Stop Learning Scales. Focus on These 4 Notes Instead:
Music can be broken up into three main components:
Rhythm
Melody
Harmony
That’s also the order in which you should be studying music.
Why?
Because without good melody, good harmony is pointless. And without good rhythm, everything falls apart.
Today, let’s focus on the relationship between harmony and melody.
It’s a damn shame we spend so much time learning about harmony, i.e., chords and scales, and hardly any time on how to make a good melody. By prioritizing harmony over melody, our solos end up sounding like nonsensical gibberish.
It’s like trying to learn Japanese by memorizing a bunch of random words like “library” and “dog” and “bathroom.”
Now, imagine going to Japan and walking up to people and saying “library, dog, bathroom.” Sure, you’re speaking Japanese, but you sound like a nut.
Learning to improvise by playing scales that fit the chords might make harmonic sense, but again – without good melody, good harmony is pointless.
So, don’t put all your eggs in the harmony basket. Sure, learn your chord scales. But remember that melody matters, too.
Which brings me to my latest etude book, Chord Tone Magic, in which I demonstrate how to make strong, melodic solos out of only chord tones over popular jazz progressions.
That’s right, just four notes per chord: root, third, fifth, and seventh. No other scale tones, no passing tones, no nothin’.
And the best part is, the lines sound anything but constrained. In fact, the note restrictions actually yield more creative solos. Truth is, there’s so much you can do with just a few notes. But you gotta know how to mix ‘em up with a melodic touch.
By studying the solos in Chord Tone Magic, you’ll not only pick up on my favorite melodic tricks, but you’ll also internalize the sound of the chord progressions on which the etudes are written.
Check ‘em out at the link below, and then start playing your own chord tone solos that are both harmonically and melodically sound.
https://go.jeffschneidermusic.com/chord-tone-magic
BONUS ALERT: I’m including a free, 27-minute etude analysis of my solo on “Fly Me to the Moon” when you purchase your copy of Chord Tone Magic by Friday, December 11.
GET IT HERE
- Jeff