Same could be said about transcriptions. Learn them from the record never from a book. Also don't write them down until the very end for filing away or analyzing.

This video is the reassurance Iv been seeking...time to go cold turkey from the backing tracks/iReal pro for a while me thinks. Thanks as always Bob

Oi oI Oi when the drums kick in...mhhmm. Brilliant stuff Bob!

Love these vlogs!!! Keep up the amazing work!

Thank you Thank you Thank you.

Fun story, when I first got back into guitar around 2014, I was using a game/app called "Rocksmith" that would basically use a backing band along with an animation to prompt you what to play on guitar. It was an awesome way for me to get back up to speed "technically" on an instrument I hadn't touched in years. Once I had confidence I told my buddy I was back into guitar, and using Rocksmith. I had learned (even perfected!) about 8 or so songs. He asked me to play one cold, and I was surprised I couldn't. It took that experience to show me that all of this time my brain was taking a "lazy short cut" in storing the information and was not capable of recalling anything without all of the visual prompts (or backing band audio prompts). From that point on I forced myself to memorize without any aid, or if I used an aid it was to get a basic sense of the song and harmony, and quickly abandon the aid and memorize it with me and the instrument. I'm very grateful to Rocksmith for getting me back into it, but you have to put it down quick or it will make you dumb :)

Well your opinion definitely counts !! You talk so much sense !! Thanks again for the insight.

Glad I found your channel. Good advice that agrees with what I've heard from guitarist Jimmy Bruno.

Great lesson, master!!

Very informative. I use playalongs specifically hal leonard ones but I always try to use my own chord voicings and try and mix it up. I wish I had reliable people I could play with at the moment but I don't so Im stuck with playalongs that can limit creativity as you can never change parts of the tempo or progression in the same way you could with real musicians.

i wish you could come back to Berklee and teach PI because you’re an excellent teacher ! I would love to have lessons with you!

agreed!!

Awwwwww man, Hudson's a sweet name

+Bob Reynolds Hey Bob, what's your opinion of leaning tunes from a lead sheet vs learning them from a recording?

yeah I've been using iReal pro on my phone for play alongs and although it's fun and has good time/rhythm I do sort of feel as if I'm learning very little. Thanks for this. I will adjust my routine

What kind of microphone do you use recording these vlogs?

Yeah, I can admit I'm abusing and misusing those backing tracks. Thanks Bob for the cold hard truth!

so if we improvise on a standard using a metronome, we have to hear the changes by ourselves? and at the same time improvise lines?

what about drum genius?

Just subscribed :D

Using a play along, I'm always like "shit! The piano player keeps stepping on my toes!"

The only ones worth working with are the aebersolds. Fro me they are indispensable because finding a rhythm section to rehears four ours a day .... impossible. Unless you are fa fancy pants LA player... LOL They way I approch them is a totally aural. l Get your site reading in big band. On the first time through a new track I always play it as it I am preforming on the band stand. and no matter what do stop and d back up or stop I just play through ad use my ear to make it sound the way I want or expect it to sound. You just might be shocked how close to the tune you can get after working this way for a few years. (No it does not happen over night and no you are not train or Parker get over your self.) It is likely well sound like shit at first. If you keep the blowing going keeping you sound together that is key. To get the form of the song down play to the base and drums channel of the aebersold tracks down and do not look at the chart don't look at the name of the tune name if you can help it You need to find the tune for yourself Once you think you have it down make some notes then check the charts. Then try both tracks for the melodies make up your own to them and or try and hear the tune. But if you really want to play jazz Don't count

Another drawback to play alongs is that you're basically playing with a band that doesn't hear you, so there's no interaction and you don't develop your ability to change how you play in reaction to what is going on in the rhythm section.

Improvising without the harmony sounds near impossible to me! How would I get started? Play the chord tones while keeping track of the bars ? And doing that in all keys?

I enjoy your vlogs so much more then Casey Naistat's (Yes, I know it's a different thing, but still it's a regular youtube content that I look forward to watching)

There is annother Problem with Play-alongs: Often the rhythmsection played with a soloist to make the playback more vivid. When you play with this Play-along, you are confrontated with the reaction of the rhythm section to the soloist. Though you have to play with the enegetic concept of this "hidden soloist". A very artificial and confusing setup....

All that stuff = ear .... not Hear training....solfeggio using moveable do. No body wants to bust Blz to "do" (pronounced 'Dough' as in $) it.

Bob, BiaB use real tracks not computerized

I think playalongs teach people to not listen.

That is the popular dogma of today. Playalongs are bad but scales are not? Transcribe everybody else but never create your own melodies. Learn the magic scale but not how to target chord tones. The Jazz establishment education has corrupted Jazz.

Well, when you live in an area where there are no players especially if you want to play jazz play alongs are all you have. Not everyone is fortunate to be able to play with session players.