Jazz Piano Improv.
The ultimate way to bring your improvising skills to the next level.
- Over 200 pages
- 50 choruses
- 40 backing tracks
What's in the book?
Watch this:
Meet the Author
Hi, I'm Charles Cornell, a YouTuber and online content creator in the music education space. Beginning with a professional background as a jazz pianist and composer, I started making online content in 2019 and almost immediately went viral. In a short time, I have built a YouTube channel of over 1.4 million subscribers and amassed nearly 200 million views helping music lovers of all ages and abilities discover a new passion and understanding for music. With hundreds of videos breaking down music theory from films, video games, pop culture and more, I have helped millions take their next steps, or even their first on their musical journey. In 2021, I built and launched the Cornell Music Academy, which has grown into a small library of online courses covering a variety of musical topics at varying skill levels. To date, tens of thousands of students like you have joined a growing musical community learning with me. I hope you find this ebook useful on your learning journey and I look forward to welcoming you to the academy!
What others are saying about Charles:
"It's the group sound that's important, even when you're playing a solo. You not only have to know your own instrument, but you must also know the others and how to back them up at all times. That's jazz."
- Oscar Peterson
Hear the different versions of the included backing tracks here!
This ebook is over 200 pages and every single thing that we play in it has backing tracks and an example track.
Here’s how it works: I took 10 jazz standard chord progressions and I wrote 5 choruses of improv over each one. That's 50 total choruses. Each chorus has a theme and they get progressively more difficult through the 5 choruses for each tune. Each of the 10 "chapters" begins with a breakdown section of several notable lines and concepts used in the 5 choruses.
There are 4 different versions of tracks for each tune:
- one backing track with piano accompaniment
- one backing track without piano (just bass and drums)
- one backing track with a light Rhodes accompaniment
- one full solo reference track
All of these tracks were recorded with a live band to give you the full experience when playing along. Click the video to hear an example of one of these backing tracks and the variations of it!
At some point, you have to decide that no matter what you sound like at first, you’re simply going to start playing.
Why is it always so difficult? What makes starting the process of learning to improvise so hard?
The answer is simple, and it’s one that never fully goes away.
We just get better at dealing with it-
We’re afraid to sound bad.
There’s something about playing with no plan or predetermined direction that is incredibly daunting. Normally as pianists, we strive for a high level of accuracy and work hard to ensure we’re playing the correct notes as smoothly and musically as possible. When we first start learning how to improvise, we take that process and turn it completely on its head, telling ourselves, “Ok, just…start playing?
What should I play?
How do I know it’s correct?
What if it doesn’t sound good?”
Jazz Piano Improv. is a great way to build confidence and comfort with improvising so that, when you sit at the piano for the first time with a band behind you, you will know how to speak the language and flow with the group.
Thanks so much for checking out this page and I hope you'll join me in helping you take your improvisation to the next level!
FAQ
What does purchasing this eBook get me?
When you purchase Jazz Piano Improv Vol. 1, you'll get an instant digital download of the full product. That means a PDF file of the 200+ page eBook itself as well as mp3 files for all 40 backing tracks included!
Don't forget that every chapter begins with a section detailing all of the musical components you'll encounter in the music, and why they're particularly interesting! You'll not only learn what to play, you'll also learn why it works!
Can I get my money back if I don't like the book?
We always stand firmly behind our products. With our video courses, that means we have a 30-day no-questions-asked guarantee. Unfortunately, due to the nature of digital downloads, Teachable as a platform does not provide us with any way to offer you a refund. That's because once you've been given the download, you have it forever. Personally, I'd prefer a way to give you your money back anyways even if it means you keep the product. That's how much I stand behind what we've built. There currently just isn't an avenue for us to offer that right now. We're working on it!
What kind of piano do I need?
One that works! An acoustic piano will work great and so will a digital keyboard. It doesn't matter how expensive it is, how many keys it has, or how many features it has. If it has some keys and makes a sound, you can probably use it! Now of course, a better quality instrument can help make some things easier. But especially at the beginning, the important thing is that you get playing at all. You can worry about the fine details later. My main concern is to get you putting your hands to the keys, no matter what tool you have available to you.
How much practice will I need to put in?
There is no one-size-fits-all answer to the question of how much practice is enough. The best amount of time to practice is any amount of time when you're actually doing it. For some people, that might be 10 minutes per day. For others, it might be 2 hours. With this eBook, you can go as fast or as slow as you like, and once you download the files, you have them forever! So take your time. You get to set your own pace and take as long as you need to work through it.