How Difficult Is It To Learn Jazz Piano With A Classical Background?
i have been playing classical for years and now i'm interested in jazz piano.
10 Responses to “How Difficult Is It To Learn Jazz Piano With A Classical Background?”
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With the background of a classical musician you are well on your way. The late, great Oscar Peterson comes to mind as someone with classical training. Listen to him endlessly.
The biggest problem I see with some classical musicians who try to play jazz can best be described by a line from a play about jazz musicians by Warren Leight called “Side Man”:
“They couldn’t swing if you hung them.”
Its very important to swing and to play with feel; much more important than showing off chops or how much sophisticated harmony you may or may not know. I’m sure you know theory, you know harmony, probably more so than I and I’ve been playing jazz guitar since I was 18 and an instrument since I was 7.
Immerse yourself in the genre so that you really become familiar with it and how it feels. Get used to not relying on the sheet music; in most jazz its just a rough sketch for the improvisation. I would learn to play a lot of standards from fake books (or as we call it “The Real Book”) so you just have the most basic chart to go from.
Listen to these folks:
Bud Powell, Oscar Peterson, Hank Jones, Tommy Flanagan, Bill Evans (the pianist not the horn player), McCoy Tyner, Elmo Hope, Phineas Newborn Jr., Erroll Garner, Thelonious Monk (AN ABSOLUTE MUST), George Shearing, Bennie Green, Wynton Kelly, Paul Bley
That ought to get you started. Those are all pianists I mentioned; listen to other jazz greats as well.
You are playing the granddaddy of instruments and the one with the most harmonic power in any jazz group.
Best of luck to you.
EDIT: “Man Of Gold” does a great job of summing it up in a couple of quick sentences so I gave him a thumbs up. You can take everything you’ve been told here and put it under that umbrella and you’ll be on your way!
Not particularly challenging. I am in the third year of my music degree and for the first two years took classical performance exams, but switched to jazz this year. I had never had jazz piano lessons before this year (although I had played in various bands beforehand) – but didn’t get any worse marks for my recital.
The approach is different, you need to learn to feel rather than just read, and you need to be able to improvise – other than that they are very similar, and the switch is not too challenging – at least I didn’t think so.
This is a good question, though it gets repeated often enough. I can’t believe, with all the experienced people answering, that no one has mentioned the FIRST(I am not certain about this), MOST-IMPORTANT and FOREMOST classically-trained jazz pianist to you! I still gave out a lot of “thumbs up”, these are good answers…But…
Dave Brubeck is not only a great composer, but also a player whose jazz solos are not so far removed from classical music. He and Peterson are VERY different, and both are very good. Brubeck somehow could swing compositions that are based on classical formats and even those in “odd” time meters, as well as more “popular” works. McCoy Tyner also plays with that classical bent. Not to deny any of his phenomenal talent, Peterson had the technique part down pat, but is more known for “popular” music formats.
Another one of my favorites who approaches things from a classical approach, but takes his own (very different) direction, is the Brazilian pianist Deodato. His arrangements are the way you can start with songs you probably already know and move swiftly into a “different feel” with them. Then you can re-arrange things to get the jazz feel you are searching for. Good luck.
The hardest thing will be to adopt a jazz mindset. Since you have been studying classical music, you more than likely have a good technique but you must learn to think and feel like a jazz musician. Once you start studying jazz piano you will see what I am talking about.
jazz is a crazy style.
classiccl is the background to all music. so yes, you can learn it. jazz is more about feel, kinda like blues. jazz and blues are linked that way.
just listen to some old greats, go to a few jazz clubs, and try it out. try learning it by-ear. you’ll get there faster!
It matters if you like loud and fast( really fast) it’s really hard. I started with all different songs but jazz and got a song of jazz to play and my hands are playing the notes on a different time . But it gets easyer once you start to play the song.
Listen to Oscar Peterson. He was trained classically and was one the best jazz pianists of all times.
Many classical musicians play jazz, perhaps find a teacher to get you off to a good start.
Yes this works with your scales and chords with tempo and expression of feeling or the emotion of your deliver.
Keyboard man
Cal George
You should have a good classical background to play jazz.
the only problem is you will have to learn to break some rules !!