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St. Louis Blues Challenge at Piano With Jonny

January is St. Louis Blues Challenge Month at PWJ!

I actually started this challenge about six months ago, got frustrated, and moved on to other things without finishing it. The challenge itself isn’t so hard, but I just could not get the G minor blues improv under my fingers.

When the challenge was announced on January 1, I decided to revisit it. Now that I’m learning more about transposing, I thought maybe I could finally come to peace with this G minor blues.

As is my wont, I no longer seem capable of just playing what’s written. Instead of simply playing the 12-bar A-section arrangement (which is all the challenge requires), I’ve created a whole combobulation:

  • Intro from PWJ Blues Endings 1 course (ending on D7)
  • 12-bar A section (the actual challenge)
  • 12-bar B section (using a lead sheet)
  • A-section repeat
  • 12-bar solo using runs from PWJ 10-Lesson Blues Challenge 2 course
  • A-section repeat with octave displacement throughout
  • 12 bars of unstructured jamming (chords, rolls, general mayhem)
  • Final A section, but with the melody and improv taking turns
  • Outro from PWJ Blues Endings 1 course

Here it is in all its glory. Actually, there’s no glory involved. It’s not performance-ready; this video is very much a progress post.

The real purpose of this video was simple: I wanted to see whether I look ridiculous when I play.

This music makes me move. Torso, legs, head—everything locks into the groove. I filmed it, watched it back, and reached a conclusion.

If I look silly, so be it. I’m done worrying about that. I’ve been criticized for “dancing” at the piano before, and I’m officially out of apologies.

I love this music, and it shows. If you don’t like how I look, just listen.

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