Chop-Monster, Book 2: Baritone Saxophone Book

Book 2 builds on a solid foundation by introducing the most essential harmonic progression in jazz: the ii-V-I in three different keys. Rather than overwhelming students with abstract theory, Berg keeps the focus where it belongs: on listening, imitating, and then experimenting. Directors will appreciate how this sequence mirrors the way real jazz musicians develop their ears and vocabulary, making the path from student to improviser feel natural and achievable.

Grounded and unhurried, with the patient methodology of a master musician passing knowledge directly to the next generation. The call-and-response format creates an intimate learning space where students hear professional-level jazz phrasing and have the space to absorb it at their own pace.

Jazz ensemble students ready to move beyond basic chord tones and begin constructing coherent solo lines over functional changes. Baritone saxophonists working through the Chop-Monster sequence will deepen their understanding of how jazz vocabulary translates across the instrument's range.

• Set a consistent tempo for each key center before students begin the call-and-response exercises; rushing through harmonic changes obscures the underlying progression.
• Have students transcribe the recorded examples first, writing out the pitches and rhythms by ear rather than reading them cold. This deepens the internalization that Berg's method is designed to achieve.
• Rotate through the three keys (concert B-flat, E-flat, F) across multiple rehearsals rather than tackling them all in one session. Spacing the work prevents fatigue and gives each key its own moment of focus.

Integrate Book 2 as the core of your jazz ensemble's improvisation curriculum from mid-fall through winter. The three keys provide scaffolding that works well alongside repertoire you're reading; as students learn an arrangement in B-flat, they can simultaneously work through that same ii-V-I progression in the Chop-Monster book.

• Recognizing and improvising over the ii-V-I progression in multiple keys
• Internalizing jazz vocabulary through transcription and imitation
• Transposing melodic ideas across concert B-flat, E-flat, and F
• Developing call-and-response listening skills in real time
• Building rhythmic confidence over functional jazz changes