Tag: left hand

Piano day (1h 30m)

(Back to practice after a 3-day travel.)

  • Improvisation
    • Minor blues scale in all keys (over m7 chords in 7-3-5 shells)
    • Major blue scale in all keys over dominant chords in shells
    • Alternating between major and minor blues (sounded like crap)
    • Major Bebop scale in all keys around the cycle of 4ths (tried over major and dominant)
  • Left hand
    • 2-octave stride patterns
      • Progression from “Just One of Those Things” (without right hand)
      • Harmonising C minor with 2-octave jumps (root → 1st inversion with added m6, i. e. 3-6-1)

Next time: harmonise a tune from the Real Book, play to the walking bass & drums track, do some voicings, search for & add technical exercises

Piano day (1h 50m)

  • Modal studies
    • Harmonising Harmonic minor (as if it was not already harmonic enough — IT’S NOT FUNNY DAD — I know — okay let’s change the topic)
      • Hm1 (key of C), shells 7-5-3, 3-7-9, 7-3-6
      • Hm3 (key of C), shells 7-5-3, 3-7-9, 7-3-6
      • Improv with “blanket scale” over Hm3 (A Harm. minor over 3rd mode of C)
  • Left hand
    • Stride patterns: recap 2-octave jumps with 7-1-3 and 1-3-7 kind of stuff
    • Rolling tenths
  • Jazz voicings
    • Voice leading patterns (A — B, A — A, etc.) while switching between different scale degrees (Dan Haerle, “The Jazz Language”, Chapter 7)

Observations

I must say I’m finally starting to like Harmonic minor. It was really weird at the very beginning, because of the rather unique chord qualities: minor / major 7th, augmented major 7th and fully diminished, not to mention two m7b5’s. It’s a really harsh sound, and while the scale itself is beautiful, the modes that it produces sound at first kinda ugly. But that’s where the power of modal approach comes in. Just because you don’t like minor / major 7th chord as your I (the Roman numeral, lol), doesn’t mean it sucks. It simply means you should try and start on another degree and see if you will like the new progression. I decided to start on III, which makes the 3rd mode of Harmonic minor. I like the sound of augmented major 7 chord, and I like how it falls into the pure minor IV (i. e. II in the 3rd mode). Now we’re talking! Instead of unsure and a bit intoxicated Cm/M7 to Dm7b5, I have beautiful, complex and fragile, unexpected and really otherworldly Cmaj7#5 to Dm7. Wow! So yeah. That’s how you get to love the stuff that makes you feel uncomfortable at first.

Piano day (2h)

  • Jazz voicings
    • +7 to m9 (dominant to minor)
    • 7b9 to m7 (dominant to minor)
  • Imporvisation
    • Minor & major blues scale recap in all keys
  • Modal studies
    • Harmonising Lydian scale in all keys with shell voicings (7-3-5)
  • Left hand + reading
    • “Just One Of Those Things”
      • Stride pattern
      • Breaking down voicings used in the left hand (octave bass + shells)

Piano day (2h)

  • Improvisation + modes
    • I — II, I — III, I — IV, etc. transitions with shell voicings / voice leading
      • Ion, Aeol, Dor, Phryg in F
      • Lyd, Mixo in A
  • Jazz voicings
    • Fourthy modal voicings (D Dorian to Bb Dorian) — another killer exercise from Dan Haerle!
  • Left hand focus
    • Stride bass patterns: basic stride, tenths
  • Comping
    • Stride bass + Mixo scale over dominant progression (+ “Just One of Those Things” opening)

Observation

I literally can’t help but skip a couple of bass sessions in favour of piano as I’m onto some extremely interesting topics (left hand + modal studies) and I just don’t want to lose focus!

Piano day (1h)

  • Improvisation
    • Major blues scales in all keys (over dominant chords in shell voicings)
    • Cycling 5ths: Lesson 12 / Exercise 1 from “Jazz Improvisation for Keyboard Players” (Mixo scales over dominant chords)
  • Left hand
    • Stride bass (exercise + analysis) — from “Jazz Piano — The Left Hand” by Riccardo Scivales