LESSON NOTES

Lesson notes. Next lesson

Technique/scales.
Method Book
  • Review Chapter 4
  • Chapter 5. Blues. Standard 12-bar chords and how to expand (if needed yet)
On Green Dolphin Street​
  • Review as solo piano and as part of a rhythm section
Transcriptions:
  • ​Where Can I Go Without You
    • Review. Apply tools to your own solo
  • On Green Dolphin Street​
    • ​Review. 
    • Create a "composed solo" that you can play, then explain what you did. Writing it to score helps for this specific tool, so things are in front of you. If writing takes too much time, then just memorize it.
New songs to add to repertory, based on Green Dolphin (see charts below)
  • Lady Bird
  • Tune Up
Sightreading of charts
  • Next lesson

Lesson notes. July 14, 2026.

Technique/scales
  • Start with black keys
  • Experiment adding triplets. I don't recommend doing the 4-note broken chords yet as triplets.
Method Book
  • Review Chapter 3
    • II-V complete all the exercises: II-V Dominants, Maj7, m7, and II-V-I
    • If solid, and you want more of a challenge, add a simple RH. Five notes is sufficient.
    • Review II-V-I circle progression. If solid, add chromatic progression
  • Chapter 4
On Green Dolphin Street
  • Apply open and closed shell positions to accompany the melody
  • Turn the tune into a technical exercise, in which your RH plays linear, broken 3rds and 3-return runs matching the chord progressions. The goal is to switch articulation, chord, scale, etc at whichever note you happen to be, rather than resetting to the root every time we have a chord change.
​Where Can I Go Without You
  • Excellent transcription!  Next goal: apply a simple closed-open shell chord accompaniment so it stands on its own without having to play it along the recording.
  • I am placing my own transcription below so you can use it as reference for the chords and any notes you may want to compare.

Lesson notes. July 28, 2026.

Technique/scales
  • Embed triplets within the scale as you go up and down.
  • Start Major and minor  Pentatonics (C6 Pent, Cm7 Pent 3rd) and use the same combinations. No need to 3-note 4-note scale chords.
Method Book
  • II-V-I moving in chromatic progression UP then DOWN.
  • Chapter 4. Refine how you arrange "My Buddy", especially the LH chord open-closed voicings. try finding the most efficient and best sounding voicings.
    • Start improvising on "My Buddy". notice the chord progression start very similarly as "Where Can I Go Without You"
  • Chapter 5. Think of Blues Scale as a minor Pentatonic with Blue note.
    • Practice blues progression, applying chord voicing
    • Modes of the Major Scale. Focus on Mixolydian, and the exercises on p35 starting on the 1, 3rd, 5th, and 7th.
      • Dorian will be next lesson.
On Green Dolphin Street​
  • Not seen today, but you can apply to this song the same concepts we worked on at the Jarrett transcription.
​Where Can I Go Without You
  • Use your classical sound, voicing and dynamic range even when you are playing jazz. Reduce pedal.
  • You transcribed and learned this song so impressively quickly that you didn't have the benefits that come from struggling, like regular students have, and therefore you didn't yet spend enough time learning from the touch and sound of Jarrett. Continue playing along the recording, 100% and slower as well, to catch nuances and hidden treasures in the sound.
  • Left hand, use open and close voicing wisely and you will notice you sound almost like him. Also, no need to overplay the LH. Space is good, it exposes the RH and you won't feel you have to overplay it.
  • Improvisation: Use the transcription as wheels on a bike. Quote part of it when you need support, and then let it go and continue with your own material. Go back and forth like that until you don't need to quote it anymore.
  • Noodle fingers effect: you are letting your fingers play, rather than your mind. Fewer notes and think what you are doing.
  • If you get stuck on a chord and don't know what to play, think ahead. What is that chord part of? Is it a minor II in a II-V-I? is it a VI in a III-VI-II-V-I? Then think of the I and merge those notes with the scale of the chord in your hands.
Sightreading of charts
  • Next lesson

TECHNIQUE applied to Jazz

Here we’ll approach scales a little differently from the way they’re typically practiced in classical piano.
This routine is quite extensive, so don’t feel like you need to complete it all in one practice session. You may want to focus on one key at a time and spread the routine over several days.
​I’ll demonstrate my approach during the lesson, and from there you can adapt the routine in whatever way works best for your practice and learning style.
updated 7/7/26 SCALE ON RH, CHORDS ON LH
File Size: 87 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

METHOD BOOK: Jazz Piano Method.  Mark Davis

The goal is to pick some very simple songs that we can reharmonize and then improvise on the arrangement.

TUNES

Lady Bird
Lady Bird
File Size: 860 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

Tune Up
tune_up_-real_book.pdf
File Size: 151 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

On Green Dolphin Street
green_dolphin_street.pdf
File Size: 111 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File
Applied concepts for our next lesson:
  • Creating a solo piano theme introduction. Chord root included.
    • Lesson: Apply open/closed chord voicings. Start with closed position // Start with open position
  • Creating an "accompanied" theme introduction (3-7 LH chords)
  • Practicing the theme playing along a recorded rhythm section track.
  • Creating linear, chord outlining and motive based improvisation.
  • Crafting your own "composed" solo, writing it is ok. This is to teach the brain to think rather than throwing the fingers to run notes.
  • We will also transcribe ideas from a solo by Oscar Peterson.
Audio source
Transcription -1-​
  • Theme starts at 1:27
  • Solo 1 starts at 2:18
​https://youtu.be/_qFI1qQm1a0?si=3lAT3t7GxAxr5Z-R
On Green Dolphin Street OSCAR PETERSON (Gabriel's transcription)
File Size: 52 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File
Transcription -2- (for later)
  • Solo 2 starts at 1:17
​youtu.be/CsgonzDgtRY?si=UVV-a-ZmBLXlRvDe
New element: Reharmonization applied to GDS
​Biff Smith reharmonizes Green Dolphin Street
GREEN DOLPHIN STREET. Biff Smith
File Size: 3052 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

REHARMONIZATION

- Happy Birthday
​- Ode to Joy
The goal is to pick some very simple songs that we can reharmonize and then improvise on the arrangement.

TRANSCRIPTION

Where Can I Go Without You (Keith Jarrett, Charlie Haden)

We will start transcribing only the melody, not the individual notes of the LH chords.
For now we will keep the chords as concepts, using chord symbols, without defining the exact notes yet.
  • Theme. Start the transcription of the theme and bring what you can figure out to our next lesson.
  • Improvisation. After the theme is completed, we will start this. We will go as far as we feel comfortable.

Audio source

​https://youtu.be/JSpLIUt5G2Y?si=EF1FXBvCC2wDWsMF

Gabriel's transcription

Where Can I Go Without You (Gabriel's transcription)
File Size: 84 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

Gabriel's own notes

As time allows, incorporate:
  • Incorporate the 12-bar Blues as a form right away, with the blues scale and modifications to the form.
  • Bring my own "composed improv" for GDS to see the process of composing a solo