I did a gig last night with a pianist, bassist and singer. Some of my jazz musician friends happened to be in the area and came to watch us after their gig. These gigs are few and far between for me as a violinist but I really enjoy them. They are a challenge, you are going to have to play tunes that the singer chooses and they could be in any key. I probably knew about 20% of the tunes and even then, I probably hadn’t played them in a long time and knew them in a different key. I always try to do these gigs without any charts. I think for most of the gig I did pretty well and played nicely. I did manage to get most of the tunes together in my head (often by the end of my solo annoyingly). If I couldn’t work out the chords, I just tried to play the melody if I knew it a little. By the end I was tired though. The singer called “just the way you look tonight” but in Eb (usually in F). I know this tune but haven’t played it in a while. When it came to the B section, (It goes up a minor 3rd), I couldn’t remember it, I couldn’t hear it and I didn’t know what key it went to at all. Sometimes, you’re just a bit tired. That’s it. It’s best to be kind to yourself in these situations. I passed the solo over to the pianist and slowly realised that I ended my solo playing a big G natural over a Gb major chord. Oh well.

Challenge! Play this line and post it. (This time it’s played quite fast so it’s a tough one this week) There are 4 levels to this, you can pick which one is most doable for you right now…. 1- Exactly the same as myself, in C Major 2- Try it in a few different keys 3- Start like I do and finish it off a little differently. 4- improvise over a backing track and use this line in your improv https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L9PeqG9C5os&t=24s BTW the course I am developing on note enclosures is now available in the classroom. There are lots of bits missing right now but I thought I would let my paid members get a look in before I fully launch it. Go check it out!

Here are 3 practical ways you can work on this. 1. Bassline style chord tones. Play through the form using just chord tones, 4 notes to a bar. This helps you hear the harmony clearly and find small movements between chords. It also drills the sequence into your head while you’re still improvising. Start slow 2. Double stops. Work out simple two note voicings for each chord. Start with roots and thirds or 5ths, but don’t worry about the root being the lowest note. You’ll start to find shapes using thirds, 6ths and 5ths that sit really well on the violin. Comp through the changes and try to do it without charts. 3. Piano or guitar. If you play a bit of piano or guitar, use them to learn the chords. Even basic voicings help. These instruments are built for harmony, and it’s no coincidence that pianists and guitarists almost always know the chords. As violinists we need to aim for the same level of understanding. I’ve also covered the first two approaches in the 10 Tunes You Should Know course in the classroom, with written exercises for each of the tunes if you want something more structured to work through. If you’re working on this, let me know which of these you’ve tried (or are going to try this week). Also interested to hear how you currently approach learning chords, what’s been working for you?

I covered some Rhythm Exercises in today's Q&A. Had a few conversations on here about how to get more rhythmically diverse and free and this one way that I have found can help. The whole recording of the Q&A is available in the classroom for Premium and VIP members. Upgrade Here

I have started to create a new course for you all. It will be available on all paid plans once finished. A sample is in the Classroom and I wanted your feedback on how it seems so far. The plan is to have the chapters laid out as they but with video example attached too. Each different enclosure and approach note will have an explanation page with some playable examples and some lines built with the enclosures, followed by a set of exercises (in PDF form) that I've designed to help you drill them into your playing (plus some other ideas injected in there too). Its a little like my book "Enclosure Studies For Jazz Violin" but laid out a little more like I wanted and with more of an emphasis on the long exercises I like to use to practise them. (I had to change my book a lot to go with the format that the publishing company generally worked with) Please go check it out in the Classroom and either comment on here or message me directly with your thoughts. Matt