How have U improved your chops from say five years ago?

[16251]

Also, for those ppl who are accomplished, do you need to maintain it?

[JamPro]

Three things I have done that improved my chops:

1) Study classical piano pieces

2) Rhythmic scales: set metronome at 40 bpm.  Play one octave scale in eights notes; play two octaves at swing eights notes; play three octaves with quarter note triplets; play four octaves in sixteenth notes; play four octaves in swing sixteenth notes; play three octaves in eight note triplets; play four octaves in 32nd notes; play four octaves in swing 32nd notes.  Repeat in all keys.  Repeat every day using major, harmonic minor, altered, and diminished scales.

3) Improv using blues scale in every key; improv major 2-5-1 in every key; improv using minor 2-5-1 in every key; improv over rootless 2-5 progression in every key.

 

You will get better.

 

Yes - you need to maintain it. 

[cp-the-nerd]

5 years ago I was going through the motions in a cover band with just my SV-1 at home. I had it set up for the song list so it was pretty uninspiring for pleasure playing. I was basically stuck on a plateau.

After I left the cover band to focus on my personal life, I got my humble keyboard rig (SV-1/YPG-625/KC-550) set up at home entirely for enjoyment and started picking away at that mental plateau. Something pulled me toward looking at looper pedals to test the waters of fleshing out my original music without the shackles of tedious recording work, and I have never had more fun!

You expand your horizons very quickly when you go from playing whatever you can manage with two mortal hands to writing bass lines, drum parts, and other accompaniment layers to fill out a complete song. I've improved in every facet of playing, but especially my rhythm control.

[Moonglow]

I’ve been making a conscious effort to play less, give some space, let the music breathe.

[MathOfInsects]

Of all the things to abbreviate for space, you couldn't have just used the number 5 and spelled out the word "you"?

[Morrissey]

Biggest  difference maker for me has been Open Studio online jazz courses and community.  

[timwat]

You miss a day, you can tell the difference.

You miss a week, others on the bandstand can tell the difference.

You miss a month, the audience can tell the difference.

[GovernorSilver]

I barely played keyboard instruments 5 years ago, so anything I've learned to play on keys in recent months is an improvement.  how have I been doing it?  Mostly learning and practicing stuff picked up from Open Studio Jazz.

 

 

[Bobbo Fett]

I divide my time between keys, sax, and vocal practice. I don't do as much on ANY of them as I should. For keys I do a warm up, consisting these days of 1-2 Hanon exercises, what I like to call "mirror scales", where I start with both thumbs on a note and play the RH starting ascending, and the LH descending, then back to the starting note, 2 octaves in all 12 keys. Right now I'm just doing major scales, but I'd like to expand this out to minors and then to modes (we'll see how far I get with that!). After that, I'm no classical guy, but I've worked up Bach Invention #8, so I play that, mainly for a LH workout....(my LH is TONS better than it used to be, but it still sucks mightily) I do all of that right now at 70 bpm. After that, any keyboard work I do is focused on learning new tunes, maybe a bit of improv practice, and accompanying my vocal stuff....again, not near enough, but it gets me to the gig in ok shape.....To bring this on topic, I feel like doing this kind of a bit of a "structure" (lame as it is) has helped me to be a more solid, consistent player over the last several years. It's probably more likely that I'm just getting older and slowing down, but thinking it's the former helps me sleep at night......

[PaulArtola]

Five years ago, the ravages of time descended upon my fingers, hands and wrists with haste, leaving me with GIJoe Kung-fu grips, at best. With about 20% of my former dexterity and stamina remaining, 50 years of piano and keyboards quickly slipped away. Did I let that take away my life's passion? HELL NO!

 

Now I program sequencers, clock, gates, triggers, and all manner of sound generation technology, that I can plug into my VCV-Rack Borg-inspired rig, to produce my tracks. As a result, not being limited by my mediocre keyboard abilities, I have found many alternate creative strategies. Instead of my fingers driving the sounds, control voltages and midi packets do the heavy lifting, as I sit back and smile...that'll do, pig. That'll do!

 

[Justin Havu]

Pretty simple for me:  When improvising, or soloing, I try my hardest to stay away from blues/pentatonic scales, and try to be more melodic with my playing.

[Iconoclast]

I'm a better musician by far, but I wouldn't say my chops are better.

I haven't been as disciplined at doing the woodshedding with a metronome, but I've been playing more with bands and especially some that have given me more room to improvise. So my musical brain is much stronger.

[Stokely]

5 hours ago, Moonglow said:

I’ve been making a conscious effort to play less, give some space, let the music breathe.

This is the closest thing to improvement I've made.  Listening to gig recordings made me realize the whole band overplays, but I can only do me   It sometimes feels "boring" to hold a chord or a simple note, but sometimes that is what works.

I've made a great deal of improvement in my singing, simply by doing more of it and doing "you can't hide" home recordings, usually covers over a simple piano part.  

[jerrythek]

I start by just stretching and shaking my hands for a bit, just to get the blood flowing.

 

I do scales/modes 2 octaves 8ths, 3 octaves triplet, and 4 octaves 16th notes. I never do basic major/minor any more, it’s always a mode of some sort. After doing hands together/octaves I’ve started doing them in 3rds and then 6ths, which is new to me. So that is really taking me out of my comfort zone.

 

1 do 4-5 Bach inventions, and am looking to moving into the WTC soon. 
 

I’ve been working on some Emerson over the last few years, I work on Take A Pebble solo, and have started on the 2nd part of the Three Fates.

 

Ill work on some jazz tunes, lately aim trying to get my LH a little more active/involved, and work on motivic development for my right. Try to play with purpose and meaning, and develop my lines, not just let the chops drive.

 

I’ve been working on new voicings so freshen up my vocabulary. All this is within 2-3 hours, but on and off.

 

Having just bought a beautifully restored 1916 Steinway O, I’m very motivated.

 

Jerry

[Adan]

By spending less time with my wife, children and day job.  Life is full of tradeoffs, but the dog still needs to be walked a few times a day, that's not really negotiable.

[Delaware Dave]

At my age I'm no longer looking to improve, just maintain.  The climb isnt worth the view for me.  I'm more achy and stiff than I use to be and my finger dexterity is on the decline so I've reached my pinnacle and I'm Ok with that.  I'm still in demand in my area so there are good musicians who think I still got it so as long as I can maintain my current level 'm content with that.