Jazz Piano Improvisation

In this ground-breaking course…

  • 29 In-Depth Video Lessons.

    Three hours worth of video instruction covering the following topics: approaches (enclosures), basslines, comping in left hand, comping with both hands, chord outlines, scale shapes, painting palettes, rhythmic figures, basic improvisation methods 1-3, playing "out," stride, rhythmic & melodic patterns, learning to deal with mistakes, call & response, rhythm, and more...

  • For All Levels.

    Specifically designed to cater to all levels, whether you are a complete beginner to jazz or have been playing for years and want to hone your craft.

    Course access is indefinite. Come and go as you please, it will never expire.

  • Teach Yourself.

    This course was designed to empower you. You will learn how to visualize the keyboard in a more complex way, develop your inner ear, and the creative mindset needed to improvise. You will be equipped with the tools necessary to create your own practice exercises and techniques.

  • 8-Week Flexible Structure.

    Listening exercises. Written homework. Video lessons. Theory guides and practice notes. The course is segmented into 8 weeks of learning, with PDF manuals to guide you as you watch the video lessons. Feel free to take as much time as you need to complete each week, and skip around to different weeks should they be more relevant to your practice.

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–Joseph S.

“I recently had the pleasure of taking Timothy Gondola's music course, and I must say it was a great experience. The course was well-structured and engaging, and Timothy was knowledgeable and passionate about music. The course also provided ample opportunities for hands-on learning. Overall, I would highly recommend this music course to anyone interested in deepening their understanding and appreciation of music.  ★★★★★”

–Jethro R.

"As a piano teacher and occasional jazz performer, I've found this course has given some real structure to my solos, and given me a great set of daily exercises. The exercise PDFs, and the bunch of Timothy's transcriptions have also helped me advance my own teaching of jazz to my students. I'd highly recommend this course! ★★★★★"

12 Months In The Making

In 2013 when I started my jazz journey, coming from the classical world, I looked everywhere for lessons and tutorials to help me learn how to improvise. I was a bit discouraged as every resource I found was great at telling you what to do, but didn't help you with how to do it. That is a lot more challenging, and the reason the course has taken 12 months to build. This is the course I wish I had access to back in 2013.

This course is designed for the many pianists who want to learn jazz but feel overwhelmed with tons of not-so-helpful videos about 2-5-1s and bebop and tritone substitutions and modes and licks and on and on... By reverse-engineering the jazz grammar of the many great pianists I have transcribed- from Oscar Peterson, Art Tatum, Eldar Djangirov, Bill Evans, George Shearing to Cory Henry and Michel Petrucciani- I’ve leveraged my decade of transcription experience to create the ideal jazz improvisation learning method.

The course is a practical, step-by-step regimen with guided practice routines to build up your bebop vocabulary, knowledge, and dexterity. 

Includes 25-page Jazz Starter Pack eBook!

Jazz Piano Improvisation Course Outline

  • Week 1 (Swing, Palettes & Improv)

    • What is swing and its nuances?

    • How to outline a palette/scale

    • Basic Improvisation Method I

    • Basic Improvisation Method II

  • Week 2 (Scale Shapes, Triplets & Rhythm)

    • How to create scale shapes to outline palettes

    • How to use triplets and apply various rhythms

  • Week 3 (Bebop Approaches & Openers)

    • How to approach target notes

    • How to incorporate approaches within Basic Improvisation Methods I & II

    • Bebop opener exercises

  • Week 4 (Chord Shapes & Comping)

    • The 24 chord shapes for 7th chords

    • How to synthesize chord outlines and approaches

    • How to comp in the left hand 

  • Week 5 (Patterns, Call & Response)

    • Making the most of small melodic and rhythmic elements

  • Week 6 (Basslines & Stride)

    • How to build basslines in the left hand

    • How to play stride

  • Week 7 (Playing Through Changes)

    • Basic Improvisation Method III

  • Week 8 (Comping & Dealing With Mistakes)

    • How to comp with both hands

    • How to restructure mistakes

  • Bonus Materials (Playing Out)

    • How to play “out”

    • Additional Approach Exercises & Circle Of Fourths Exercises 

Each week is comprised of the following components:

  • 2-6 Video Lessons (Videos)

  • iReal Pro Backing Tracks (.html)

  • Accompanying PDF Guides (PDFs)

  • Complementary Transcription(s) (PDFs)

  • Applied Listening Homework (PDF)

  • Circle Of Fourths Exercise (PDF)

  • Additional Theory/Reference materials

    • Theory Guides:

      • Anatomy Of A Chord Symbol PDF

      • Roman Numerals PDF

      • Scale Degrees PDF

    • Scales (MIDIs & PDFs with fingering in all 12 keys)

      • Major Scale

      • Natural, Harmonic & Melodic Minors

      • Major & Minor Blues

      • Major & Minor Pentatonic

      • Bebop Major & Bebop Mixolydian

      • 2 Diminished Scales

      • Wholetone Scale

    • Modes (MIDIs & PDFs with fingering in all 12 keys)

      • Major Modes– Ionian, Dorian, Phrygian, Lydian, Mixolydian, Aeolian, Locrian

      • Melodic Minor Modes– Jazz Minor, Dorian b2, Lydian Augmented, Lydian Dominant, Mixolydian b6, Aeolian b5, Superlocrian

This is the course for you!

Get started in minutes learning everything you need to know about Jazz Piano Improvisation.

“This course produces instant results right from the beginning. I have been waiting 40 years for this course!”

–Michael, Germany