January 2022 Newsletter Jazz Guitar: An Intro to Jazz Standards
Learning to play Jazz guitar calls for journeying into the world of Jazz. Any musician interested in playing Jazz needs to become well acquainted with the works of Jazz masters by striving to memorize the melody, chord progressions and even the lyrics of their favorite Jazz tunes, many of them being known as Jazz standards.
Most people who become interested in Jazz studies have experienced the beauty, joy and inspiration of Jazz music.
What does it take to venture into Jazz guitar? The player needs to know the guitar fretboard very well, have a solid grip on scales, triads, chords, understand fairly advanced harmony concepts and have a decent ability to read notated music. Jazz has its roots in rhythmic African origins with swinging melodies. Becoming familiar with different “feels” is also quintessential along with developing a good ear. In addition, there are two other important prerequisites for playing in a Jazz ensemble, the ability to improvise and a strong sense for what is appropriate to play in the moment, whether soloing or accompanying another musician.
One of the best method books I have come across specifically for the study of Jazz guitar is Phil Capone’s Exploring Jazz Guitar. This British guitarist offers great advice on many Jazz topics and a fantastic listing of recorded Jazz guitar history.
There are hundreds of Jazz standards, and it is debatable, but not worth arguing over, what is or is not a Jazz standard. Antonio J. Garcia is a musician and Jazz educator who has put a lot of thought into teaching Jazz standards. He published a very useful book called Cutting The Changes, and in his preface, offers a definition and purpose of Jazz standards. “Standard tunes are incredibly rich material: melodies that have stood the test of time, chord changes that add such color and movement to each moment, lyrics that express timeless thoughts. We should all enjoy playing their melodies and improvising over their harmonies.” Finding unique approaches and the excitement of discovering new gems within a very well known set of rules is the name of the game when learning how to play Jazz standards!
Jazz standards provide structure to a music student’s listening habits and shed light on how various artists interpret and put their very own fingerprint on a well-known tune. When a musician really gets into Jazz, he or she will begin an amazing process of listening to a wide variety of artists on various instruments and learn a lot along the way.
A lot of Jazz standards have their origins in early Broadway musicals and at some point were recorded and popularized by a great vocalist. Whether a serious Jazz musician plays the trumpet, piano, guitar or piccolo flute, they all are familiar with classic recordings of Jazz standards by legendary artists such as Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, Sarah Vaughn, Betty Carter or Frank Sinatraonly to list a few. Each vocalist has a different way of interpreting the melody and, by nature, is working with a different voice. Instrumentalists will listen to these monumental recordings to familiarize themselves with the songs and gain insight into the unique approach of each artist.
Learning and constantly working on Jazz standards is a great measuring stick for one’s progress and an ideal vehicle for playing with other musicians. When good Jazz musicians play Jazz standards, they are not only making music, they are listening and communicating constantly, curious and open-minded to new possibilities.
Texas born Jazz Fusion guitarist Larry Coryell (1943-2017), in a wonderful method book titled Jazz Guitar: Creative Comping, Soloing, and Improv points to the benefits of listening to musicians playing other instruments. “You may wonder how a guitarist can develop a musical understanding of another instrument like a trumpet or saxophone. Well, I don’t know exactly how it’s supposed to happen, but in my early days I hung with the horn players in town and tried to absorb how they approached playing...I concentrated on providing the harmony and rhythm, and when I’d play something that threw the horn player, he’d let me hear about it. So I learned that I really had to develop sensitivity and consideration as part of my evolution as a supporting player. I got respect from players who were more advanced than me because they could see I really wanted to learn.” Larry was not only a prolific composer and recording artist under his own name, but also an in demand sideman. I hope you will enjoy his fiery and passionate spirit that can be heard on this month’s playlist, which features him playing Jazz standards on other Jazz artists’ recordings.
Guitar players engaging with Jazz standards will be around as long as there are young musicians who enjoy Jazz music and dare to plunge into becoming familiar with the Jazz idiom. Engaging with these compositions, that over time transform themselves into an ancient yet ever-renewing song, provides a musical playground for deeper exploration and commitment to creativity.
Wishing you more familiarity with tunes from the Great American Songbook for 2022,
Chris
