Jazz Grades?

[stevie]

ive heard there are jazz piano grades on the ABRSM syllabus and other places..

i wonder what they entail, how useful they are, and how they work...

i mean...do you have to learn jazz 'pieces'? jazz etudes?

or is it just scales?

and how on earth do they judge improvisatory skills?

[stevie]

anyone?

[jalgor]

anyone?

Nope.

[pseudopianist]

Stevie I'm ashamed of you.


 

[prometheus]

Jazz pianists take lessons in classical piano.

[leahcim]

ive heard there are jazz piano grades on the ABRSM syllabus and other places..

i wonder what they entail, how useful they are, and how they work...

i mean...do you have to learn jazz 'pieces'? jazz etudes?

or is it just scales?

and how on earth do they judge improvisatory skills?

There's quite a bit on their website.

AIUI the pieces have parts with just dots where improv is expected?
Criteria :-
https://www.abrsm.org/resources/jazz_assess_criteria.pdf

Scales seem to be modal [dorian, mixolydian etc] and pentatonic as well as major / minor and similary arpeggios have 9ths and b5ths etc.

The singing part requires you to practise saying "a zub a zub a zub be de doo - a ratt a tatt a bing bong zabba dabba do bee de doooooo" allegedly

[stevie]

thanks, any more info more specific to the piano jazz grades?

[arensky]

thanks, any more info more specific to the piano jazz grades?

I use these pieces to teach improvisation; Jazz is an ideal springboard from which to teach this skill, neglected for decades by the establishment but increasingly demanded by our clients. Some of the pieces are Jazz standards like "Bag's Groove" and "Blue Monk", others are written for the series by the likes of Charles Beale and Nikki Iles (Brit Jazzers I presume). They work like this: first the tune is written out/arranged and then there is an improv part BUT WITH THE LH WRITTEN OUT! Thank you ABRSM! The LH is where students get frustrated; improvising a RH single note horn line is easy, developing a chord progression and varying it is more complex. By providing the "hard part" the process of learning to compose spontaneously(improvisation) is greatly facilitated.

In the improv RH part, the notes to be used are indicated, limit yourself to these at first, then use your ear to expand the RH note options, and evantually the LH too.

 These are the best pieces of their kind I've ever encountered. The plethora of written out "Jazzy" pieces on the market don't cut it, they're just written out and teach NOTHING about real Jazz or improvisation, and are dangerously cheesy; musical junk food. The ABRSM pieces show someone who can read HOW to improvise, without going into explanations and jargon. They work instantly. At some point though, the bass clef has to be replaced by chord symbols and you have to make it all up. Not to mention "Swing feel" this cannot be taught in IMO . You feel it and can do it, or you are a"square"    If at first you don't feel it, listen to some good swinging Jazz. A Jazz teacher might be helpful at some point if you want to really play real Jazz,    and not sound like a Classical pianist playing at Jazz (embarrasing and repulsive  )

This is the best way to head towards that goal that I have ever encountered; I swear by these pieces, they are a miracle.      By the way, the notion of "grades" and "levels" is foreign and completely alien to the true Jazz artistic concept; These pieces are designed as a complement to a classical course of study, but point the way to complete improv.  Just start with Grade 4 and up, just dive in; Grades, sheesh

[prometheus]

Isn't Giant Steps grade 8?

[dorfmouse]

The ABRSM pieces show someone who can read HOW to improvise, without going into explanations and jargon.

Arensky, I'm not quite clear ... are you referring to the ABRSM series Jazz Piano Pieces Grades 1-5 Tunes?

Also, do you recommend the book Jazz Piano From Scratch by Charles Beale?

Thank you.

[stevie]

yeah, id like to know exactly WHICH books to purchase, thanks

[ptmidwest]

yeah, arensky...

[arensky]

Arensky, I'm not quite clear ... are you referring to the ABRSM series Jazz Piano Pieces Grades 1-5 Tunes?

Also, do you recommend the book Jazz Piano From Scratch by Charles Beale?

Thank you.

   I do not know this book, but I approve of Charles Beale; sure I'll reccomend sight unseen!

yeah, id like to know exactly WHICH books to purchase, thanks

yeah, arensky...

Well, what a response; oh stevie, just ignore those f@#$%ing honky white boy legitos with glasses on; they are definitely not hip! Squares, man; gotta have all their dots, or no go baby...
                                                                 
 
                                                      But seriously....

Well, I have one of the books in front of me, I literaly stumbled on them at the 2000 World Piano Pedagogy Conference at the Theodore Presser booth, they looked interesting so I bought what they had and took them home, and they worked ! (see my other post above)

I'm not clear either, dorfmouse! Yes, I have the book now; I bought Grades 2, 3, 4 and 5.
Stevie, I believe you are in the UK, although I could be mistaken; Check 'em out, you're a good musician, enjoyed your op.25 #12. ABRSM must have a website, they might have sample pages there: You can probably go for the most advanced book, or this other Beale creation that dorfmouse mentioned.

All of you go for it, have fun. Jazz can lead to other things, it's yer ideal springboard into this world of spontaneous blahblahblahblahblahblahblahblah
Oh, what's this scat singing final!  Hey skit beedelde bop shooby waba doowahhhhhhh...HEY!

          Yo catz, dig theze Brit Jazz sheets skoodle de bop HEY!!!!
                                                   

                          Oh yeah, your students will probably like it and it's good for them         

[ptmidwest]

Arensky!  You're bilingual!!




(and thanks for the info!)

[ptmidwest]

Arensky, for those of us who are not so knowledgable about these materials, are these books called "Jazz Piano Pieces"?   

(Other series for jazz piano from ABRSM include "Jazz Piano from Scratch", "Jazz Piano Quick Studies", and "Jazz Piano Scales".)

Nice to see a collection that is applauded by someone who is both a teacher and a jazz pianist.   Is anyone else familiar with these?

Need my dots, man...

[026497]

my teacher is a jazz player.
ABRSM jazz exam Do include scales. they are uneven.
But the music theory of jazz is completely different from classical. it is difficult. you need to learn it from the begining. no shortcut for classical pianist.