Howard Morgen: Through Chord Melody & Beyond: A Comprehensive Hands-On Guide to Playing & Arranging Solo Jazz Guitar Based on 11 Classic Standards from the Great American Songbook

This book teaches arrangement thinking rather than just fingering patterns. Morgen uses 11 standards to unlock the logic of chord melody writing, so students understand how to adapt the approach to any tune they encounter in a session or jam.

These arrangements sit comfortably under the fingers while demanding thoughtful interpretation. The writing captures the sophistication of the standards themselves, letting the melody and harmony do the work without unnecessary pyrotechnics.

Intermediate to advanced guitarists serious about jazz performance and arrangement. This demands real chord knowledge and solid reading ability, making it most suited for students ready to move beyond method-book fundamentals.

• Study the video demonstrations by both Morgen and guest artist Howard Alden to absorb different interpretive approaches to the same material.
• Start with the simplest arrangement of each standard and add elaboration only once you can execute the foundation cleanly.
• Apply the concepts to standards outside this collection immediately. The goal is transferable technique, not repertoire memorization.

Assign selections as capstone projects for jazz guitar electives or as repertoire for recitals and competitions. Teachers can sequence individual standards across a semester, using each as a case study in a different aspect of chord melody construction.

• Chord melody voicing for solo guitar
• Voice leading across multiple string sets
• Interpreting and extending jazz harmony
• Arranging standards for solo performance
• Reading and executing complex chord symbols
• Building solo guitar repertoire with professional applications