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How to Improvise a Solo With the Major Scale 1

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Instructor
Jonny May
Workshop
Intermediate
02:26:14

In this workshop, you will learn how to improvise piano with one of the most important scales – the Major (Ionian) Scale.

We’ll start with learning the notes of the scale along with 3 common chord progressions you can use when soloing. Then we’ll learn 5 left hand accompaniments, including chording, rock, latin, flowing, and comping. Jonny will you teach you his best techniques for soloing, including steps, skips, and outlining chords. We’ll dive further into the scale by learning 2 block positions and 4 rhythm exercises.

To finish, we’ll practice a scale shifting exercise and learn how to solo over multiple chords.

Course Objectives
  • Learn the notes of the major scale in every key
  • Discover 3 common chord progressions you can use the major scale to solo over
  • Master 5 left hand accompaniments: chording, rock, latin, flowing, comping
  • Practice 2 block positions and 4 rhythm exercises
  • Develop your soloing technique with steps, skips, and outlining chords
  • Understand how to solo over multiple chords
Learning Focus
  • Exercises
  • Improvisation
  • Scales
Featured Reviews

View PWJ member reviews of this course!

Lots of Great Soloing Ideas Here!
Jonny goes over many, many soloing ideas in this course. Really makes it look effortless! Great improv tips!
Enjoyable and Informative course.
Generally enjoyed the course. Got a little frustrated in the earlier videos as to lack of guidance on best fingering to use - really important for beginners and intermediates where they don’t have access to a physical teacher. It would seem to be very easy to anotate the sheet music with some fingering suggestions. Also, found some of the examples at the end of each session to be way too fast a cadence to understand/follow what was being done, and the left hand accompaniment seemed to drift away from basic triads with no explanation as to what was happening. Thanks for the lessons.
The method behind the magic
When you don't know what you're hearing, it sounds like wonderful complex magic that you think you could never master. Then you follow Jonny's course and he breaks down exactly how it's done. Turns out it's not magic, just a methodology that a great teacher can explain and make it seem rather straightforward. If you really commit to diving into each technique and taking your time with each concept, pretty soon you are the one creating the 'magic'. Jonny's approach is so much better than simply playing scales up and down and still not being able to make music with them. Within this course the major scale won't seem scary anymore, nor will your approach to what to play seem random and non-musical. It's not that complicated once he explains it, but that's the gift of great teacher.
Fun!
My favorite course to date!!!
Gosh I feel I should have known this for years but didn’t
It feels like this should all be blindingly obvious but somehow wasn’t. Clearly none of my teachers in the past knew this. It just goes to show you can teach an old dog new tricks. Thank you Jonny!

Course Lessons

1
How to Improvise a Solo With the Major Scale 1 – Lesson 1
12:47

Major Scale

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2
How to Improvise a Solo With the Major Scale 1 – Lesson 2
19:20

Chords & Progressions

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3
How to Improvise a Solo With the Major Scale 1 – Lesson 3
15:45

5 Left Hand Accompaniments

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4
How to Improvise a Solo With the Major Scale 1 – Lesson 4
15:55

Improv Blocks and Rhythm Exercises

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5
How to Improvise a Solo With the Major Scale 1 – Lesson 5
30:30

Soloing Technique #1: Steps

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6
How to Improvise a Solo With the Major Scale 1 – Lesson 6
14:43

Soloing Technique #2: Skips

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7
How to Improvise a Solo With the Major Scale 1 – Lesson 7
16:52

Soloing Technique #3: Outlining Chords

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8
How to Improvise a Solo With the Major Scale 1 – Lesson 8
12:29

Soloing Over Multiple Chords

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9
How to Improvise a Solo With the Major Scale 1 – Lesson 9
07:53

Q&A

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Featured Reviews

View PWJ member reviews of this course!

Lots of Great Soloing Ideas Here!
Jonny goes over many, many soloing ideas in this course. Really makes it look effortless! Great improv tips!
Enjoyable and Informative course.
Generally enjoyed the course. Got a little frustrated in the earlier videos as to lack of guidance on best fingering to use - really important for beginners and intermediates where they don’t have access to a physical teacher. It would seem to be very easy to anotate the sheet music with some fingering suggestions. Also, found some of the examples at the end of each session to be way too fast a cadence to understand/follow what was being done, and the left hand accompaniment seemed to drift away from basic triads with no explanation as to what was happening. Thanks for the lessons.
The method behind the magic
When you don't know what you're hearing, it sounds like wonderful complex magic that you think you could never master. Then you follow Jonny's course and he breaks down exactly how it's done. Turns out it's not magic, just a methodology that a great teacher can explain and make it seem rather straightforward. If you really commit to diving into each technique and taking your time with each concept, pretty soon you are the one creating the 'magic'. Jonny's approach is so much better than simply playing scales up and down and still not being able to make music with them. Within this course the major scale won't seem scary anymore, nor will your approach to what to play seem random and non-musical. It's not that complicated once he explains it, but that's the gift of great teacher.
Fun!
My favorite course to date!!!
Gosh I feel I should have known this for years but didn’t
It feels like this should all be blindingly obvious but somehow wasn’t. Clearly none of my teachers in the past knew this. It just goes to show you can teach an old dog new tricks. Thank you Jonny!
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