Essential Jazz Standards with Gary Willis | Solar
Trailer
Summary
Solar is a must-know jazz standard because it’s full of ii-V-1 chord progressions, which is the most common chord progression in jazz. Solar was first recorded and copyrighted by legendary trumpeter Miles Davis for his 1954 album, Miles Davis Quintet. You might also know it from his iconic Prestige album Walkin’. Although it’s only a short 12 bar form, it presents some harmonic challenges that will take your bass playing to a whole new level, even if you don’t play jazz!
In this course Gary Willis unlocks the improvising tools that he uses to play over Solar. We’ll analyse Gary’s own interpretation of the melody AND his solo, together with how he organises the form and connects the harmony. Solar is one of the first jazz standards any musician should learn. And who better to teach you than bass legend Gary Willis.
In this course you’re going to learn:
- How to play over a ii-V-1 chord progression.
- How to anticipate changing key centres.
- How Gary sheds different scale templates.
- Why it’s important to memorise the melody.
- And how to reinforce your own melodic ideas.
