University of Rochester - The Blues: Understanding and Performing an American Art Form
- Offered byCoursera
- Public/Government Institute
The Blues: Understanding and Performing an American Art Form at Coursera Overview
Duration | 11 hours |
Total fee | Free |
Mode of learning | Online |
Difficulty level | Beginner |
Official Website | Explore Free Course  |
Credential | Certificate |
The Blues: Understanding and Performing an American Art Form at Coursera Highlights
- Shareable Certificate Earn a Certificate upon completion
- 100% online Start instantly and learn at your own schedule.
- Flexible deadlines Reset deadlines in accordance to your schedule.
- Approx. 11 hours to complete
- English Subtitles: French, Portuguese (European), Italian, Russian, English, Spanish
The Blues: Understanding and Performing an American Art Form at Coursera Course details
- The blues is an American art form and the most important musical form in jazz. Although there are other formal paradigms of the blues, such as 8-bar or 16-bar, this course focuses on different incarnations of the 12-bar blues. There are considerable differences between Early Jazz blues, Swing blues, Bebop blues, Modal blues, and Post Bop blues. Each type has its unique harmonic syntax, melodic vocabulary and, associated with them, improvisational techniques. While other aspects of jazz performance practice have been constantly changing from one stylistic convention to another, the blues has never lost its identity and expressive power, and continues to exert a powerful influence on the harmonic and melodic syntax of jazz.
- This seven-week course explores important aspects of the blues, blues improvisation, basic keyboard textures, jazz harmonic and melodic syntax. Topics include: (1) Blues Progressions; (2) Blues and Other Scales; (3) Improvisational Tools, and others. This course will also cover valuable theoretical concepts enabling the student to master the art of jazz improvisation. Each topic will be introduced from a practical perspective with the clearly stated goal: to improve one?s improvisational skills. Jazz improvisation is rooted in spontaneity, creativity, self-expression and, at the same time, self-control and order. A unique pedagogical approach based on a one-to-one musical interaction conducted with different instrumentalists will help to reinforce many of the concepts introduced in this course and realize its stated objectives.
The Blues: Understanding and Performing an American Art Form at Coursera Curriculum
Blues Progressions ? Theory and Practice
Course Introduction Video
Lesson 1 Introduction
Historical Overview (12:00)
Generic Blues (6:25)
Basic Blues Progression
Minor Blues (6:49)
AA?B Phrase Structures (5:54)
Quiz - Lesson 1
Blues Scales
Lesson 2 Introduction (4:38)
The Blues Scale (8:08)
Jazz Notation and Jazz Rhythm (12:34)
Blues Riffs (11:40)
Call and Response (6:34)
One-Scale Improvisation and ?East Main Blues? (13:22)
Quiz - Lesson 2
Keyboard Realization
Lesson 3 Introduction (3:45)
Guide Tones (8:53)
Invertible Counterpoint (4:20)
Charleston Rhythm (10:04)
Four-Part Chords (9:35)
Five-Part Chords (9:43)
Comping Texture (18:58)
Quiz - Lesson 3
?Bird? Blues and Other Blues Progressions
Lesson 4 Introduction (2:42)
?Now?s the Time? Progression - Analysis (5:45)
Ear Training Strategies (9:11)
?Billie?s Bounce? Progression - Analysis (4:49)
Rhythmic Displacement (10:34)
?Blues for Alice? Progression - Analysis (6:06)
Practical Tips (13:01)
Quiz - Lesson 4
Improvisational Tools
Lesson 5 Introduction (2:39)
?Mr. PC? Progression ? Analysis and Tritone Substitutions (10:49)
Pentatonics and Pentatonic Voicings (13:44)
?Mr. Day? Progression ? Analysis (3:36)
Pentatonic Voicings ? Voice-Leading Principles (7:20)
Pentatonic Voicings ? Practical Exercises (6:09)
?Isotope? Progression ? Analysis (8:00)
The Drop-Two Voicing Technique (12:48)
Quiz - Lesson 5
Improvising the Blues ? Part 1
Lesson 6 Introduction and ?Half Past Nine? (4:55)
Techniques of Motivic Improvisation (13:19)
Demonstration of Motivic Improvisation (3:30)
Play-Along Session ? ?Now is the Time? Progression (4:19)
?Billie?s Dance? (3:12)
Guide-Tone Improvisation (15:38)
Demonstration of Guide-Tone Improvisation (3:49)
Play-Along Session ? ?Billie?s Bounce? Progression (4:19)
?Birdie Song? (3:46)
Chordal Arpeggiation ? 4-Part Chords (11:14)
Demonstration of Arpeggiation of 4-part Chords (4:16)
Chordal Arpeggiation ? 5-Part Chords (5:54)
Demonstration of Arpeggiation of 5-part Chords (4:30)
Play-Along Session ? ?Blues for Alice? Progression (4:16)
Quiz - Lesson 6
Improvising the Blues ? Part 2
Introduction and Diatonic/Chromatic Modes (7:46)
Modal Categories (10:06)
Characteristic Triads and Practice Tips (13:13)
Minor Blues - ?Sea Blues? Improvisation (7:50)
Play-Along Session - ?Mr. PC? Progression (3:06)
Pentatonics ? Introduction (7:09)
Sus7 Blues Improvisation with Pentatonics (7:36)
Play-Along Session ? ?Sus Blues? Progression (2:52)
Scalar Patterns ? Introduction (7:41)
Scalar Patterns - ?Top Set? Improvisation (7:39)
Play-Along Session ? ?Isotope? Progression (2:42)
Conclusion (0:47)
Quiz - Lesson 7
Other courses offered by Coursera
Student Forum
Anything you would want to ask experts?
Useful Links
Know more about Coursera
Know more about Programs
- Teaching & Education
- Middle School
- Physical Education
- Pre Primary & Primary School
- Nursery & Primary Teacher Training (NPTT)
- Secondary & Sr. Secondary School
- Nursery Teacher Training (NTT)
- Special Education
- Pre Primary Teacher Training (PPTT)
- Vocational Education
- Early Childhood Care & Education (ECCE)
- Primary Teacher Training (PTT)