A good friend of mine in Houston Texas just posted a “how to” article on constructing a nice mouthpiece stand. Many of us have collected a number of different mouthpieces over the years – it is nice to be able to see all of them rather than keeping them packed away. Its also convenient to try some of your old friends!
3-5-7-9 Arpeggio Exercise-all 12 keys
March 21, 2010 By 1 Comment
I wanted to include backing tracks for a very useful 3-5-7-9 arpeggio exercise that appears in Bert Ligon’s “Comprehensive Technique for Jazz Musicians” book. If you don’t already have a copy of Bert’s books you should invest in them. They contain a wealth of practical information to improve your jazz chops.
The exercise is 2.20 on page 43 of this book. Due to copyright restrictions I am not able to include the chart. I have included backing tracks in all keys. The tracks are in concert key.
In the key of F the progression is:
|Gm7|C7|Fmaj7|Bbmaj7|Em7b5|A7|Dm|D7| and repeats
The point of the exercise is to start on the third of each chord. Octave displacement is used in every other measure of the arpeggio on the second note. The seventh resolves into the third of the successive chord by a step.
3-5-7-9 Arpeggio Exercise in the Key of C follows:
3-5-7-9 Arpeggio Exercise in the Key of Dflat follows:
3-5-7-9 Arpeggio Exercise in the Key of D follows:
3-5-7-9 Arpeggio Exercise in the Key of Eb follows:
3-5-7-9 Arpeggio Exercise in the Key of E follows:
3-5-7-9 Arpeggio Exercise in the Key of F follows:
3-5-7-9 Arpeggio Exercise in the Key of Fsharp follows:
3-5-7-9 Arpeggio Exercise in the Key of G follows:
3-5-7-9 Arpeggio Exercise in the Key of Aflat follows:
3-5-7-9 Arpeggio Exercise in the Key of A follows:
3-5-7-9 Arpeggio Exercise in the Key of Bflat follows:
3-5-7-9 Arpeggio Exercise in the Key of B follows:
Sharps and Flats Brain Crutch
March 18, 2010 By 1 Comment
Wouldn’t it be nice to have something that is easy to remember that tells us the order of sharps or flats in a certain key?
If you answered yes then read on.
I learned the following from bass man Rob Jewett. For sharps use the phrase “Five Cowboys Got Drunk At Ed’s Bar” ( what do you expect I live in Texas ). The first letter of each word indicates the order that sharps are added from left to right e.g. F,C,G,D,A,E,B.
You can use the word “BEAD” and the acronym “GCF” ( greatest common factor ) to remember the order of flats from left to right e.g. B,E,A,D,G,C,F.
Do you have a different brain crutch that you use to remember the order of sharps or flats?
Have fun with your new found brain crutch!
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