Jazz Piano Lesson #33: Improvising in all 12 Keys (ii-V-I-VI)

My college piano teacher Allen Myers kept things interesting by giving each individual semester of lessons a different theme.  We had semesters that covered large topics like modalism and semesters that were more narrowly focused on individual players such as Chick Corea.  One of my favorite semester long topics, and the one where I felt like I experienced the most growth, was on Bill Evans.  Recording this lesson reminded me of one particularly important lesson we had that semester. 

My assignment was to transcribe the changes to Bill Evans' tune Sugar Plum and the melody if I decided there was one.  What I found in "Sugar Plum" was a cyclical progression not so different from the one in Lesson #33.  It is likely that the tune was used by Evans as an exercise for his own practice.  I decided that the piece must have originally been a technical exercise and likely had no true melody.  The introductions however are strikingly similar on the three recordings I have listened to.  Keep Evans' in mind as you practice this progression and try to transcend the technicallity of the exercise to improvise beautiful music. 

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Video Lesson:  http://youtu.be/0GfDr9_aEIs

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