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Marc's Jazz Guitar Academy

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Bb Blues Improv Etude
A couple of months ago I posted some work I did on integrating a couple of the improv workshop lessons into a practical application over a Bb Blues progression. Feedback from @Coach Gabriel Sebrian was to turn it into a fixed etude and work on stabilizing it. This is the result of that effort. There is a little more stabilization work at 120bpm, but this was a good take. I can slow it down and be more stable, but I also wanted to push my fingers and brain a bit on the speed front. The etude incorporates targeting thirds (and some fifths) using the standard bullseye method, chromatic enclosures and all three of the linear connectors covered in the first lesson on that topic. Next step would be to try and play one of the canned lines as a "call" following it with an improvised response and vice versa. This would be similar in spirit to the excellent work @Chad Bird showed us on his last neighbor tones exercise post. As always feedback is always greatly appreciated!
0 likes • 4h
@Rick Harding Sounding good! That was a solid composition too. As you note, you worked a lot of tools of the trade into the etude and it hung together well. It never sounded forced - if anything if felt like it had a thematic flow to it. On to the next steps!
Autumn Leaves : Martin Taylor, John Patitucchi, & Howard Levy
ICYMI - I stumbled across this wonderful rendition of Autumn Leaves - obviously the improv is incredible, and its worth watching for that alone, but I always find it very instructive to see how guitar players comp for others, and there are times here when Martin Taylor is playing just straight 4 beats to the bar chord stabs. Don’t be put off by the run time of 18 minutes, the performance is about half that, the rest is chit-chat. https://youtu.be/8ge8lbxGytA?si=X_8EfHhBRSWoCqTn
2 likes • 16h
@Paul Marsch They talk about Freddie Green 4 to the bar rhythms after the song finishes and how that made Martin lock in with John's bass. I don't know if you remember but all the comping routines in the early etudes start with 4 to the bar rhythm - there is a reason for that. I was studying with a local jazz guitarist recently and he wouldn't let me play any Charleston off the beat rhythms until I proved I could do the Freddie Green thing. Note that Martin did both.
Etudes 4.1 - 4.4
Here are Etudes 4.1, 4.2, 4.3 and 4.4. Marc mentioned on the lesson that although the etudes were not written with the chords that it could be beneficial to play them in order to correlate them with the approach notes so that's what I did. I recorded these at tempo and they need more work but I was kind getting tired of them and wanted to get them recorded so I could move on to the other etudes and mix it up . When listening back I did notice that when my brain was trying to anticipate the next chord sometimes I got a little ahead of the beat. I also noticed the mix with soundslice was not so good in some of them but I think you can hear the bass hopefully. I can tell that I am going to be in lesson 4 for quite awhile, especially with the complementary material provided by Coach Gabriel Sebrian. https://youtu.be/BS-YrV70G44 https://youtu.be/U1HcYNHli8I https://youtu.be/Z1xnYGRQIRA https://youtu.be/QuyjJYgC8is
1 like • 17h
@Andy Openshaw Solid all the way through! Great job on this! This is just the intro to targeting thirds, and it was a good idea to add the chords to solidify where the third is in the chords and hearing it within the chord. The early etudes are mostly about getting the sound in your ear. I agree that you should keep moving forward. 4.7 and 4.8 are more full demonstrations so you should spend more time there. These might have already served their purpose for you. Keep on going! Great work!
Little trick
After talking with @Mentor Bob Kinney and @Nancy R about hidding the pick i tried to implement it... not so subbtle but it worked. I guess with work i could get better.
3 likes • 17h
@Marc-André Labelle It was like a magic trick! You did pretty well finger picking while holding the pick - was it weird. It's felt odd to me when I tried it. I thought this was a good test!
Etudes 2.3 and 2.4
Just wanted to send these videos for review. There is some room for improvement, esp the transitions to A9 and A13 are not easy. This recording was done with metronome at 70 bpm, you may need to use headphones to hear the guitar sound clear. I could not complete the repeat for last verse for the Etude 2.4 as my phone battery died while recording.
1 like • 1d
@Ashwini Nepal As a general rule, it is good to read the comments that get written by mentors and Coach Gabriel to your compatriots in the jazz journey - you may pick up ideas that are helpful. As an example, I wrote for Nancy "When I did these etudes I would use the Speed Training function in Soundslice - it is in the same tab where you change the tempo. Since you have limited practice time, you can set it to start at 70%, increment 10% and play each 1 time. You'll get 4 reps that gradually get faster. Move on after that. Just a thought!" Using the Speed Training function is a good idea for you too - particularly since I think you can play faster than you realize - plus it is ok to push the tempo in practice on occasion. After you play at 100% even once in the Speed training session, your current tempo of 80% will feel more manageable.
1 like • 1d
@Ashwini Nepal I agree!!
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Mentor Bob Kinney
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@bob-kinney-6650
Another player who picked up the guitar after seeing the Beatles. Played in bands in the 70's & 80's, studied jazz with Sal Salvador and still playing

Active 4h ago
Joined Oct 11, 2023
Smithtown, New York
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