Why Your Improv Sounds Like Scales (And The Fix)

[00:00:00]If your solo sounds like you're just running up and down scales, this is fixable with three simple ideas.

[00:00:07]>> [music] [music] >> The shocking thing is that I played the same scale in both solos. The key to the sound lies in three simple ideas that you can start using right now in your own playing. So, the scale trap happens when you play the same scale up and down the piano. To fix it, start with idea number one. Watch what happens when you use shape shifting over a super basic scale.

[00:00:47]The secret to getting this sound is to break up your scale in three key ways.

[00:00:51]We're going to use a super simple scale, C, >> [music] >> D, E flat, F, G, A, and B flat. And a very simple chord progression.

[00:01:02]This [music] is C, E flat, [singing] G, B flat, to an F chord. This is C, E flat, F, A.

[00:01:10]Now, do not play the scale up and down the way you were probably taught to play the scale. Instead, do this.

[00:01:25]What I'm basically doing is I'm taking each note of the scale, I'm picking a starting note, and then I'm skipping two notes [music] from the scale. So, we skip the D, play the E flat, then skip the F, and [music] play the G.

[00:01:38]Then, move it around. So, I can do the same thing on F.

[00:01:41]>> [music] >> Skip it, skip it, and play that. Or, I could do it on the B flat.

[00:01:48]And when you start using this in your solo, it sounds super cool.

[00:01:52]>> [music] >> But, the next exercise is where your solo really starts to sound legit.

[00:02:01]Here's the sound of the jazz shifter.

[00:02:09]Exercise two is very simple. All you do is start on one note from the scale, but this time you're going to skip three notes. So, we skip the D, play the E-flat, skip the F, play the G, >> [music] >> and skip the A and play the B-flat.

[00:02:22]Again, you can play this anywhere on the scale. For example, I could do this on the E-flat.

[00:02:30]I could play it like that. Or I could do it on the A.

[00:02:35]And once again, this sounds super cool when you solo with it.

[00:02:45]>> [music] >> But the coolest sound is the next one.

[00:02:48]This shape shifter is so powerful that you might be mistaken for a pro pianist the moment you play it.

[00:03:01]Now, don't be afraid of this run because it's actually easier to play than it sounds. The key to playing this technique is to skip two notes twice.

[00:03:08]So, start on C, skip two notes, play the F, then skip two notes, and play the B-flat.

[00:03:17]Then move it around the keyboard. So, you could do this on the G, skip two notes, play [music] the C, skip two notes, and play the F. And the amazing thing is that you can shift this anywhere using the scale and it sounds awesome.

[00:03:31]>> [music] >> Now, it's not enough to just learn your shape shifter because you're still missing out on two incredible sounds.

[00:03:41]But before I show you the next idea, be sure to hit that like and subscribe button. Rub runs are so stinking cool that once people learn them, they can't stop playing them.

[00:03:55]>> [music] >> The key to getting the sound is to play two essential exercises. What you're going to do is play the first four core notes of the scale that I taught you.

[00:04:04]These notes are C, E flat, G, [music] and B flat. Now, watch carefully. You're going to play the note just one [music] step below each of these core notes. So, we have B to C, D to E flat, >> [music] >> F sharp to G, and A to B flat. With the chords, it sounds like this.

[00:04:29]But, exercise two is where it really locks in. This is so simple because now you're going to play all of the notes just above your four core notes. [music] So, starting from the top, we have B to B flat, we have A flat to G, we have E to E [music] flat, and we have D flat to C. So, with the chords, it goes like this.

[00:04:48]>> [music] >> Now, whenever you solo, all you have to do is add these rub notes. So, take my chords, [music] and if I'm playing a line like like that, then instead I can go like this.

[00:05:03]>> [music] >> And use that upper rub note. Likewise, if I have a line like this, instead I can play this.

[00:05:12]Or if I have a line like this, instead I could play it like this.

[00:05:18]>> [music] >> Or if I have a line like this, instead I could play it like this.

[00:05:26]And when you use these in your lines, it sounds super pro.

[00:05:31]>> [music] >> This final technique is so underused that honestly, I'm shocked when I hear students use it. The pedal packer is the technique that sells concert tickets, and it is my number one go-to technique if I want to play an awesome solo. But, before I show this to you, I know that you probably feel stuck in your piano playing. You don't know what to practice, and you probably feel overwhelmed by all of the online piano videos. With the unique Piano With Johnny learning system, you'll get a personalized assessment and practice plan so that you'll know exactly what to practice. I'll put a link in the description, and now back to the video.

[00:06:14]And now for the moment you've been waiting for, the pedal packer.

[00:06:27]The key to this technique is to add a C or a G above the other notes of your scale. So, if you want to play these notes, >> [music] >> then you put a C above them.

[00:06:41]Likewise, if I want to play these notes, >> [music] >> you're going to put a G above them.

[00:06:49]And it sounds amazing when you use this on the notes of your scale.

[00:06:58]But, how do you put all three of these ideas together? Well, it's time for the grand finale. See if you can identify which idea I use at different spots in my solo.

[00:07:08]>> [music] [music] >> All right, you have officially reached piano legend status. But, what if you want to solo with multiple scales? Well, I made this special video just for you.