Making Mistakes – The Path To Success

Making Mistakes – The Path To Success

by | Jul 23, 2021 | Articles

Making Mistakes – The Path To Success

It happens to all of us at some point:

Getting too wrapped up with not sounding that great sometimes when we practice.

The reason:

It’s the curse of…

Being an adult.

The Curse of Being An Adult

Compare this to the following:

Notice what a child does when they first learn to do things.

Kids make so many mistakes. When speaking, at first they can barely put a word together.

And even after they can eventually say a few basic words, they often make mistakes on the order of the words.

But here’s the reason they improve so quickly:

They don’t care.

Mistakes are an excellent learning opportunity. Don’t be afraid of them as they are a great opportunity for growth.

 

Kids just keep experimenting, making mistakes, falling over, and trying again.

Ironically though, this is the reason kids learn so fast.

The faster you make many mistakes, the more quickly you can learn from them.

Here’s the thing:

Adults are too often afraid of making mistakes when it comes to playing music.

Why is that?

The reason:

Adults are painfully aware of what good music sounds like, having listened to perfectly produced recordings their whole life (with all the mistakes conveniently edited out!)

But:

Young kids don’t have a high awareness of what ‘correct’ sounds like.

This allows children the freedom and lack of inhibition to make a lot of mistakes, to be corrected by their parents and teachers, and thus learn at a rapid pace.

So:

Adopt the child’s mindset in your guitar practice.

 

The Child’s Mindset

Don’t worry too much if something isn’t sounding good (yet). Often daily practice will iron things out if you don’t tie yourself up in knots about it.

If you work on something over the course of a week or two and despite daily practice you’re seeing no improvement, adopt a curious mind – and treat it as
‘a puzzle to be solved’.

When you notice something isn’t improving, make a hypothesis as to what could be the causing the problem.

Then:

Devise an experiment, consisting of exercises or practice approaches that you think could solve the issue. Run the experiment for a couple of weeks and record your observations.

Remember:

Mistakes are an excellent learning opportunity. Don’t be afraid of them as they are a great opportunity for growth.

In fact:

Learning from your mistakes is the key to success on the guitar – or anything else you apply yourself to.

Over to you – What did YOU think of this practice tip? Leave a comment below with your thoughts or tips of your own…

 

Greg O’Rourke

Founder, FretDojo
World Leader in Online Guitar Education

jazz guitar instruction
jazz guitar books mobile
Holy Whole Tones Batman! Try This Scale on Minor Chords

Holy Whole Tones Batman! Try This Scale on Minor Chords

by | Jul 20, 2021 | Jazz Guitar Lessons

Holy Whole Tones Batman! Try This Scale on Minor Chords

Don’t have time to read this post now? Get your Handy PDF Download: Click this link to get a print friendly version of all the exercises in this post for your practice.

► Start Your FretDojo Jazz Guitar Academy Membership here: https://www.fretdojo.com/signup-offer  

► Become a FretDojo Patreon here: https: https://www.patreon.com/fretdojo 

In this video I’ll show you how to use the whole tone scale to create some exotic outside effects on minor chords. This is a continuation on a previous lesson video where we applied the whole tone scale to dominant chords. You can find that video here: https://youtu.be/tOKXuN83B0c  

Thanks for watching and let me know what you think of this jazz guitar lesson via leaving a comment below. 

Greg O’Rourke 

Founder, FretDojo
World Leader in Online Guitar Education

jazz guitar books
jazz guitar books mobile
Warm Guitar Tone – A How-To Guide For Jazz Guitar

Warm Guitar Tone – A How-To Guide For Jazz Guitar

by | Jul 13, 2021 | Articles

Warm Guitar Tone – A How-To Guide For Jazz Guitar

It’s crazy really –

You can have…

  • the best ear in the world
  • the most sophisticated ideas in your solo
  • great rhythm and;
  • have a wonderful expressive phrasing

The list goes on.

But:

If you don’t have a good tone (i.e. the quality of the sound your guitar makes), then none of these elements will truly make an impact.

Here’s the good news though:

It’s not that difficult really to get a good sound on your instrument and create a warm jazz guitar tone. Especially these days with so many good quality instruments and amps.

I should let you know though:

You’ll find a whole spectrum of views on the subject of tone.

Some guitarists are ‘gear extremists’, and will proclaim that the quality of your guitar leads has a serious impact on your sound.

Others (and jazz guitarists especially have often been criticized for this) hardly pay attention to tone at all.

Let’s take the ‘middle way’ though – here’s a few tips from a self-proclaimed guitar gear luddite:

 

Tip #1 – Check with what and how (and where) you are striking the string

I play fingerstyle and use fingernails – so I make sure my nails are polished as smooth as

glass and they have a nice even curve – this has the biggest impact on your sound especially on acoustic instruments. This is one sure way to get a warm jazz guitar tone.

If you are using a plectrum, it should be smooth and of good quality. If your playing sounds too ‘slappy’, try a slightly thicker pick. Resin picks can have a great tone.

Also check where you are plucking the strings – I avoid plucking them too close to the bridge which can sound a bit tinny. Side note: I use 0.12 gauge D’Addario XL Flatwounds for a nice thick sound.

 

Tip #2 – Quality of your guitar

More expensive does not necessarily equal better tone.

Your guitar needs to be decent – however the make and model isn’t as important as you might think.

Make sure the action is set appropriately so the strings don’t buzz on the frets. Also check the strings aren’t old.

(Reason: old strings will sound out of tune as you go up the neck).

Whichever instrument you play, choose a guitar of which you enjoy the sound and feel.

More expensive does not necessarily equal better tone – when I picked up my first archtop I tried every one in the store, and the Ibanez you see me playing on my videos was a MUCH better tone than guitars at four times the price.

 

Tip #3 – Tone Knob (especially for jazz!)

Regardless of instrument, if you are playing jazz and want the typical jazz tone, roll your tone knob down quite a bit (I do this even on my archtop) and as I mentioned before, play more towards the neck pickup rather than the bridge – you’ll get that warm, ‘sweet as chocolate sound’. Ooooh yeah.

 

Tip #4 – Your amp (if using an electric guitar)

Here’s the thing:

A good quality amp is actually more important than the guitar when it comes to tone. For jazz, a valve amp can definitely give a great sound, however these days I’m using a Boss Katana solid state amp and get a fantastic result.


Tip #5 – Experiment!

There is no universal ‘good tone’. Experiment with the above and come up with a sound YOU are happy with.

There is no universal ‘good tone’. Experiment with the above and come up with a sound YOU are happy with.

Tone is a very subjective thing, and there is no one right way.

My approach:

Experiment with all the above factors until you settle on a sound which best serves to deliver your musical message, and go with your gut.

Then, record yourself and listen back and evaluate your tone. Rinse and repeat a few times until you pin down a suitable tone.

Be careful though:

Embarking on a quest for the ‘perfect tone’ can be quite a rabbit hole to go down. Near enough is usually good enough – spend a bit of time finding your sound but then turn your attention to the most important bit – actually playing music!

Over to you – what did YOU think of this article on getting a good jazz guitar tone? Leave a comment below with your thoughts.

 

Greg O’Rourke

Founder, FretDojo
World Leader in Online Guitar Education

jazz guitar instruction
Improvisation With The Whole Tone Scale

Improvisation With The Whole Tone Scale

by | May 26, 2021 | Jazz Guitar Lessons

Improvisation With The Whole Tone Scale

Don’t have time to read this post now? Get your Handy PDF Download: Click this link to get a print friendly version of all the exercises in this post for your practice.

► Start Your FretDojo Jazz Guitar Academy Membership here: https://www.fretdojo.com/signup-offer  

► Become a FretDojo Patreon here: https: https://www.patreon.com/fretdojo 

In this video I’ll show you how to use the whole tone scale to create some quirky and unique effects in your jazz guitar improvisations.

This cool symmetrical scale pattern is easy to learn on the fretboard if you know a few tricks to the pattern.  

jazz guitar books
jazz guitar books mobile

Video Sections:

00:00  Introduction
00:44  Ex.1 – Basic Whole Tone Scale On Single String
02:55  Ex.2 – Playing Pattern Across Strings, Single Position
04:08  Ex.3 – Three Note Per String Pattern
07:58  Ex.4 – Extending The Range Of The Whole Tone Scale
09:58  Improvising With Whole Tone Scale Over D7 Loop
11:46  Song Example: Using Whole Tone Scale Over Take The “A” Train
13:24  Wrap Up and Next Steps 

Thanks for watching and let me know what you think of this jazz guitar lesson via leaving a comment below. 

Greg O’Rourke 

Founder, FretDojo
World Leader in Online Guitar Education

jazz guitar instruction
Jazz Guitar Lessons: Best Starter Guide For 2021

Jazz Guitar Lessons: Best Starter Guide For 2021

by | Mar 30, 2021 | Jazz Guitar Lessons, Main Pages

Jazz Guitar Lessons Hub on FretDojo

Welcome to the FretDojo! If you’ve arrived on this page, you’re likely desperate to untangle the mystery of learning how to play jazz guitar.

Help is at hand…

Scroll down to find everything on the site related to jazz guitar, along with links to our best online jazz guitar lessons:

What You’ll Find On This Page

jazz-guitar-books
jazz-guitar-books-mobile

How To Learn To Play Jazz Guitar In A Nutshell (Quick Start Guide):

jazz-guitaristQuestion:

Are you banging your head against a brick wall trying to figure out how to learn jazz guitar?

Maybe you’ve tried some jazz guitar lessons in the past but were put off by all the complex theory.

Perhaps you’ve got a few jazz guitar books that felt as exciting as reading a dictionary, and are now gathering dust on your bookshelf…(Hint: those jazz guitar books make great doorstops!)

But:

Although jazz guitar takes time to learn…

Any guitarist with the basics down can develop the skill to be a confident improviser and rhythm player to participate in jams and gigs (or even just to enjoy by yourself at home).

Here’s your blueprint in 5 simple steps:

 

learn-jazz-guitar-step-1

 Listen To Jazz:

Listening to jazz is the first step is the MOST overlooked by aspiring jazzers.

But it’s crucial.

If you have no reference point for your ears, you won’t be able to make any of your guitar improvisation (or anything else) sound remotely like jazz.

Start by grabbing a few classic jazz guitar albums. Here’s some I like to recommend for jazz guitar newbies:

Take a moment to listen and watch this cool performance of Impressions by Wes Montgomery:

 

play-jazz-guitar-step-2Learn Melodies and Chords to Some Jazz Standards on Guitar:

Next, put all the jazz theory aside for a while.

Instead:

Get your hands dirty simply by learning the melody and chords to 3 to 5 jazz standards.

This will give you some songs right out of the gate you can use for the following steps, and is another way to get the sound of jazz into your ears without getting caught up trying to sound like a pro improviser right out of the gate.

jazz-guitar-lessons-step-3

Map The Guitar Fretboard:

Jazz is a bit different on guitar compared to playing other styles of music like rock or blues.

The trickiest challenge with jazz guitar improvisation or comping is negotiating the constant key changes. Some jazz tunes have 6 or more key changes per tune!

So your navigation on the guitar fretboard needs to be rock solid.

jazz-guitar-scales

You need to have an intuitive sense of how to find the notes in any given key – for both jazz guitar comping and jazz guitar improvisation.

Arpeggios, scales, and jazz guitar chord shapes are important building blocks of this knowledge.

Knowing the common jazz chord shapes over the fretboard, and being able to recall them at will, is a must for any improviser…and it’s usually the first stumbling block for an aspiring jazz guitarist.

But be aware:

Jazz Guitar scales and arpeggios aren’t enough for being able to improvise in a jazz style. Here’s what you need to do next… 

best-jazz-guitar-lessons-step-4Learn Jazz Guitar Licks To Build Your Vocabulary:

 Have you ever noticed someone improvise and although they play all the correct notes, something doesn’t sound quite right?

The reason:

Although they might be using good scale and arpeggio choices, they probably aren’t using enough jazz vocabulary in their solos.

Here’s the thing:

Scales and arpeggios are a bit like the ‘alphabet’, but jazz lines are more like the vocabulary, i.e. the ‘words’ of jazz.

jazz-guitar-lessons-fretboardDon’t get me wrong:

The alphabet is important to know for any language. But we don’t talk using the letters of the alphabet – we use words.

Jazz licks, jazz lines, jazz phrases – these are all different names for the same thing:

Short, compact melodies and ideas that can be drawn upon to thread together longer, musical-sounding melodies in your improvisation.

You can learn jazz lines on guitar by:

  • Noticing what other players do
  • Recordings
  • Transcriptions of solos (either those you do yourself OR ones already published)
  • Books

A jazz guitarist learns several of these phrases from memory and also learns to play them across the fretboard in any position and any key.

By drawing on cool-sounding melodies like this when you solo, can you guess how your playing will sound?

The answer:

Very melodic!

A combination of using jazz guitar licks and scale/arpeggio tones can result in a convincing sounding solo just like that.

But:

Our journey isn’t finished yet…

Our adventure is about to get very interesting, my Jazz Guitar Jedi. Onwards to the next step!

jazz-guitar-school-online-step-5Extract Jazz Concepts From What You Learn:

This is the point where your own musical personality starts to blossom in the jazz guitar journey.

You start to notice things you really enjoy about the jazz vocabulary you learn.

Perhaps it’s an interesting cross-rhythm used in a line.

Maybe it’s a certain way to voice jazz guitar chords without roots like Ed Bikert.

Or it’s a cool harmonic substitution you notice in a Joe Pass lick you picked up.

Spending time looking carefully at material YOU like the sound of empowers you.

It gives you the ability to develop your own distinct musical ideas.

This is where you start truly walking the path of a jazz player. You transition from being a jazz guitar student to a jazz guitar artist.

By learning the vocabulary of others, extracting your own concepts, then using those concepts as a springboard for your own ideas, you can start to express your own unique musical personality.

The best part:

The audience loves it when a musician expresses his unique voice. And that’s the wonderful thing about jazz – the ability to bring out the unique self-expression of everyone who walks on its path.

Speaking of which…

Jazz Guitar Online Courses: Your Path To Learn Jazz Guitar

 “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step” ~ Lao Tzu

To help you walk this journey, we have the best online jazz guitar courses you can find on the internet:

best jazz guitar online course

Fundamentals of Jazz Guitar Improvisation Online Course:

My internationally acclaimed jazz guitar improvisation course, completed by hundreds of jazz guitarists worldwide. This virtual jazz guitar course will show you a step-by-step how to develop what we have talked about on this page.

Click Here To Learn More & Book Now >>

What The Course Covers:

 

  • Building rock-solid fretboard knowledge so you know how to find your way around the fast key changes in jazz without getting lost, using a sneaky trick by Joe Pass.
  • Learn “5 jazz standards to rule them all” – the course walks you through 5 classic jazz standards on guitar that teach you how to improvise over the most important chord progressions. Through learning how to solo over these five tunes, you can solo over literally hundreds of other jazz standards.
  • A selection of the most important jazz vocabulary for a jazz guitarist to learn, and a comprehensive overview of using guide tones and substitutions to spice up your improvisations.
  • And a whole lot more…

For more information, or if you would like to enroll in the course click here >>

I have to say that at first I was a little skeptical of Greg’s claims about the effectiveness of the course, but after having completed the course I would say that it is a remarkable undertaking he has accomplished. I would say that this course is a GAME CHANGER for an introduction to jazz guitar.

Josh Gordis, USA

If you all have loads of books that make no sense that you never use, Greg breaks it down and makes it useable. This is unlike any course you’ve ever been involved with, mainly because Greg is so good at explaining things that I now understand that I didn’t understand before. It’s a fabulous course and I highly recommend it.

Mike Bryant, UK

jazz guitar for beginners

Jazz Guitar For Beginners Course

For those that are completely new and wondering how to play jazz guitar, my popular and fun Jazz Guitar For Beginners is a popular (and affordable!) starting point for dipping your toes in jazz.

This course is perfect for those looking for an online program on jazz guitar for beginners.

This course includes introductory jazz guitar lessons for all the elements needed for getting started with jazz guitar and is based around mastering the fundamentals of playing a jazz blues progression.

Click Here To Learn More & Book Now >>

Topics Include:

  • Chord tone soloing basics
  • Comping chord shapes and tips for effective comping
  • How to understand jazz harmony
  • Tasty jazz blues lines in the style of Joe Pass to get you started improvising on guitar

 

  • A step-by-step 40 lesson course of jazz guitar instruction at an unbeatable low price

For more information, or if you would like to buy the standalone course click here >>

(Note: you can also get this course as part of the monthly FretDojo VIP Club membership subscription – more details below…)

It’s not overwhelming, you take each little nugget, one bit at a time and build on it. Also you can post and you get feedback from other members. It’s a very nice community spirit.
I recommend anyone who wants to improve their jazz playing they do this course – there are quite a few courses on the internet and this is by far the best one.
Pete Duncan, UK

The course was fun and the materials were easy to understand. There were weeks that were tougher than others but all in all – I feel like I learned a lot and thoroughly enjoyed it.

I would say to anybody that’s considering the course: jump in with both feet! It’s an inexpensive way to enter into the realm of jazz and get a good basis for continuing education in jazz and developing jazz chops. Go for it!

Jim Bean, USA

FretDojo VIP Club Membership:

online jazz guitar lessons membership

With FretDojo VIP Club membership, my online jazz guitar school, you get access on a subscription basis to 40+ courses where you’ll learn some of the most loved jazz standards – and develop your jazz guitar skills along the way.

Learn More & Book Now Here >>

It’s my most popular jazz guitar curriculum and it’s been going for several years with hundreds of members. Each month I release new jazz guitar lessons in the membership so you’ll always have new tunes material to add to your arsenal.

I’ve participated in TWO 12 week courses with an internationally famous music university…

I can safely say the investment in lessons with Greg has been worth more than 95% of all the other formal and informal education I’ve managed to derive for myself.

Gordon Hooper, South Africa

Greg O’Rourke has a wonderful teaching style – it’s straightforward, sold, it makes sense.

I’ve been playing for so long by sound and feel, and I really needed a good, strong solid foundation for how to understand the fretboard and know where to navigate on the fretboard. FretDojo has been super-helpful to me in getting that done.

Mike Haas, USA

Joe Pass’s advice to students was ‘learn as many tunes as you can’ – and you’ll have no shortage of this in the FretDojo Academy Membership. It’s incredible value and a way to access all of FretDojo’s jazz guitar lessons and courses for an affordable monthly fee.

Read here for more information, or sign up for membership here >>

Bonus: Free Sample Jazz Guitar Lessons

This website features several free sample posts on various topics. This gives you a bit of an idea of my teaching style and approach and is a good introduction to the above courses on offer.

Here are some of my most popular jazz guitar lesson posts on this website:

 

jazz guitar instruction

If you have any questions about our courses on offer, you can get in touch here >>

What did you think of the information on this page? Do you have any tips YOU would like to share about learning jazz guitar? Let me know by leaving a comment about this jazz guitar lessons guide below…

~ Greg O’Rourke, BMus, Hons (ANU)

Founder, Fret Dojo

 

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