Jazz Guitar Improvisation - a few notes can go a long way

The method of a good improvised solo, in most styles of jazz, is to create an idea and develop it. If it comes from your fingers it is probably just another riff ... if it comes from your “inner ear” that is you can hear the phrase you want to play and play it ... that’s jazz!

Rhythmic variety combined with only a few notes can give almost endless possibilities. The whole of our musical culture (in the west) is made from only twelve notes and I wonder how many pieces of music have been composed since the time of Bach!

Don’t be intimidated by the idea that you have to play lots of notes very fast in order to be a good player. It’s what you do with what you’ve got that counts. So, set yourself realistic goals and enjoy your playing ... if you play with conviction you’ll sound better to your listeners than you think you sound!

See also: Learn to play the jazz guitar

Improvisation - Making the Breakthrough

I would love to learn to play the jazz guitar well, but ...

I've spent a fortune on books, videos and DVD's ...

I've spent hours copying other guitarist's riffs ...

I know more scales and chords than I care to mention ...

But I still can't improvise!

Why? Too much info ... faced with all those notes, which one do you pluck first!
Also, not giving yourself enough time to play and absorb a few basics that will lead you on to greater things. It is so tempting to start at the back of the book, but the stuff at the front is the foundation.

There are three approaches to improvisation which I shall discuss here.

1. Melodic or scale like - mostly based on scales.
2. Harmonic or arpeggio - mostly based on arpeggios and chord shapes.
3. Minimalist - take just a few notes and see what can be done with them

Melodic
Major, minor, pentatonic and modal scales are the main ingredients for the improviser who takes the melodic approach.
Perhaps the most useful is the major scale. Why you may ask ... because from it we also make the modal scales, each of which starts from a different degree of the major scale.

Harmonic
Based on arpeggios or chord shapes, this can be slightly easier to get started with because the notes will imply chord changes and the intervals will add more unpredictability than step-wise movement.

Minimalist
Having taught improvisation for over thirty years, this is the easiest place to start.
The saying "you can make an improvised solo on just one note" is true ... so just think what you could do with two or three notes!