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Chord Melody Cafe

Intermediate to advanced chord melody arrangements for jazz guitar

Marty FriedmanTommy EmmanuelSteve VaiEric GalesEric Johnson

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Chord Melody Cafe
Mark Stefani

Mark Stefani

Educator

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Genres

About this course

Mark Stefani, a top-notch solo guitar player with a pedigree a mile long, is also one of the most prolific and well-rounded guitar instructors we have the pleasure of working with. Mark's recent TrueFire course, Jazzed Blues, remains at the top of our charts and his monthly lessons always rank in the top ten. Chord Melody Cafe, an interactive video course, focuses solely on chord melody for intermediate to advanced and pro players.

The course leverages TrueFire's new interactive video quick-learning system to get players up and running quickly without hours of tedious theory and exercises.

Chord Melody Cafe is a hands-on playing course, which guides the student through 15 chord melody arrangements of familiar pop and jazz tunes.

Here's how Chord Melody Cafe is presented:

- All 15 arrangements are broken down into bite-size chunks through a series of interactive video lesson segments.
- Video segments demonstrate the part as written and then breaks it down note-by-note, voicing-by-voicing.
- The instructor also demonstrates alternate voicings and provides tips on technique and presentation.
- Most importantly, you will learn how to develop your "voice" and craft your own chord melody arrangements.
- A text description overviews the tune and provides background on chord melody and solo guitar.
- Power Tab is included (interactive tablature), so you can see, hear and slow down the tablature and notation.
Release date: 10/15/2004 • 4h 09m runtime
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Sample lessons
All Blues 1b
All Blues 1b
All Blues 2a
All Blues 2a
All Blues 2b
All Blues 2b

What's included

76 lessons • 15 charts

All Blues 1a
Welcome to Chord-Melody Cafe! In this course we'll be concentrating our efforts on learning fifteen great standards arranged for solo guitar spanning a wide variety of styles. The purpose of this course is to help build a solid vocabulary of chord melody concepts while also shedding light on arranging and performing chord melody tunes. The first segment opens with the intro vamp and first four bars of Miles Davis' legendary "All Blues" composition. Let's get started...
All Blues 1b
Welcome to Chord-Melody Cafe! In this course we'll be concentrating our efforts on learning fifteen great standards arranged for solo guitar spanning a wide variety of styles. The purpose of this course is to help build a solid vocabulary of chord melody concepts while also shedding light on arranging and performing chord melody tunes. The first segment opens with the intro vamp and first four bars of Miles Davis' legendary "All Blues" composition. Let's get started...
All Blues 2a
In the second lesson segment, we'll be covering the remaining eight bars of this twelve-bar blues. We'll talk about fingering alternatives for the ninth and tenth measure, plus some variations in phrasing, so you can creatively spice up this jazz waltz composition. "All Blues" was recorded on Miles' "Kind of Blue" release many years ago, an album that many consider the greatest small group recording in jazz history. It was the beginning of the "Modal Era" in jazz.
All Blues 2b
In the second lesson segment, we'll be covering the remaining eight bars of this twelve-bar blues. We'll talk about fingering alternatives for the ninth and tenth measure, plus some variations in phrasing, so you can creatively spice up this jazz waltz composition. "All Blues" was recorded on Miles' "Kind of Blue" release many years ago, an album that many consider the greatest small group recording in jazz history. It was the beginning of the "Modal Era" in jazz.
Freeloader 1a
Our next chord-melody project is also a famous jazz blues composition. "Freddie Freeloader" was recorded on the same Miles Davis album, and is a classic example of swing blues. Originally in the key of Bb, this version is presented in the guitar-friendly key of A, and features a cool, walking bass line throughout the arrangement. This first lesson segment will get you familiar with all of the primary techniques required to play the tune. Ready to do a little walking?
Freeloader 1b
Our next chord-melody project is also a famous jazz blues composition. "Freddie Freeloader" was recorded on the same Miles Davis album, and is a classic example of swing blues. Originally in the key of Bb, this version is presented in the guitar-friendly key of A, and features a cool, walking bass line throughout the arrangement. This first lesson segment will get you familiar with all of the primary techniques required to play the tune. Ready to do a little walking?
Freeloader 2a
The second half of this tune begins with dissecting the second and final ending of the piece. After that, we're going to spend some time isolating the bass line independently from the arrangement, so you can really focus on the essence of the accompaniment. Doing walking bass with chords is a skill that guitarists such as Joe Pass, Tuck Andress, and others have popularized over the years. Finally, we'll break down the technical specifics of executing smooth, left-hand chord shifts.

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Reviews

1 result

Nachman F.

Verified buyer

12/07/15

I own a lot of TF courses, and this is one I have used most. I mostly play Rockabilly and Swing, so this was right on, and took my playing up a level. As others wrote, this is not a beginner's course, although I would add that if you really dig the style then go for it, even if you're starting. You will find something that you can play and enjoy. Also as others mentioned, I really like the three choruses which develop the solo (a feature found in other TF courses as well) - gives you a lot of ideas where to take a solo to. I also prefer courses taught by teachers for whom their subject is more than a "style", or a "bag of licks". Music is much bigger than that, and I feel that David is tuned into something that goes beyond just a "style".

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