Online instruction

Can anyone recommend an online piano site for jazz, blues, rock? I had been using a site for a couple of years but the quality has deteriorated of late.

Hi Nikalette! Can I be so brazen as to mention my own site, DoctorKeys Online Piano Lessons? :o)

It offers a course called Play & Sing that teaches you to accompany yourself in pop, rock, blues, and folk styles.

Naturally, without knowing more about you, I can't say whether the course would be appropriate for you. The tutorials are designed for people who are just getting started at the piano, but also for more advanced pianists who want to learn to accompany, or become more proficient in pop styles.

The lessons and videos are clearly indexed, so it's easy to skip what you already know, and find exactly what you're looking for.

There's a free video on the site called Piano Accompaniment Styles for 50 Great Songs, so you can get a feel for what I do without paying a cent. Subscribing to the site costs only $20 for 6 months.

Anyway, I hope my pitch for my own site is not inappropriate here! And I'll be delighted to answer any questions you may have.

Bruce

I'm assuming the site was Willie Myette's. What changed your mind about his material? Just curious because I never signed on to his program but did buy a few of his DVD's.

My lips are sealed.

Thanks Bruce, I am interested most in accompanying myself , although I'm not a beginner. More intermediate to advanced. I'll give it a try.

Thanks.

You're welcome, Nikalette. Sounds like much of what's on my site may be too basic for you. A few of my videos are available for free on my YouTube channel, so you can check them out there.
http://www.youtube.com/user/brucesiegel28?feature=mhee

Bruce

If I may, you might find my site helpful too, because it includes an intermediate and an advanced section (more coming in the future):

http://www.betterpiano.com/archives/category/level/intermediate
http://www.betterpiano.com/archives/category/level/advanced

Enjoy

James

If you have been working on "jazz, blues, rock" for two years now, you must have a fair idea about what specific areas you would like to develop, and in what direction. Tell us a little more about what you are hoping to achieve, and we can make more informed recommendations.

Ed

You might want to also check out David Sprunger's site: http://www.playpianotoday.com/ There's a specific page there for Blues piano: http://www.playpianotoday.com/blues/

I'm just picking up piano after many years away, and am working thru his "Pattern Piano" course. After the first few basic lessons, it's become quite challenging for me. It sounds like you're farther along in ability than me, so it might fit well for your current level.

I'm able to learn songs by reading, and have a good grounding in theory, but having problems with Improv and accompanying myself in a better way, I have tended to play the piano like a guitar, using arpeggios and block chords, with just the root or another chord tone in the bass. It's not hard for me to play and sing, I did it for years on the guitar, but my creativity is stuck when it comes to accompaniment or solo.improc sections of a song.

Thanks for the suggestions, I have gone to all the sites and bookmarked them.

Also, I had a bad break in my left radius and ulna, requiring surgery, about a year ago and the combination of the injury and mistakes I surgery and casting have decreased my reach from 9ths to 7ths and octaves, my biggest area of disability being my thumb and pinky. It appears to be permanent.

That is a shame about the injury, and especially perhaps about the bungling that followed apparently.

I do not have the copy in front of me, but Adolph Sandole authored a book named "JAZZ PIANO: LEFT HAND" a number of years ago, published by the Berklee Press, as I recall. It was focused on jazz piano-style "comping", which would work when other instruments are improvising, when working with a vocalist, or whenever your RH is called upon to solo.

For general jazz development, one of our distinguished members right on this Forum, Dave Frank, has published a comprehensive tutorial as a guide to becoming a real jazz pianist. The "Joy of Improvisation" is the structured course, and many on this Forum participate in a special thread dedicated to their on-going discoveries.

Of course, for real, focused learning, nothing beats finding a very good teacher, and doing personalized study.
Ed