Lesson 20: V7 to i using -3rds
Here’s a short melody I worked out using minor 3rds descending by half steps. It works well as a V7 to i minor cadence and after the descending minor 3rd passage I added a short 5 note minor melody to
Lesson 17: Intervallic Melody
Using bigger intervals when improvising can help create an interesting contrast to your linear ideas. This is a melody comprised of a spread triad in 2nd inversion and 2 upper-structure “tensions”; the 11th and the 9th. These melodies are played
Lesson 14: Diminished Melody
Here is a simple melody that will help you hear diminished as diminished, not merely as a dominant 7(b9). This is fairly easy idea that is played through the keys around the circle of fourths starting in concert C. It’s
Lesson 12: Embellished Triad
Lots of great melodies are no more than a triad with a bit of stepwise embellishment. This exercise takes a spread triad in root position and embellishes the 3rd at the top of the voicing with upper and lower neighbor
Lesson 10: Whole Tone Melody
The whole tone scale can be a bit too transparent to use frequently during improvisation. I’ve found that by conceiving of it both in augmented triads and with chromatic passing tones it becomes a little less obviously “whole tone”. This
Lesson 9: Arpeggiating Voicings
Sometimes when playing saxophone without a chordal instrument or accompaniment, it can be hard to hear the harmonic context for the melodies being improvised or worked on. One way to help hear harmonically while playing single note lines is to
Lesson 7: C7 using Maj7(#5)
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Lesson 6: Minor ii-V-i
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Lesson 4: Cycle Melody
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Andy Ehling and Matt Otto “Returning”
Click here to download I’ve played with alto saxophonist Andy Ehling since 1983. Andy and I went to high school together, played in jazz band, and practiced every day under an old railroad bridge in Orange County California, sometimes late
Lesson 3: Rhythm Changes
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Lesson 2: Diatonic 4ths
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