Subscribers

For several weeks, I have been using ballads while practicing as a vehicle for working on dynamics, time, and just trying to play decent music. Here are two recent efforts, both long time favorites of mine: Nature Boy and My Foolish Heart. I've occasionally performed these with my group, The Brooklyn Jazz Collective, when the horn players need to rest their embouchure muscles. They are both still works in progress.

Here is a couple of ways you can fill the space in between bars.
Those ideas could be use as harmonic or melodic device.

1. You can approach any chord with a dominant 7th chord built a half step up or down your target chord:
e.g. C can be approach with a Db7 or B7

I use this turnaround: C-Am-Dm-G7 and at the end I precede each chord with a dDom7 B7-C-Bb7-Am-Eb7-Dm-Ab7-G7.

2. Harmonize any given major or minor scale using a dim chord (G7b9) as a passing chord:
C6 - Ddim7 - C6/E - Fdim7 - C6/G - Abdim7 - C6/A -Bdim7.

Here is a couple of ways you can fill the space in between bars.
Those ideas could be use as harmonic or melodic device.

1. You can approach any chord with a dominant 7th chord built a half step up or down your target chord:
e.g. C can be approach with a Db7 or B7

I use this turnaround: C-Am-Dm-G7 and at the end I precede each chord with a dDom7 B7-C-Bb7-Am-Eb7-Dm-Ab7-G7.

2. Harmonize any given major or minor scale using a dim chord (G7b9) as a passing chord:
C6 - Ddim7 - C6/E - Fdim7 - C6/G - Abdim7 - C6/A -Bdim7.

Some thoughts about ballad playing.
Let me know what is your pov on this topic.

www.giovanniperin.com

Working on the bebop dominant scale is important. This is a mixolydian scale with a half step between the root and the 7th. So in the key of C the scale descending would be.

C B Bb A G F E D C

Print out the pdf, The first chord is a D7, you write in the chords and look at each bar and the notes. Play this exercise, in fact memorize it.

Can you make up your own bebop dominant scale licks?

I have two tracks here, one with the melody from the pdf and one where you can make up your own stuff and cycle it through the cycle of 5ths.

Amos,
Try and memorize the chords on the sheet music. Think about the fact that where those notes are and however they are mixed up, as long as the bass player plays the bass note, it is that chord.

Do you get it?