Quote:
Originally Posted by Mandobart
Long time musician (43 years). Long time guitar player (40 years). I mostly play bluegrass, folk, Americana and blues. I've recently got hit by the gypsy jazz (and jazz in general) bug. I feel totally lost with the jazz chords - its like learning to play guitar all over from scratch.
I listen to a lot of GJ to develop an ear and feel for the genre. I have downloaded the Django Fakebook which has over 200 GJ/swing tunes. I still feel lost and confused on jazz - it seems like learning the basic cowboy chords for bluegrass, folk, Americana etc. was so much easier all those years ago.
Does anyone have speific suggestions for books, web sites, tools etc. to help someone trying to pick up jazz chords and progressions? Thanks.
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Get a "Fake Book".
Listen to LOTS of jazz guitarists.
Transcribe and learn as many jazz solos as possible (guitarists AND non guitarists).
Learn all your extended 7th chords to start, and all their inversions on the guitar. Then you can use your inversions and try to add notes to play simple melodies. This is the start to learning jazz "comping" (accompanying).
After you do your minor 7th inversions, then see how they apply when extending them to a 9th chord. Then 11ths (used less, but a few really good ones) and 13ths.
That'll be a darn good start... ;-)
As an aside... A trumpet player I studied with asked me if I listened a lot to McCoy Tyner (sp?), pianist. I said "yup". He said, it sounds like you guys are trying to fit all the chords into your accompaniment. Using lots of chord inversions and added notes to enable greater melodic possibility during accompaniment.