03/10/2021 10:30 AM
A large part of learning to play jazz and the jazz style revolves around learning and playing different jazz “standards”. These are songs that most professional jazz musicians will know. Going to a jam session or “sitting in” on a jazz gig requires that you know some of these standards. Since there is rarely a music stand on stage, most jazz musicians commit jazz standards to memory so that they can play them wherever and whenever needed.
This can seem like a daunting task at first, memorizing lots of different songs. But just like everything else in playing music, we all have to start somewhere and the more you learn and memorize standards the easier it will get. Here are some tips for going about this process!
LEARN THE MELODY!
This does not matter what instrument you are on, from sax to piano to bass to even drummers. Knowing the melody of a jazz standard, or “head” as it’s often referred to, is the most basic and fundamental way to know a song. If you’re working on improvisation, the melody is always a source for your solos. Plus, keeping the melody going in your head can help you keep track of what point the song is at during a solo, instead of just counting measures.
It’s important for rhythm section players to know the melody too, even though they may not play it, so that the band can play rhythmic ideas and hits that help set up and support the melody.
LEARN THE FORM AND CHORD CHANGES
If you are learning and memorizing jazz standards with the intent of improvising also, the form and chord changes of standards will provide a structure for your solo. Chord changes are what people in the rhythm section (piano, guitar, and bass) will be playing to support the melody and solos. So, it’s important that you know them, so that your playing lines up with their backing.
An important way to think about all these chord changes is to do what’s called Roman Numeral Analysis. If you’re not familiar, this is when you relate chord changes to one particular key center or scale, assigning each chord within the key a roman numeral. For instance, the most common chord progression in jazz is the ii-V-I (“two five one”), progression. Knowing and remembering how chord changes relate to each other is an easier way to memorize a standard than trying to remember every chord on its own.
Learning the chord changes as roman numerals and how they fit together is also important if you ever need to transpose a song, or change the key it’s in. This will often happen with singers, when the original key of a standard may not fit their vocal range. Transposing can be quite difficult at first, but knowing the chord changes by roman numeral will make it easier to think about the chords in a new key.
DON'T FORGET TO LEARN THE LYRICS!
If you’re learning jazz standards on an instrument and are not a singer, you will often be tempted to skip learning the lyrics. DONT! This is a bad habit, since the lyrics are a great way to help remember how the melody goes, and how the melody should be played.
Also try thinking about what the general song is about, the theme or the story, and which words in the lyrics would be accented, were you talking or singing. These tools can be used to take the interpretation of a jazz standard to the next level.
PLAY IT & PLAY IT AGAIN!
The more practice you get playing a standard, the easier it will be to remember. Keep a list of the standards you have learned, and periodically go through the list to make sure you still remember them all, and to touch up on anything you’ve forgotten. Playing with a band or a backing track will also help you hear the melody and chord changes played in real time, and provide a real-life example of why learning standards is so important.
The process of learning and memorizing standards will be hard at first. Don’t feel like you have to learn 20 songs all at once though! Start with one and go from there. This is a process that can’t be rushed and every musician learns at different paces. The more you practice these basic steps for learning standards, the easier it will get. I can say with certainty that learning a song now is loads easier than it was for the first standard I tried memorizing!
TALK TO AN EXPERT
As always, if some of these things sound unfamiliar or too hard, ask your teacher/mentor/peers for help. Those with experience will be able to help you through your first couple standards, and offer suggestions on memorizing, practice, and performance.
For more information on learning to play in the jazz style, check out Nick F.'s blog post "Tips for Learning Jazz Improvisation" or sign up for lessons!