The following approach should be used as a template for learning a new jazz standards:
– Listen to as many versions as you can on both YouTube and Spotify Web Player. Make note of anything you like and then you can try to incorporate this into your arrangement.
– Play the melody on its own with a metronome until you can play it accurately at tempo.
– Look through the chords and circle any 25s and 251s – find them all and mark them down on the lead sheet.
– Play through using just rootless left hand voicings (not the melody yet) – I do this at the start of some of the jazz standard lessons and it’s an important step to familiarise yourself with the harmony and which keys the tune modulates through. Practice this with a metronome until you can play them accurately at tempo.
– Now put the melody over the rootless left hand voicings and play the tune accurately at tempo.
– Remember to try to incorporate the melodic phrasing from step 1 into your arrangement with left hand voicings. This will involve playing the melody slightly differently than its written on the lead sheet, maybe adding notes in or taking notes out here and there. Work this out aurally.
– The final step is to transcribe from your favourite recordings of the standard. Transcription is the single most effective aspect of practising as you are learning from the masters of the jazz genre. Transcription is a difficult and time consuming task but the results are definitely worth it.
### When learning a song, should I learn to play it in all 12 keys?
Not to start with. As a beginner, you should try to learn as many different jazz standards as possible. This way you will be exposed to a wide variety of different chords and voicings that would not have been possible from just learning 1 song.
As a beginner, it is a good exercise to transpose a song into maybe 1 or 2 different keys, however, it’s difficult and also very time consuming so your time would be better spent learning new songs to extend the size of your repertoire.
### Should I learn one arrangement of a song and play it the same way every time?
One of the misconceptions with jazz is that everything is made up on the spot. This may be true for the improvised sections, but for the ‘head’ of the tune – which is the first and last time through – you will naturally create an arrangement. Sure, we can make slight tweaks, change the rhythm of certain melody notes, move things up/down an octave etc, This is all part of the performance.
### Where can I take inspiration from when creating an arrangement?
Before you try to play a new jazz standard for the first time, listen to as many arrangements as possible. Use platforms such as YouTube and Spotify to find performances and recordings from both professional and amateur musicians. Make note of anything you like and then try to incorporate this into your own arrangements.
Listening to vocal versions of the tunes you are learning is a great way to work on phrasing and also helps you understand the movement and contours in the melody.
### Should I memorise the chord changes or just read from lead sheets?
You should definitely try to memorise the chord changes and form. This does come naturally from playing songs over and over. Always identify the common chord progressions such as 25s and 251s as this will help you choose suitable chord voicings and free your mind for spontaneous melodic decoration and improvisation.
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