This video demonstrates a simple way to start adding melodies to your playing.
Playing improvised melodies can add a lot of sophistication to your sound. To do so, however, requires that you 1) have ideas, and 2) have the technique to play them. When you consider all the note and rhythmic possibilities, improvisation can be a challenge.
That’s why I recommend that you tackle small groups of notes at a time. Taking, for example, the 1st and 7th notes of a scale and creating a melody with them is pretty easy, and it has some advantages.
1. It’s easier to get to know the sound of each note and the relationships between the notes. Using our example, one hears the tension created by the 7th and how that tension is resolved by the solid and stable 1st scale note.
2. Playing just a few notes allows for more focus on playing interesting rhythms and with better musical expression.
3. Restricting yourself can open up other possibilities. When you only have two-three notes to work with, you are forced to be creative, finding the notes in other octaves and trying different combinations of the notes.
I demonstrate this method in the video below, but I also used it as the basis for my full-length piano training course, Fluent Piano. It has six modules to take you through six small groups of notes. It has lots of melodic examples to give you the ideas you need, plus lots of exercises to develop your technique to play them. The course will also develop your left hand, rhythm, and expressiveness.
Get started with the course by trying out the first two sessions for free, right now!
