Progressive Jazz Guitar has been designed to introduce the most useful chord shapes used by Jazz guitarists. This book uses a carefully graded lesson-by-lesson format and uses many well known Jazz progressions to illustrate each chord. The aim of this book is to take the mystery out of playing Jazz guitar by explaining the way chords are constructed and how they fit into certain keys and patterns.
This book is designed for beginning Jazz guitarists, not beginning guitarists. Before the commencement of this text your knowledge should include:
- Open chords
- Bar chords (especially E and A formation)
- Basic music theory is assumed although there is some revision in the book
- Knowledge of key signatures and major scales is desirable
It would be good policy to work through a sight-reading method (perhaps with the aid of an experienced teacher) either before or during the study of this book. Combine the study of this volume with much listening (see for a list of Notable Jazz Guitarists ) and a great deal of playing with other musicians.
The chord shapes given in this book are the most commonly used. However, there are many different shapes available, some of which can be very useful for a particular progression or voicing. All these shapes can be found in Progressive Guitar Method: Chords . Also a complete listing of scales and key signatures (to help you construct these chords) can be found in the Appendix Two .
Above all, practice and enjoy!
