Latest Posts

Barry Harris' 6th diminished scale provides a simple to understand explanation of jazz (especially bebop) harmony. But just because it's simple to understand, doesn't mean it's easy. This video shows real world examples of the scale in action, and provides you with practice techniques.

10 different ways to voice dominant 7th chords on the piano, including altered dominant voicings from Barry Harris.

Not a day goes by where some kid passes me on the street and asks "Hey Mr. Josh, will you teach me how to play blues kazoo?!"

Well kid, today is your lucky day.

Brad Mehldau's interpretation of Blackbird (Lennon / McCartney) from Art of the Trio in 1996.

Oscar Peterson's recording of C Jam Blues is one of the great bebop standards. In this video we explore 5 jazz licks transcribed from that recording.

Can I master the famously terrifying Charlie Parker standard, Donna Lee?

In this video we take a classic hymn, Amazing Grace, and we reharmonize it 5 ways with increasing jazz harmony.

Learning to play jazz as a classically trained pianist comes with many challenges. Playing "off-the-cuff" from a lead sheet, and making it unique with each performance.

When you start learning how to play the blues you learn about blues scales, blues licks, and shuffle patterns. But when you listen to the pros play the blues, they don't use these things -- at least not in the same way we do.

It's Friday, so that means a new Barry Harris video! This time, we explore Barry's concept of dominant chords coming from diminished chords, and how they literally share the DNA of their parents, the whole tone scales.

Barry Harris taught us how to borrow notes from the 6th diminished scale to create tension and release.

I've learned so much by studying Barry Harris' teachings. This concept of "6th on the 5th" was the first that I really took to heart. I hope it's useful for you.