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JANUARY 27TH, 2016
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By Eric
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ABOUT US
We are Forrest and Eric. Weve learned from a ton of
great musicians (Mulgrew Miller, Rich Perry and
many more). We are sharing anything that continues
to inspire us as musicians and creative individuals
alike. Enjoy.
Most improvisers cringe when they hear the words Giant Steps
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If youve ever tried to play over this tune, Im sure you know the feeling
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Chords flying by at a breakneck speed, awkward changes, and fingers fumbling to
keep up not exactly the most musical experience.
Their hearts start pounding and they frantically try to remember the patterns theyve
worked out over the chord progression.
And its even more frustrating when you turn on a recording of your favorite players for
inspiration only to hear chorus after chorus of flawless lines:
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But what most players dont realize is that Giant Steps is actually composed of the
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The difficulties that most improvisers have with creating a musical solo over Giant
Steps stems from three things:
The tempo
The rate that the chords change
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The minor 3rd relationships
Many hopeful soloists jump right into the progression at a fast tempo and start
fumbling around, hoping that something decent will come out. Thats not going to
work
To start making some progress, you need to take a close look at how the chords fit
together in the tune as a whole and create a practice approach that will give you the
tools you need.
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Well take apart this tune piece by piece, but, first lets look at what is easy about
Giant Steps
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When you slow down the tempo and focus in on the chord progression, youll find that
Giant Steps is actually a surprisingly simple tune.
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The entire progression is centered around 3 keys.
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Lets take a closer look at the chord progression of Giant Steps:
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TOPICS
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Advice For Everyone (72)
Chords (49)
As you can see the chord progression is based around the three key centers of B, G
and Eb.
Composition (3)
Concepts (69)
And just like any other jazz standard, the path to a great solo starts with your ears
hearing the basic sounds of major, dominant, and minor and applying the language
that you know to these chords.
Ear (45)
Inspiration (55)
The first step to improvising over Giant Steps lies in
mastering V7 to I in these 3 keys. This should be done in the
practice room before you even think about improvising over
the tune.
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Before you jump right into the progression start by focusing on the resolution V7 to I in
each key:
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Visualization (12)
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As a starting point for your practice, here are two ways that Coltrane plays V to I in his
solo on Giant Steps:
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This sets up a linear foundation for improvising over this chord progression, rather than
4 separate chords you are utilizing the V7 to I movement.
Hint: As you practice, aim to have a line that resolves on the root of the I
chord, another to the 3rd, and another to the 5th. That way wherever you are
in your solo you can resolve your line accordingly.
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In this tune the same chord relationships happen over and over again in the same
keys
To improvise effectively over this progression, you need to start with a foundation, a
base of material, that you can play without thinking. Start slow and start simple.
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One bar ii-V7s
Besides the V7 to I movement, the most common progression in Giant Steps is a
simple ii-V-I.
The next step in building the foundation for your solo is to focus on one bar ii-V-Is in
the three keys. For instance, check out how Coltrane begins his solo after playing the
melody:
Practice one bar ii-Vs like the one above in 3 keys. Your goal is to have multiple
options to improvise every time you encounter this progression.
For a better idea about how these work within the tune, listen to the opening from
Coltranes solo:
Download File
These ii-Vs can seem like a simple concept that doesnt require practice, however in
just one chorus of Giant Steps youll encounter these one measure ii-Vs 6
times!
This is why its important for you to master them in the 3 keys and have multiple
options for improvising over them ingrain them until they are automatic!
The hard part: minor 3rd relationships
The major obstacle that most musicians have in soloing over Giant Steps is the minor
3rd chord relationships.
Moving from a major chord to an unrelated dominant chord in the space of two beats.
To find some options for navigating this progression, lets begin by looking at how
Coltrane deals with this chord movement in his solo:
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Download File
One way that Coltrane navigates this progression is by alternating between triads and
scale patterns. Take a listen to the first four bars of his solo:
Download File
Start by practicing this progression in B and applying the following Coltrane concepts
to each chord:
Major triad (ascending & descending)
1st inversion triad
1235 scale pattern
Now do the same for the progression starting in G. Start by studying and imitating how
Trane improvises over these chords:
Download File
Again, the goal is to have these patterns and triads automatic when you apply them
to your solo in real time, you wont have time to think.
Descending whole tone approach
One of the challenges of this minor third chord relationship is creating seamless and
longer musical lines ones that are linear in nature rather than the cut and paste
patterns that a lot of players get stuck on.
Your goal should be to think of the 3 bar Giant Steps
progression as one unit instead of five separate chords.
An interesting way that Coltrane navigated this problem was by using a descending
whole step approach.
If you listen to the opening to his solos on But Not For Me and 26-2 youll find the
following melodic concept:
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But Not For Me:
Download File
26-2
Download File
Incorporate this technique into your practice, utilizing this line and aiming for these
notes and motion in your solo. Try to create a continuous line that stretches over the
entire progression.
Navigating the next 8 bars
The next 8 measures of the Giant Steps progression utilizes those one bar ii-Vs, but
the hard part is connecting them.
How do you make a smooth transition to the next key?
Lets take a look at how Coltrane navigates the chords in the next 8 bars:
Download File
One way that he connects these unrelated chords is through the use of half step
resolutions. Check out how he connects the first four bars below:
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Download File
Take it one step at a time
Improvising over Giant Steps may feel impossible right now.
You might not know where to begin or feel that youre stuck playing the same old
scale patterns
This is a good sign that its time to take a different approach. Take a step back and
restart with these 4 steps in the practice room. Remember start slowly:
Practice the V7 I progression in 3 Keys
Develop lines over one bar ii-Vs
Focus on the minor 3rd chord relationship
Work on connecting your lines by half-step
The good thing is that you have a great place to start by listening to Coltranes solo.
Slow it down, isolate the lines that catch your ear, and work them out in the practice
room. Giant Steps, like any other tune, should be approached musically starting with
the melody youre hearing in your head.
Print This Post
Read related articles
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