... | |
| How do I sent you a private message?? I cant seem to figure this thing out. I need to tell you a few things privately before I respond to your last post. | |
| Scot -- 01/01/2005, 12:33:05 -- #10038 | |
| You click on the "send a private message" link next to "Post New Message". Then you type in my name (scot) and send a message. | |
| Smooth Jazz: David Benoit, Spyro Gyra, etc | |
| 3litre -- 01/03/2005, 00:53:26 -- #10077 | |
| Greetings! | |
| Hello, My name is Shawn, and I'm a 30 year-old jazz pianist. I've been playing arrangements for a couple of years, and am learning to play w/ a combo. I've been very lucky to hook-up with a recent Berkley grad. My current group 3Litre, is a funk/jam band in the vein of Karl Denson, Scofield and MMW. I play organ and rhodes. What a wonderful site this is, glad to have found it. Peace | |
| morning_rain9 -- 01/04/2005, 05:53:08 -- #10104 | |
| hi | |
| hi there, i'm a 24-year old pianist/composer/arranger/singer from the Philippines. I've been having gigs since I was 19. There's no real formal study of jazz here in our country, and so most musicians learn by self-study. I'm planning to take further studies abroad, maybe in arranging (I hope it will be either Berklee or Guildhall, but other schools also interest me). | |
| Topaz -- 01/19/2005, 08:18:40 -- #10521 | |
| OMG its so big!! | |
| Hey everyone,obviously im new!! Ive never played jazz before, ive always done classical and musicals etc thought id give it a go but i dont know where 2 start!! Im 17, got up 2 grade 4 but thats bowt it...are there ne other teens around?!! Neway..ne suggestions on artists i would enjoy 2 get me in2 jazz would be great!! Keep those fingers nimble!!! xxx | |
| Whacky -- 01/19/2005, 11:38:28 -- #10528 | |
| there are some teens here but muof (mostly us old farts) wgakootiml (we get a kick out of the instant message lingo) c'ya l8tr :) | |
| Ultimate Latin Songs sheetmusic book | |
| Topaz -- 01/20/2005, 13:39:34 -- #10556 | |
| Ahh...i feel all young now!! Cant wait to go back home 2 my keyboard and piano 2m...i lodge away from home during week. Whats best place 2 go on dis site?xxx | |
| begriff -- 02/20/2005, 13:06:43 -- #11377 | |
| Hello | |
| I'm a 55 year-old guy who has been playing jazz piano for about one year. I got the bug while listening to Herbie Hancock comping for Grover Washington Jr and I haven't stopped trying to learn since. Most of the time my progress seems agonizingly slow, but once in a while I can look back and see that I've really come a long way in just a year. My goals are modest; at my age I know I will never cut a cd or play with a top band, but that's okay. As long as I am learning and getting self-satisfaction, I'll continue playing. LJP has been a great source of info and inspiration for me. I especially appreciate how someone always responds to inquiries from newbies like me, no matter how trivial or silly the question may be. As I progress I hope to give back to the site when I have the opportunity. begriff | |
| Smooth Jazz: David Benoit, Spyro Gyra, etc | |
| sdm -- 02/22/2005, 16:17:40 -- #11473 | |
| Well, I’ve been lurking on this wonderful site for some months so I guess at least some introduction is in order. I’m another old guy (54) and a complete amateur. About 33 years ago (Lord!) when I got out of the service I was beginning to develop an interest in, maybe a passion for, jazz. I also had some GI Bill and nothing else very fun to do so I became, for a couple of years, a music student and very bad trumpet player at a CC that had a great jazz program (LCC, Eugene, OR). I looked at some really good musicians around me and decided a) I’d be lucky to ever be anywhere near that good and, b) I wanted more money than they had. Given that, I got myself a career in computers. Not a bad decision all in all but I never lost my passion. I didn’t play anything for 20 years or so but took in lots of great live music and continued to feed the beast in other ways. Shortly after a divorce the family upright grand came to live with me. Now, back in the school days I’d learned a basic ii-V-I on the keyboard so I could entertain myself pretty well. After a year or two that gets old however so I talked a local (Portland, Or) keyboard master (Eddie Weed) into giving me some lessons. What fun! Now I could sort of play a few songs. Well, another marriage and several job changes consumed the next 15 years or so. I only worked with Eddie for a year and life interrupted. A year ago we had the piano moved from the living room to the family room – I thought I might play a bit more. Yeah, I did! About 2 hours a day for the last year with good weekends adding 10 or 12 hours. A few months ago someone suggested I’d best get a teacher sooner rather than later so I contacted one of my local favorites and began taking lessons from Randy Porter. I am very lucky to have someone like this living close by, let me tell you! What fun! My goals are modest. First, I’d like to be able to easily get through a tune without dropping a beat or losing the form. That would be a good start. Someday I dream of playing with people – just for the joy of it. I think it will happen but sometimes it’s sure hard to understand how. LJP has been has been a fantastic resource! Through it I have established most of my internet favorites (hmm, you’d think I’d have more work related ones but, naw…), begun to understand a whole new language and have a great place to spend my lunch hours (almost every day). You probably won’t see me post a lot even though it is often hard for me to keep my mouth shut when I should. In this realm I am definitely in the student mode rather than the teacher one. Still, we all have our opinions, right? While I’m here I really want to thank Scot (I’ll try to get to Centrum this year and perhaps hear you play some) for this amazing piece of work and his dedication to it. How very cool! Also, to all of you who are willing to share your expertise and knowledge with others go my heartfelt thanks. You all are great! Keep on swinging… Scott (two ts) | |
| Scot -- 02/23/2005, 13:14:54 -- #11516 | |
| Hey, that's a good story, Scott, and congrats on taking lessons from Randy. That guy is something else. In fact, he's coming into my neck of the woods around March 11th and I've lined up several students for him that day here in Bellingham, including myself :) | |
| GS_Jon -- 02/24/2005, 21:46:52 -- #11560 | |
| Great site! | |
| This site is full of great information and interesting ideas in the chat room. The discussions are energetic, positive, and inspirational. I've been studying jazz piano off and on for about five years now, after studying classical piano for about six before that. I recently quit the rock band I was playing with, so now I've had much more time to practice jazz. Currently my main areas of focus revolve around developing solo piano arrangements, learning two hand voices for comping purposes, and transcribing a series of Lester Young solos. I haven't taken a lesson since Christmas break, so I need to get busy and call my teacher to schedule a lesson! Thanks for the great site, Scott! Jon | |
| GS_Jon -- 02/24/2005, 21:50:43 -- #11561 | |
| Great Site! | |
| Sorry, I mean Scot! | |
| Ultimate Latin Songs sheetmusic book | |
| Scot -- 02/25/2005, 15:02:54 -- #11581 | |
| Glad you are here! Be sure to ask if you have any questions- everyone here is very generous with their time and information. It's one of the main reasons this site is so successful. | |
| Lord Jimbo -- 03/07/2005, 09:35:58 -- #11726 | |
| Good Evening.... | |
| Hi guys. Jimbo here from Dublin Ireland. Have been studying basic jazz with a teacher for a year and a half. I'm auditioning this summer for the Newpark Jazz School in Dublin. Hopefully, shouldn't have a problem getting in. One thing that I'm always stuck for is things to practice until then(I know sacraligious talk in jazz!)Anyway I was wondering if anyone had any solid advice on what to concentrate on until I am in the learning enviroment?You can take it for granted that I'm an absolute beginner, I can always learn the basics again and better! Anything you guys can suggest would be great. Thanks in advance and really like the site. | |
| Smooth Jazz: David Benoit, Spyro Gyra, etc | |
| Scot -- 03/07/2005, 19:51:45 -- #11746 | |
| Practicing the tunes you know in 12 keys will really help a lot of aspects of your playing- your ear, your theory knowledge, your hands on the keyboard, etc. If you enjoy playing the blues or jamming on the blues when you practice, never play it in the keys you are comfortable with. Always play it in hard keys like B and whatever is most difficult for you. | |
| jlopez -- 03/15/2005, 08:58:00 -- #11946 | |
| Jesus from Barcelona | |
| Hi everybody, Here Jesus from Barcelona. I’m 39 and I started 6 months ago to learn on my own. Well, ‘on my own’ would be impossible. I should say learning from books and thru internet stuff. I started with a Casio CTK-491 and just two weeks ago I bought a second hand Korg SP300. Wow, what a difference! My aim is just enjoying, and I’m doing it! I started from zero and I’ve already learnt a lot, though it’s nothing compared to what i have to learn yet. But I try to enjoy the learning process, and I’m doing it. I’m a pacient person, so that’s ok. But I’m not a specially constant person, and that’s not ok. Luckily, as I enjoy learning, practising is not a duty or a heavy work to me, but a very pleasant thing. I like it.I don’t expect to become a great pianist in one year. Nor in two or three, etc. I just think that, at this pace, in two or three years I’ll be able to begin playing with some people like me just for the fun of it. An so on, keep going. I’ve been practising with some easy sheets and a great collection of 12-bar blues exercises, so that last Christmas I was able to perform for my family. It was a success, of course. They were deeply surprised and delighted. I’ts funny to see how such a very simple playing makes such a good impression! This thing of learning by myself has the danger of dispersion. Right now, I consider I’ve made a work of introductory theory and practice. It’s been worth to check out that I can learn further, but I’m now starting a phase of systematic work: scales, chords, arpegies. Not exclusively, but at least 50% of the time. I have the scales and chords theory a little clear in my mind, but now I need to learn it in practice. I’ve been browsed LPJ some times and it’s really useful and interesting. I’ll keep on. ;) | |
| albetan -- 03/15/2005, 21:54:45 -- #11969 | |
| Hi Jesus: You are Welcome to LearnJazzPiano. Click on "Rooms map" (upwards) Look for "personal rooms" Click on "Jazz en Español". Ahí encontrarás una buena orientación. | |
| yaw -- 04/05/2005, 23:37:32 -- #12510 | |
| Greetings all! | |
| Wonderful site Scot! I have been bouncing in and out for about 2 years now, and I learn something new everytime. I have a keen interest in Jazz piano. Your citadel has a rich collection of material and contributions from helpful folk. I can't seem to get enough! The least I can do is to float in couple of bucks towards the PIANO FUND. Cheers! | |
| Ultimate Latin Songs sheetmusic book | |
| Scot -- 04/06/2005, 13:40:50 -- #12529 | |
| Thanks for the compliments- I'm glad you're getting something out of the site! It's a nice community here now with all the regulars and new people joining up all the time. It struck me that from 1988 to 1998 I ran a BBS using the original citadel software. The bBS was based on Fantasy RPG and was quite specialized at the time. I had the most traffic back then with that BBS, and now with LJP, it's the same thing. My skill set consists of playing the blues and managing online meetings, I guess :) | |
| ceej100 -- 04/15/2005, 19:37:05 -- #12908 | |
| LJP Newbie | |
| Hi all from Chris, Loughborough, UK. What a fantastic site and a great jazz piano resource. I have been lurking around for a few weeks now, & thought it was time I introduced myself. I have attached a few notes to my profile which explains all! I look forward to joining in and, although a jazz beginner, perhaps contributing in some small way. CJ | |
| Herbie Hancock Transcriptions | |
| Alberto García -- 06/06/2005, 00:06:40 -- #14608 | |
| I'm new | |
| Hi everybody.I'm writing this from Bogotá, Colombia.I'm 31 years old. I have been exploring this wonderful site. Thanks, Scot for your dedication to share your experience and your knowledge with people around the world. I begun studing classical piano, but on the road I heard Charlie Parker, and that experience changed my life forever. Then came Michel Petrucciani, Bud Powell, McCoy Tyner and so on...Since those days, I'm trying to learn everything I can. I had some private lessons, red some books, now I've been teaching ear training, harmony and music theory at Universidad Pedagógica Nacional. I just love this site, and I hope to learn from everybody, and I would pleased to help beginners too. I love Albetan's Area, it woulb be nice to meet you. | |
| Scot -- 06/06/2005, 10:27:51 -- #14639 | |
| Thanks for the kind words! I'm glad you're here, as I'm sure we all are. If you have some music material you would like to share, we can set up a personal space for you like we did for Albetan. Welcome! Scot | |
| icanreadncount -- 06/08/2005, 20:22:03 -- #14782 | |
| Hey | |
| Hey, I'm Becky, a 15-year-old high school sophomore in NoVA. No one actually knows how many years I've been playing the piano, it's kind of a long story. I've been interested in jazz but didn't really think much about learning jazz piano until I listened to "Fly me to the Moon" one too many times and wanted to be able to play it. I also play the organ, and I own a guitar, but I don't know how to play (it was my sister's, she didn't have time for lessons so she gave it to me, but I don't have time for lessons either!). I'm in my school's choir, but that's only because it's too late for me to join anything else, my choir teacher is crazy and I'm not actually a good singer. I'm on my high school's marching band's color guard. Music is pretty much my life, and ever since I've gotten my new keyboard (my old piano is an upright baby grand that's over a hundred years old and so out of tune. Cheaper to get a new keyboard although I miss the sound of a piano), I've been playing constantly. I'm excited to start learning a new style! | |
| Scot -- 06/09/2005, 11:56:54 -- #14805 | |
| What kind of Baby Grand do you have? It's cheaper to get a keyboard, but if the baby grand only needs tuning and a bit of maintenance, it's a lot better for you as a pianist to save some cash and get that thing fixed up. That is, IF it's worth it. If it's just a PSO (piano shaped object) then you'll be better off with a keyboard. | |
| The Monty Alexander transcription collection: originals, calypso, etc... | |
| sdm -- 06/09/2005, 12:17:57 -- #14806 | |
| My piano is also over 100 years old (A440 tuning mark of 1904 or some such). The tuner gets nervous about bringing it fully up (he left it a little flat this year). I'll probably ask him to try next year. It was much worse when he first saw it but he did bring it up pretty nicely with no ill effects. | |
| adriankeith -- 06/19/2005, 20:00:47 -- #15303 | |
| Hi everyone... | |
| Hi everyone, i'm not sure how to start this.. but here goes. My name's adrian-keith and i'm 19 years old.. i've been playing the piano since about the age of 5. unfortunately or fortunately (however you look at it) i've been in the world of classical/classical competition. i've been trying to clear my head of all the classical music. around the age of 15 i really fell in love with jazz music. i got involved in a vocal jazz a cappella group called Paradigm 7, and really took an interest in jazz piano. guys like chick corea, dave brubeck, dave grusin, oscar peterson, and other jazz greats became new friends to me. i really fell in love with the music and have been trying to find a way to learn jazz music. the first piece i tried playing around with was misty. i had learned the song from a wedding book but grew tired of its traditional structure, so i tried playing around the music. it sounds all right but i'm trying to work on a good foundation of jazz. i stumbled on this website today, and i hope it'll help me. anyways feel free to email me to let me know where i should really start in learning the basics of jazz. | |
| Herbie Hancock Transcriptions | |
| albetan -- 06/20/2005, 16:03:16 -- #15339 | |
| Welcome Adrian to LJP. See these files at Albetan's in personal rooms: "Beginning scales, chords, modes, arpeggios" "Beginning improvisation" "Extended chords" "Performing jazz lead sheets".... | |
| JHMurray -- 06/22/2005, 15:27:23 -- #15437 | |
| Hi Y'all, I've been trying to get aboard here for a while but couldn't due to "BLOCKED COOKIES" on my browser! Finally figured it out today. My name's Jim, age 39. Originally from western Colorado, I have been living in Japan since 2001. My main gig is solo piano at a major hotel in Tokyo. I've been picking up a lot of useful tips here. Thanks, Mr. Raney | |
| SolArt -- 06/22/2005, 18:45:53 -- #15448 | |
| Welcome! JHMurray, may I ask how you've wound up in Japan? | |
| JHMurray -- 06/23/2005, 12:27:45 -- #15482 | |
| Solart, I suppose I wound up in Japan out of curiosity and boredom. Haven't regretted it yet. | |
| The Monty Alexander transcription collection: originals, calypso, etc... | |
| SolArt -- 06/24/2005, 05:59:12 -- #15516 | |
| How does it feel being a minority, er-uh, are you black? | |
| Scot -- 06/24/2005, 14:23:58 -- #15538 | |
| I played in Tokyo for a few months but spent most of my time in Seoul. If I didn't enjoy clean air so much, I'd still be in East Asia playing music! | |
| Herbie Hancock Transcriptions | |
| JHMurray -- 06/27/2005, 20:27:51 -- #15684 | |
| Race is a funny thing here. Black and white musicians are often prefered for certain gigs over Japanese musicians because of the "image" thing. If I think about it too much it could become self-defeating dilemma. Scot, do you remember where in Tokyo you played? | |
| Scot -- 06/28/2005, 09:32:35 -- #15715 | |
| I'll have to look at my old contracts and/or pictures. Tokyo was just for a couple months and I can't really recall which hotel we played in... I know they hired us in some places such as Korea because the locals couldn't play jazz at the time. They could, but it didn't have any substance- just fingers. Now there are no gigs for western jazzers in Korea because the locals are getting pretty good. There's even a branch of the Berkeley school of music in Seoul. | |
| wescapade -- 07/19/2005, 16:58:00 -- #16743 | |
| Hello all! | |
| Just found this site today and immediately joined. Thank you, Scot, for hosting. I am 26 years of age and have "doodled" with keys for about fifteen years. My music reading abilities are poor, but I have always possessed keen ears to make up for it, in my opinion. I have read before that you should pick one player to emulate the stylings of. Well, that player for me would be Andy Connell; one half of the group Swing Out Sister. (www.swingoutsister.com) He is not a flashy player at all. I just love his spacing and chord structures. The ingredients are jazz, latin jazz (sergio mendes and brasil '66), john barry, and the great Bacharach. I want to be just like him (it would be nice to find a female counterpart like his, the delicious and hugely underrated lyricist/vocalist Miss Corinne Drewery) and form a band like Swing Out Sister. Anyone think I am on a decent path? I'm open to all sorts of suggestions; preferably some on how to practice arranging like the aforementioned piano players/arrangers. Thanks in advance and I'll see ya'll around!! | |
| Scot -- 07/19/2005, 19:33:58 -- #16750 | |
| Welcome, glad you could make it! There is so much material here that you'll have a never ending supply of stuff to work on. Scot | |
| The Monty Alexander transcription collection: originals, calypso, etc... | |
| vilma -- 07/20/2005, 13:35:49 -- #16766 | |
| What a gem! | |
| Hi everyone, I am so thrilled. Just came across this site and I amjust so delighted to come across this find. I am from Jamaica and from now on I will be spending nuff time here. | |
| OSC1 -- 07/27/2005, 16:18:01 -- #16973 | |
| Hi ! This site is amazing ! I think I'll spend a lot of time with reading and practising the lessons. Greetings from Germany ! | |
| Herbie Hancock Transcriptions | |
| flyin'hands -- 07/31/2005, 14:25:33 -- #17110 | |
| Greetings from Flyin'hands | |
| Hello everyone. I came across this site and only wish this type of technology had existed, hmmm let's say 40 years ago! My name is Chris, and I've been a professional musician on and off since as far back as 1967, when I got my very first piano gig while still in high school, playing solo jazz piano (and actually all types of piano styles) and singing at a really cool country club here. My love for jazz piano began when I was around 10 years of age. I started classical piano lessons at 5, but my training in that was very intense, as nuns were my first teachers! Jazz piano recordings which my parents owned, opened up a whole new world to me. I would listen for hours to Fats Waller, james P. Johnson, Earl Hines, and os course my main man, Art Tatum. I also listened to a wide array of other pianists in those record collections over the ensuing years, including Lennie Tristano, Bud Powell, Al Haig, Roger Williams, Peter Nero, Eddie Duchin, Van Cliburn, Josef Hoffman, Dave Brubeck, Jerry Lee Lewis,Jorge Bolet, and numerous others. I'll pretty much listen to ANYONE who can really play, and feel I've learned something from everyone. Along the way I played many gigs arind the country, and not justin jazz. I played in rock bands, country and western bands, bluues bands, R&B, and others, everything from clubs/bars, to weddings, parties, concerts, etc. I LOVED it all, but along the way I also earned degrees in psychology, therapeutic recreation, and worked all types of "straight" jobs ie; hospitals, rehab facilities, behaviroal health, fitness facilities, law enforcement, you name it! In high school and college I also loved sports/fitness stuff, and that too has always been a part of my life. Now, at nearly 55, I'm just "chillin" getting ready to enjoy retirement. I've always loved fitness tuff, running, swimming, hiking, baseball, football, as well as traveling. My daughter is all grown up, and as a single guy, I still love all of the above! | |
| charlp88 -- 08/08/2005, 19:29:53 -- #17413 | |
| amateur play professional music lover | |
| I am so lucky to have found this link.Ever since I heard LULLABY OF BIRDLAND by Shearing in 52 or 53 I was intrigued by jazz.A musical journey which has taken me to GARNER--BASIE BRUBECK MJQ_BIRD DIZ ELLA__ SASSY TORME OSCAR-TATUM MULLIGAN then I lit upon BILL EVANS and I was HOME. Im 68 now and loving this timeless music which fullfils me so much I cant express. except to ask you to listen to Some of your favorites and enjoy. charlie | |
| loinus.mcgregor -- 08/23/2005, 22:03:43 -- #17942 | |
| hey, i never knew this was here | |
| wow. well. my name is joseph ellis im 14 years old and ive been playing piano since i was 7 i am absoulutley crazy about jazz. ive always loved it but classical was always put first in my family. well im not doing classical anymore, so i can focus more on jazz. its just more fun than everything else. im looking to try out for the mity summer jazz band next summer. but b4 that im trying out for the highschool jazz band. its just so much fun. ive been doing it with the school for over 3 years now. yeah. well thats me for you | |
| iNBi -- 08/29/2005, 04:01:23 -- #18180 | |
| scot, u the man, i love forums and this one is NO exception | |
| The Monty Alexander transcription collection: originals, calypso, etc... | |
| Scot -- 08/29/2005, 14:06:57 -- #18208 | |
| Right on- glad that you've joined us! | |
| Starkman -- 09/09/2005, 17:37:35 -- #18825 | |
| Hey all | |
| Hey all, Well, I found this site by bummin' around on...on...crap, I forget what site I was on...OH, passion4jazz, I think it was. Anyway, I'm an old (44-years-old) former high school jazz trumpet player. I studied a while with Warren Gale and took a few theory lessons from Mark Levine. Well, I put the trumpet down years back, because it's just too darned hard to keep the chops up. But, I recently decided to take over playing piano for our church worship team. The young gal who played piano went to college. I had her show me what she was doing (everything was triads and in root position!). I thought hek, I can do that—I've got a lot of natural ability and raw talent. So, it's coming along quite fast. I've only been playing a few months now, and some things are coming long fast, others are not. But I'm VERY happy with just what I've discovered (how much can be done in root position alone!). Wished I had known about this years back. Well, I'll be scouring this site for gems and jewels, and learning from the rest of you. Very nice (and thorough) site! Thanks, Starkman | |
| Herbie Hancock Transcriptions | |
| LRM -- 09/20/2005, 21:29:57 -- #19244 | |
| Trying to Learn | |
| Hi. My name is Laura, and I'm an amateur composer. I feel overwhelmed by (but grateful to have found) this web site. I've been making up tunes since I was about 5 years old--and that was a *long* time ago! I have had almost no formal music training (just accordion lessons when I was 10 and being in school choirs when I was a teenager. (My voice never was particularly good, but I did all right in a group. Of course, that wasn't jazz. Besides, these days, I don't sing at all because my throat has been damaged by various health problems.) When I was in high school, I traded my accordion in for a nylon-string guitar and got into the folk music/protest songs thing in the 1960s. (That really dates me, doesn't it.) I didn't learn how to play the left hand of the piano until I started taking my son to piano lessons. (I sat in on the lessons, then tried playing some pieces myself.) For the most part, I'm self-taught. I've always loved the sounds of blues and jazz. (Heck, I was named after a jazz song.) But until about 1996, I didn't even know the basic blues scale. Discovering that scale was like a revelation! It opened me up to so many more musical possibilities. Unfortunately, I don't think I can ever develop the physical skills to be able to play jazz piano, but thanks to a MIDI keyboard and MID software, I can and do compose and record music. (I even have an MP3 web site.) I hope the fact that I create my music using a computer doesn't put off those on this site who perform live. I have great respect for performers. (In fact, I'm in awe of all of you!) But I spend most of my time working as a public policy analyst and disability rights advocate. That's in addition to managing my own disabilities. It doesn't leave me nearly as much time as I would like to spend on music--either playing or composing. My music is pretty eclectic in style (and varies a lot in quality!), but I want to include more jazz and blues elements in what I do. That's what brought me to this web site. I feel a little intimidated by some of what I've seen here, but I look forward to visiting this site in the future and to learning more. --Laura | |
| Scot -- 09/21/2005, 23:16:50 -- #19275 | |
| Sounds like you've found this site at just the right time, Laura! Be sure to participate in the forums when you have questions or comments about anything. | |
| despiseneighbor -- 09/27/2005, 01:50:32 -- #19366 | |
| hello | |
| hello .. i am 20 years old girl from asia i want who correct my piano course i did it 10 years old before i am starting it agian alone but i dont have any money i need friends good at piano to give me aid plese email me cutelove_b@yahoo.com | |
| albetan -- 09/27/2005, 09:59:20 -- #19375 | |
Click on Rooms map. Select jazz lessons. Clicking on red w near my name you will find good stuff for beginners. Good luck. | |
| The Monty Alexander transcription collection: originals, calypso, etc... | |
| Mercy Monet -- 09/28/2005, 10:02:57 -- #19401 | |
| Piano and Voice | |
| 9/28/05 Dear Scott: I am a vocalist, learning to play jazz piano to accompany myself when singing. Any suggestions on ways to play while singing? Is there a different technique? Looking for suggestions. I enjoy your website and very glad that I found it! Mercy Monet | |
| syamila -- 10/11/2005, 01:48:00 -- #19837 | |
| new member | |
| haiiii all, my name Ayu from Indonesia Im pianist of classic piano | |
| Herbie Hancock Transcriptions | |
| FFC -- 10/21/2005, 08:38:05 -- #20112 | |
| Hi everyone! Ive been browsing this site for a while now and never even knew this existed. Im a late bloomer when it comes to piano and even later bloomer when it comes to jazz. I just recently fell in love with piano in late december last year! I fell in love with jazz and blues just 1month ago("o)!! I searched and searched for relevant info to start me off but to no avail, until i found this site. I am happy to say i am on cloud 9 and loving every minute of it. Thank you Scot for this genious website! Welcome to all newcomers including me^^! | |
| kitin -- 11/30/2005, 21:38:15 -- #21645 | |
| hi! | |
| hi im kitin im from the Philippines... im from the conservatory of Music, so we are studying more on the classical one, but i love jazz music and i wanna learn more about it, that's why i intended to join in this forum i hope i will be welcome here..... let's have some sharing of jazz thoughts.... tnx! | |
| starlingj -- 12/01/2005, 20:25:24 -- #21689 | |
| Musician Intro -- Starling Jones,Jr. | |
| Hello to all.. Starling http://www.StarlingSounds.com http://www.hearandplay.com/at.cgi/300382 http://www.hearandplay.com/at.cgi/300382/affiliate.html | |
| clobaton -- 12/05/2005, 10:31:06 -- #21788 | |
| learn jazz piano MAP | |
| To all the new people, put you picture in http://www.frappr.com/learnjazzpiano enjoy :) | |
| The Monty Alexander transcription collection: originals, calypso, etc... | |
| albetan -- 12/05/2005, 21:26:14 -- #21840 | |
| And please write in Add yourself in Shoutout a message to others what do you do in music: student, pianist, private teacher, jazz lover, cello player... or You give money to jazzers... and so on... And then click on Add me. Remember we are a great brotherhood of jazz lovers.... It's good to see all of us in the world's map... This is a great contribution of Gordon to our dear site. | |
| Jiggy Jjj -- 12/07/2005, 21:28:32 -- #21926 | |
| My Email......RE: New Subscriber Please Help | |
| work_at_living@yahoo.com Tks, Ernie oooooooh.......maybe my cookie settings? | |
| Herbie Hancock Transcriptions | |
| bculver -- 12/26/2005, 19:33:39 -- #22551 | |
| learning theory... ouch! | |
| I have been playing piano for 4 plus years with Annieville blues..she is from the NW....the best teacher etc... She writes in a lot of stuff on plain jane music... and it sounds great. But I want to learn the theory stuff so I can figure out riffs and improv myself. I have hired and old dude jazz guy and he is busting my chops.. only 2 lessons and he wants me to know the 2-5-1 and third inverstions...and I need some baby steps? Should I look for a new theory teacher... I am too old not not be having fun.... bculver | |
| chopin1961 -- 01/18/2006, 18:07:57 -- #23211 | |
| Frank from piano-ology.com | |
| A rock, blues, jazz, ragtime player from Albuquerque. BTW, if you are having physical technique problems, check out our new DVD on technique fundamentals at piano-ology.com! | |
| anacephalic -- 01/24/2006, 11:57:14 -- #23417 | |
| gotta keep growin! | |
| I've been a guitar player since early 70's and wound my way through rock and new wave until planting myself soundly in the blues and swing when i moved to New Orleans in the late 80's. I've been playing and writing on and off while doing a road based environmental construction gig to pay the bills. Finding players is tough so i figured get a good synth, some lessons and play it all myself. That combined with my love of jazz piano so i have a new mission to keep my mind going. Throw in 3 ry old twins and a new born my mind may actually fracture but i'm gonna see if i can do this piano thing anyway. thanks in advance for all the help i'll be getting from here | |
| daveonpiano -- 01/30/2006, 15:14:31 -- #23629 | |
| bculver, I understand | |
| bculver, the truth is...when a student, regardless of age, and a teacher, regardless of how competent he or she is, don't connect, the issue needs to be discussed. A genuine teacher will understand - or at least be willing to understand - what your needs are. A true teacher will be willing to "back up" several steps and approach the topic at your level of understanding (without judging you!). It's a matter of probing - a teacher needs to be willing to do this if, in fact, he or she is to be successful with a give student. You did touch on a VERY important point - it NEEDS to be fun. It seems to me that either communication with your teacher will take place or you will move on. Just my thoughts presently regarding your matter - I fully appreciated your post. | |
| The Monty Alexander transcription collection: originals, calypso, etc... | |
| daveonpiano -- 01/30/2006, 15:15:13 -- #23630 | |
| bculver, I understand | |
| bculver, the truth is...when a student, regardless of age, and a teacher, regardless of how competent he or she is, don't connect, the issue needs to be discussed. A genuine teacher will understand - or at least be willing to understand - what your needs are. A true teacher will be willing to "back up" several steps and approach the topic at your level of understanding (without judging you!). It's a matter of probing - a teacher needs to be willing to do this if, in fact, he or she is to be successful with a give student. You did touch on a VERY important point - it NEEDS to be fun. It seems to me that either communication with your teacher will take place or you will move on. Just my thoughts presently regarding your matter - I fully appreciated your post. | |
| pat -- 02/28/2006, 07:27:36 -- #24655 | |
| Mad for jazz | |
| Hello all, my name is Pat and I am from South Africa. I have also found this site while surfing and it is a great one. I have been lurking a while and getting all the excellent tips thank you very much.I took classical lessons at primary school but after passing my 2grade exams was "kicked" out of music class by the nuns as I was over the age. I was 13yrs old. I started playing by ear as well as sight reading the stacks of music my mother had, tho it took me a while to play those chords properly. I played keyboard/piano for various dance bands for 15yrs From 1970 to 1985. My interest in jazz came at the end of 1985.I'm afraid to say that I'm poor in playing real jazz because of not being able to practice much. Shouts from my mother then and my wife now to " stop making that racket!" So whenever I do get the chance to practice I take it but a 1/2 hour at the piano is not really enough is it? Once again thank you Scot for a lovely site. | |
| Herbie Hancock Transcriptions | |
| sid -- 02/28/2006, 11:17:32 -- #24662 | |
| Hello Pat | |
| Welcome to the LJP community, where no-one will yell "stop making that racket", although developing ways to deal with the absurd negativity that jazz provokes in some people is one of the essential skills for the jazz student! sid | |
| gollum -- 03/01/2006, 11:02:56 -- #24701 | |
| gollum | |
| soy nuevo en este espacio debido a mi interes por este mundo pero tb estoy un poco cansado de buscar las partituras de PEDRO NAVAJA de ruben Blades,mas concretamente la version de la orq.Plateria,escribo por si alguno de ustedes podria ponerse en contacto conmigo,muxas gracias./ tecleta_82@hotmail.com | |
| Scot -- 03/01/2006, 12:29:06 -- #24712 | |
| Hi, will someone who is fluent in Spanish contact this guy and tell him how this place works? | |
| albetan -- 03/01/2006, 15:08:57 -- #24721 | |
| para Gollum | |
| Hola Gollum: El score de Pedro Navaja te lo puse en Latin corner. Suerte. | |
| raymondwoods -- 03/11/2006, 20:48:35 -- #25129 | |
| not new to the game but new to jazz | |
| My name is Raymond and I have been playing the piano, keyboard, etc since 96, I play for my church and I have been self thought since then. I have gotten to the point to where I am stuck in a box and need to get out! By that I mean I have been progressing very slowly, until I embarked upon this site. I see tons of things that will help me as gospel musician and I'am excited to dig in. | |
| Mecobio -- 03/14/2006, 10:26:21 -- #25185 | |
| What is the definition of Jazz? | |
| Hi Just a question, assuming someone here can know the answer. There have been some argue about how to define JAZZ. In the Mark's "Jazz theory book" nothing is said about it and even in amazon some critize the author becuase of that. Saying that "improvisation is jazz" is an insult to the human kind because of improvisation has always been in music since the evolution of homo-sapiens (or the creation of Gud, depending on the believe). By the way, isn't so that any creation involves improvisation? The jazz literature starts with the Blues. The later is well defined as I(1) IV(5) I(7) V(9) I(11). Important to notice that Rhythm & Blues (R&B) which can be seen as a Blues with slightly variation, was later re-named as Rock & Roll due to commercial and racist motive packaging it as a "white creation" to a more rich white consumers. Then, the jazz books move to be-bop. Many says that the term "jass" was rude sexual slang used in New Orleans brothels. So, Is jazz a commercial name similar to Rock and Roll where both mean sex? Any serious definition of it out there? The reason of looking for a definition is that, the more you know about a subject, the better you can explore it, transformed, play around with it, etc. So, if jazz = blues + be-bop, then, jazz itself is not a music but a package. Then, as every package, it is heavily commercialized and simplified, with a lot of lies around it and therefore "too flat" compare to the original blues. Any comments? Please, I'm not looking for "personal opinions from the heart" but rather from the brain, so we can get rid of the sentimental issues for a while around it, and try to differentiate between music and commercial crap. Interesting that in the Mark's "Jazz theory book" he says that many afro-Americans are opposed to the misuse of the term jazz as it is used today. I really want to know the point of views of those afro-Americans? What are their arguments? It is not the first time a music genre is re-named in USA for marketing reasons spreading simplified mediocre "stuff". The term salsa is just another, which it is in fact Cuban son (please, read the definition of the Cuban SON included in the Latin Corner forum files). It is also said that Tito Puente said that there were good jazz musicians (wonder the definition now) in USA but bad jazz musicians playing "Latin jazz". The term "Latin jazz" is obviously even critized as well, e.g. what it is Latin? What has a latin Italian to do with the Cuban son or any Cuban or Brazilian music? An afro-Cuban musicologist says took this issue far beyond questioning what has a white Spanish speaking argentine to do with afro-cuban drums? The term "descarga" or "descarga cubana" (descarga means download) has been used in Cuba for any kind of improvisation around the Cuban music. Then, any descarga cubana is in fact Cuban music where you add as more as you want in terms of experimental instrumental songs. That is, first you should know the Cuban music very good before to start to do "descarga cubana". Not strange that Chucho Valdes and Gonzalito Rubalcaba are very good in this music as their parents were popular musicians allow them to grow in the "right environment". Please, don't confuse the issue that many Cuban musicians call themselves as "latin jazz" since this is a way they have to make money and establish contact outside. That is, a commercial name already established in USA due to commercial reasons. Please, observe from the definition of the Cuban SON written by Raul in the Latin forum files there are plenty of room for any kind of insertion of scales, chord progressions, etc and those experiments have been done by Irakere, Van Van, NG La Banda, etc. Again, the definition of jazz remains to be given, if it is a music genre at all or just another package for commercial issues. Any body knows the point of views of those afro-Americans questioning the misuse of the word jazz nowadays? What are their arguments? | |
| Herbie Hancock Transcriptions | |
| greganthoevans -- 03/16/2006, 16:30:03 -- #25258 | |
| never can get it right | |
| Hey! Am Gregory and I love jazz!I wish i could talk like some of you guys where playing jazz piano is concerned but I just can't seem to get those sounds coming from the jazz recordings I here!...I'm greatly in need of you guts help.... | |
| zRam -- 04/05/2006, 10:58:42 -- #26064 | |
| To be Feared | |
| I found this site a few months ago and have basically Lurked. I have a desire to learn, but haven't found a Jazz teacher yet, so I've been learning Classical style. My ignorant questions are "To be Feared" I'll try to keep them to a minimum. I've played Drums and the Banjo (Fleck Style) for many years (since 10 years old for the drums), and decided to try and learn to become a Jazz Pianist at age 40. I like the site! Ronnie | |
| LateStart -- 04/23/2006, 19:43:33 -- #26659 | |
| late start | |
| Hi All, I am chris and I have gotten a late start into music. I am 44yrs old and bought my first of two pianos about one year ago. I have found a instructor that is way way way over quailfied to teach a newbe like me. I am obessed with this and play about 3hrs. per day. Scott this is a great resourse for anyone into jazz ... thank you chris | |
| wdennissorrell -- 04/23/2006, 22:02:28 -- #26661 | |
| Better late than never and do not become too frustrated. There are many people here to help you, I especially believe that Albetans Area is an excellent choice for a beginner, but there is also lots more than just the rudiments. 7's room, along with his website http://www.jeff-brent.com/ is another excellent resource. But make sure you go to all of them because each one has much to offer. As far as your instructor being overqualified, how does he react. Is he a prick or does he genuinely try and help. Is he bothered to instruct you, if not he may enjoy having a student so willing to learn. If it is negative, leave him; if it seems to be positive stay right there, as long as it stays positive and you gain ground. And you are exceedingly correct in that Scot (one t only) has created the most wonderful jazz site in the world and I will forever be personally in his debt for his efforts. Thanks to all those associated with this site, I appreciate all those whop help and offer it so freely. Peace out! | |
| sdm -- 04/25/2006, 12:15:30 -- #26715 | |
| Just a note about your instructor being "over qualified." I'm lucky enough to be in a similar situation. What my teacher, an great jazz professional, tells me is that he enjoys working with me, a relative newbe, because I work on what he tells me to and am not jaded by years of being in honor band and so on. Don't laugh a gift-horse and all of that…just get the most you can from him (assuming it IS a similar situation). And welcome to LJP – this place is downright powerful in what you can learn! | |
| LateStart -- 04/26/2006, 14:29:54 -- #26769 | |
| late reply | |
i would score my instructor with a 10 in every category i could thing of he sure isn't a "nose in the air" classical kind of a guy, even though he has the highest level of European classical training, played professionally and by invitation with the best symphonies around the globe, label representation with multiple cd releases ... blah blah blah.. even with all that he is the humblest person i think i have ever meet. as for class .. a blast ....structured .. yes!.... i can't get away with "not doing the work" but he will enthusiastically explore anything i would like. i think we have found some sort mutual respect for each other ... i have been practicing about 2-3hrs a day for the past year so i am committed and been doooooo-in a lot of work and i almost always get close to 2hrs of instruction for the cost of a hour,.. its great! | |
| Herbie Hancock Transcriptions | |
| LateStart -- 04/26/2006, 14:33:37 -- #26770 | |
| ohh i also think that Albetans area has been my best resourse, being a beginner and all thanks to all .. lucky again | |
| albetan -- 04/27/2006, 10:41:24 -- #26798 | |
| Thanks for your nice opinion, LateStart. | |
| Santeven -- 04/28/2006, 18:09:15 -- #26864 | |
| thanks , introduction, link to recordings | |
| My thanks to all contributors. I've been lurking for maybe a year or so, and I really appreciate the thoughtful dialog and links. Today I discovered the additional materials available via login to the site. I would urge all lurking parties to create an account and uncover the whole of LJP. I've been playing piano since 1965. Took 'semi'-classical children's type lessons from a variety of teachers regularly from age 6 to age 15. Played very little for the next 20 years or so, and got back into it in '96 when the family piano came to live with me. I love my Baldwin Acrosonic, and have been playing it for over 40 years now. I really got back into it in '03 when I aquired a vintage Fender Rhodes Mark I, and even moreso in '04 when I bought a Kurzweil PC1x. Over the last two years I've played some coffee house solo gigs, and jammed with some rock/blues bands. My favorite pianists are Ellington and Monk. I'm thinking now to form a trio, learn some more traditional material ala Ellington, some avante material ala Monk, and maybe eventually add a vocalist or violin ala Ponty. I don't think I've ever read about on LPJ, but I really dig the modern avante groovy blues style of John Medeski(, Martin , and Wood). Anyway enough almost for now about me. http://shakeonthemove/santeven is a link to some of my mp3 recordings. They're all single takes with no layering or remix. The originals are all impromptu, improvisations I just sat down and played as opposed to compositions. aborigin edit is (i think) the best four minutes from the twenty minute aborigin blues. Do Nothing... and Them Apples are mic'ed accoustic piano, and all the rest are from digital. So thanks again to all LPJ, and I welcome any comments, constuctive criticism, flame, or whatever regarding my ideas and the music. | |
| 7 -- 04/28/2006, 22:52:58 -- #26866 | |
| Your website seems to be still under construction. Let us know when it's up and running! | |
| Santeven -- 04/29/2006, 17:01:33 -- #26887 | |
| complete url | |
| Thanks for trying ... Seems the link I wrote doesn't get to the santeven virtual directory default index ... the complete url is: http://shakeonthemove.com/santeven/index.html maybe the default should be written in this forum context as: http://shakeonthemove.com/santeven/ aborigin edit mp3 is at: http://shakeonthemove.com/santeven/aborigin edit.mp3 and there's now a default index at the root with a link to /santeven/ http://shakeonthemove.com/index.htm | |
| Santeven -- 04/29/2006, 17:05:33 -- #26888 | |
| looks like the final / is required ... and space is not handled literally | |
| Herbie Hancock Transcriptions | |
| Santeven -- 05/01/2006, 23:12:05 -- #26916 | |
| New url for Santeven's "Open Source" mp3's | |
| Thanks again to those who might have tried the complete url to no avail. I guess I wore my welcome with http://shakeonthemove.com/ My thanks to him also. The new url is http://12.217.44.235/santeven/ | |
| Emanon -- 07/06/2006, 09:08:05 -- #28588 | |
| I'm new | |
| Hey all, I've been playing Jazz piano for around 6 months now and love the freedom of the music. I'm a professional internatiol House DJ and have been for 3 years. I love music all around but there's something about Jazz that captures me. I have been having lessons on and off and am striving to get better although i'm not sure what the best route is. i often get drifted when i sit down to play and like to learn pieces as they are written instead of voicing chords in songs to give it a different feel. Its tricky but i'd like someone to advise me how to spend my time effectively on the piano. | |
| Emanon -- 07/06/2006, 09:12:09 -- #28590 | |
| Jazz teacher (London) | |
| I should have mentioned, i had a great teacher back home but he went travelling, we got on great and i had a nice momentum. Since i have moved to London i have lost that momentum and need someone who i can connect with and who will help me improve, if anyone knows please PM me.... | |
| jennywren -- 07/21/2006, 11:07:51 -- #28867 | |
| Hello, I'm Jenny and I've just signed up (to this website, not the army). I'm 16 and from Scotland, I play mostly piano, trumpet and guitar. While at my piano lessons my focus has been more on classical, I've still done a fair few jazz pieces over the years and I tend to play jazz or popular pieces outwith my lessons. I've always loved listening to jazz, and for my Advanced Music compositions this year I thought I might try write a swing piece for one of them. So I've signed up to try learn a bit more about jazz. | |
| Kai -- 07/21/2006, 14:26:06 -- #28869 | |
| Welcome, you'll find lots of help here. Kai | |
| makeanote -- 07/22/2006, 04:23:48 -- #28875 | |
| Hi there from Australia | |
| Hi there group! I've played piano since I was 7 being trained in classical method and studied the same at University. I'm loving branching out into jazz piano and am really enjoying the challenges of improvisation and thinking of harmonies 'outside the box'. I enjoy working with computer music using Cubase SX and a variety of VSTi's. I look forward to finding out what everyone has to offer each other! Ian www.makeanote.org | |
| Sales of the jazz resources displayed here help support this website. | |
| derekdiggler -- 08/24/2006, 23:41:15 -- #29478 | |
| Hello all! | |
| Hi my name is Derek and I'm 28 and have only one year of piano under my belt at this time. I love to play, as do you all, and like many of you I am classically trained. I just wanted to say that I really enjoy and appreciate all the work that has gone into this site. Thanks. -Derek | |
| Scot -- 08/27/2006, 21:51:19 -- #29517 | |
| Glad you are enjoying the site! Use the forums as they are a deep ocean of jazz information. | |
| bakerboy -- 09/23/2006, 07:46:24 -- #29982 | |
| New Member. | |
| Hello, My name's Phil and I've just stepped into the world of piano. Been a guitar player for five years (and still am) but have always wanted to learn piano too, after being inspired by the movie 'The Fabulous Baker Boys'. What I really want to learn is a few nice slow, but popular, jazz standards, or something along the 'swing' line such as 'One For My Baby', so I can sit in front of a piano in a bar or club and be able to play a tune or two. Obviously I've a long way to go, but I'm determined and have the time to practice. If anyone could recommend some good compliation cd's including some music in the style I've mentioned by popular artists, I'd appreciate it very much. Thanks for listening - best wishes. | |
| rokarion -- 10/19/2006, 16:22:54 -- #30558 | |
| Hi | |
| My name is Greg and I've been half ass playing my whole life. I'm 25, located in Los Angeles and self taught. I want to start getting good though and I think this site could really help. I am primarily interested in modern jazz and latin jazz, not thrilled by bebop or blues as much anymore. Unfortunately I can't download any of the files! Is this a Mac only site or something? Please help. | |
| Scot -- 10/20/2006, 06:56:59 -- #30564 | |
| Files | |
| hi Greg, Make sure you have javascript and popups turned on. Downloads are managed in a secure way so you need to make sure you have all the bells and whistles turned on in your browser. Try Firefox from http://www.mozilla.org if IE isn't working for you. | |
| YourMove -- 10/20/2006, 20:31:28 -- #30575 | |
| Hi everyone, I started to take lessons in classical piano at the age of 6 and stopped at the age of 19. Now I'm 35 and would love to start playing what I like. Hopefully I found a nice place here. Here comes the pain: I have absolutely no knowledge of music theory. I can just play from the sheet and that became rusty over time. Please advise where to start, which exercises, what to memorize. A teacher telling me what to do, would be most appreciated. Answer here and we get in touch. Yours, Jan | |
| Sales of the jazz resources displayed here help support this website. | |
| YourMove -- 10/20/2006, 22:15:17 -- #30577 | |
| Addition to earlier introduction | |
| After I send the introductional message I found out about the weblog and profil. Please take a look at both :) I will run the weblog to keep "stats" about my progress, suggestions are always welcome! You can also message me by the information given in my profile. First weblog entry is about my first rudimentary "to do list". Once I memorized the first chords I will play around with them on the keyboard, correct way? Thanks for your help :) Yours, Jan | |
| unklenutz -- 11/06/2006, 17:03:28 -- #30976 | |
| Greetings all! | |
| Well, I somehow just stumbled upon this little gem of a website. Seems to contain really great advice and friendly people so let's see how it goes. I studied and played the organ for about 8 years as a kid. My teacher was a little old Cuban lady. As great as she was, I realize now that I could have learned much more from someone with more a theory focus of music. I learned tons about sight reading with some basic understanding about music theory. I stopped playing completely when I started college and now, 10 years later, I decided to pick up the piano and relearn my instrument. My primary musical obstacle right now is learning to "get away" from sheet music. I want to be able to improvise on the piano with the goal of eventually improvising jazz. I am not looking to get into jazz theory right now. Instead, I want to focus on improving my general music theory, learning to improvise a bit, and then take it from there. I'm starting to take lessons again with a musician that focuses on improv. Anyway, I look forward to figuring out how this site works (a little confusing right now) but I think I'm getting the hang of it. Look forward to chatting with you all. Take care! | |
| wdennissorrell -- 11/06/2006, 17:48:20 -- #30977 | |
| Welcome, make sure you check out the entire site with a little extra inspection in Albetan's room. He has a lot of great items to start you on your way. Also 7 has many things well worth looking into, do not neglect his own site either. If you need some basic music theory prep work, there are several good sites on the net for that. Google music theory and many sites will appear, some are sites that will let you take a course for free, but you get no credit for it but it will help immensely. If you get stuck on a point, post a question. There are some real musical geniuses here and they are always willing to help others. Peace out! | |
| YourMove -- 11/06/2006, 22:48:23 -- #30982 | |
| Hello Unkle Nutz | |
| nice to meet you. It looks like we are on the same way. Maybe we can exchange websites, stuff to study etc. Let me know if you are interested. Yours, Jan | |
| johnmarkpainter -- 11/14/2006, 22:20:40 -- #31207 | |
| Hello and thanks | |
| I found this site from a Google search. Great stuff. I am a 'pro' musician and lousy piano player. My main mission is to get my Piano reading up to par so that I can absorb more knowledge and maybe actually learn to play Piano. Thanks to everyone for the great information here. John | |
| astarkisborn -- 11/22/2006, 05:34:35 -- #31364 | |
| a stark is born | |
| Aloha! From Hawaii.My name is Lora. I just bought my first keyboard thanks to the encouragement of a new friend. First time ever to own a piano. Haven't played since I was 17. Great to be back. Connecting with music again, brings me back to my soul. The angel is flying again and signing the blues.Look out and make room. Looking forward to learning from all of you. Thanks Scot for the phone call. | |
| Sales of the jazz resources displayed here help support this website. | |
| Scot -- 11/22/2006, 18:39:06 -- #31383 | |
| Welcome | |
| Hi Lora- glad you could make it and it was a pleasure talking about music and stuff with you. The easiest way to get started here is to click on the "rooms" link near the top left of the screen. That way you can get a good feel for all the different areas of discussion. If you go to the lessons area, there is a neat 2-5-1 scale exercise which will give you a very real start to getting that jazzy sound. Don't hesitate to jump into the forums and conversations here. Most everyone here is friendly and just a little bit nuts, so what more can you ask for? | |
| astarkisborn -- 11/23/2006, 09:40:41 -- #31390 | |
| angel music | |
| Scot, thank you again for the contact. Hearing your piano makes me want one of my own too. When I went to get the music on Sunday, there were three hand made Koa wood Steinways that were crated for this store. The only three that exist. The 7 foot, the one I loved cost $86,000.00 of course being the perfect mother that I am I was trying to figure out which one of the children I could trade for it. Kidding, none of them are anywhere near 7 feet, but of course they have a much greated value. without them what matters? I will try out the suggestion you gave regarding the 2-5-1 exercise. Keep those suggetions coming. I am an eager student. Ask Joseph about the angel thing, I make angel soap as a thearpy tool for the special needs childen i work with, he can explain better. Lora | |
| YourMove -- 11/24/2006, 00:41:29 -- #31406 | |
| Hi Lora, welcome :) Hope to read more from you. Great humorous style in writing... :) Good luck in your piano aspirations! Yours, Jan | |
| JohnM90 -- 11/28/2006, 20:33:34 -- #31474 | |
| My name is John and I'm 16 years old. I've been taking classical piano for around 6-7 years and I've always wanted to learn jazz piano but didn't really know how and never got around to it. So I found this site and now I'm working on some of the begining lessons, pretty cool stuff! | |
| wdennissorrell -- 11/29/2006, 19:33:37 -- #31486 | |
| Make sure you go to several of the rooms. Some are more geared toward the beginning jazz artist. Especially helpful to me are Albetan and 7. You can learn from all the rooms, but I gain the most from those two. Beyond that those two are very personable and willing to help. They are knowledgeable and willing and capable of sharing that knowledge. Know full well though that 7 can be half a whack at times, meaning he has a great sense of humor and is very amusing to read. If there is something that you don't quite get right away, do not get to strung out about it, ask for help or just dig a little deeper it wil start coming through the fog. Peace out. | |
| menderle -- 12/07/2006, 11:46:00 -- #31593 | |
| Initial Post | |
| Hi. My name is Mark. I am 56, live in west central Ohio, and I contemplating getting back into jazz and blues piano after a 30 year absence. I am cruising the internet looking for two specific things in this regard: the best training methods I can find, and also the best value in electric keyboards. I do have an old upright, but it needs too much work, and it is located in an area where I really do not want to practice anyway. Regarding training methods, I was hopeful that I could find training materials that could actually be used with whatever electric piano I might purchase. I still have my old 4 book John Mehegan jazz piano books, which were the best 30 years ago. Any ideas or suggestions in either of these topics would be most appreciated. Thanks, Mark Enderle | |
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| Rid -- 02/10/2007, 20:08:37 -- #32954 | |
| Pardon my procrastination - - I've been hanging around here for a year or two, but I'm just now getting around to introducing myself. I am a retirement age (though still working, sadly) amateur. I've had a couple of careers, not in any way related to music. I've been taking lessons from a real jazz pianist for just under a year now; and I had lessons on the Hammond organ, from a pop organist, in the late 70's. Also had lessons as a kid, but quit early because I couldn't stand Hanon, or playing "The Old Oaken Bucket", or somebody's minuet, and found I could play Elvis and Fats Domino songs by ear. Other than those lessons, I'm mostly self-taught. I have only played with other players once, in a jam session in a jazz club, but I am working up to another session soon. I practice for this using Band-in-a-box. It is teaching me, among other things, to keep time, though I still tend to get ahead of the beat. Below there is a link to my homepage, with examples of me playing with Band-in-a-box. I put these files out there to irritate my friends and family, and delight my enemies. There are mistakes and more than a few cliches; and - - you don't have to tell me - - the computer generated solos (on vibes) are better (more original, more aesthetically pleasing) than my own! (How do they do that?) Anyway, if anyone cares to listen, and provide any (constructive, of course) comments on how I can improve, what to work on next, etc, I would be most appreciative. Thanks, Ed http://hometown.aol.com/riddlereader/index.html | |
| march56 -- 02/23/2007, 12:29:42 -- #33284 | |