Category: General Music
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Basic Jazz Voicings Using Interval Shapes
The concept of shape-based voicings is a helpful method of organizing harmonic material on the keyboard. First, it allows us to “grab” a group of notes using muscle memory, avoiding the need to think one note at a time. This method also allows us to “recycle” a shape for use in a number of different…
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“Fromage” CD Liner Notes
Download the recording here. Most jazz musicians feel the need to do a “standards” recording at some point in their career. Most choose much-beloved classics or perhaps less-known, but nonetheless well-regarded material. In my case I chose to do songs that perhaps haven’t gotten a lot…
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Practicing Independence on Keyboard
One of the biggest challenges of keyboard technique is independence between the hands. This is especially true if there is any improvisation involved, since this prevents us from memorizing a passage by rote. Myths and Misinformation There are some misconceptions about independence that can prevent us from succeeding in our goals; moving beyond them can…
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Excerpts from my upcoming CD “Fromage”
Here are four short excerpts from my upcoming CD “Fromage.” It is comprised of jazz arrangements of songs usually considered too “cheesy” to be considered “standards.” The musicians: Piano/arranger: Randy Hoexter Bass: Jimmy Haslip Drums: Tom Knight/Dave Weckl Guitar: Trey Wright Saxophones, flute, bass clarinet: Sam Skelton Trumpet: Mike Barry Trumpet/Flugelhorn: Gordon Vernick Trombone: Eric…
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Fear of Disappointment
When we are children, our parents do a great deal to protect us from disappointment; they warn us not to “count our chickens” and to remember that we shouldn’t “get our hopes up.” While these warnings may make sense for a small child, we often carry them into our adult life, where they hold us…
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Perfection
“Perfectionism” is one of those words that gets thrown around a lot, especially with regards to the arts. It gets misused almost as much as the term “genius” in the world of hype and promotion. Let’s take a look at how we can use “perfection” to our advantage in the creative process.