Jazz Improvisation Made Easy #1: Take the A Train With One Magic Shape For All Chords

[@displaychicken]

To my mind, Yaakov hits the sweet spot with music education. Some teachers make jazz too academic with material that’s difficult to implement. Some teachers make jazz very approachable but lacking in theory. (You’ll know what works but not why it works) Yaakov gives you usable things and you’ll know why they work. I especially like that you show the note-interval-relationships on your diagrams. I personally struggled with theory until I got a fretboard interval map and really started looking closely at it.

[@GypsyAndJazz]

You got it! Combining understanding and performance is key! Making things simple is important too. Django did it all the time!

[@richardgallo9439]

I went to veterinary school with an Israeli friend who had the same teaching skill...making the compiex simple. Wow! What a great lesson. Thank you Yaakov!!

[@GypsyAndJazz]

You're kindly welcome! Making the complex simple is always a good idea.

[@donnaradin]

Really cool! Yaakov taught this to me and another student at a live lesson recently and we jammed with it!

[@GypsyAndJazz]

That was fun and showed you guys how it really works!

[@AlexBunardzic]

Beautiful lesson. I like your approach of embracing the constraints and then juggling the pattern and rearranging the sequence to achieve fresh phrases. Thank you!

[@GypsyAndJazz]

My pleasure! Just what Django did to make his playing fresh all the time.

[@37BopCity]

This is an extremely good lesson for beginning/intermediate guitar players wanting to understand improvising. These simple shapes actually open the door to a lot more complex possibilities than they initially display. You also have the octaves below and above all these notes. It's a great introduction to learning the notes within the chords like "b3" and "b7" instead of just using visual dot patterns. Then by adding extensions, rhythm, enclosures, chromatics, etc and learning the chord changes in songs in different keys, this is truly a great system.

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Totally! There's a whole world of music in this magic shape!

[@kowboys1180]

Logically I know all of this from music theory... but the way Yaakov teaches it makes it so intuitive and easy to understand, and apply. Thank you!!

[@GypsyAndJazz]

So glad to be of help. I really try to make things easier for all of you!

[@davidedelstein6526]

Brilliant simplicty--captures the Django sound in one shape!

[@GypsyAndJazz]

You got it, David. Now you can get that Django sound!

[@tedrenard472]

Beautiful explanation and demonstration. Also, your method allows you to bring new life to the tune.

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Glad you think so! I hope this helps you make beautiful music.

[@ajw63]

Magic indeed - such a simple concept but such wonderful playing - I will have fun trying this out - thanks and keep them coming!

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Yay, Adrian! Having fun is the whole idea! And they'll keep on coming!

[@jayspicer2259]

Nice. A year's worth of knowledge in one 14 minute video. My mind is blown!

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Glad you enjoyed it, Jay! Try it on other songs too and let me know how it goes.

[@thecoyote2549]

You are a wonderful teacher ! Very helpfull

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Thank you!

[@avocadoflowmix7171]

Nice lesson, good sounded technique, thanks a lot.

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Glad you liked it! Have you seen my new Jazz and Gypsy Jazz Mastery Course? You can get it now for free! Click here: www.gypsyandjazz.com/gj-guitar-mastery-sign-up?

[@RockPopMandolin]

Brilliant lesson. I'm gonna do that on mandolin. Thanks!

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Cool!

[@mattmugridge8839]

Awesome lesson! Thanks so much for this

[@GypsyAndJazz]

My pleasure!

[@michaelcorcoran3942]

I would advise anyone that is getting a little lost in the middle see this video through it gets much clearer, and some really cool tips. If I'm not wrong he is using the the 6th triad (natural minor) and the 2nd triad (2nd mode) and then just adding in a few notes to make it sound relate to the chords that are played over. He does that with just these few notes. Which will really free your brain up for making things in the moment. I think I'm getting it and it's very nice indeed. Still need to understand what notes we are adding (if in the scale or not)

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Have fun exploring. The magic works even for those who don't fully understand the theory. Do pay attention to the sound and what sounds good.

[@WayneRobsonArtist]

I came across this video totally by accident, and I have to say this is such a fun and easy way to play Take the A Train! My mind immediately thought that by adding some diminished runs it could be expanded even further.

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Right on, Wayne! Have you seen my new Jazz and Gypsy Jazz Mastery Course? You can get it now for free! Click here: www.gypsyandjazz.com/gj-guitar-mastery-sign-up?

[@kaimahi3003]

mate you make soloing so ezy love it

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Ease is the key!

[@tonylo9300]

Awesome!!!

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Thanks, Tony!

[@jwp2460]

This is awesome Yaakov!

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Glad you like it! Use it well!

[@BernardGlorian]

great as usual !! thanks Yaakov

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Thanks, Bernard! More to come soon!

[@cherifbenyahia5425]

Yes we did Enjoy this nice Gypsy Jazz moment. Nice person you are too. Thank You. Cherifblues.

[@GypsyAndJazz]

You are so welcome

[@griffgriffiths9982]

Great! Thanks. Very useful.

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Glad to hear it!

[@plutogamstrumframe]

Thanks for your reply , you make what seemed so difficult , easier to understand ,thanks

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Glad to hear that!

[@Mrbriankeeler]

Wow! Great! Thanks so much for sharing this !

[@GypsyAndJazz]

My pleasure, Brian! See you!

[@Bowwylad]

this lesson has blown my mind, thank so much your a great teacher dude. Another piece of the grand puzzle.

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Awesome, thank you! And there's no end to the number of pieces!

[@bonginkosibuthelezi5698]

😳 Wow it’s a brilliant technique! 🙏🏽

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Thank you! You can get so much out of that one shape!

[@osifochristopher8066]

Excellence idea. Improvisation here I come

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Yes! Do it!

[@fatimasaad7296]

THANK YOU!

[@GypsyAndJazz]

You're welcome!

[@Run69records]

You are clear like the sun bro'... Explaining simply, direct and easy to understand... Thumb up for you and.. Yes man, I enjoyed your channel

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Awesome! Thank you! I aim to give clear practical explanations!

[@waynevandenberg]

This is a nice simple foundation and really sounds great with the ornaments and aromatics are added. Thanks so much!

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Absolutely, Wayne, and you're really making great progress in my coaching program! Keep up the good work!

[@VitoGaarin]

Magnificent 👌

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Thanks, Vito! Have fun with it!

[@poisonapple1991]

So much insight. Thank you!!

[@GypsyAndJazz]

I never stop learning from Django! Keep your eye out for more on this theme!

[@lordvomitus9985]

thank you very much for your many lessions, i'm relatively new to jazz. your videos are the first that really conveyed something to me. With your tips you can really concentrate on improvising without getting lost in theory.

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Yes! You definitely got the idea!

[@davidkelly1220]

Outstanding, so accessible thanks for 📫

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Glad it was helpful!

[@corneliousism]

This is great. Exactly how I have been teaching my self to play. By taking basic patterns and moving them around and adding, leading,passing or bending up to. This lesson has the perfect amount in information for me. More patterns please 😁

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Good for you! Keep experimenting! You can even post your videos in my Facebook group! Guess, what? Your wish is my command! More to come your way really soon!

[@colink4823]

Great video, everything made totally understandable

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Great to hear! You can get so much use out of this!

[@awaywithpaul3423]

Great lesson! Thanks 🙏

[@GypsyAndJazz]

My pleasure. Keep learning!

[@fekinel]

Excellent m8..nice and easy to understand..thank you.. :)

[@GypsyAndJazz]

You're welcome! That's what I'm aiming for.

[@jamescasciato8536]

Love this concept! Thanks for sharing--this, as well as all your other lessons.

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Glad you enjoyed it, James! Keep on learning and growing!

[@akskerpen]

Thank you very much for this lesson, very inspiring. Many greetings from, Holger

[@GypsyAndJazz]

You're very welcome, Holger! Be inspired to play and implement this!

[@BuckJoFiden]

What a great lesson !! I’ve been playing since 77 and gems like this were few and far between. Thanks so much !! 🍻Cheers to you !! Liked and subscribed.

[@GypsyAndJazz]

My pleasure! Enjoy the lessons. Spend a lot of time experimenting with this idea. There's so much you can do with it!

[@owencooper1360]

This is so good! Thank you

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Glad you like it, Owen!

[@tommyboulet7072]

Fantastic technique ! Thanks Yaakov ! Such an amazing teacher !

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Thanks Tommy! Play with this idea and let me know how it goes!

[@philippetuquetparis1403]

Thanks a lot Yaakov. Very clear and useful as usual !

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Thanks, Philippe! Just what I'm aiming for!

[@belascialoja4812]

Very good lesson! That's a beautiful guitar, too!

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Thanks! I love this lesson and my Polak guitar!

[@shimkz57]

Great lesson

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Thanks!

[@plutogamstrumframe]

Thanks so much

[@GypsyAndJazz]

You're welcome, Stuart! I see you're going through this series. Good for you!

[@franciscomanuelsanchezinig6648]

Great Yaakov, thanx you

[@GypsyAndJazz]

My pleasure!

[@nicolasbai3337]

Simplemente genial! Gracias maestro Yaakov por tus lecciones, un gran abrazo! : )

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Yeah, this is so much fun to use! Glad you follow my lessons!, Nicolas! All the best!

[@shimkz57]

Great !!!

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Thank you!

[@proximact695]

Wow

[@GypsyAndJazz]

My thoughts exactly!

[@louisyao3406]

Love the tone, can you please share the set up, thx.

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Maybe you mean the pedal effect?

[@m-gluk]

Thank you! 👍

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Enjoy it, Yuri!

[@nickcaldwell9528]

Brilliant Yaakov

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Thanks, Nick! Play with this Magical idea!

[@kronokiler]

Tengo que decirlo, acabo de darme cuenta que éste método es más intuitivo y genial que el que uno toca en jazz normal, como amo el gypsy jazz

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Glad you like it! This works with any improvisation style!

[@joseArgentina]

excelent

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Thanks, Jose! Have you seen my new Jazz and Gypsy Jazz Mastery Course? You can get it now for free! Click here: www.gypsyandjazz.com/gj-guitar-mastery-sign-up?

[@juandehoyos5938]

do you have a pdf that i can print out? i got CONFUSED! WHICH IS THE MAGIC SHAPE AND WHEN YOU ADD THE OTHER NOTES, THIS NEEDS TO BE A LITTLE CLEARER. PLEASE ADVISE. I HAVE AN IDEA OF HOW TO USE IT BUT NOT SURE!!! THANK YOU! JJ DEHOYOS

[@GypsyAndJazz]

I will create a written version on my blog. I will update by email when I get to done

[@guabble]

@@GypsyAndJazz i cant get my head round all the jazz books. your approach @gypsyandjazz.com is a breath of fresh air and makes it more straightforward and makes this so much more approachable, תודה רבה

[@nicolopaganini1608]

You got the lineage.. Maestro.. I'm moving the dot from 9 to 10 fret... Lol Since 2 different chords have the same notes... I wonder if it was done to avoid copyright infringement... ???

[@GypsyAndJazz]

If it helps!

[@postpanafrikhause1587]

❤

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Thanks! Enjoy the magic!

[@Boldstrummer]

11:53 Solo on A Train

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Yes

[@cugoman]

what is the ending chord that was played at 13:28?

[@GypsyAndJazz]

C six and nine, a good ending for a song in the key of C, ending the chromatic phrase that's Django's most typical ending.

[@kowboys1180]

By the way, and I got thrown by this - Yaakov’s guitar has a fret marker at the 10th fret, not the 9th. So the Dm6 notation at 4:30 will look off with his guitar - but it’s not.

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Pretty standard for Gypsy guitars, but one student actually had Polak move the fret marker because he was used to the marker on the 9th fret.

[@KaninTuzi]

@@GypsyAndJazz Have you got any idea why gypsy guitars do this? Very mysterious to me. Is it perhaps because so many songs in Dm? 😅

[@cburgess2805]

@@KaninTuzi Because the 10th fret is all natural notes, no sharps/flats. Markings on 3rd, 5th, 7th, 10th, 12th show the frets with the most natural notes.

[@KaninTuzi]

@@cburgess2805 Oh, thanks. Now it seems more of a mystery that the 9th fret is dotted on most guitars

[@cburgess2805]

@@KaninTuzi Yeah I think 9th is for aesthetic symmetry.

[@markmcmyn8967]

Is this how substitution works? I heard that if there are 3 common tones(the bar makes it easy to see) they can belong to 3 families.In this case, A minor,D7,C6. Always a little puzzling : if it is the same notes but just labeled differently the only thing thats changing the sound are the roots eg.A,C,D.Here the shape is tied directly to the changeing chord.In substitution it is say,playing D7 sounds over an A minor chord. How does substitution lead one into new sounds if it is the same shape,but just calling it something different? At any rate you are making a common shape work in real music.

[@ashokthirumurthi1958]

interesting question, you got me thinking! I was thinking about these patterns as inversions rather than substitutions. Also I noticed that the pattern for D7 doesn't include the root. That got me thinking that this improvisation is meant to work with other instruments playing the chord or at least the root. Given that context, the same notes are interpreted differently, or more specifically as inversions.

[@wherewoodbinetwines]

Great lick lesson Yaakov, thanks. While I am not a music theory expert, or a music teacher, this concept is not that hard to understand if we realize that these 3 chords share 3-4 notes of the 7 note scale. The only exception is that C6 has an F nat. and the other two chords have an F#, and that's what Yaakov's two forms are "fixing". Ingenious.

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Hi guys. Don't over complicate this... The magic is to see it and play it over any song and any chord, fast. But in short- Am is a substitute for C (you get the 6th sound) Am is also substitute for D7 (you get the 7/9 sound) Hope that helps. Make it simple. Theory is important. But only to understand what you play. I think that that explains what I show here

[@Meenjedatnou]

Excellent, many thanks!

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Use it well!

[@rgonzalez5804]

such a nice lesson, thank you!

[@GypsyAndJazz]

You're very welcome! It is a pretty cool idea, isn't it?

[@staglee234]

Thanks for this!

[@GypsyAndJazz]

Sure thing!