Transcribe Your Own Melodies
For practice slot 6, we will explore how to find your own melodic ideas and drill through the exercises we have covered earlier in this practice series.
When we are learning to improvise, we must take lots of little ideas from our favourite recordings and then transpose around all 12 keys to add them to our vocabulary.
Transcribing & Absorbing Melodic Ideas
We will analyse a short melody transcribed from a Red Garland solo and then incorporate this into the line we covered in practice slot 4.
The melody is over an F7 so we will start by applying it to a 251 in Bb Major which contains an F7 as the V7 chord. We will then take this melody around all 12 keys.
Apply To Jazz Standards
The final step is to play the melody in context of the jazz standards we are working on. Any 251 progression is an opportunity to test out our new melodic ideas and phrases.
At this point, we are taking our new vocabulary and applying it directly in context of the tunes we are playing…. This is a very important step and turns theory into practice!
Weekly Transcription Exercises
If you are new to transcription, check out the weekly improvisation and transcription exercises in the PianoGroove Community area.
Transcription takes a lot of work and patience to master. Each time we transcribe it becomes easier and easier so the first steps are the hardest.
The exercises in the forum have been specifically designed to help you to develop at this important skill.
Lesson Downloads
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Rootless Voicings Practice Planner File Type: pdf
Related Lessons
The basis of learning music and especially improvised music is to be able to recognise different intervals, melodies and harmonies.
When learning a new jazz standard the first thing to do is listen to as many different recordings of the tune. Then listen and transcribe from them.
Transcription is one of the most time effective ways to learn jazz and you should incorporate transcription into your daily practice routine.
Practice Tips
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We must be listening to jazz regularly. It's impossible to take a solo if we have not spent the time to listen to and transcribe from recordings.
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Find small melodic ideas and take them around all 12 keys. This is how we add lines to our vocabulary.
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Learn to transcribe your own lines with the weekly improvisation and transcription exercises in the forum.
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These exercises will train your ears so that you can pick up new melodic material directly from your favourite recordings.
