Patterns For Jazz

[melvyng]

I'm just wondering, has anyone ever worked through the whole book, "Patterns For Jazz" by Jerry Coker?


Mel

[Peterk]

Good question. I've been doing it for a year and I'm on....page 30. Of something like 200 or so. Check back with me in 6 years.

Great book.

[MB-913]

Good question. I've been doing it for a year and I'm on....page 30. Of something like 200 or so. Check back with me in 6 years.

Great book.


Peterk

What did you found after working on these patterns for one year? Can you use them for the improvisation practically? Or not yet can apply these things in improvisation, but have great improvement on your finger & ear?

I just want to see how long a player can apply all those things and see how far I'm. I've this book but not yet to use. I'm working on other similar book for scale, patterns & arpeggios for 8 months. Frankly, I can't use it in improvisation, I can't improvise at the moment but I found my finger & ear have tremendous improvement after working on these things.

[Peterk]

> What did you found after working on these patterns for one year? Can > you use them for the improvisation practically? Or not yet can apply
> these things in improvisation, but have great improvement on your
> finger & ear?

Well from page 1-30 is basically all the major scales the 4 basic families of arpeggioes. Basic stuff...building blocks. So yes, definitely, I can use them...and without even really thinking about them.

It's a good workout for the fingers and most of all for the BRAIN. The exrecises are only written out in a few keys, so your mind has to figure out what to do for all the ones that aren't written (DON'T write them out!!!).

The way I use this book....There's a half-hour section of my practice routine that I call the technical portion that I do no matter what - the rest of my routine can vary from day to day. In the techincal half-hour I do 5 minutes long tones, then all major and blues scales on the range of the instrument. And then I work on 1 or 2 execrcises off the Patterns book for 10-15 mins (2 if they're very similar, 1 if they're not) at the minimum tempo listed. Every Sunday, I test myself - if I can play them perfectly I move on...if I can't, then I do them for another week.