Chord Melody Masterclass
A Guitarist's Approach to the Harmony of Bill Evans
“How this class hasn't been rated yet is unfathomable to me. It's lessons like this that make Mike's such an invaluable resource to musicians. Some folks will want to complain about…”
About this masterclass
Sid Jacobs shows how the harmony of pianist Bill Evans translates to jazz guitar in this enhanced version of his 2006 masterclass. Sid traces the connection between Evans and guitarists like Lenny Breau, Jimmy Wyble, and John Stowell, and demonstrates how guide tones, voice leading, counterpoint, and open strings can bring a pianistic sound to your playing.
What's covered
- Rootless voicings — playing 3rds and 7ths the way Lenny Breau described: "playing the melody with thirds and sevenths"
- Guide tones and voice leading through ii-V-I progressions, all over the fretboard
- Why counterpoint should come before harmony — thinking melody chord instead of chord melody
- Cluster voicings, added tensions, and dominant sounds built from triads over bass notes
- Using open strings for orchestration, illustrated by Sid's arrangement of "My Bells"
- Applications to "Waltz for Debbie", "Very Early", "Turn Out the Stars", plus standards like "All The Things You Are", "Stella By Starlight", and "Chelsea Bridge"
- Q&A on contrapuntal improvising, omitting roots, and how to get the most from Sid's book, The Bill Evans Guitar Book
This enhanced edition includes newly segmented videos so you can revisit your favorite parts quickly, plus Soundslice versions of Sid's arrangements of "Waltz for Debbie", "Very Early", "Turn Out the Stars", and "My Bells" — slow down the audio, loop sections, and see fretboard visualizations of the notation and tablature. Includes 15 pages of PDF materials in standard notation and TAB. Full video is 1 hour 38 min.
Lessons in this masterclass
Lessons
- 1A Guitarist's Approach to the Harmony of Bill Evans1h 37m
- 2Adding Tensions2m 42s
- 3Beyond Chord Melody2m 15s
- 4Blues Example and Beyond Movable Shapes4m 32s
- 5Closing Performance - Ask Me Now and Outro2m 54s
- 6Clusters2m 22s
- 7Counterpoint Before Harmony3m 56s
- 8Dominant Sounds4m 24s
- 9Introduction1m 34s
- 10Lenny Breau and The Guitar as An Orchestra2m 49s
- 11More Colors4m 39s
- 12My Bells and Using Open Strings8m 36s
- 13Opening Performance - Bill Evans Medley6m
- 14Playing 3rds and 7ths - Voice Leading5m 1s
- 15Q and A - Chelsea Bridge Example and Dynamics4m 42s
- 16Q and A - Contrapuntal Improvising8m 32s
- 17Q and A - How to use The Bill Evans Guitar Book7m 41s
- 18Q and A - Omitting Roots4m 55s
- 19Soundslice - My Bells5s
- 20Soundslice - Turn Out the Stars5s
- 21Soundslice - Waltz for Debbie5s
- 22Stella By Starlight Example3m 31s
- 23The Line Cliche, Counterpoint, Harmonic and Rhythmic Cadence4m 55s
- 24The Sound of All The Things You Are3m 46s
- 25Very Early Example3m 56s
- 26Waltz For Debbie4m 36s
Reviews & Ratings
"A true gem..."
How this class hasn't been rated yet is unfathomable to me. It's lessons like this that make Mike's such an invaluable resource to musicians. Some folks will want to complain about the sound or picture quality (I think this was one of the earlier lessons on the site) but if you can get beyond that and really listen and play what Jacobs is getting at with regard to Bill Evans and his concepts - you'll be in for a real treat. Jacobs takes something that could easily be bogged down with technical jargon and technique issues, cuts through it all, and presents a thoroughly captivating look into the insights he has gained from studying Evans piano playing. The most important part (of any of Mike's lessons) is that you put in the time playing. There is no hand-holding here... if you want those kind of lessons go elsewhere... these are real lessons for real players.) To be able to spend an hour and a half in the presence of one master teaching the music of another master is a rare treat. To watch and listen to Jacobs think through all of this material is pure gold. Do not hesitate checking out this course. It's the sort of lesson that rewards repeated watching and most importantly, playing through. Your playing will thank you; your bass-player and piano-players will thank you... I just can't say enough great things about this course.
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