Taught by renowned instructor
Jeremy Siskind
Ever wanted to learn to play jazz but felt stuck in your classical training? Join award-winning jazz pianist and acclaimed pedagogue Jeremy Siskind for an introduction to playing jazz at the piano. From decoding chord symbols, to cultivating a swing rhythm, to practicing scales and figurations within common chord progressions, Siskind will show you the path towards developing basic competency in jazz at the keyboard. Intended especially for classically trained pianists of any level, Siskind offers a structured, step-by-step program for developing your chops and finding your voice in a new idiom.
Rules of the Road
In this preamble to his Intro to Jazz course, Jeremy Siskind teaches you the rules of the road for approaching jazz study for the first time.
"Blues for Sammie" Play Along
Practice your own improvisation on "Blues for Sammie" using this backing track, played by Jeremy Siskind.
Reading Lead Sheets
Jeremy Siskind kicks off his Intro to Jazz course with a lesson on reading lead sheets. For classically-trained pianists, jazz notation can be intimidating, since chord symbols give only the ingredients and not the complete instructions for playing a tune. Using a tune he composed for tonebase called "Tone Up," Siskind shows how to decipher the most common chord symbols and make sense of them at the keyboard.
Personalizing a Melody
Before venturing into the forests of harmony, Jeremy Siskind directs you in a lesson on personalizing a melody. Equipped with six devices for adding spice and color to your favorite tunes, Siskind shows you one of the easiest ways to start developing that distinctive jazz sound at the piano.
Swing Rhythm & Comping
Jazz is characterized by certain rhythmic conventions that give form to both melodic and harmonic material. Jeremy Siskind breaks down the triplet subdivisions underlying swing rhythm before introducing you to some basic comping patterns that give life to harmonic patterns.
Drone Improvisation
Now that you've practiced the basics of notation and rhythm, it's time to start improvising. Siskind shows you where to begin: namely, timed drone improvisations in which you hold a static open 5th in the left hand while styling novel melodies with major scales in the right hand.
ii-V-I Improvisation
It's time to start improvising over changing harmonies, and Jeremy Siskind starts with one of the backbones of jazz (and classical) phrases: the so-called "ii-V-I" progression. Siskind shows how to derive the chords from a given tonality, how to voice the chords, and teaches you what scales, modes, and "licks" should be played over the top of a given harmony.
The Blues
No introduction to jazz is complete without the blues. Jeremy Siskind shows you what's unusual – magical even – about the blues, beginning first with a breakdown of the standard 12-bar form in his original composition "Blues for Sammie." Siskind then shows you how to develop your blues in different styles and begin incorporating elements from your ii-V-I improvisations.
Adding Color
When classical pianists want to learn jazz, they usually have a certain sound in mind. How do jazz pianists achieve that distinctive "color" at the keyboard? Jeremy Siskind breaks down this characteristic jazz sound by exploring extended and altered harmonies, sharing voicing tricks, and new sound worlds provided by non-standard scales.
"Tone Up" Play Along
Practice your own improvisation on "Tone Up" using this backing track, played by Jeremy Siskind.
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Unlock Course →​Pianist-composer Jeremy Siskind is a two-time laureate of the American Pianists Association and the winner of the Nottingham International Jazz Piano Competition, establishing himself as one of the nation’s most innovative and virtuosic modern pianists.
read full bio →Explore 1,000+ in-depth lessons taught by GRAMMY winners, Juilliard professors, and world-renowned performers, covering everything from timeless repertoire to advanced technique and artistry.
