Foundations Practice Guide
Welcome to this practice guide for the Jazz Piano Foundations Course.
Below this video you can download these PDF practice plans, which cover all of the important exercises and drills to master the theory in this course.
The document contains 6 different theory areas. Depending on how long you have to practice, you will either spend 5 minutes or 10 minutes on each of these theory areas.
The benefit of splitting your practice time into small chunks, is that in just 1 sitting, you can cover a wide selection of different theory topics.
Slot 1 – The Major Scales
There are only 12 of these to learn, and they really are the foundation of all future study of harmony. Learning them thoroughly at this stage helps us greatly as we are exposed to more challenging jazz theory and concepts.
- Play scales in right hand – around the circle, then pick randomly
- Play scales in left hand – around the circle, then pick randomly
- Play scales hands together – around the circle, then pick randomly
- Interval ascending & descending – 3rds, 4ths, 5ths, 6ths, 7ths
The key exercise is to be able to play all 12 major scales in 5 minutes. Start with just the right hand and aim to hit all 12 keys in 5 minutes. Then focus on the left hand and again aim to hit all 12 keys in 5 minutes. Then the next step is to play them both hands together.
The “drill variations” such as the interval drills are alternate exercises that we can experiment with once we have mastered the core exercise.
Perhaps we could spend 5 minutes just on 1 interval such as 3rds, and take this around all 12 keys. Then the next day we could pick a different interval. Remember this is a gradual process.
Slot 2 – The Minor Scales
We know that every major scale has a relative minor scale. If we want to find the C Natural Minor Scale, we simply play the major scale from a minor 3rd up. A minor 3rd up from C would be Eb major, and if we play the Eb Major Scale from C to C we get the C natural minor scale. This relationship works in every key.
Now the natural minor scale can be played over minor chords, but there are other scales which give in my opinion much nicer colours and flavours.
- Play natural minor scale – associate with major scale a major 3rd up
- Play the Dorian mode – natural 6 gives you the Dorian colour
- Play the Melodic minor mode – natural 6 & 7 gives you the melodic minor, or jazz minor colour
Slot 3 – Triads
Memorising all 12 major and minor triads are the most important at this stage of your development.
In the Triads lesson in this course we did look at the other types of triads which are diminished and augmented triads. It’s useful to understand what these are and how they are constructed, but learning the major and minor triads is our priority.
- Play major triad moving to minor triad
- Take this up the keyboard chromatically
- Practice the inversions of each major & minor triad
- Arpeggiate each major and minor triad
Slot 4 – 7th Chords
A 7th chord is a triad with the 7th note of the scale added to create 4 note chord. When we get to the 7th chord and beyond, our chords start to sound rich and jazzy.
- Play the 5 types of 7th chord for each key
- Drill through the inversions of each chord
- Notice the relationship between dim7 chords a minor 3rd away
Slot 5 – Diatonic 7th Chords
Diatonic means “belonging to the key” and remember a key is effectively a scale and so diatonic chords, means the chords of the scale.
- Pick any key and play the major scale
- Analyse the notes of the scale numerically
- Build a 7th chord of each degree of the scale
- Learn and memorise the quality of each scale degree…
In every major key, the diatonic 7th chords share the same quality… 1 & 4 are always major 7th chords, 2, 3 & 6 are always minor 7th chords, 5 is always a dominant chord, and 7 is always a minor7b5 chord.
Slot 6 – The Major 251 Progression
This is the most important exercise so far. Pretty much every jazz standard contains a 251 in some form and so when you know this progression in all keys, you will be better prepared to read from lead sheets.
- Pick any key
- Find the 2, 5, & 1 chords, and play them in root position
- Turn them into 3 note voicings
- Play the 251 in Type A (3rd on the bottom)
- Play the 251 in Type B (7th on the bottom)
- Strip the 251s down to just the 3rd and 7th in your left hand
- Visualise the voice leading of b7ths dropping to 3rds
Remember To Play The Jazz Standards
For the remainder of your practice time, we must watch the recommended jazz standard lessons on this plan. They can be found in this course, and also the Beginner Jazz Standard Arrangements Course.
Playing the jazz standards is the more enjoyable side of learning jazz and it is where we apply the theory. The jazz standard studies are a core part of the PianoGroove learning method so ensure you are working on both the theory drills, and the recommended standards.
Lesson Downloads
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Major Scale Diatonic 7th Chords File Type: pdf -
12 Major Scales Worksheet File Type: pdf
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36 Minor Scales Notation File Type: pdf
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Triads Notation & Worksheet File Type: pdf
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7th Chords In All 12 Keys File Type: pdf
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Major Scale Fingerings PDF File Type: pdf
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Foundations PDF Practice Planner File Type: pdf
Related Lessons
In a minor 251, the 5 chord will be an altered dominant chord. In this lesson we apply altered dominant chords to the...
Upper structure triads are complex sounding altered dominant chords. They will add texture and sophistication to your...
Extended chords create a richer and more complex sound than triads and 7th chords and are used to create more interes...
Practice Tips
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For more inspiration and ideas check out the related forum thread for this lesson where you can find additional drills and exercises submitted by our students and teachers.
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Follow this plan until you are comfortable with the theory exercises. This will take time so don’t expect it to happen overnight.
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Always remember that mastering these exercises is a gradual process that you will take over many months or even years.
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Don’t worry about getting them 100% right now, because when you practice other more advanced jazz theory, you will always be revisiting and refining your knowledge in these foundational topics.
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When playing jazz standards, take the time to identify each note of the chord, say to yourself "that's the 3rd", "that’s the 7th" etc… and gradually you will build an awareness of where everything is located.
Hayden, when did you add the Foundations Practice Guide? I had finished this course a while ago, and just saw it in discussion. It’s really fantastic, just what I needed to help pull things together and establish a routine. Sometimes I play along too much with the standards and use it like a crutch…unable to play without following along with the video, but this will really help to ground my knowledge of the underlying theory and take me back to revisit how well I know what I think I know…
Hi There!
Yes I just added this lesson after requests from students in the forum, you can read more here: pianogroove.com/community/t/practice-schedules-ideas-suggestions-please/1561 – if you have any specific feedback/ideas/suggesstions to make these practice plans/lessons better, then don’t hesitate to let us know. The feedback and ideas in the thread have shaped this whole initiative which is awesome…. I want everyone to be part of the direction of PianoGroove.
We will be adding one of these for every course on PianoGroove so that our students understand how to drill and practice the exercises.
It is good to indulge in the jazz standards, they are the vehicle in which you can apply the theory – so I recommend you split all of your practice time into 50% Theory 50% Jazz Standards.
Thanks for letting me know about this, the lesson took me a while to plan and edit because of all of the graphics, and I’m delighted/excited to do this for all courses now that I know our students get value from them.
Cheers,
Hayden
The video makes this look like a really useful result – I can’t see the download link though!
Hi Grahame,
You must be logged-in to access all of our theory lesson downloads and supplements.
Fill out one of the contact forms on the site and I will email this one over to you.
Cheers,
Hayden
I have practice enough on my previous years to get down this foundations…yet i have discovered a few tips…im 100% Suporting the Idea of a total round up and the end of each course. .like this lesson ..it can br a game chances for your students learing journey.
Great, I’m glad you like the idea Ivan… this same thing will be added to each course on PianoGroove. Cheers! Hayden
section 2 minor scales – should this not be the major scale a minor 3rd up (ie Eb is a minor 3rd up from C?)
Hi Jordyn,
Good question!
Every major scale has a relative minor scale. There’s different ways you can find the relative minor, this should help to explain:
If you take a major scale, such as C Major, go down a minor 3rd from the root, which is A. Then play the C Major Scale from A to A and we have the A Natural Minor Scale.
In the lesson above, I explained the ‘opposite approach’.
I said that to get any minor scale, move up a minor 3rd from the root, and play the major scale. For example, if we want to play C Natural Minor Scale, we move up a minor third from the root C – this gives us Eb, and then play the Eb major scale from C to C.
We then have the C Natural Minor Scale.
It’s basically 2 different ways to get the same result.
Hope that makes sense, any other questions just let me know :-)
Cheers,
Hayden
Thanks for the rapid reply and clearing that up, I think you’ve made a typo though because you’ve wrote, “we simply play the major scale from a major 3rd up. A major 3rd up from C would be Eb major” I haven’t been playing long so i got confused and thought what I’d learnt so far was all wrong ha.
My pleasure Jordyn and thanks for spotting this…. I have corrected the typos above.
Apologies for the confusion and if I can help out with anything else you are working on, just let me know :-)
Cheers!
Hayden
awsome cheers. The site is great by the way I’m going to work my way through the foundations material see how i get on.
This is very helpful Hayden – thank you ! :)
Glad you enjoyed it Natasha.
We just added the same PDF plan for the Chord Extensions Course, you can see there are now 4 lessons at the bottom: pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/extended-chords-voicings/ – These exercises build upon what has been covered in this lesson.
Soon we will have an updated site design to break down each course into sections such as “Theory Studies”, “Jazz Standard Studies”, & “Practice Exercises/Drills”.
Cheers!
Hayden
Hi Hayden. I’m trying to get through this practice guide and doing pretty good I think. Is there a lesson I should be following simultaneously on how to actually play a jazz standard? thanks
Hi Eoin,
Yes this lesson teaches you how to read lead sheets: pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/how-to-read-lead-sheets/
And then watch all of the jazz standard lessons in this course: pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/extended-chords-voicings/
There are many other jazz standard lessons on PianoGroove, but start with those ones.
Cheers,
Hayden
very kind of you to respond Hayden, thanks so much
Hey Hayden,
When should I move on from these lessons drills? In addition, I noticed that there are also more drills for my next set of lessons (extended chords). Should I append them to the existing set of lesson drills (jazz foundations)? How should I practice moving forward?
Thanks
Hey Dokko!
I answered a similar question in the forum here: pianogroove.com/community/t/1-jazz-piano-foundations-practice-planner/1955/7
The basic premise is don’t feel confined to a single course, experiment with 2 courses, or even 3 courses at the same time. For your specific question, I would recommend that you work on the practice plans for the Foundations Course, and the Extended Chords Course together. Perhaps alternate them each day.
If you feel that some of the concepts are ‘beyond you’ – don’t fret about it… the full understanding will come with time. At the start of my own journey playing jazz piano, I didn’t understand everything I was playing. However, playing these interesting sounds pushed me to want to learn more, and I found this to be a very effective motivational tool.
Hope this helps and any other questions just let me know.
Cheers,
Hayden
Hi Hayden,
Is there any way to improve Sight-reading? I am very poor at this? IS there any way to train your mind to improve coordination?
pls help.
regards,
Hi Shantanu 👋
Good question!
The best way to improve sight reading is simply to sight read more often.
With lead sheets, we are almost exclusively dealing with the treble clef, and so that makes sight reading lead sheets much easier that classical scores, for example.
When written down, jazz chords and voicings are difficult to read. Jazz music is not meant to be written down. Traditionally, jazz music was passed down by ear. The rhythms and voicings in jazz are very difficult to read from paper.
One of the goals with the PianoGroove Course is to free students from notation, so that we understand harmony numerically. That’s why I place such an emphasis on learning scales and chords numerically.
If you want to improve your sight reading of 2 clefs – treble and bass clef – then spend a little time each day sight reading classical scores. That would be my best recommendation.
The other recommendation would be to pay more attention to learning scales and chords numerically which will give you less reliance on notation.
It depends on which route you want to go down, and what your goals are in terms of the type of music you want to sight read. Sight reading is a good skill to have, but always remember that to play jazz in its truest form, we do not need to read from paper. We must understand and internalise the theory, and listen to lots and lots of recordings so that we have the rhythms, the feel, and the phrasing ingrained within us.
I hope this helps, and further questions let me know.
Cheers!
Hayden
I am just now learning the triads. One of the ways I’ve been thinking about how to learn to visualize them is to think of the relative keys of the C Major scale.
We know C Major is all white keys, so I can quickly reference in my head C, Dm, Em, F, G, Am should all be only the white keys. Bm is the exception because for the C Major Scale it has a flat 5 due to it being the 7th scale degree.
Then from there we know that the fifth of those triads is always a white key, so their minor major counterpart should only have one black key for the third interval. Cm, D, E, Fm, Gm, A, all have a black key for the third. B will have two black keys this time, for same reason as mentioned before.
As for the black keys… I’m still trying to come up with a good system lol.
Hi Hayden!
Great lesson series!
I was wondering how important it is to learn the scales/arpeggios over different octaves or different time signatures. And at what speed do you propose to practice them?
Hi Rein,
Glad you enjoyed the lesson.
As a starting point, try to visualise and construct the scales and arpeggios over 2 octaves. That will give you very strong foundations for further harmonic study.
I would then recommend moving onto our courses on “Extended Chords”, “Rootless Voicings”, & “Altered Harmony”.
Personally, I think it would be more enjoyable and rewarding for you to expand your understanding of jazz harmony, rather than spending excessive time on playing scales all the way up and down the instrument. I question how much you would use this in actual performance.
Regarding speed… this depends on your goals. If you have a desire to play fast, then it would be a worthwhile exercise for you. But always make sure you can play the scales and arpeggios slowly and in control before increasing the tempo. Otherwise we will be building on weak foundations.
Have fun practicing this stuff!
Cheers,
Hayden
I can
see the pdf for the practice plan but I don’t see the pdf for the scale fingerling, where is it?
Hi Idan 👋
Check out this forum post which references a useful website for scale fingering:
pianogroove.com/community/t/major-pentatonic-fingering/2277
If I can be of further assistance let me know.
Cheers!
Hayden
Thank you for the quick answer. Another question, how can I complete all intervals in all keys in the major scales drills in five min? Really doesn’t seam possible to complete the whole drill in only five minute, same goes for the minor drill, plying 12×3 scales plus the up and down, intervals and patterns just doesn’t seem like a 5 minute exercise, thank you.
Hi Idan,
The drill variations just provide some alternate things to experiment with once you have mastered the main exercise, which in this case is playing through all 12 major scales in 5 minutes.
If you want to take the exercise further, then perhaps one day, spend the whole 5 minutes playing a few intervals or a specific patterns through all 12 major scales. Don’t fret about getting though every variation in every key in 5 minutes.
These plans have been designed to provide some general guidance and inspiration, as oppose to a regimented, set-in-stone, plan to follow. Ultimately, we all have different ways of learning, but having a rough plan to follow is certainly an asset as a beginner.
See this forum post where I talk about the most important elements that must be mastered before moving on to the next practice plan: pianogroove.com/community/t/1-jazz-piano-foundations-practice-planner/1955/29
The whole of that forum post contains useful information… i’d recommend reading over it all :-)
Hope this helps!
Cheers,
Hayden
A couple of questions:
– For the minor scales – do we need to do the intervals thing as with the major scales – ie 3rds, 4ths, etc, or is just finding the scales and playing them enough? It says ‘intervals, patterns’ – perhaps that’s the answer? In which case which minor scales should we do the intervals for? All of them for all intervals? That’s quite a lot of time I would think
– How much range should we be playing each exercise for? For intervals – is covering all notes of the scale over 1 octave enough? For triad/7th inversions, do we just cover all the inversions once, or should we go up for a couple of octaves? Same with arpeggios I guess.
thanks.
Hi Richard,
Regarding the intervals and minor keys, see my reply to Idan’s comment below.
Also check out the related forum post where I highlight the essential parts of this plan that should be mastered before moving on: pianogroove.com/community/t/1-jazz-piano-foundations-practice-planner/1955/29
Regarding range, I’d say 2 octaves is sufficient for the purpose of the exercises which is to be able to visualise inversions and scales outside of root position.
Playing up and down the whole range of the keyboard would certainly not do any harm, but I think your time would be better spent moving onto the next course on Chord Extensions. I think this would also give you a greater sense of progression.
Hope this helps and remember to read through the associated forum threads: pianogroove.com/community/c/practice-inspiration/practice-plans
Cheers,
Hayden
Where do I find the correct fingerings for each of the scales?
Hi Peter 👋
Check out this forum post which references a useful website for scale fingering:
pianogroove.com/community/t/major-pentatonic-fingering/2277
If I can be of further assistance let me know.
Cheers!
Hayden
The Jazz Foundations is SUPER! At first glance even if one may already know the major and minor scales – the input you give is so useful and even if I play along as you demonstrate the inter relations of the minor scales to jazz improvisation – I would find myself bookmarking the lesson and going back to it even if I have watched it already (it helps me remember the usefulness of the scale degrees in jazz playing) – Ive only started watching and this is already one of my favourites!!! :D Huge Thanks for these wonderful lessons!
Hello Hayden!
Regarding practicing the intervals of 3rds, 4ths, etc…Should I practice these with both hands? Because in the video you play only with your right hand., And besides, I’ve tried playing the intervals with both my hands separately and it takes way longer the 5 mins. So, should both the hands practice intervals or just the right hand like your showed in the video?
Thanks,
Yair
Hi Yair,
I would recommend practicing the interval drills in the right hand only.
Being able to visualise these intervals is useful for harmonising melody lines. For example, we can play the melody line of a jazz standard with 3rds or 6ths and it sounds great. I do this in many of my jazz standard arrangements, here’s a couple of examples:
pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/the-christmas-song/ – notice that I harmonise the descending melody line with 3rds in my right hand.
pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/my-funny-valentine-lesson/ – I harmonise the melody with 6ths for the C Section.
Also when improvising, we can create improvised melodies and patterns using our knowledge of intervals. We use our right hand for both of these things and so that is why I recommend to just practice with the right hand.
My opinion is that your time would be much better spent progressing onto the next courses rather than drilling intervals in your left hand.
I recommend that students study these 3 courses all together.
Jazz Piano Foundations: pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/jazz-piano-foundations/
Beginner Jazz Arrangements: pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/beginner-jazz-piano-arrangements/
Chord Extensions: pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/extended-chords-voicings
Hope this helps and any further questions let me know.
Enjoy the lessons!
Hayden
Hey Hayden!
I’m trying to follow the practice plannner, but while practicing on the major scales I’ve noticed that it took me 17 minutes while the planner says it should take me only 5 minutes. It’s really beyond me, how 5 minutes of practice could include left hand, right hand, both hands and intervals 3, 4, 5, 6 & 7 and all this for ALL 12 keys!
And I’m practicing fluently without any stops but at a steady pace. The same applies for the minor scales section. I only have 1 hour a day to practice. Am I doing something wrong here?
Besides, where can I find the two hour practice plan (If some time I WILL have an extra hour to spend?)
Thanks,
Yair
Hi Yair 👋
For that practice slot, the key exercise is to be able to play all 12 major scales in 5 minutes. Start with just the right hand and aim to hit all 12 keys in 5 minutes. Then focus on the left hand and again aim to hit all 12 keys in 5 minutes. Then the next step is to play them both hands together.
The “drill variations” such as interval drills is an alternate exercises that we can experiment with once we have mastered the core exercise.
Perhaps we could spend 5 minutes just on 1 interval such as 3rds, and take this around all 12 keys. Then the next day we could pick a different interval.
You must understand that there is no ’set in stone’ way to practice. These PDF plans just provide a rough outline or suggestion on the drills and variations we can incorporate into our practice routine.
The most important thing is that we are splitting up our time into small chunks and working on lots of different theory areas.
To answer you other question about a 2 hour practice slot:
You can either double up on the time of each, so spend 10 minutes on 6 x theory drills, and then 1 hour playing and applying the theory to standards.
or:
You could do 2 practice plans, for example this one, and also the Chord Extensions practice plan: pianogroove.com/community/t/2-chord-extensions-practice-planner/1924
I highly recommend that students study multiple courses at once.
When you become more comfortable with the Foundation practice plan, you could do 2 days on the Chord Extension practice plan, and then 1 day on the Foundations plan. Then repeat. And you can choose how you want to allocate your practice time based on your progress.
Also check out Christian’s comment in the forum here where he shares his experience with mixing the plans together: pianogroove.com/community/t/2-chord-extensions-practice-planner/1924/14
Read through the comments in that thread and it will give you more direction.
If you need any more help or guidance just let me know.
Cheers!
Hayden
Hayden,
Thank you very much for your quick and elaborate reply! You keep to amaze me with your detailed answers. I’m so glad I’ve joined this mysical journey with you!
The video player keeps crashing/freezing. Using a powerful imac, no issues with video players on other sites. What to do?
I thought you were including fingering for all scales?
Hi Bruce 👋🏻
Check out this forum thread: pianogroove.com/community/t/major-pentatonic-fingering/2277
You can find fingerings for:
– major scales
– minor scales (natural, melodic, and harmonic)
– blues scales major and minor pentatonic scales
– bebop scales
– the 7 modes of the major scale the altered mode which is a mode of the melodic minor scale/jazz minor scale
– and finally quite an impressive selection of “exotic scales”
Hope this helps.
Cheers,
Hayden
I see the downloads for scales, but no fingering anywhere. Where are these?
Hi David,
Check out this lesson which provides fingering for all major scales: pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/major-scale-fingerings/
Let me know if I can be of further assistance.
Cheers!
Hayden
Hi, great content, thank you. Is there a pdf where i can find the fingering for the scales?
Hi Nelson,
Check out the PDF called “Major Scale Fingerings” in the Downloads section of this page.
The cheat sheet contains major scale fingerings for 2 octaves for both hands. There are also some useful groups to remember which makes this information easier to remember.
Cheers,
Hayden
Hey Hayden,
Really benefiting a lot from the course so far. One question on practicing the fundamentals – do you recomend we also practice diatonic 7th chords in minor keys as well? And if so, am I correct that the pattern (accounting for harmonics on the 5) is minor b5, dom, minor, for the 2,5 and 1, and dom, major, major, for the 7,3 and 6? Or anything else to watch out for when practicing diatonic 7th chords in minor keys?
Thanks a lot,
Clif
Hi Cliff 👋🏻
Apologies for the late reply here and good question!
At this stage I would recommend to just focus on the diatonic 7th chords in major keys.
In the upcoming course “Mastering Left Hand Voicings” we explore the minor 251 progression, the harmonic minor scale, and its associated diatonic 7th chords. Here’s the course: pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/left-hand-voicings/ – and here is the specific lesson on the Minor 251 Progression and the Harmonic Minor Scale – pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/minor-251-progression/
Minor Harmony is much more complex than major harmony. There are 3 different minor scales and we can use the diatonic 7th chords from each scale to access different minor colours and flavours. I talk about this in the following forum threads:
pianogroove.com/community/t/the-natural-6-13th-over-minor-chords/
pianogroove.com/community/t/practicing-minor-scales/
One of the main benefits of learning the diatonic 7th chords is that we can then use these chords to create improvised introductions and endings. Check out these 3 lessons and major and minor key introductions:
Major Key Intros: pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/1625-436251-progressions/
Minor Key Intros: pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/minor-introductions-1625s/
Solo Piano Intros: pianogroove.com/bossa-nova-lessons/creating-solo-piano-introductions/
As a priority, learn the minor 251 progressions and then afterwards explore the diatonic 7th chords if you want to delve deeper into minor harmony.
I hope that helps Cliff, and if you have any other questions here just let me know.
Cheers,
Hayden
Yes, that does help – I’ll keep that all in mind as I move forward. Thanks for getting back to me on this!
Best,
Clif
Hi,
I have a question about the arpeggiating exercises, is there a correct order of fingering for those or should i just play however I find more comfortable?
Hi Murilo 👋🏻
Good question!
I play either 1-2-3 or 1-2-4.
So that’s:
– thumb – index finger – 3rd finger,
or
– thumb – index finger – 4th finger.
If I start the arpeggio with the root on the bottom, I usually use the fingering 1-2-3 and if I start in the 1st or 2nd inversion, I find it more comfortable to use 1-2-4.
When playing jazz standards, it’s common to have a right hand triad in its 1st or second inversion – particularly when playing upper structure triads/ – and often I will then arpeggiate the triad up the keyboard.
Check out this lesson for more information: pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/what-are-upper-structure-triads/
Let me know if you have any further questions.
Stay safe and enjoy the lessons!
Cheers,
Hayden
Hi hayden,
am I correct in assuming that the “up and down, intervals, patterns” variation / drills for the minor scales are the same as the intervals 3rds, 4ths, 5ths, 6ths and 7ths demonstrated for the major scales?
Thanks
Ivan
Hi Ivan,
Yes we can certainly play these exercises on minor scales.
The thing to understand with the “Drill Variations Column” is that when we incorporate all of these variations it will make the practice plan much more time consuming.
With many of the drill variations outlined in this plan, we can be working on these and improving them over the period of many months or years, and so understand that it is a gradual process.
In the upcoming course on “Mastering Left Hand Voicings” we explore minor harmony in much more detail.
The main focus for the Foundations course is to learn all 12 major scales numerically, form a basic understanding of triads, 7th chords, and minor scales, and most importantly, learn the major 251 progression in all 12 keys.
You can study multiple courses at once, so I’d recommend studying the following 3 courses together:
pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/jazz-piano-foundations/
pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/beginner-jazz-piano-arrangements/
pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/extended-chords-voicings/
Much of the theory is interrelated and it will give you more of a sense of progression when you see how the foundational material is applied and developed in the course on extended chords.
You might also like to check out this Beginner Jazz Q&A Session: pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/live-qa-jazz-for-beginners/ – It’s 90 minutes long but I share lots of advice for new students.
I hope that helps Ivan.
Let me know if you have any further questions.
Hayden
Hello Hayden, I just finished the foundations course pack. Which lesson should I study next?
I haven’t mastered the 7th chords yet. The Beginner Jazz Arrangements seems challenging to me.
Thanks!
Dilara
Hi Dilara 👋
Congratulations on finishing the foundations course!
It can take many months or even years to fully master the foundational theory drills, and so at this stage the most important thing is to understand the theoretical underpinnings and then you can move onto the next courses.
I would now recommend starting with the “Beginner Jazz Arrangements” Course. Here are 2 of my favourite tunes from that course:
The Nearness Of You: pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/nearness-of-you-for-beginners/
Pure Imagination (theme from Willy Wonka) : pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/pure-imagination-for-beginners/
As we are soon approaching Christmas, you might also like to learn some jazzy christmas songs, we have a course here and the first lessons are the easiest for beginners: pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/jazzy-christmas-songs/
Finally, you might like to check out my “5-minute masterclass” course which contains more advanced topics but I have tried my best to make the lessons as accessible as possible for beginners, here’s the course: pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/5-minute-masterclass/
My view is that it’s nice for students to ‘get their toes wet’ in some of the more advanced topics so that we can see what is coming in the subsequent courses.
I hope that helps Dilara and enjoy the lessons!
Cheers,
Hayden
Hi Hayden,
After reading a lot, I’m still struggling to define the best way to start practicing…simple foundation? Advanced foundation? Foundation+extensions? Can you please advise me? Thanks!
Hi Alex,
Yes I recommend starting with the “essentials foundations practice plan” and moving onto the next courses. I recommend that the following 4 theory courses are studied simultaneously:
pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/jazz-piano-foundations/
pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/extended-chords-voicings/
pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/left-hand-voicings/
pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/altered-harmony-upper-structure-triads/
The foundations course can take many years to fully master, and so make sure you are progressing onto the more advanced lessons at the same time. I discuss these 4 courses in my “Voicings For Beginners Seminar” – pianogroove.com/live-seminars/jazz-voicings-for-beginners/ – and I show why it’s important to learn the theory, and how to apply it to tunes. Watch this seminar as a priority as it covers the “essential jazz theory” and the main milestones ahead for you. You should find the advice and guidance in the seminar useful and download the PDF file in the “seminar resources section” (bottom right hand side of seminar page) which contains links to each of the drills I mention in the seminar.
Thanks for the answer and advise Hayden.
One more question…I loved the Georgia lesson, so started the Bluesy stride course. Also, I’m thinking about starting the Blues MasterClass, since I love blues. My doubt is if by doing that I’m loosing focus on jazz. Should stick into jazz related courses for a while?
Ah, just to let you know, I’m a beginner I’m loving all the courses and lessons until now! Thanks!
Hi Alex,
Yes definitely start the blues masterclass courses. It’s great to be exposing yourself to lots of different styles. In the blues masterclass course you will see many similarities between the 8 Bar Blues, and the A Section of “Georgia” – the chord changes are almost identical.
The reason why the 4 jazz courses above are so important is that the theory they contain is found in all other genres of music. Particularly the New Orleans Style blues in Jon Cleary’s masterclass course and also in the Brazilian piano styles (samba and bossa nova) taught by Jovino.
Whatever style of music that you want to play, the information and theory in those 4 jazz courses will be a great asset to you. There is a lot of information in those courses, so do be patient, and check out the seminar I referenced to get a good overview of the milestones ahead.
I hope that helps Alex and enjoy Jon’s masterclass course. I would recommend starting with the 8 Bar Blues lessons which will tie in nicely with your study of the tune “Georgia”. Perhaps stick with the first 3 lessons in the 8-bar blues as after that it turns more into New Orleans Funk – which is a little different to “Georgia”!
Cheers,
Hayden
I have a question about fingering. AT 12:00 you’re playing the triads 1-3-5 …whereas for the inversion practice you’re starting with 1-2-3. I’m used to playing triads in root position with fingers 1-3-5. Is it important to get used to 1-2-3? Which feels like a very wide spread between the index and middle finger?
For the inversions, you showed right hand only. Should we practice the inversions only in the right hand but not the left? Or is it important to invert the triads using both hands together?
Thanks, great lesson!
Marla
Hi Marla.
Great question and please excuse the delay in getting back to you.
From a solo jazz piano standpoint, right hand triad inversions are much more important to be familiar with. for example check out our lessons on Upper Structure Triads and you will see why: pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/what-are-upper-structure-triads/
Most often when playing solo jazz piano, the left hand will play:
– Shell voicings (Root and 7th or Root 3rd and 7)
– Stride Style which is the root and then a rootless voicings
Whilst drilling these triad shapes in your left hand is not gong to negatively impact your playing, my view is that your practice time is better spent learning the above left hand accompaniment styles (shell voicings and stride) as these are used most of the time when playing solo piano.
You might also like to watch this seminar where I outline the most 4 important theory areas for beginners:
pianogroove.com/live-seminars/how-what-to-practice/
Watch that seminar as a priority and it will help you to see the main milestones ahead and how to structure your practice time.
Let me know if I can help further here Marla and enjoy the lessons!
Cheers,
Hayden
Having used the foundations practice guide for a while now, I was thinking of adding diatonic progression exercises for the minor keys. This would mean 3 different progressions per key if I used the minor modes. Also, I was wondering if learning these progressions would be useful using the Dorian mode as well.
Having said, that I looked through most of your courses and I can’t find where you actually teach these minor progressions except as it relates to the 2-5-1. So my question would be whether what I’m proposing here would even be a useful addition to the workout. I don’t want to waste time practicing something that wouldn’t be beneficial. Please let me know your thoughts.
Hi Mike,
We do cover the diatonics of minor keys in this course: pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/minor-harmony-improvisation/
In my opinion it’s important for new jazz piano students to move onto the subsequent courses which cover topics such as:
– chord extensions
– rootless voicings
– chord alterations and UST
– tritone substitution and passing chords
and once these topics have been learnt you can cycle back around to minor harmony diatonic exercises.
Understanding minor keys is useful, but when playing the jazz standard repertoire, the above theory topics will give you more creative ideas for arranging and improvising.
I hope that helps. Definitely take a look at the course above which will give you some insight into minor scales and minor improvisation.
Also regarding your question on a blank practice planner, you can find a copy of that here: pianogroove.com/media/2023/04/Blank-Practice-Schedule.pdf
Let me know if I can help further and enjoy the lessons!
Cheers,
Hayden
I’m having some confusion with the Perfect 4th interval in Bb. You suggest going up and down the scale in intervals. When I’m going up the scale in perfect 4ths (in the key of Bb), when I get to Eb the perfect fourth from there seems to be Ab (2 1/2 steps) but Ab is not in the Bb scale. Do I play it anyway? Can you let me know what my confusion is here? Thanks
Hi Mike,
Good question.
When taking intervals up and down a major scale, we count *in scale tones* and not in whole and half steps. So for the 4th interval, think to yourself “4 scale tones away” instead of “2 1/2 steps”. 4 scale tones up from Eb would be A in the key of Bb major
This is the same for all of the other intervals too, *always think of distance in scale tones*.
You are correct that when playing 4 scale tones up from the 4th degree, it will result in a tritone interval, and not a perfect 4th interval.
Ultimately, these exercises are designed to help you visualise the notes major scales outside of the sequential 1-2-3-4-5-6-7 pattern to help students avoid running up and down scales.
Personally, I love to play 3rd and 6th intervals as fills in my jazz standard arrangements. These 2 intervals are the “sweeter sounding ones”.
I hope that helps, and let me know if you have any further questions.
Cheers,
Hayden
Hi there,
I’m still working on mastering sight-reading notes on the scales. It seems like I should pause progressing with the lessons until I’ve achieved this.
Would you recommend this approach?
Thanks!
Hi Troy 👋
Thanks for getting in touch.
I wouldn’t worry too much about sight reading scales, it’s not something that we have to do when playing jazz piano or when reading lead sheets.
Are you able to sight read the melody on a lead sheet? That skill is much more important for learning to play jazz piano than being able to read notation of scales.
Did you check out the essentials practice planner for the foundations course?
pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/essentials-practice-guide-simplified/
If you are new to jazz piano, focus your time on the essentials planner. It’s shorter and more condensed than the practice plan on this page we are commenting on right now. The essentials planner contains the absolute essentials needed to progress onto the next course which is the course on Chord Extensions in the Beginner section.
I recommend students to split their practice time roughly in half. If you have an hour to practice, spend 30 minutes on theory drills, starting with the essentials practice guide, and 30 minutes on jazz standard studies.
For the jazz standard studies I recommend either:
Georgia Bluesy Stride Course: pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/bluesy-stride-piano-beginners/
Misty Cocktail Improv Course: pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/cocktail-improvisation-for-beginners/
These courses are mixed-level, starting with the most basic theory, and gradually increasing the sophistication of the chord voicings in each lesson. You will encounter theory that is new to you within the first few lessons, but don’t be intimidated by that. My view is that it’s very important to ‘get our toes wet’ with more advanced theory.
Exposing yourself to the shapes and sounds of more advanced voicings is how we progress.
If you would like something a little easier, then check out our Beginner Jazz Arrangements course: pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/beginner-jazz-piano-arrangements/
and I also just started a new course on How To Read Lead Sheets For Beginners: pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/lead-sheets-for-beginners/
Above anything else, pick the tunes/jazz standards that you like and that you want to play. It will keep you motivated.
Does that all make sense?
You should also check out the 3 seminars that are sent in the onboarding email, perhaps start with this one:
Chord Voicings For Beginners & Beyond:
pianogroove.com/live-seminars/jazz-voicings-for-beginners/
This will give you a ‘birds eye view’ of the main theory milestones ahead of you for beginner/early-intermediate jazz studies.
Also thanks for your email and video – I will reply in detail asap.
Talk soon, cheers,
Hayden
Thanks much! I appreciate the thorough response.
Dear Hayden,
this course is very helpful to lern along a red line.
What ist the next course after I have completed the Foundation course?
Best regards from Germany
Jochen
Hi Jochen 👋
I’m glad you are enjoying the lessons.
For the next courses to study, I recommend the following courses in this order:
Chord Extensions: pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/extended-chords-voicings/
Rootless Voicings & Stride: pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/left-hand-voicings/
Altered Harmony: pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/altered-harmony-upper-structure-triads/
In the following seminar I explain these courses in more detail and also how to apply the theory to jazz standards: pianogroove.com/live-seminars/jazz-voicings-for-beginners/ – this seminar will give you a ‘birds-eye view’ of the main theory milestones ahead of you.
and here is another seminar on practice planning: pianogroove.com/live-seminars/how-what-to-practice/
Finally, here is a PDF file which links to the most important drills in the courses I referenced above: pianogroove.com/media/2024/01/Beginner-Jazz-Piano-Roadmap.pdf
I hope that helps Jochen – please let me know if you have any further questions.
Talk soon,
Hayden
Hi just wondering, in the part of the practice where we should be doing the triad arpeggios and inverted arpeggios is that something we should do in both hands or just the right hand?
Hey Barry,
Good question!
These drills are for the right hand. When playing jazz piano it’s very common to invert and arpeggiate triads in the right hand. A good example of this would be Upper Structure Triad Voicings, check out a lesson on that topic here:
pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/what-are-upper-structure-triads/
Arpeggiating and inverting triads in the left hand would be a lot of work for very little gain in terms of practical application when playing jazz piano. I wouldn’t say that it’s a useless exercises, but there are far more important areas to focus your time.
As a beginner, your focus should be on progressing onto the next courses as soon as possible which are the Chord Extensions Course, the Rootless Voicings & Stride Course, and the Altered Harmony & USTs Course
These areas will open doors for you in terms of creating sophisticated harmonies and playing and arranging jazz standards from lead sheets.
I explain these 4 key theory areas in the following seminar which I recommend all beginner students to watch:
pianogroove.com/live-seminars/jazz-voicings-for-beginners/
In this seminar I also discuss the most important drills from our Jazz Piano Foundations Course which we need to master to progress onto the next lessons.
Check out those 2 links above, and let me know if you have any further questions.
Talk soon,
Hayden
Great! Thank you so much for your answer and the links. Will definitely check them out!