🎹 Harmony Challenge: Diatonic Circle with Quartal Voicings! Hosted by Dr. Bob Lawrence of Jazz Piano Skills and Director of The Dallas School of Music. Today’s challenge tests your ability to play the Diatonic Circle progression (#IV–VII–III–VI–II–V–I) in C Major using Contemporary Quartal Voicings. This high-level harmonic workout builds precision,…
In this enlightening episode of the Jazz Piano Skills podcast, Dr. Bob Lawrence masterfully leads listeners through the melodic analysis of the jazz standard "Lady Be Good"—a continuation of the monthly three-part study approach that defines his educational philosophy. 🎹 What’s Covered: This is Week 2 in the tune study…
🎶 Rhythm Challenge: F Minor Samba Fusion! 🥁 Hosted by Dr. Bob Lawrence of Jazz Piano Skills and The Dallas School of Music, today’s Rhythm Challenge is open to all jazz instrumentalists—piano, trumpet, sax, guitar, bass, strings, and more! This challenge puts your rhythmic control to the test with syncopated…
🎶 Melody Challenge: II-V-I Arpeggios from the 3rd! 🎶 Hosted by Dr. Bob Lawrence of Jazz Piano Skills and Director of The Dallas School of Music, today’s Melody Challenge is open to all jazz musicians — pianists, horn players, string players, guitarists, bassists, and more! This challenge focuses on playing…
🎹 Harmony Challenge: Minor II-V-I Mastery! Hosted by Dr. Bob Lawrence of Jazz Piano Skills and Director of The Dallas School of Music. Today’s challenge pushes your harmonic control as you play a Minor II-V-I Progression using three essential voicing styles: ✅ Quartal Shells ✅ Traditional Shells ✅ Harmonic Clusters…
🎹 Rhythm Challenge: Eb Minor to the 13th! 🎷 Join Dr. Bob Lawrence of Jazz Piano Skills and The Dallas School of Music for today’s Rhythm Challenge, open to all jazz musicians—pianists, horn players, guitarists, bassists, string players, and more! This challenge tests your ability to lay down a rhythmic…
🎶 Melody Challenge: Minor Triads with a Twist! 🎶 Join Dr. Bob Lawrence of Jazz Piano Skills and Director of The Dallas School of Music for today’s Melody Challenge, crafted for all jazz musicians — pianists, horn players, guitarists, bassists, and string players! This challenge focuses on playing four-note minor…
🎹 Harmony Challenge: Quartal Shells Through the 'C' Major Scale! Hosted by Dr. Bob Lawrence of Jazz Piano Skills and Director of The Dallas School of Music. Today’s challenge tests your ability to play Contemporary Quartal Shell Voicings with minimal harmonic motion as you move through all seven chords of…
🎹 *Improvisation Misconceptions & A Better Starting Point for Jazz Beginners* Saturday Morning Sunrise Lesson with Dr. Bob Lawrence In this insightful and practical jazz talk, Dr. Bob Lawrence—founder of Jazz Piano Skills and Director of The Dallas School of Music—answers a key question from a student in South Africa:…
🎺 Rhythm Challenge: C7 Mardi Gras Groove! 🎷 Hosted by Dr. Bob Lawrence of Jazz Piano Skills and The Dallas School of Music, today’s Rhythm Challenge is open to all jazz musicians—pianists, horn players, guitarists, bassists, string players, and more! This challenge focuses on the C Dominant sound, using chord…
🎷 Bebop Melody Challenge – II-V-I in Eb! 🎷 Join Dr. Bob Lawrence of Jazz Piano Skills and The Dallas School of Music for today’s Melody Challenge — designed for ALL jazz musicians: pianists, horn players, string players, guitarists, and bassists! This challenge features classic bebop language over the iconic…
🎹 *Harmony Challenge:* Contemporary Quartal Shells! Hosted by Dr. Bob Lawrence of Jazz Piano Skills and Director of The Dallas School of Music. Today’s challenge will stretch your harmonic vocabulary as you tackle *Contemporary Quartal Shell Voicings* over the classic *III-VI7-II-V7-I progression*. This is a must-have skill for every serious…
🎹 Discover, Learn & Play: George Gershwin’s *"Lady Be Good"* | Jazz Piano Skills Podcast with Dr. Bob Lawrence 🎶 Welcome to a brand-new month of jazz discovery at Jazz Piano Skills! In this episode, Dr. Bob Lawrence kicks off an exciting new tune study featuring George Gershwin’s timeless standard…
🎷 *Rhythm Challenge:* Improv with Chord Tones! 🎶 Join Dr. Bob Lawrence of Jazz Piano Skills and The Dallas School of Music for today’s *Rhythm Challenge*, designed for jazz pianists and all instrumentalists—sax, trumpet, flute, clarinet, guitar, bass, strings, and more! This challenge tests your ability to develop improvisation vocabulary…
🎹 Harmony Challenge: Locked Hands Style! Hosted by Dr. Bob Lawrence of Jazz Piano Skills and Director of The Dallas School of Music. Today’s challenge puts your chops to the test with the F7 arpeggio played locked hands style à la George Shearing — Root to 7th! A must-have voicing…
🎶 Pentatonic Arpeggio Melody Challenge! 🎶 Hosted by Dr. Bob Lawrence of Jazz Piano Skills and Director of The Dallas School of Music, today’s Melody Challenge is for ALL jazz musicians — pianists, horn players, string players, guitarists, bassists — anyone ready to level up their jazz vocabulary! This challenge…
🕰️ Rhythm Challenge: Off-Beat 8ths + Triplets! 🎶 Hosted by Dr. Bob Lawrence of Jazz Piano Skills and The Dallas School of Music, today’s Rhythm Challenge is designed for jazz pianists and all instrumentalists—trumpet, sax, flute, guitar, bass, strings—you name it! 🎵 Test your rhythmic control by tackling off-beat 8th…
🎵 Melody Challenge: Major Pentatonic Motion! 🎵 Hosted by Dr. Bob Lawrence of Jazz Piano Skills and Director of The Dallas School of Music, this Melody Challenge is for ALL jazz musicians — pianists, horn players, guitarists, bassists, string players — everyone! Today’s challenge focuses on ascending and descending lines…
🎹 *Harmony Challenge* for Jazz Pianists! Hosted by Dr. Bob Lawrence of Jazz Piano Skills and Director of The Dallas School of Music. Today’s *challenge*: Master Traditional *Shell Voicings* (3-7-9 and 7-3-5) over the classic *II-V-I progression*. This essential skill is a must-have for every serious *jazz pianist* — it’s…
Summary In this episode of Jazz Piano Skills, Dr. Bob Lawrence delves into the essential elements of jazz piano, focusing on the importance of rhythm in music. He emphasizes that rhythm is foundational to melody and harmony, and neglecting it can lead to musical frustration. The episode introduces 50 must-know…
🎵 *Rhythm* Challenge Time! 🎵 Today’s Jazz Piano Skills *Rhythm Challenge*, hosted by Dr. Bob Lawrence (Director of The Dallas School of Music), is open to all instrumentalists—pianists, trumpeters, saxophonists, guitarists, bassists, and more! #rhythmchallenge #jazzrhythms #jazzlessons Test your rhythmic chops with a flurry of 16th notes set to a…
🎶 Monthly Tune Study: “Lady Be Good” by George Gershwin 🎶 Hosted by Dr. Bob Lawrence | Jazz Piano Skills | Director, The Dallas School of Music Join Dr. Bob Lawrence for this month’s exciting Jazz Piano Skills Tune Study featuring the timeless jazz standard "Lady Be Good" by George…
🎶 *Melody Challenge* for ALL Jazz Musicians! 🎶 Hosted by Dr. Bob Lawrence of Jazz Piano Skills and Director of The Dallas School of Music, today’s *Melody Challenge* is designed for jazz pianists and ALL instrumentalists — trumpet, saxophone, clarinet, flute, trombone, guitar, bass, and strings! This *challenge* puts your…
🎹 *Harmony Challenge* – One Voicing, Two Chords (TWOFER!) 🎶 Hosted by Dr. Bob Lawrence of Jazz Piano Skills and Director of The Dallas School of Music, today’s *Harmony Challenge* puts your harmonic vision to the test! Can you see one voicing working for two different chords? That’s economy of…