Blue Scale Melody Composition

The object of this lesson is to help students with an introduction to the Blues and the Blues Scale. While they might not be ready to improvise right away, they can start to try to compose using a basic scale. Students are given a C Blues scale and a blank 12 bar blues with accompaniment. They are to compose a melody over those 12 bars.

Active Tones in Jazz Improvisation #1

The goal of these lessons is to help students incorporate active tones in their improvisation. Active tones are an essential part of bebop vocabulary and give a phrase tension and release.

Lesson 1: Introduction and Chords