An Exercise To Help Solo Over Tricky Progressions

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In this video, I show you a very useful exercise to help you improvise over tricky chord changes and progressions.
Those wonky, neo-soul type progressions often don't have a key center and therefore if you've only ever shred using the blues scale, for example, you might find it very challenging and frustrating trying to solo over these weird progressions.
In this exercise, we take two completely unrelated chords and practice soloing over them whilst alternating back and forth.
There are a few tricks you can use such as common chord tones, repeated phrases and approach patterns.
If you spend a few hours practising this exercise, you'll find it becomes easier to improvise over tricky chord progressions.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
00:00 - Intro
01:22 - Learn The Chords
02:10 - Blues Scales
04:14 - Dorian Scales
06:38 - Repeated Phrases
07:47 - Approach Patterns
09:03 - Demonstration
10:36 - Summary

[@Diamond88keyz]

Playing repeated patterns but shifted in different keys. Wow!

[@Dadee3]

*Lol. Mind blown, eh?*

[@manolitosanchez]

Hahahahahahahha

[@georgeshenusay62]

This is exactly what I needed, I have had trouble thinking about improv over chords like this, thank you

[@Zizink]

Genus.... Its easy but its also hard and you can explain everything with a very simlple way.... Thats why i love this chanel.... Thank you

[@Piano_Pig]

🙏🙏🙏

[@kylereiser447]

Nice job throwing in the Ford door chime @ 10:01 👏

[@suga4all]

Thank you so much! That was super helpful. I love the sound if these half step chord changes, but never thought that it was so (dare I say) simple to realize. Exactly what I needed to further improve my impro!

[@a.j.soleil3955]

You're amazing Simon! Thank you! This is so helpful.

[@Piano_Pig]

You're welcome!

[@corinnerichardson.6673]

Great Bro Simon, you are really helpful Sir..

[@KevinBrightman]

Great demonstration and exercise .

[@Diamond88keyz]

Beautiful

[@vakosaatashvili4235]

You are awesome ! Keep doing this great tutorials

[@edwinj.hermens7704]

Thanks for the lesson. After trying this a few times for me it works better to approach this chrord pattern as Ab maj7 to G maj7.

[@anthonydanzy6605]

Good stuff.

[@jacksonmanning5477]

Dude. Really, really useful and no fluff

[@Piano_Pig]

Never any fluff around here 🙂🙏

[@fabiancosster2992]

Its amazing keep doing the good job

[@rapinncapin123]

Sick tutorial bro!!! Helped me loads

[@Piano_Pig]

You're welcome! Glad it was useful 👍

[@Lemonahsauce]

Needed this video lol, been trying to learn how to go through the changes on Friday the 13th by monk, and the changes move so fast and have different scales so it’s been challenging, gonna try these techniques out on it!

[@kristerman]

This lesson was of immense value

[@Piano_Pig]

That's great to hear!

[@triadmotion8113]

Nice patterns ma man 🔥

[@jamesallen5223]

And just when I needed this video thanks dawg

[@Piano_Pig]

You're welcome man!

[@collinalexanderbrown8634]

Always able to glean something from your posts. Very grateful, indeed! Can you point me to exercises in rootless voicings? Many thanks, Simon!

[@Piano_Pig]

Glad you've been finding them useful! Check out this video on rootless voicings... kzbin.info/www/bejne/rWO5kGSEoM5-acU

[@Diamond88keyz]

I really need to learn left hand cording! This is so cool

[@JustFiddler]

me too

[@normallifexux9264]

Wtf is cording

[@artha1679]

@@normallifexux9264 chording*

[@josuedavi]

Thank you so much for everything. Been watching your videos a long time and learned a lot! Just wondering if you’ve put this immense talent you have into any music, outside of educating us? Album? Shows? Would love to hear fleshed out ideas of yours.

[@Piano_Pig]

Thanks man, much appreciated! I am actually hoping to release an album at some point this year, but I also post a bunch of my own music on my Instagram page, check it out if you want... instagram.com/piano_pig/

[@VIKTOR-pp8pu]

Thanks You Very much 🎀⭐🌼💐🏵️

[@lamarsimmons7118]

This is amazing✊nice sticky fingers sir 🔥🔥sounds great and its very helpful thank you❤😎

[@Piano_Pig]

You're welcome!

[@jamesallen5223]

Lookin good man

[@yangyon]

Love it

[@piracycan]

Nice fresh content.

[@Piano_Pig]

Thanks, Ernie! 🙏

[@saimarboston6209]

Nice! Respect from Russia!)

[@coloaten6682]

Welcome back! Crikey, thought you'd moved to the middle of the Amazon or something :D

[@Piano_Pig]

Haha sorry about that Col! Been putting a lot of my energy into the PP Academy recently!

[@coloaten6682]

@@Piano_Pig Glad all is well!

[@Diamond88keyz]

Hello Simon!

[@paulowen6982]

Hi Pianopig, Can you give me the lessons in order from Begginer(me) onwards. Thanks I’m giving this a good go. Paul O.

[@ilivecreations664]

Thanks for the video Simon Which model blue lights are those in your background?

[@Piano_Pig]

I believe they are from Govee 🙂

[@larsuk9578]

Great lesson and backing track, thanks. What do you use for drums?

[@Piano_Pig]

Samples, live recordings, a mix of everything really!

[@smpmusiclinksstudio2769]

Been a while 😎

[@elleondejuda4681]

Fair enough man I saw someone soloing with the blues scale over many chord changes and he said that, you can use the blues scale of the destiny chord or the last chord. Lets say , you have Gm C Em A Dm ( Dm the last chord ) you can use the Dm blues over all this chords I understood, this is my own chord progression not his but ,according to his approach " if the last Chord is in this Case Dm then Is ok to solo over the Dm blues in all 5 chords. Another this is that because Dm is related to F mayor scale you would be ok to us the F maj and not the Dm Maybe you could use both Dm 6 ° or F maj ° I never played this I'm going to try this when I get home to see how does it sound lol. Thanks for the Dorian Cell notes ,they are very useful 👍

[@Piano_Pig]

That would only work if the progression is diatonic. The whole point of this video is teaching you how to navigate over NON-diatonic progressions. Hope that makes sense!

[@sylvia4425]

What piano brand (and setting) are you using in this video? Love the backtracking...however, the piano sound is awesome.

[@Piano_Pig]

I'm playing on a Nord but the piano sound you are hearing is from Keyscape

[@sylvia4425]

@@Piano_Pig What exactly is Keyscape? (is that a setting exclusive to Nord...or can this jazzy, gorgeous piano sound be played on any computerized capable piano?

[@rongketissaranggoonnaayutt6242]

Hi ! Peter Crouch. I'd not know you played music too.

[@minhtantran4111]

2:33 actually, though Em9 and Fm blues scale does not match, I still can feel a tension and the "it actually could work somehow" feeling. Guess I learned jazz too much lol Anyway, is one of the key to connect Fm9 and Em9 is to use common tones, right? Maybe the notes of D and G, or passing chords which contain D and G. Or even use the chromatic movement. P/s: I'm a guitar player so my approach maybe a bit different.

[@ranggasaktibudiputra1547]

Chromatic is the way 😤

[@Piano_Pig]

Definitely use common tones to help, I touched on that at 04:32 🙂

[@prezooom4307]

Does this not happen for bassists if we're in the same situation 🤔?

[@luigipalumbo3294]

👍

[@JustFiddler]

aku bisa menggunakan nya dengan fiddleku. matur suksma

[@eseoraka]

Yes, you can use with virtually any instrument with like scales and tones.

[@artha1679]

Ternyata ada orang bali juga :D

[@JustFiddler]

@@artha1679 ku bukan nak bali hehehe. nak sumatra tapi stay dibali 😇

[@artha1679]

@@JustFiddler Ohh. Tadi liat liat di channelnya, hebat sekali main violinnya. Sudah berapa lama main pak? ;-;

[@TuhinTulsyan]

I have subscribed to your channel. Now what's next for me?

[@Piano_Pig]

Watch some videos, get practicing, and if you want some more structure and support then come and join us inside the PianoPig Academy: www.pianopig.com/

[@TuhinTulsyan]

@@Piano_Pig I don't have an instrument. Untill now I was playing on mobile app. Recently I searched a lot about instruments... But dnt know what to buy. For starting learning piano and future goal of achieving orchestral arrangements consisting violin/piano etc... A digital piano like Roland fp30x or midi controller is recommended? If a midi controller which one 61 or 88 keys? Weighted keys or normal? I have a good pc. I would not want to get invested heavily as audio interface, speakers & vst like the grandeur by native will be needed🙏

[@Anonymous-lw1zy]

I don't understand why you chose to analyze this as rootless 9'ths, rather than what seems to be more straightforward root-position maj-7'ths (specifically A-flat-major-7 and G-major-7)? I understand as maj-7ths the analysis would use different keys for the improvisation, but aside from the transposition up from the key of Em to G, and Fm to A-flat, wouldn't it all work out similarly?

[@Piano_Pig]

Rootless voicings sound so much better. If I viewed the chords as Abmaj7 and Gmaj7, the bass would have to play Ab and G rather than F and E which would completely change the sound and feel of it.

[@Anonymous-lw1zy]

@@Piano_Pig Ah, I see. Thanks for the explanation!

[@PavelShepeta]

What about harmony: Dmaj9-Bbmaj9-Dmaj9.....

[@Piano_Pig]

Use exactly the same concepts explained in this video, just apply them to that progression!

[@danielhodgson5391]

So he could use D major blues scale and Bb Major blues scale.... would D Dorian work aswell or would that clash? Is there another nice fitting scale for major chords?

[@nathanedwards8525]

Yooo u dat guy from megamind?

[@claudiakramer4516]

Neo soul would never use those voicings and F over E is definitely more neosoul than not

[@luigipalumbo3294]

👍b

[@garygarcia5508]

Que pedo con Shaggy.....no sabia que tocaba el piano

[@poonholder5643]

wagwan squire

[@dibyomukherjee8677]

Wtf! Disliked coz 2 30 second long ads

[@Piano_Pig]

That's KZbin I'm afriad - not me!

[@ENikolaev]

Hey! So just wondering, should I, a transwoman, even bother to watch your channel or should I just find a new one instead of follow you for a few months until I find out you voted for trump? Nice video, just need to know your political affiliation before I continue to watch.

[@ranatha]

bruh

[@ethangoodman6906]

Go outside

[@Piano_Pig]

Can't tell if this is a troll or not lol

[@ranatha]

@@Piano_Pig of course it is