Accompaniment is one of
the most important roles a guitarist is expected to play in a jazz
band. Whether you are in a duo or quartet or big band, a good
majority of your time will be spent playing chords and
accompaniment, supporting other players and the band. As important
as it is, this is also one of the most valuable, enjoyable, and
interesting aspects of learning jazz guitar! With this book, a
beginning student can learn gradually and systematically how to
play the basic guitar chords and accompaniment styles typically
played in jazz.
Chapter 1 first reviews such basics as guitar
parts, tuning your guitar, and basic music notation and theory.
In Chapter 2, you will learn the most basic
chords, called triads, along with a basic accompaniment
style called strumming. In the first four sections, you
will learn guitar chord forms of triads and how to read and play
basic rhythms. Then, the last two sections discuss two basic
techniques for transposing chords to other roots: barre chords
and shifting techniques.
Chapter 3 will introduce you to 6th and 7th
chords and an important jazz accompaniment style called comping.
Many of the common rhythmic patterns you can apply to comping will
be presented.
In Chapter 4, more-advanced chords called extended
and altered will be presented, along with an accompaniment
style called fingerstyle.
Chapter 5 will first discuss an important
concept, chord embellishments. Then it will present three
additional accompaniment styles: four-to-the-bar, comping
with walking bass, and comping with 16th notes.
A large collection of chords, accompaniment
patterns, and theory will be presented in this book, and you may
feel overwhelmed from time to time. However, just remember to
spend plenty of time to digest and practice each section and
proceed at your own pace. Read instructions and
follow the diagrams and exercises carefully, and most importantly,
play everything slowly at first. This will ensure correct
learning and help you avoid acquiring bad habits that might be
hard to break later on.
In addition, throughout the book, various music
examples and sample songs have been included to show how the basic
guitar chords, accompaniment patterns and styles, and various
techniques can be brought together to make up an accompaniment. In
a similar manner, I highly encourage you to create as many
accompaniment examples of your own as possible. Lastly, this book
presents many of the guitar chords and accompaniment styles
commonly used in jazz. If you are, however, interested in learning
additional guitar chords and other accompaniment patterns and
styles, refer to Guitar Chords and Accompaniment or More
Guitar Chords and Accompaniment.
Good luck! I sincerely hope that you will have a great time
learning some of the most interesting aspects of jazz guitar
playing by working with this book.
(from Jazz Guitar Chords and Accompaniment,
2nd edition)
