Most Popular Lessons

Check out the attached PDF!

Great lesson to break into playing tunes solo. 

Here are links to all the other vids: 

Misty Intro

Lesson 1

Lesson 2

Rhythm Changes - Harmonic Vocabulary on the A Pt. 1

In this series, we’ll explore harmonic vocabulary for comping over the A sections of rhythm changes. In Pt. 1, we start with a common and widely used set of standard changes, providing a strong foundation for comping.

One key concept in this approach is treating the top note of each chord as a melodic line—essentially harmonizing a simple, stepwise motion. This helps create a natural, connected flow between voicings rather than thinking of each chord in isolation.

Here is an etude I did for a student based on Maiden Voyage. I always laugh when I call something like this an etude, but I guess it sort of is. 

I just get on the Malletkat with some ideas I want to pass along to the student and I just play. Then I quantize for notation purposes and then I dump it into Musescore or Sibelius do a final clean up and print a pdf!

My student was playing this tune and was playing minor thirds over the suspended chord. A suspended 7th chord goes with a mixolydian scale. 

Another you should be able to do this. Can you? If not practice :-).

TOTM - Israel - Playing Over the A7#11 Chord by Behn Gillece

Tip for voicing Maj7#11 by Behn Gillece

Working On A Cool Tune Pt. 1 - Careful (Jim Hall) by Behn Gillece

Check out the attached PDF!

This is video, audio and a pdf all with etudes for the tune Turn Out The Stars by Bill Evans. 

It's a complicated tune, but I always think even the complicated tunes spell all the harmony out. It all makes sense musicially. 

The videos are below: