Here's a slightly difficult etude that will really work on your independence. The left and right hand is separate for the whole tune. That is they work totally independently.

Hey Guys,

I thought I'd start a little discussion/lesson on how to transcribe changes to tunes. As a drummer(or a drumming vibist..haha) I have been(and still am) always struggling with learning and transcribing changes and I thought I'd start out here with some tips on how to break it down. As Tony's shrink would say: if you have a big problem, brake it down into smaller problems and the big problem will go away.

Next pop up class is May 24th 7pm EDT

Ok guys,

next tune is Chi Chi by Charlie Parker.

Memorize the melody and the chords.
Post something here where you play the melody and play the chords. It has to be memorized. And you have to post before the class. :-)
If you don't want to do that, then the pop up class is 25 dollars a session. Get it? Do the work and you get in for free :-).

Pop up classes are informal classes to study a tune. If I get a gig, I would move the class or just turn it over to the students to hang and talk.

There's been talk about the Mallet Kat here. Which to me means electronic music.

I know there are varying opinions on electronic music especially pertaining to the vibes.

Well check this out. It's not a midi vibes but this should show you the worlds and places you can go to.

This is one of the most incredible videos I've seen on youtube. And the thing is this is 10 years old maybe? I think. And look what Michael Brecker does.

Wow!

Here's another etude over the tune 'My One and Only Love'. You put the chords in. It's a chord etude based on quarter notes.

You can see the top note of the chord and the up and down of the melody. You can see where there's a chord and maybe it doesn't have an important note in it, but then on the next beat that chords there. You'll be working on inversions and voice leading.

Understanding Tritone Substitutions
by John Mark Piper

To understand the basics of tritone substitutions and how they typically function is an important aspect of music. Having good command of them can help a musician's reading, hearing, performing and memorizing music.

A quick and dirty video lesson. I shot this while in Ireland. The sound is not great and it's EARLY in the morning, I'm tired as you can see!