Playing over changes

[DepressedNazgul]

Can you please give me practice methods for playing over changes? I'm not talking about making music, playing by ear or creative improvising, I'm talking about developing the pure technical ability to switch scales and arpeggios at high speed and visualize them. Also, can you explain general approaches (for all instruments) beside guitar-oriented approaches?

Thx ahead :)

[szulc]

read this article
http://www.ibreathemusic.com/article/109

[DepressedNazgul]

I knew you'll link to this article... :)

I know it and I know this method. It helps me to change key centers (especially when moving by fifths of fourths), but it won't help me to visualise chord tones and tensions. It's good for seeing the big scale pattern, but what I want is to navigate through different arpeggios with the same ease. Also, it doesn't help much with harmonic or melodic minor...

[Doug McMullen]

You can accomplish _a lot_ with the Charlie Christian method:

[URL=http://personal.nbnet.nb.ca/hansen/Charlie/tutorial/cctut1.htm[/URL]

I think what you are specifically looking for is:

Hal Crook's "How to Improvise"

There are many books of pure patterns, Jerry Coker's Patterns for Jazz. The Jamey Aebersold "II V I's, cycles and turnarounds book," The Aebersold "Getting it together" book, etc., etc. But Hal Crook has a comprehensive _method_... it doesn't teach creativity but it does keep a focus on musical improvisation (rather than just pure non-musical scale and arpeggio playing). This isn't a book only for guitarists, or even primarily for guitarists... it is for any improvising jazz musician. Crook himself is a trombone player. It is a rigorous, excercise based book + cd's.

Doug.