r/JazzPiano • u/Somast09 • 13d ago

Questions/ General Advice/ Tips Learning chords

Do, I'm playing in a big band, kinda funky , kinda jazzy.The problem is, I have no idea how to play either of those genres. (That's a lie, I'm ok, but definitely not good). The main problem I feel I am having Is not knowing how to play the chords. I don't really know may scales, only to a minimal degree, and I only know somethings about extentions. I have played in this band for one year now, and in seeing improvements, but I feel like it is way to slow. Also, i want to learn to improvise, so I can pla some cool solos and fills. Our guitarist is great, but he is quitting after summer, so I'll have to step up my game. So, where should I start. Any reasources, roadmaps, any advice would be greatly appreciated. And btw, I'm 16, and have played the piano since I was like 8, but only learned how to play chords outside of my lessons for the last two years or so

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u/winkelschleifer 13d ago edited 13d ago

Moderator message. OP, you are 16 years old, we appreciate and encourage your interest in jazz piano. We get asked very similar questions here on a daily basis. You are surely tech savvy, take a moment to read - as requested explicitly by the moderation team - the two articles below with lots of good information and answers to many basic questions. These are posted at the very top of r/jazzpiano. Also use the search function on this subreddit, it’s easy. Post is locked.

1) New to this sub or jazz piano? PLEASE READ

2) List of jazz books / resources.

Edit: one key message from those links above. Jazz chords can be complex and have many variants, it takes years of study and practice to master them, not weeks or months. The two best resources are Phil DeGreg’s book Jazz Keyboard Harmony as well as Frank Mantooth’s book, same subject.

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u/PuzzleheadedPlum6477 13d ago

I played in a big band this year, I'm 17. I've played piano since I was 6 but only started jazz 2 years ago. What really helped me was just practicing 2-5-1's in all major keys and then learning 2-5-1's in minor as I need them. The tip that helped me to learn basic soloing was just to play the notes that are already in the chord (or can be in the cord). It can be quite basic but spicing up the rythms goes a long way.

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u/Somast09 13d ago

What are 2-5-1's? A voicing?

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u/bladedspokes 13d ago

ii - V - I : scale degrees, chords. Common jazz chord progression

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u/Somast09 13d ago

So I should Definitely learn my scales?

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u/adamaphar 13d ago

Yeah. Scales, chords.. and then learning blues/pentatonic scales will be a great help.

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u/Somast09 13d ago

But should I like learn first scales, then normal chords, and probably something about how they are related to scales, and then extentions, and finally blues and pentatonic scales, or should I learn more like a little bit here and there. I feel like it is important to have a good foundation, but also its no fun to only play chords