Amazing jazz pianist Emmet Cohen knows how to make the piano sing during the tune “Where Is Love?” from Oliver! Let’s compare his 6 live performances of this beautiful ballad, to see what makes his takes so lovely.
Here’s my simpler chart of “Where Is Love” with lyrics (this may be important to help a ballad’s interpretation) in Emmet’s chosen key of A Major: 
Continue reading “Art Of A Beautiful Ballad: Emmet Cohen Plays “Where Is Love?””
Let’s take the lovely ballad Skylark (by Johnny Mercer/Hoagy Carmichael), and learn how to enhance a ballad’s melody with beautiful chords and a foundational bass line. In this video observe how I took a chart from an old fakebook and updated some chords more to my liking, a process called reharmonization:
Continue reading “Big Ideas For Small Hands: How To Write a Full Sounding Piano Arrangement”
It’s over 100º outside, we are all getting a bit bored with “socially distancing”, and let’s face it – today is a great day to learn to play a very slow, hot, blues.
This tutorial came together after giving several of my online piano students tips on the basic 12 bar blues, common blues endings/turnarounds, typical jazz blues substitutions – plus my “covid bubble hubby” music partner and I had just performed a live Zoom concert from our home studio to friends’ living rooms across the country in their own “covid bubbles.” Continue reading “Got The Blues? Tips on How To Play a Slow Blues in G”
Memorial Weekend 2020 felt like a relevant time to revisit this recording of When The Saints Go Marching In, to honor the lives of heroes lost during both the past and most recent of days. The concept of my arrangement was similar to a New Orleans Funeral or Celebration of Life – a contemplative piano introduction, followed by a jubilant jazz band send off: Continue reading “When The Saints Go Marching In (Lesson in Jazz Harmony)”
A pianist often wonders what to do with the left hand when playing solo without a bassist. Using the spiritual Go Down Moses as an example, I’ll share some of my favorite tips for creating solid bass lines, including ways to have fun exploring reharmonization in minor keys. Continue reading “Creating Bass Lines for Solo Piano: Go Down Moses Tutorial”
These melancholy ballads do well to express my mood this year. The first week of Spring 2020 began with all concerts, church jobs, club gigs, parties, music performances of all types being cancelled. My heart went out to musicians cutting short their tours, professional and Continue reading “Spring Can Really Hang You Up The Most -You Must Believe In Spring (and Love)”
Musicians who are also Educators have a burning desire to create, perform, and share ideas with others, which can be tough during these times of quarentine due to COVID-19. Fortunately for me, I’ve been self isolating along with my musician husband who happens to be a very fine jazz bassist. True Confession: We don’t normally practice together Continue reading “On A Clear Day: 3 Ways 2 Play 4 Piano”
Let’s hope the only thing that goes viral is the above video
Observe today’s music theory illustration pictured above. Notice the photo of these colorful Four O’clock Flowers – each bloom is unique, but they all are linked together as a family that grows from the same parent plant.
This week one of my newer adult piano students eagerly read ahead in my book Amazing Phrasing – Keyboard, and got a bit confused trying to understand the Greek modes/scales we refer to in both jazz & traditional music theory. During her first lesson this enthusiastic lady Continue reading “Explaining the Greek Modes”
Ever notice how certain old hymns have chords and candences like other familiar tunes? (Especially the ones in 3/4 time can sound like Irish or Country Waltzes, Holiday Hits, or early American Songs.) I was MONKeying around with this request for The Old Rugged Cross, getting ready for a memorial service, when I kept getting distracted by other tunes which sounded similar.
Continue reading “The Old Rugged Cross: Old School Hymn Played Gospel Style with Sunday Mash-Up”
