The Practical Jazz Guitarist

Book excerpt: (Berklee Guide). Learn the essential tools and skills for playing jazz guitar. This practical guidebook will help you master the theory, technique, and conceptual framework for how to play jazz: comping chords, soloing, and playing with expression, facility, and good hand health. The accompanying audio tracks provide demonstrations of key technical concepts with play-along tracks to help you develop phrasing and location concepts on the fingerboard. It also provides examples to train your ear with call-and-response exercises similar to what you might be asked to perform at an audition or jury. A unique section on audition preparation for colleges and professional music programs, with an extended interview with Berklee College of Music's director of admissions, will help you advance in your career.