2 Simple & Effective

PRACTICE PLANS

A DV IC E .C O M
JAZZ
PRACTICE PLAN STARTING FROM:
ACQUIRING LANGUAGE *PRACTICE 30 MIN - 1 HOUR EVERY DAY OR MORE

WEEK OF TO

MONDAY - DISCOVER LANGUAGE

Listen to one of your favorite musicians. Find a phrase you love.
Learn it by ear note-by-note with your instrument. Resist the temptation to write
anything down during this process and force yourself to retain it all in your mind.

TUESDAY - CONCEPTUALIZE LANGUAGE

What chord(s) is the phrase played over? Figure out by ear exactly what harmony
is going on behind the phrase. Then, determine the concept(s) that underly the
phrase that make it “work.” Why does it sound good? What makes it stand out? How
can YOU think to achieve a similar result? Get beyond analysis and DISTILL your
answers into concept(s) you understand, can think about, and can use.

WEDNESDAY - DRILL LANGUAGE & CRAFT EXERCISES

Play the phrase in all keys with a metronome. The goal is not to simply copy but to
understand and internalize the LOGIC behind the line. So, once you have basic command
of the line, it’s important to craft your own exercises that use the concept behind the
line and drill these exercises.

THURSDAY - DRILL LANGUAGE & START TO APPLY TO TUNES

Just as you did yesterday, continue to drill the exercises and gain complete control of
the concepts that make the phrase great. Then, take a tune you’re working on and
apply the concepts to the chords of the tune that match the chords that the original
phrase used.

FRIDAY - SIMPLIFY AND FINE-TUNE YOUR USE OF LANGUAGE

Practice your exercises more, gain a deeper understanding of the concepts you
discovered this week. Seek to find better and simpler ways to think about them. Apply
them to more tunes you’re working on over the correct spots in the harmony..
PRACTICE PLAN STARTING FROM:
ACQUIRING LANGUAGE

HELPFUL RESOURCES
A DIAGRAM OF HOW TO PRACTICE

WHAT SHOULD I PRACTICE? THE 3 ESSENTIAL PIECES TO PRACTICING

MONDAY - DISCOVER LANGUAGE

HOW TO ACQUIRE USEFUL LANGUAGE

THE REASON YOU NEED TO START THINKING ABOUT JAZZ LANGUAGE

TUESDAY - CONCEPTUALIZE LANGUAGE

THE STAGES OF JAZZ LANGUAGE

4 STEPS TO ATTAINING FREEDOM WITH JAZZ LANGUAGE

WEDNESDAY - DRILL LANGUAGE & CRAFT EXERCISES

4 TRICKS TO PRACTICING JAZZ LINES IN ALL KEYS

HOW TO CREATE YOUR OWN EXERCISES FROM A TRANSCRIBED LINE

THURSDAY - DRILL LANGUAGE & START TO APPLY TO TUNES

APPLYING SCALES VS. APPLYING LANGUAGE

HOW TO APPLY THE JAZZ LANGUAGE THAT YOU’VE TRANSCRIBED

FRIDAY - SIMPLIFY AND FINE-TUNE YOUR USE OF LANGUAGE

MICHAEL BRECKER AND THE POWER OF SIMPLICITY

PRACTICE PLAN STARTING FROM:
LEARNING A TUNE *PRACTICE 30 MIN - 1 HOUR EVERY DAY OR MORE

WEEK OF TO

MONDAY - DISCOVER AND INTRODUCE A TUNE

Find a recording of one of your favorite musicians playing a jazz standard that you
love. Listen to it over and over. Learn the melody with your instrument note-by-note
from the recording. Then, sit at the piano and determine the chords. Aim to figure
out the melody and harmony by ear rather than relying on a fake book.

TUESDAY - DRILL THE MELODY AND THE CHANGES

Repeat the melody over and over. Take it one phrase at a time. Play it with the
recording and without until it’s firmly and permanently implanted in your mind. Then,
study the changes. Play simple chord voicings at the piano and seek to UNDERSTAND
the harmony. Why is each chord in the progression? What purpose does it serve?
How does each chord progress to the next?

WEDNESDAY - ISOLATE TRICKY SPOTS

Now that you have an understanding of the tune from a high-level, break up the tune
into small sections. Isolate each 8, 4, 2, or 1 bar section as needed. The tricker the
chords, the smaller you’ll want to make these sections. Study the harmony in these
spots and repeat them over and over. How does the melody relate to the harmony in
these spots? Are there easier ways to think about these spots?

THURSDAY - APPLY LANGUAGE & CRAFT EXERCISES

Take the language you’ve been acquiring and the specific concepts you’ve learned from
the language and apply them to each small section of the tune. For example, if you
studied a piece of language that gave you a way to play over a major chord, use that
way to play over every major chord in the tune. Then, create more exercises like this
for every part of the harmony.

FRIDAY - CONSOLIDATE, IMPROVISE, EVALUATE, AND CONTINUE

Consolidate everything you did this week. Play the melody of the tune and continue to
practice your exercises over the tune. Then try improvising and evaluate how your
understanding of the tune has grown.
PRACTICE PLAN STARTING FROM:
LEARNING A TUNE

HELPFUL RESOURCES
A DIAGRAM OF HOW TO PRACTICE

WHAT SHOULD I PRACTICE? THE 3 ESSENTIAL PIECES TO PRACTICING

MONDAY - DISCOVER AND INTRODUCE A TUNE

WHY YOU SHOULDN’T BE A REAL BOOK PLAYER

HOW TO LEARN JAZZ STANDARDS WITH THE PIANO

TUESDAY - DRILL THE MELODY AND THE CHANGES

5 SECRETS TO LEARNING TUNES

HOW TO COMPLETELY LEARN A MELODY IN 30 MINUTES

WEDNESDAY - ISOLATE TRICKY SPOTS

LEARN NEW MATERIAL BY TOTAL IMMERSION

THURSDAY - APPLY LANGUAGE AND CRAFT EXERCISES

APPLYING SCALES VS. APPLYING LANGUAGE

HOW TO APPLY THE JAZZ LANGUAGE THAT YOU’VE TRANSCRIBED

HOW TO CREATE YOUR OWN EXERCISES FROM A TRANSCRIBED LINE

FRIDAY - CONSOLIDATE, IMPROVISE, EVALUATE, AND CONTINUE

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