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Jazz Theory and Improvisation

If you believe for a moment that all you'll ever need to know about jazz theory and improvisation is contained within this section, I'm afraid you are mistaken.  This is a VERY broad subject that will only be given a brief introduction here.

3 Important Jazz Theoretical Concepts will be covered in this section: | Swing |  Modes | Improvisation |

Swing:
Swing is an incredibly elusive concept that is difficult to master for beginning jazz musicians.  It is so easy to play them badly!  But how might we describe swinging eighth notes in a way for the jazz layperson to understand?

The best way to describe it would be that eighth notes would be played with a triplet feel -- as though it is being played in 12/8 time instead of 4/4.  To further confuse matters, the emphasis should be put on the off-beats.

Modes:
Modes have become more important in jazz improvisation in recent years. As quoted by Jazz Improv magazine, "A mode is simply the original scale, but beginning on a different note of the scale."

Jazz Theory:  These lessons approach jazz theory by using graphical and symbolic representations and begin by looking at the various scales used in jazz.  This course of study covers scales, chords, advanced chording, modes and pentatonic soloing.

Improvisation:
A lot of theory goes behind jazz improvisation.  The previous link brought you to a lesson on pentatonic soloing, only one of the many types of improvisation.  For more in-depth information, check out the following site.