I’m off to play two gigs today. First one is a background jazz gig in a hotel. Second is a listening gig in a pub in south east London (the Royal Albert Pub 8.30) I had 20 minutes to collect some charts for my own tunes and some arrangements before I left today. Most of the band have never rehearsed these ideas with me before so will be fun to see how it works out. I’d like to find some time to practise in the middle of the two gigs but it’s not likely. What are you up to?

I’ll give myself as an example below… I’m in a certain place with my playing. I gig regularly and can get by in many “jazz” situations, but I still struggle with certain keys, being able to follow new comped tunes on the fly and I have holes in my repertoire. My main goal over the next 6 months is to have 20 more standards solidified in my repertoire, in all 12 keys. I think this goal will help me iron out some of the issues I want to address. Tell me 3 issues you have and Il give you a goal. Il do this for the first 5 people who comment. Book a call with me below to see how I can help you achieve your goals. https://scheduler.zoom.us/matt-holborn/jazz-violin-chat

I’m a professional fiddler, age 74 and want to spend more time improving my skills. I still gig but am basically retired

1. INTRODUCE YOURSELF Copy this format and comment below: • your name • where you’re from • your musical background • what you’re trying to achieve in your playing 2. MAKE YOUR FIRST POST This could be: • a jazz violin video you like • a question about learning jazz • or something you’ve found helpful to practice 3. START LEARNING If you are new to jazz, take my "5 Days To Improv" challenge. Its a free course that helps you make your first steps into jazz improv. Learning the ropes and delving into how a jazz musician thinks, practises and plays. If you really want to progress, you can get hold of the larger paid courses in there too “Jazz Violin Fundamentals”, “10 Tunes You Must Know”, “46 Lines”, “Mastering Chromatics” BONUS There’s a poll below this post. Let me know what you’re most interested in improving in your playing, it helps me shape the material in here

@Kaia K got the assignment straight away. She shares her process, helps others in the comments, ask great questions and is really committed to learning more about playing jazz. We are lucky to have her here!