How To Learn Jazz: A Beginners Guide

Posted on by Steve Nixon

Since I started this site

Ive received numerous
emails from readers
asking me the best way
to get started learning
jazz as a beginner.
For jazz beginners this beautiful style of music can
seem intimidating and hard to tackle.
Dont worry though. Youre not alone! I remember
feeling the same way myself as a young musician while
listening to great jazz musicians. I would sit in my
basement and just listen over and over again to people
like Charlie Parker, Herbie Hancock, Wes
Montgomery, and others. How were they playing like
that??
I was so amazed by how they sounded but I had no
idea what they were doing to get that magnificent
sound. I constantly wondered where I could I even
begin to sound like these guys?
Now, many years later as a pro musician I look back on
those uncertain times and wish I had discovered a
clearer direction when I started.
So, in order to help the beginners out on their
own path to growth, Id like to discuss some core
components of what you need to to begin to play
this wonderful style of music.
Hopefully this will give you guys a more focused start
on your jazz journey. This is the starter guide/advice I
wish I would have had as a newbie. Lets get to
learning!

1. Start With Learning Some Jazz standards

Learning jazz is truly like learning any new language.
Every time you learn a new word, or in our case a

new chord, lick, or a new scale, it becomes a piece of

vocabulary you can then use in a sentence.
Now, of course learning new words is important to
any language but if you dont know how to construct
and speak a full sentence it will always be hard to
communicate.
To continue with our metaphor, learning jazz tunes is
the equivalent of us truly being able to speaking in
sentences. Once you know tunes then you can apply
any new musical idea you learn to jazz songs.
So, the first step should be to spend some
time actually learn some jazz tunes. A good starter
point for any new tune is to just start by learning the
melody and the chord changes.
Jazz Tune Suggestions To Start With
You can start with tunes like Satin Doll, Blue Bossa,
Misty, Autumn Leaves etc. If you need more ideas of
beginning jazz tunes I would recommend you read this
beginning jazz standards to learn article.
You should also check out this discussion of jazz
fake books where we discuss some of the best
fake books to learn from.

2. Aural Tradition and learning the Jazz

Language
Weve discussed this before in our switching to jazz
from classical article. The fundamental approaches to
learning jazz are different than classical. All the notes
are written out in classical music. In jazz some of the
notes are written out but alot of the style of jazz music
needs to be learned by ear and listening.
The true essence style is transferred by listening. Its
very important that you invest your time into figuring out
what youre hearing.
How To Figure Out What You Hear
Spend time figuring out the things you love on your

favorite recordings.
You dont have to figure out a whole album of material
you like. You can start very simple. Just figure out 2-4
bars of something you really enjoy. In a perfect world
this would be on a song or chord progression you are
already are familiar with.
To help me study things more closely I like to use
a music loop and slow down program
called Transcribe. I use it on a daily basis and I find it
very helpful to study faster or more detailed music at a
slower and more manageable tempo.
Listen closely for things like note choices, articulation
placement of rhythms, etc. This kind of stuff can be
very different than classical. Especially when it comes
to beat placement and where accents are played.
Its not required that you notate everything you
hear but its important that you can at minimum
play along with the recording in time. If its too
fast for you to play along with at full speed use
Transcribe to slow the recording down for you.
On a final note, please keep in mind that when you play
jazz, rhythm and articulation take on a much greater
significance Never forget that. Its not just the notes its
how you rhythmically play them. As Duke Ellington
said, It dont mean a thing if it aint go that
swing!

3. Jazz Theory Concepts

It is also very useful to spend time learning more about
jazz music theory. Learn some common chord
progressions. Even if youre not a piano player
knowledge of chords will be very helpful.
Learn some fundamental jazz chords and some
chord voicings. A good place to start would be
these chord lessons on shell voicings, rootless
minor voicings, rootless dominant voicings, or
even a I-VI-II-V-I chord progression. You can even
start by learning some solo piano chords.

4. Start to acquire some jazz vocabulary.

One of the best ways to really learn the essence of this
style of music is to study the licks of master jazz
musicians. A good place to start is to learn a few II-V-I
(2-5-1) licks. Its the most common chord progression
in jazz.
There are tons of licks from the jazz masters to
learn on this site. You could start with this Barry
Harris lick, or this Bud Powell Lick, a Charlie Parker
lick, a Red Garland lick, or even a Bill Evans lick.
There are so many lessons on this site. Start
somewhere. Start anywhere. Just get started!

5. Building Your Own Jazz Vocabulary

Once you learn your licks and/or your chords make
sure you spend time figuring out what makes each
piece of vocabulary work. How are they built? What are
the building blocks? What are the core components?
By getting to the essence of each piece of vocabulary
can use them as a springboard for coming up with your
own licks.
By coming up with your own vocabulary youre
essentially finding your own voice within the jazz
tradition.
At its highest level jazz really is about personal
expression. So, analyze, understand, imitate, and then
reinvent. Welcome to playing jazz and enjoy the ride!
*******
What will you start to learn first? If youre already
have some experience what will you learn next?
Please leave a comment below and let us know!
If you are new here please remember to
subscribe to the free jazz lessons email list right
below this article. Youll be receive all the latest
and greatest lessons right in your inbox.

Steve Nixon is the proud owner of

Freejazzlessons.com. He is a world touring
jazz and blues keyboard player and
educator.
Steve is the author of Premium Jazz
Lessons Elite Membership (A
comprehensive all-in-one online jazz piano
course.)
He is also the author of the The Jazz
Masters Method DVD (A study of 9
legendary jazz piano players).
If you are a blues piano fan you can also
check out his popular Learn Blues Piano
DVD Course.

Related Lessons:
1. 4 Tips For Switching From Classical To Jazz
2. An Essential Tool To Help You Learn Jazz
3. 7 Tips To Help You Play Better At Fast Tempos
4. Jazz Standards You Should Learn Part 1
5. Barry Harris Jazz Piano Lick Lesson

Name:

Email:

Get Jazz Lessons Emailed Free! Click Here

30 Comments
Sort by Best

Share

Favorite

Join the discussion

Sandesh

a year ago

Hello Steve
am sandesh from Nepal. Could you please tell me more more

am sandesh from Nepal. Could you please tell me more more

chord progression other than II V I, and can i used same scale
for the whole progression,Right now am using G major Scale
(Am7-D7-Gmaj7) and i replace D7 with Ab7 which is tritone is
that right?
6

Reply Share

Kyle

9 days ago

Hi Steve. I've been listening to Pat Flynn and loved your

intereview. I'm a drummer trying to get the online thing sorted
but in my spare time (Currently 30 mintues a day) learning
piano. My dream is to write a latin jazz album where I'll piano
and drums. I'm still at the beginning with the piano but it's
good to know I have you to fall back on when I'm ready
Reply Share

Steve Nixon (freejazzlessons)

Mod

Kyle

9 days ago

Cool Kyle. Nice to hear from you and welcome to the

community here!
Reply Share

Lol

a month ago

Hi Steve
Always wanted to play piano. Finally teaching myself with
basic adult piano course bypalmer, manus etc. however my
true motivation is to learn to play jazz in particular piece
peace. Should I just listen to that and learn that? Or continue
learning chords. But I ultimately want to play jazz piano. Can
you advise me please?
Reply Share

Steve Nixon (freejazzlessons)

Mod

Lol

a month ago

You should work on chords and your piece. The more

skills you have the more you'll understand this style.
Reply Share

Vincent Stead

3 months ago

Hi Steve, I am 19 and I've come a long way going through my

music periods. The Beatles -> Classical -> Rock -> Metal ->
Alternative rock -> Alt pop/indie -> now Jamie Cullum and now
straight into jazz, I feel very relieved that I found this website. I
will go directly into this atmosphere as Jamie has moved the
Jazz pop artist inside of me, and I hope to evolve into
something deeper theoretical jazz :))
Thanks Alot Steve
Reply Share

Steve Nixon (freejazzlessons)

Mod

Vincent Stead

3 months ago

Awesome Vincent. Sounds like quite a journey so far.

We're happy to have you here as a member of the
community. Please feel free to share the site with your
musician friends.
Reply Share

Andrew Steven Gradwell

4 months ago

Hi Steve, I am Andrew from South Africa. Coming across your

FREE JAZZ LESSONS, my long held wish came through. I
will make it come true through your lessons.
Reply Share

 Reply Share

Steve Nixon (freejazzlessons)

Mod

Andrew Steven

Gradwell 4 months ago

Great to hear Andrew! Welcome to the site. Happy to

have you here.
Reply Share

Andrew Steven Gradwell

Steve Nixon
(freejazzlessons) 4 months ago

Thank you for the lessons I will now embark on

my musical journey, and have hours of
endless enjoyment.
Reply Share

tom keys

6 months ago

Hey Steve,
Some time ago you were writing about learning extended
chords (like Maj13#11 etc). You'd suggested the reader to
record those chords and then put it on a mp3 player for
example. This looks like a very helpfull tool to me for learning
to hear the more extended chords with more tensions and
alterations. I'm gonna record those chords in cubase using
MIDI and a piano VSTi. But now i'm wondering; how do you
suggest me to record the chords.... I mean when you play for
example Cmaj13, do you take ALL the chord tones C E G B D
F A or do you leave some notes out? Like the 5th.... What do
you think is the best way to record this for the purpose of
learning the 'sound color' of those chords? (I mean all
chords.... maj, dom, dim, etc) I can hear all triads and 7
chords, but have never practiced more extended chords.
Yeah, I can hear the Dom7b10 chord but that's the only more
extended chord I can hear now haha
Hope to hear from you! If you want I can share the files with
you to put on your website.
Kind regards,
Tom
Reply Share

Jecha

8 months ago

Hai Steve, I'm a newbie in this "jazz world", and I'd like to
know what should I do to learn many crazy jazz chords.
Playing jazz sounds interesting and I hope i will be able to do
it. I'm 15 years old and I'm studying classical piano. I'm not a
pro, so please teach me... :) thank u...
Reply Share

Steve Nixon (freejazzlessons)

Mod

Jecha

8 months ago

Welcome Jecha! There are a lot of great chord

lessons on the site. Use the search bar on the site
and type in chords. That will help you alot. Also, if
you're on the email list you'll receive several chord
lessons in your inbox.
Reply Share

Jude Schoch

10 months ago

Hi Steve,
I started learning piano a few years and have learned some of
the standards. I've listened to the whole spectrum of jazz
players and I feel most interested in the work of Bill Evans. I'm
hoping to learn some of the complex harmonies he crafts so

hoping to learn some of the complex harmonies he crafts so

well. I just found this site yesterday and it looks like there is
plenty of helpful material here.
Thank you so much for this resource.
Jude
Reply Share

Steve Nixon (freejazzlessons)

Mod

Jude Schoch

10 months ago

Welcome to the community here Jude! Glad to have

you. Yes, Bill was one of the all time greats. His
harmonies are unbelievable! There's some free
lessons on Bill's playing on the site as well as a
section on him in the Jazz Masters Method DVD.
Thanks for leaving a comment and welcome again!
Reply Share

W.Sgobbi

11 months ago

Thank you for the excellent material! I'm brazilian and started
to listen, practice and love jazz songs!
Reply Share

Steve Nixon (freejazzlessons)

Mod

W.Sgobbi

11 months ago

My pleasure. Jazz is a lot of fun and I'm sure you'll fall

in love with the style.
Reply Share

Mark Carey

a year ago

wow, i stumbled upon your site today while practicing my

trombone. I have been stuck playing notes on the page for 40
years and want to break out of that. I have ideas but don't
know how to get them out of my head. this might be the ticket!
Reply Share

Steve Nixon (freejazzlessons)

Mod

Mark Carey

a year ago

Hi Mark,
There are a ton of lessons on improvisation on this
site. Welcome to the community here. Happy to have
you!
Reply Share

Bert

a year ago

Hello Steve
just joined your lessons and I'am fascinated
I started playing piano from scratch 4 years ago (at my 65 th
year) and followed classical tutoring, yet being an jazz addap,t
I started download score sheets with just the chords plus text
and the melody line, of many classical songs and ballads out
of mainly the 50thies
So I do know a lot of chords by now, but did not see always
the connection and or the width of a chords range. I do write
out the complete left hand and try to place and break the
chords into a nice rithem, I find that sometimes hard . I play
by now songs like: misty , nobody knows you when your down
and out , Into each life some rain must fall and so on. I hope to
learn a lot from you and look forward in receiving some advice
kind regards

Bert
Reply Share

Steve Nixon (freejazzlessons)

Mod

Bert

a year ago

Welcome Bert to the community here!

Reply Share

frank

a year ago

I have always wanted to learn jazz.. I feel overwhelmed I just

need some guidance to get started.. I am 37 felt it was late
but no its not.
Reply Share

Steve Nixon (freejazzlessons)

Mod

frank

a year ago

As long as you're committed to improvement and

enjoy the practice you'll be able to progress at any
age.
Reply Share

Xavier

a year ago

Thank you for your advice. I'm taking this post as a starting
point to begin working out jazz piano.
Reply Share

Steve Nixon (freejazzlessons)

Mod

Xavier

Mod

Luke Leone

a year ago

My pleasure Xavier!
Reply Share

Luke Leone

2 years ago

Thanks steve
Reply Share

Steve Nixon (freejazzlessons)

2 years ago

No problem Luke. Have fun with this stuff!

Reply Share

Rico

2 years ago

I started out with a simple book-Play piano in a flash- and as

you said you learn the melody to a favorite song and then the
chord changes, put them together and suddenly you are
playing the piano ! After that it is up to you how far you want
to go. You will need to learn the scales and how to play in all
12 keys. You need to know the ii-V-1 progressions. Take one
song and learn to play it well; then, go from there.
Reply Share

antonio augusto orselli

2 years ago

Good advice, Steve. Sometimes it is hard to sort out so much

information that I think it is too much to learn and then goes
away the stimulus. But I will try this guide. Thanks.
Reply Share

Steve Nixon (freejazzlessons)

augusto orselli a year ago

My pleasure!
Reply Share

Mod

antonio

ALSO ON STEVE NIXON'S FREE JAZZ LESSONS

Learn A Miles Davis Jazz Lick

4 comments 10 months ago

maiga This is good i like it,

thanks you to send this free

jazz lessons to my

5 Dominant Jazz Piano Chords

Every Pianist
10 comments 8 months ago

Steve Nixon (freejazzlessons)

Hi Pat! Thank you so

much for your kind

10 Most Popular Jazz Piano

Tutorials Of 2013

4 Completely Bizarre Gig

Stories That You Need To

10 comments 2 months ago

5 comments 6 months ago

Steve Nixon (freejazzlessons)

Steve Nixon (freejazzlessons)

Hi Manuel,If you more of a

beginner I would

Thanks Mark. I added a

lot of little gospel

Subscribe

Add Disqus to your site

2014 - Free Jazz Lessons

WHAT'S THIS?