Hal Leonard Publications
50 Ways to Improve Your Improvisational Skills

This book/CD pack explores all the main components necessary for crafting well-balanced rhythmic and melodic phrases. It also explains how these phrases are put together to form cohesive solos. Many styles are covered – rock, blues, jazz, fusion, country, Latin, funk and more – and all of the concepts are backed up with musical examples. The 50 ideas are divided into five main sections:

The Basics – covers fundamental but all too often forgotten techniques, such as slurs and vibrato, that can breathe new life into your phrases;
Melodic Concepts – explores various aspects of melodic phrasing, such as motifs, chromaticism and sequences;
Harmonic Embellishments – discusses the melodic potential of harmonic intervals (dyads), chords and chord partials;
Rhythmic Concepts – explores various aspects of rhythmic phrasing, such as accents, free-time phrasing and metric modulation, and how it pertains to melodic soloing;
Solo Structure – all of the topics discussed in the book come together to help form the big picture.

The audio is accessed online using the unique code inside each book and can be streamed or downloaded. The audio files include PLAYBACK+, a multi-functional audio player that allows you to slow down audio without changing pitch, set loop points, change keys, and pan left or right.

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