Category: Jazz Masters
A blog about jazz and related musings
An important lesson from this musical genius
I’m assuming you’ve heard of the composer named Evangelos Odysseas Papathanassiou. Ok, maybe you know him as Vangelis (hard G). Vangelis passed away about a year and a half ago but lived a spectacular life. I’ve always considered him to be one of the all-time great film composers, having been…
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Michael Lake
Trombonist, author, composer, marketer
Pocket Jazz
The Pocket Jazz course is a completely redesigned series of online videos of no more than three-minutes each. Most of the lessons also contain short excerpts of tips and wisdom from masters like Ron Carter, Randy Brecker, Dave Liebman, Richie Beirach, Toshiko Akiyoshi, and many more.
Teaching & Learning Jazz
From this book, Richie Beirach and Mike provide great stories of jazz wisdom, a reflection on university jazz education including how to choose a school, an analysis of the Hollywood view of jazz education, a look at the psychology of education, and many other previously unexplored essential topics for both teachers and students.
Available in soft cover and digital editions.
Trombone Improvisation Savvy
Trombone demands different physical abilities from other instruments, but certain skills are universal such as connecting your instrument to your musical mind. Learn from exercises and audio files specifically focused on trombone that will help you improvise much better.