My Ship: Journey Through The Real Book

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My Ship: Journey Through The Real Book

Рет қаралды 1,154

Күн бұрын

A jazz piano lesson to help you learn Kurt Weill’s jazz standard “My Shining Hour,” famously played by Miles Davis.
Take your LH playing to the next level with my free ebook: Jazz Piano Left Hand Techniques: keyboardimprov...
You'll find my book, The Inner World of Piano Improvisation, on Amazon.
A milestone! 0:09
Enjoying each step of the journey 0:24
Playing jazz standards on piano 0:40
Appreciating Ira Gershwin’s lyrics 1:12
My connection with Kurt Weill 2:06
“Mack The Knife” 3:07
The early and later styles of Kurt Weill 3:23
The Gil Evans arrangement of “My Ship” 4:12
The Claude Thornhill influence of Gil Evans 4:42
The “Birth of the Cool” nonet’s style 5:25
The 3 great Miles Davis/Gil Evans albums 6:06
My letter that was published in “Downbeat” magazine 6:58
Kurt Weill’s original introduction to “My Ship” 8:20
How to use chord substitutions 9:30
Gaining perspective from Keith Jarrett 10:12
Gil Evans’ use of block chords and double-time feel 10:30
Personalizing Kurt Weill’s original intro 10:59
Playing the melody rubato, with lots of chord substitutions 11:47
Adding more 8th-note motion 12:14
Block chords 12:25
A ‘C’ pedal tone 12:35
Wider voicings 12:40
Playing the bridge in a ballad tempo, with a variety of left-hand techniques 12:52
Gil Evans-like substitute harmonies during the last ‘A’ section 13:23
Extending the turnaround, with chords from the intro 14:04
Slow, relaxed stride 14:17
Using walking 10ths at times 14:42
Swing-era riffs, in block chords 14:54
Single-note soloing 15:06
A chromatic countermelody 15:17
A bit of syncopation 15:23
Emphasizing the swing feel 15:28
A countermelody that turns into a vamp 16:06
Playing the vamp with quarter notes 16:28
Creating a new “intro” to the reprise 16:45
Slowing down the tempo for the melody 16:51
An Art Tatum-inspired fill 16:57
Harmonizing the melody with block chords 17:00
A 2-handed ascending lick I learned from Billy Taylor 17:07
Back to the tune’s melody 17:10
Gently using a double-time feel 17:14
Swinging a little stronger during the bridge 18:02
A triplet feel for the final ‘A’ section 18:37
Ritardando 19:05
Rubato 19:10
Trying out lots of different harmonies 19:13
Evoking the intro for the ending 19:18
Letting intervals determine the chord voicings 19:51
Play the voicings you enjoy! 20:59
Miles Davis, Gil Evans, and Kurt Weill 21:27
Taking your playing to a whole new level 21:58
Here are some more Free Jazz Piano Lessons for you at the KeyboardImprov website: keyboardimprov...
Thanks for joining me on this musical adventure, and please LIKE, COMMENT and SHARE this video with your musical friends.
If you'd like to start my full video course, you'll find it here: keyboardimprov...
For Zoom and Skype lessons, please email me at rondrotos@keyboardimprov.com.
Enjoy the journey, and "let the music flow!"
Ron

Пікірлер: 28

@randyknisely8979 Жыл бұрын

I remember when I first heard this song a trombonist from Sweden by the name of Eija Thelien was visiting Boston around the summer of 1973 and I took a lesson from him and put him up at my apt for a week and he was always playing this song, I had never heard a trombone player play like him, I was really awed, he was really energizing, I couldn't stop practicing, I went on the road with Gilbert O"Sullivan and Maureen McGovern and drove everyone nuts!

@rondrotoskeyboardimprov9453 Жыл бұрын

Thanks for sharing, Randy - some of the greatest musicians are "practicers" like John Coltrane and Sonny Rollins!

@ootctb9867 Жыл бұрын

A wonderful performance, that makes me really want to get into jazz piano. Your knowledge about the songs and all the different versions of them is incredible. Thank you very much!

@rondrotoskeyboardimprov9453 Жыл бұрын

I'm glad this is inspiring you! Jazz is an expanding universe - enjoy :)

@dwdei8815 Жыл бұрын

Very rich and packed with ideas and variation. I'm saving this one aside, Ron, as a guide to haul my reharmonisation (which is pretty basic) up to a next level. With immense gratitude, DW.

@rondrotoskeyboardimprov9453 Жыл бұрын

Have fun with your reharmonizations. A lot of it is simply experimentation, not using "rules."

@dwdei8815 Жыл бұрын

@@rondrotoskeyboardimprov9453 My friend, there is the rule of cool. There is always the rule of cool. I've been messing around with the descending-chromatic pattern, getting an idea where I can be used, getting an ear for its overuse, and it's been fun! I see your Real Book is finally beginning to fall apart, the dust and the rubble of the journey eventually got to it. I'm of the school that scribbles in them, uses them as coffee-cup holders and as fly-swats. Mind you with the RB you could swat a goose. But it's awful when the back page breaks free. For one thing that's where I've got "Always look on the Bright Side of Life" written, words (essential!) and chords.

@valerietimofeeva1188 Жыл бұрын

Beautiful!!!

@rondrotoskeyboardimprov9453 Жыл бұрын

Thanks Valérie!

@smichener1 Жыл бұрын

Ron, that was great. I've been working on this in anticipation of your video and was finding it boring to play. You really spiced it up and gave me inspiration to try it from outside the box. I've got my work cut out for me.

@rondrotoskeyboardimprov9453 Жыл бұрын

Excellent! Think of the lyrics, too, and you won't be bored.

@TheOrdener Жыл бұрын

Really nice! Thanks!

@rondrotoskeyboardimprov9453 Жыл бұрын

Thanks Mike!

@song4night Жыл бұрын

Finesse pure! A.The skilled concentration of a tightrope walker. B. With the stride begins the dance. C. The singer takes over. D. The storyteller ends it.

@rondrotoskeyboardimprov9453 Жыл бұрын

Thanks! Yes, each performance (ideally) takes us on a journey.

@randymcclanahan5087 Жыл бұрын

Loved it, Ron. Especially the intro and the reharmonized ending. I love your intuitive use of varied styles, including stride, swing, melodic ballad, and Keith Jarrett sounds! Parts of this reminded me of "A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square." I also enjoy watching your use of adjacent notes in your voicings. E.g., F, G and A simultaneously. We can't see your microphone setup in the video, but it works very well. Excellent sound quality from my computer! Thanks again for all this great work.

@rondrotoskeyboardimprov9453 Жыл бұрын

Thanks Randy! I have 2 Shure mics resting in the piano, and am recording in stereo.

@nomennescio317 Жыл бұрын

Ron this performance was really good, it was light, thoughtful, expressive, deep, colorful, dynamic, etc

@rondrotoskeyboardimprov9453 Жыл бұрын

Thanks Nomen - much appreciated :)

@tomaspa Жыл бұрын

Wonderful and luminous rendition. Thanks!!!

@rondrotoskeyboardimprov9453 Жыл бұрын

Thanks Tomas!

@diamondfuller9385 Жыл бұрын

I dig it brotha 👍

@gilevansinsideout Жыл бұрын

Right on! 😀

@rondrotoskeyboardimprov9453 Жыл бұрын

Thanks! We're both Gil Evans fans.

@whoahdudeman Жыл бұрын

It's been such a pleasure watching you and leaning with you over these past few year. I have noticed that your NY accent and cadence have gotten a bit thicker over time compared to your first videos ;-) Keep well.

@rondrotoskeyboardimprov9453 Жыл бұрын

Interesting. I'm probably just getting more conversational and the accent is coming out on video more.