{"id":125,"date":"2018-07-24T14:53:42","date_gmt":"2018-07-24T14:53:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cocktailpianotips.com\/site\/?page_id=125"},"modified":"2018-07-24T14:58:46","modified_gmt":"2018-07-24T14:58:46","slug":"colorize-your-playing-with-shearing-block-chords","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/cocktailpianotips.com\/site\/colorize-your-playing-with-shearing-block-chords\/","title":{"rendered":"Colorize Your Playing With Shearing Block Chords"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"ShearingAs a cocktail pianist, you’ll definitely want to incorporate Shearing block chords into your playing. \u00a0They have a way of really enhancing your style. I’d like to explain them here in simple terms.<\/p>\n

There are two other lessons here on the site in which we use these first few measures of Jerome Kern’s\u00a0All The Things You Are<\/em>\u00a0as a vehicle to illustrate a couple of different ways a cocktail pianist might play or voice chords. One of these lessons focuses on the\u00a01-7-3 chord voicing<\/a>\u00a0and the other places an emphasis on the\u00a0chord melody<\/a>\u00a0approach to playing. The basic lead sheet excerpt we used is shown again here:<\/p>\n

\"All<\/div>\n

Shearing Block Chords Are An Extension Of
\nThe Chord Melody Technique<\/h3>\n

Well, we can use that\u00a0chord melody<\/em>\u00a0cocktail piano lesson to help us with this one. The transition from that lesson to this one is a very smooth one since you could think of this tutorial as a simple expansion of that chord melody technique, the result being\u00a0an effective piano chord technique made famous by piano legend\u00a0George Shearing<\/a>.\u00a0As a matter of fact, this master pianist\/composer was so well noted for this piano\u00a0chord technique that it was named after him.<\/p>\n

These block chords are worth getting excited about and serve as an excellent further reason to want to master your\u00a0chord inversions<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Here is what we came up with in that last lesson for those first four bars:<\/p>\n

\"Shearing<\/div>\n

Now, here’s some really great news: having gotten this far, you’re almost there!\u00a0Here is what we are going to do:<\/p>\n

1) Play the example exactly as we have it above<\/p>\n

2) Simply\u00a0duplicate that melody by playing it one octave lower as well<\/p>\n

Here is what this looks like:<\/p>\n

\"George<\/div>\n

We now have a five-part voicing! How do you play it? Remember, you were already playing those top\u00a0four voices with your right. All you need to do is simply play the bottom melody note (the one you added) with your left hand. Wahlaa! Easy as pie, right?<\/p>\n

You’re now playing one of the most popular piano chord techniques used by the pros over the\u00a0past several decades! These are\u00a0Shearing block chords!<\/em>They are often referred to as “Shearing blocks.”<\/p>\n

It’s true… once Shearing made this popular, virtually\u00a0every pianist wanted to incorporate into his or her style. Now it’s your turn! This piano chord strategy is illustrated further in\u00a0ProProach<\/a><\/em>\u00a0along with, of course, a video demonstration.<\/p>\n

Playing chords in this fashion, at first, may seem a little challenging… BUT it won’t be long before\u00a0you’re loving it. This is one pro piano chord technique that you are going to be enthusiastic\u00a0about playing. Just think of the tunes that you can apply this gem to! There’s no limit:<\/p>\n

Misty<\/em>\u00a0by Erroll Garner
\nOver The Rainbow<\/em>\u00a0by Arlen & Harburg
\nWhen Sunny Gets Blue by Segal & Fisher
\nFly Me To The Moon<\/em>\u00a0by Bart Howard
\nSkylark<\/em>\u00a0by Carmichael & Mercer<\/p>\n

The list goes on and on!<\/p>\n

Would you like to watch and hear the master George Shearing himself demonstrate\u00a0his block chord technique or us?\u00a0Listen to Mr. Shearing “go to town” with this great chord technique as he plays a signature song of his,\u00a0Lullaby of Birdland.<\/em>\u00a0Listen to \u00a0how he “floats like a butterfly” over those keys! By the way, you’ll hear those Shearing block chords by the man himself early in the performance, so watch and listen closely:<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n