How Does Jazz Improvisation Work?

Рет қаралды 30,118

Жыл бұрын

In the very first episode of "Theory with Bob," trumpeter @bobbyspellman discusses the fundamental mechanics of jazz improvisation with help from Julia Chen on electric piano, Julian Smith on bass, and Evan Hyde on drum set.
The Ridgewood School of Music is now accepting new students online or in Brooklyn/Queens/NYC! ridgewoodschoolofmusic.com
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Twitter: @bobby_spellman
Ridgewood School of Music FB: ridgewoodschoolofmusic
Follow these amazing musicians on Instagram!
Julia Chen: juliachenpiano
Julian Smith: juliansmithmusic
Evan Hyde: evanhydedrums

Пікірлер: 102

@BlurredTrees Жыл бұрын

Super cool this was done in one continuous shot! 👏🏻😮

@Thataussiebattler Жыл бұрын

Old school Jazz feels

@wesleyayres7017 Жыл бұрын

This is just a fantastic incredibly well thought out video, I'm dipping my toe into jazz composition and learning flugelhorn and this and your other lessons have been amazing thank you so much!

@RidgewoodSchoolofMusic Жыл бұрын

Thanks! Happy to hear it!

@flockenlp1 Жыл бұрын

All i can think about is if you really did the main part in one take without stuttering or anything

@RidgewoodSchoolofMusic Жыл бұрын

And only one take! It was a bonafide jazz miracle.

@jangivik1718 5 ай бұрын

I’m quite sure you can talk about this subject for hours…. You LOVE this, one can tell…😂

@wesleyc.4937 9 ай бұрын

I believe they could do that all day long... scuuze me, comin' through!

@jeremykelker8908 11 ай бұрын

I've only been with the trumpet for about a year and a half; your channel is a continual help and motivator. This is one of the very best videos I've seen explaining form and function. Your trumpet sounds fantastic. Great choice of notes; great timing. Thank everyone for their playing!

@RidgewoodSchoolofMusic 11 ай бұрын

Thanks, Jeremy! Happy to hear it!

@nimbydimby 22 күн бұрын

Off topic, but Julia is such a sweetheart!

@clarity4912 Жыл бұрын

this could have been a lot of help yesterday when i was soloing lmao

@miguelfelix9173 4 күн бұрын

I've been looking for a video just like this...amazing job! thank you!

@blow-by-blow-trumpet Жыл бұрын

Fantastic presentation. A breath of fresh air and some great playing. Feeling inspired.

@enzofoolevil 16 күн бұрын

Brilliant 🤩

@derekdeoh 9 ай бұрын

Bobby, I absolutely love this video. Thanks to you and your band for putting this together.

@DJ_TideWave 9 ай бұрын

Fantastic introduction to jazz impro! Hats off! 😃🎹🎶🎵🎺🥁

@alecj3454 Жыл бұрын

Loved this video! It was like a lesson & a wonderful performance all in one. What a joy to see such top tier musicians! Thank you for the effective instruction.

@Madjiq16 6 ай бұрын

Brilliant! Wnat an amazing jazz appreciation crash course!

@WolfeLienhardt 8 ай бұрын

This is such a fantastic thing you've created. Kudos to all 4 of you 👏

@seanonel 9 ай бұрын

Very, very kewl! Subscribed!

@danielgiles833 9 ай бұрын

I dont play trumpet but this is super helpful as a drums and piano player

@chickennoodlesu322 Жыл бұрын

All the skill in this video is unmatched

@matias.salomon 20 күн бұрын

Loved this. Cheers!

@japanrecords4007 7 ай бұрын

Thats phenomenal! What a joy

@danhamilton1920 6 ай бұрын

What a great video, really helpful and fun x

@berkekucukaltun3343 5 ай бұрын

Thanks for the amazing video Bob.

@bitstreamm Жыл бұрын

Just beautiful!

@Matraka2000 11 ай бұрын

This really nice. Thank you for putting it together.

@JSDJerry Ай бұрын

I learned so much. Thanks

@jellybean7931 5 ай бұрын

Great job!!!

@peterisancverins 9 ай бұрын

Very cool video. This definitely will help beginners getting into jazz in the future.

@Bingobongo3 3 ай бұрын

Amazing video, very thorough but also concise

@Thataussiebattler Жыл бұрын

This is pure gold!

@thismoment57 6 ай бұрын

Amazing! Thank you for this great video exposé! The lighting is exquisite by the way! 👌

@pacokja 7 ай бұрын

Man, underrated video. It's incredible that the whole thing came out in one take

@juanpablopena7913 10 ай бұрын

This video is absolutely amazin

@Jose_diazlife 9 ай бұрын

such a good and easy follow long video, really appriciated. Super nice and tight

@JC-bj5cv 6 ай бұрын

Tremendously talented group of musicians.

@paolomarnini1516 6 ай бұрын

Awesome. Simple but very well articulated description of whats going on … great job

@steveleeatfullmeasure 9 ай бұрын

Just excellent intro to how jazz works!

@nickbutler1395 7 ай бұрын

Really good knowledge, competent delivery, confident, with a really cool approach which was enjoyable, thank you all for your musical talent.

@CavalliMeikle Ай бұрын

Beautiful production! God bless you guys 🙏🏾

@aj6417 8 ай бұрын

This information and instructions is awesome, gave me a greater insight and understanding Thank you!

@ElsonA9 Жыл бұрын

Great tutorial video well explained good job

@neilripsch6624 9 ай бұрын

Truly, thank you for doing this video - a great introduction into jazz/blues but more importantly it shares why I love playing saxophone - unlimited possibilities. Neil

@SimplyChinese 7 ай бұрын

Wow! Such a great explanation and demonstration! I’m surprised it doesn’t have 1 million views yet.

@logangreenwel2532 9 ай бұрын

Great video; trumpeter sound reminds me of young Miles in the great C/R/W/S quintet Charlie Parker does a great job showing how to play “outside” the chords

@lyndafoster9437 5 ай бұрын

That was very good thank you

@maxpoveda9568 9 ай бұрын

Amazin video🎉

@Alan-zi2rs 9 ай бұрын

What a great video thanks 👌👍🎸🎶🎶🎶🎸

@Gdownification 4 ай бұрын

Fantastic explanation. I played in school jazz bands for many years when I was younger, and no one ever explained any of this to me. I always thought you just played the key, and I could never figure out how to play over changes. It is only recently that I've begun to understand all this, as I have been taking a deep dive into guitar.

@gesmorais424 7 ай бұрын

5:24 she knows the mario chord lmao

@zan77460 4 ай бұрын

Yes! The blues!

@01PythoN Жыл бұрын

nice video sir!!

@OY3AH2023 2 ай бұрын

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ beautiful

@erniemazurkiewicz6886 4 ай бұрын

Thanks

@cooganbeggs4942 2 ай бұрын

This is the best thing i’ve ever seen …or heard 🙏👍

@BigParadox 7 ай бұрын

Wow!

@tjtj3829 Жыл бұрын

You all sound good😃👂😁

@fishbitecatch 4 ай бұрын

I really enjoyed this vid...really helped me with jazz guitar, love jazz, I wish you would make 1 with a minor 251 turn around. No matter the instrument this vid really breaks it down, loved it.

@timberlock Ай бұрын

This video consists of straight 21 minutes and 42 seconds of pure improvised jazz, right? "I'mma take your entire stock."

@alexmars1511 11 ай бұрын

My jazz improv keeps turning into funk lol

@ariel100531 10 ай бұрын

👏🏽Bravo

@lil_nemo898 7 ай бұрын

Do I need to transpose the key to the instrument I play? So if I’m play on alto do I need to play in the key of D?

@PatrickR-rh8ej Жыл бұрын

Great video, what would be some examples of common dissonant scales used along within that sequence? Is it just one of those, whatever happens to pop into your head whether it fits in the sequence or not, just make it work/let it do it’s thing situations? That was a great method of teaching improv!

@RidgewoodSchoolofMusic Жыл бұрын

Thanks, Patrick! I’m generally conscious of what I’m playing when I’m playing outside the conventional modes. I’m gearing up to do a couple of videos on the topic, but a couple of “out”-er scales that would work in this context include diminished (half-whole diminished on a dominant 7th chord), whole tone (check out Monk’s use of whole tone), phrygian dominant, or the chromatic scale to obliterate the sound of any tonic key of the phrase.

@horizon5940 2 ай бұрын

Thank you for this wonderful and helpful video. I was wondering if it is common for horn players to support the solos of the piano or the bass with small backings or base notes of the chord. Or would this be considered to be intrusive?

@CZ1949 10 ай бұрын

Great video, but I miss a bit a transposed score line for B instrument, it would be nice to have it on the screen too in other colour or similar for playing along with trumpet, as most lead instruments are in B or Eflat tuning.

@sam_uelson 8 ай бұрын

This would be fun to take around elementary schools

@ChipQ 5 ай бұрын

I am ashamed to admit that I am going to transcribe this solo to guitar. Really great playing, and you even made those scales swing hard.

@Detswim1 10 ай бұрын

Thank you for making this video. When you’re playing blues scale, are you playing a corresponding blues scale for the chord your playing over? E.G. - G Blues over G7, or D Blues over Dm7, or are you playing just one type of blues scale?

@RidgewoodSchoolofMusic 9 ай бұрын

Generally you'd play the one blues scale based on the key of the tune over all of the chords. So, in this case, I'm playing concert F blues over the whole form.

@maca-fran1206 9 ай бұрын

👏👏👏👏👏👏👏

@kevinhateswriting 11 ай бұрын

Bob keeping his speeches within the form is boss shit

@mrstephanwehner 3 ай бұрын

Very nice. I would nominate you all for the Nobel peace prize, if I could

@taralouise2194 2 ай бұрын

Hello Bobby, how do I know when the 12 bars of my solo are up? I play Alto sax and I can't count while I'm soloing.

@SoumyadiptaRay 3 ай бұрын

use a Lavaliar mic sir... your job of explaining and demonstrating will lot easier... love n respect from India 🇮🇳 ❤❤❤🙏🙏🙏

@TheStarlitfuse 6 ай бұрын

I have a question. Sometimes I wonder; do jazz musicians frequently transpose standards to another key mid-tune on the fly? Or is that something that was probably planned before? Or maybe it's just the way it seems when I've never heard it before. Or perhaps there are some outside of the scale stuff going on?

@dannyprasetya2496 9 күн бұрын

Where does the wrong notes come from? I don’t mind if anyone would explain the theory behind it. Asking for a help

@chems98341 6 ай бұрын

Que tema es?

@BigParadox 7 ай бұрын

One thing I sometimes wonder about: Is it possible to play jazz music well, in a small group like this, without knowing theory, by just spontaneously going on profound feeling and experience?

@rickjensen2717 7 ай бұрын

Afraid not. You have to have had usually years of training/learning and experience to do this - no short cuts I'm afraid. You can play simple rock or pop music fairly quickly, but anything more sophisticated takes a long time to be able to do.

@BigParadox 7 ай бұрын

@rickjensen2717 , you mention experience in your reply, but I already included that as a necessary prerequisite ("by just spontaneously going on profound feeling and experience"). And that obviously requires a long time of training. What I am wondering is if a person, in a small group like this, could play jazz well by only going on profound experience and feeling, but without having learned music theory. Just like a person is able to talk and converse fluently without ever having learned grammar.

@rickjensen2717 7 ай бұрын

@@BigParadox yes I understood you - theymust understand music tbeory, not neccessarilyhow to readmusic, but must understand harmony.

@BigParadox 7 ай бұрын

@@rickjensen2717 , that is what I wonder. I am a musician myself with 50 years of experience, all kinds of music but particularly jazz and classical music, but I know theory. So I cannot answer my own question. What makes you think that theory is necessary? I mean, as I said, people who never learned grammar are still able to talk and converse fluently.

@Salakogrenci 15 күн бұрын

@@BigParadox theory is solved after there's already something you can observe. I don't think the dudes that created jazz cared about professionally knowing how it works, however you still need a formula to achieve better results

@JC-bj5cv 6 ай бұрын

Question please. If the band is playing in concert F , are you playing in concert F as well since you are playing a Bb trumpet? The only flat in Concert F is Bb is that why it works?

@Apollo360XD Ай бұрын

Trumpet is a transposing instrument like how the saxophones and other horn are. If they're in concert F, to match them on trumpet for an example is ur G. So Concert instruments: piano, guitar, and others, all play on F. To match them, u have to play in G if playing 🎺 Example for note matching: If a piano plays the note F, ur matching note is G for Bb horns. I hope that answered ur question. I tend to suck at explaining stuff xD Chord wise example: Fmajor7 concert pitch is Gmajor7 on Bb horns

@JC-bj5cv Ай бұрын

@@Apollo360XD thank you for your time to explain I appreciate it

@ketaminetiger 9 ай бұрын

6:33 10:50 (solo)

@lofikorean7051 Жыл бұрын

what is your trumpet model?

@RidgewoodSchoolofMusic Жыл бұрын

I play a Martin Committee from 1945/46.

@lofikorean7051 Жыл бұрын

@@RidgewoodSchoolofMusic great sound. thank you

@JakeLemasterGuitar 7 ай бұрын

Let’s say you’re in the key of Cmaj playing over a 2-5-1 progression so… Dm7-G7-C7. Applying what was done in the video you would solo in D Dorian, G Mixolydian, and C Mixolydian. Playing C Mixolydian instead of C Ionian is what throws me off. Is it basically just a matter of taste? For a rule of thumb you just have certain modes that work (Dominant 7 - Mixolydian, m7 - Dorian, etc)?