Jazz Turnarounds

Jazz Turnarounds

One of the most important progressions in Jazz is called the turnaround. Turnarounds are often four separate chords over a two-bar phrase whose purpose is to connect the phrase that just happened with the one that is coming. These turnarounds are common in almost every Jazz song and can be played as simple or as ornate as the player would like. The basic idea is that you are trying to connect two sections of a Jazz song using four chords that can somehow be related to each other in the space of two measures.

This practical lesson breaks down a typical turnaround and shows several variations that can be used by any guitarist to create a great sounding Jazz chord progression.

This Lesson covers:

   • Basic Turnarounds

   • Adding Color Tones

   • Bass Movement

   • Common Tones

Turnaround Practice Tips:

   • Play through the examples given

   • Learn any new chord forms

   • Transpose these progressions into other keys such as A or C

   • Make up your own turnarounds experimenting with common tones or by adding color tones

Grab your guitar and let's start! - Steve Krenz

Steve plays a Gibson Custom L-5 CT in this lesson.

Check out Gibson's Learn & Master Guitar course for more great instruction.

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