The jazz piano is a more challenging instrument for musicians who prefer explicit instructions, while classical piano is more difficult for those who prefer greater creative freedom. This is because jazz requires improvisation and the generation of unique musical ideas, while classical music requires the formation of predetermined pieces. However, the biggest difference lies in the approach to performance. Jazz is based more on improvisation through the skeletal structures of songs, while classical music is based on highly composed material that is played almost identically at all times. These scales are essential to
jazz piano
, and it's important to take the time to understand how each one sounds and works.It's difficult to say how easy it is to transition from a jazz formation to a classical formation, but a classical formation can be a great way to prepare a pianist for jazz. Depending on the type of practice and style of piano they choose, someone who has been playing the piano for a long time can develop a variety of skills. The classic song “Fly Me to the Moon”, composed by Bart Howard in 1954 and popularized by Frank Sinatra a decade later, is an ideal jazz standard for beginners looking to learn some basic jazz chords that are both enjoyable and easy to improvise. The jazz piano is incredibly complex and can be completely foreign to even highly talented classical pianists. The main difference between jazz and classical music is that jazz takes advantage of improvisation more than classical music.
To get started, it's important to understand the names and locations of the piano keys, as well as the basic major and minor scales, triads, and seventh chords - all of which will be useful in both jazz and classical. I learned the basics of playing the piano by making “classical” music so I could read music, but now I mostly play jazz and “popular” music. On the other hand, jazz piano is more rooted in improvisation and less focused on precision in performance. The classical piano brings back memories of my early days when I first started learning how to play. In my experience, studying jazz improvisation was incredibly rewarding because my piano classes had been preparing me all along.
Practicing different families of seventh chords will open your fingers and ears to the basic chords used in jazz piano styles.
