The Complete Jazz Guitar Method: Beginning Jazz Guitar: Guitar Standard Notation & TAB Book

Fisher dismantles the myth that jazz guitar requires years of abstract study before you can actually play anything. Each concept lands with a full etude or song attached to it, so students hear immediately how theory becomes sound. The dual notation system means players can choose their learning path without feeling held back by unfamiliar reading.

The progression feels conversational and grounded. You move from familiar major scale patterns into the logic of jazz harmony at a pace that lets your fingers catch up with your ears. By the end, extended chords and modal colors emerge as natural extensions of what you already know, not exotic additions to master later.

Guitarists with solid knowledge of open and barre chords who want structured entry into jazz playing without mystification. This method suits self-directed learners and studio students alike, offering clear scaffolding from diatonic harmony to modes and extended sonorities.

• Isolate each new harmony concept for a few days before attempting the full etude. Playing the underlying changes without improvising first builds the muscle memory you need.
• Listen to the CD examples multiple times before sightreading the notation. Your ear will absorb phrasing and swing feel that the page alone cannot convey.
• Work through the harmony and improvisation lessons in the order presented. Each builds directly on the previous one, and skipping ahead creates gaps in your foundation.

Assign this as a primary text for beginning jazz guitar students in private lessons or group instruction. Its chapter structure works well with a semester timeline, allowing you to pace lessons around the harmony and improvisation splits. Use the etudes and songs as recital material or informal performance benchmarks throughout the year.

• Major scale fingerings and diatonic harmony recognition
• Basic triad construction and chord substitution
• Swing and jazz phrasing through transcribed etudes
• Chord melody and comping in jazz context
• Extended chord voicings and chord symbol reading
• Modal improvisation on Dorian, Mixolydian, and minor modes
• Reading standard notation and TAB simultaneously