Welcome to Jazz-School

Free SoloFree Lesson

Licks and tricks on the topic of Jazz Waltz: It's about how to accompany pieces like "Bluesette" by Toots Thielemans and how to improvise over them.

Basic Rhythm

I recommend that you work on this lesson first. Here you will learn how to turn the campfire chords into jazzy chords by adding just one note.

Rhythmic Precision

Nothing is as important as rhythm. You can improvise the most beautiful melodies: If the timing is wrong, everything is wrong. Here you will learn the secrets of rhythmic precision when playing downstrokes and upstrokes.

Magic Chords

"Magic Chords" are fantastic sounding chords that are usually very easy to play thanks to the trick of the open strings they contain.

Swing Phrasing

This lesson may be less extensive than the other courses in the Jazz School, but this content is particularly important! Here you will learn the secret of swing in slow and fast tempos.

Shell Chords

Less is more! Shell chords are particularly important, because they are no less than the foundation of Jazz guitar. With these chords reduced to three notes, you can easily accompany all Jazz standards!

Autumn Leaves

Everyone plays "Autumn Leaves". And rightly so, because the chord progression is as beautiful as it is omnipresent. We have put together a huge course on "Autumn Leaves" that you can benefit from endlessly!

Blue Bossa

The chord progression of "Blue Bossa" is very popular, and rightly so. Here you will learn a new, fresh melody, the chord accompaniment in Bossa Nova style, arpeggios and you will be presented with a detailed explanation of a complete solo.

Basic Chords

I recommend that you work on this lesson first. Here you will learn how to turn the campfire chords into jazzy chords by adding just one note.

Jazz Blues

Jazz Blues: Jazz would be much poorer without Jazz Blues. The feeling, the typical harmonies and the swing rhythm are an integral part of the repertoire of almost all jazz musicians. Here you will learn Jazz Blues in the key that Joe Pass preferred.

Minor Blues

The heart of the Jazz School beats right here, in the Minor Blues! There's a lot to learn: the Blues theme "K.B.", many jazz licks, several accompaniment techniques, and an exciting solo - written out note by note.

November

I begin each of my solo concerts with my composition "November." Learn this very popular piece; it's worth every effort!

II-V-I

No chord sequence is more important than II-V-I. In this very comprehensive course you will learn everything about the most commonly played chord sequence. In addition to the chords, it also covers their arpeggios, example solos and II-V-I licks.

Minor II-V-I

Most Jazz standards have at least one passage with a minor II-V-I chord progression. Reason enough to take a closer look at this beautiful chord progression.

Altered

Jazz is about tension and resolution. This tension is often created with the beautiful-sounding altered scale. Here you'll learn everything you need to know about this sound.

Joe Pass Turnarounds

The I-VI-II-V progression, also called turnaround, is almost as important as II-V-I. Both progressions are omnipresent in Jazz. In this lesson I'll show you how jazz legend Joe Pass approached turnarounds.

Blues Stop Chorus

In this "Blues stop chorus" you will not only learn a very cool rhythm, but also how to create a jazz blues with exactly this rhythm using chords on the high four strings.

C major

Bored while practicing scales? Not with this course! Learn different patterns and melodic progressions that make practicing scales fun. With instructions for improvisation.

Easy Pentatonic

This lesson is as detailed as it is easy! Here you will learn how to deal with the pentatonic scale. It is one of the most important basics of improvisation, nobody can get past it. So: get to work!

Stratvs

I am very happy to be able to present one of my compositions to you. Stratvs, that I am very proud of, is anything but a beginner's piece, but who is expecting you to be able to play it next week?

Tritone Substitution

Here, you will learn about one of the most important tools in jazz harmony. The tritone substitution ensures that your chords move with a beautiful voice-leading.

Blue Moon

Play like Joe Pass! In this course you will learn how the master approached a well-known jazz standard. This includes the head, the accompaniment in Joe Pass style, a solo and a chord melody version à la Joe Pass.

Wave

One of the most beautiful Bossa Nova classics explained for you. Learn this piece in the style of Wave.

Giant Steps

No, this course is not too difficult for you, because you can and should take plenty of time for it. You will find: Giant Steps is fun!

Clapton Style Blues

A standard Blues on jazz-school.de? In the Clapton Style? Well, I believe it's important to also practice Blues that is no Jazz Blues, because - as we know - almost everything comes from the Blues.

Joscho StephanLesson & Interview

Our first guest teacher at jazz-school.de is Joscho Stephan. Learn the fundamentals of music in the tradition of Django Reinhardt from this giant of Gypsy Swing.

Inside-Outside

For me, skillful inside-outside playing is much more than just shifting pentatonic scales around. In this course, you'll learn how to consciously move away from a scale to introduce a new sound.

Autumn

I composed the solo guitar piece "Autumn," which is based on the chord progression of "Autumn Leaves," in '99.

Easy HTWT

The half-tone-whole-tone scale is a symmetrical scale consisting of eight notes, alternating between half and whole steps. It sounds very exciting and modern.

Fiso PlacePlay Like Biréli Lagrène

Biréli Lagrène is one of the best guitarists on the planet. He has kindly allowed us to explain his solo on "Fiso Place" in detail here.

Easy Blues

In this lesson, we'll learn the Jazz Blues in the key of B^b. This lesson is technically simple, but very rich in content!

Silent NightChristmas carol

It's Christmas time! Even here at our Jazz School. Learn the world's most famous Christmas carol in an arrangement for jazz guitar.

Back Home

This composition of mine dates back to 2005, and it's quite something! Here you'll learn a beautiful ballad with colorful chord progressions and a catchy melody.