Jazz Improvisation Essentials

Scales Chords Blues
  Jamey Aebersold Soloing  

 

Scales

Major
Minor
Dorian
Mixolydian
Lydian

Practice all scales in each key over just one octave at a time!

Chords
 

Chord Name Numbers Notes
C Major
R 3 5
C E G
C Minor
R m3 5
C Eb G
C Augmented
R 3 5#
C E G#
C Seventh
R 3 5 m7
C E G Bb
C Diminished
R m3 d5 6
C Eb F# A
C Minor 6th
R m3 5 6
C Eb G A
C Major 6th
R 3 5 6
C E G A
C Minor Seventh
R m3 5 m7
C Eb G Bb
C Major Seventh
R 3 5 7
C E G B
C Major Ninth
R 3 5 m7 9
C E G Bb D

 

Blues

Basic Blues Changes
 

| F    | F    | F    | F   |
| Bb | Bb  | F    | F  |
| C   | Bb  | F    | F  |
 

Enhanced Blues Changes
 
 | F7       | Bb7     | F7      | F7    |
 | Bb7     | Bb7     | F7      | D7    |
 | Gm7    | C7       | F7      | C7    |
 

Extreme Blues Changes – adding ii V I progressions when possible
 
 | F7        | Bb7        | F7          | Cm7   F7    |
 | Bb7      | Bdim      | F7          | Am7b5 D7 |
 | Gm7     | C7          | F7  D7   | Gm7   C7   |
 
 
Blues for Alice takes the blues progression further by using tritone substitutions and also changing the quality of chords.
 
 | Fmaj7    |  Em7b5 A7b9 | Dm7   G7       | Cm7   F7  |
 | Bb7       |  Bbm7  Eb7     | Am7   D7       | Abm7  Db7 |
 | Gm7      |  C7                  | Fmaj7 D7       | Gm7   C7  |
  

I Got Rhythm

A  | Bbmaj7 G7  | Cm7    F7     | Bbmaj7 G7 | Cm7   F7  |

     | Fm7    Bb7  | Ebmaj7 Ab7 | Dm7    G7   | Cm7   F7  |
 

A  | Bbmaj7 G7  | Cm7    F7    | Bbmaj7 G7  | Cm7   F7  |

     | Fm7    Bb7 | Ebmaj7 Ab7 | Cm7    F7     | Bbmaj7    |


B  | Am7        | D7         | Dm7       | G7        |

     | Gm7        | C7         | Cm7       | F7        |
 

A  | Bbmaj7 G7  | Cm7    F7  | Bbmaj7 G7 | Cm7   F7  |

     | Fm7    Bb7 | Ebmaj7 Ab7 | Cm7    F7 | Bbmaj7    |