Firstly, let’s address the elephant in the room.
Yes, this course is taught in Italian. However, recently they started introducing courses with translations, including this one which has English subtitles.
I found out about Eleanora Strino because of her recent book released by Fundamental Changes.
The course is interesting because Eleonora begins by teaching the bebop scales. Usually most jazz guitar courses that I’ve studied cover modes or guide tones first. This alone is interesting since it introduces bebop based chromaticism from the start.
She also points out some useful tips about fingering & demonstrates the various fingerings for the bebop scales across the entire fretboard. I love how systematic Eleonora is. I wish I learned this topic like the way Eleonora teaches it!
As the course progresses, you learn about scales, arpeggios and voicings in the bebop context. Eleanora also demonstrates how they sound when you have incorporated these separate concepts into your playing.
The course is divided into 7 modules:
1 – BEBOP SCALES
1.1 The bebop scales
1.2 The bebop minor scales
1.3 The bebop mixolydian scales
1.4 Arpeggios and bebop scales. Part 1
1.5 Arpeggios and bebop scales. Part 2
2 – VOICINGS
2.1 Voicing
2.2 Bebop minor scale harmonization3 – SIXTH CHORDS
3.1 Major 6th chords
3.2 Minor 6th chords4 – ARPEGGIOS
4.1 Major 6th arpeggios
4.2 Minor 6th arpeggios
5 – BEBOP MIXOLYDIAN
5.1 Mixolydian (dominant) bebop scale over the II-V-I6 – APPLICATION IN THE II V I
6.1 The II-V-I from the harmonic point of view7 – GUITAR SOLO ADVICE
7.1 Solo guitarFINAL GREETINGS
Final greetings
I love how Eleanora has organized the material. Although I’ve studied bebop scales before, I found her explanation for the fingerings very practical.
Other books like Roni Ben Hur’s Talk Jazz Guitar is great but can be overwhelming if you’re new to the subject.
Good thing are the arpeggio fingerings that are very logical and useful for speed and consistency. That alone was probably the best takeaway I got from the course.
The slightly less good part is that it doesn’t seem to lead smoothly into application of what was covered. I felt like there was a slight gap in the information somewhere. Probably another chapter on etudes using these ideas or application of the concepts on a jazz standard or a jazz blues could be helpful. This perhaps might be a good topic for a follow- up course?
In terms of pure material, there’s more than enough for someone to get started and sound jazzy!
The solo guitar section is very good too and probably one of my favorite segments of the entire course. YouJazz was also very responsive when I pointed out that it might be even better if there is a transcription of what Eleanora played in that part. They also added closed captions text in English to one part that initially was missing it when I first studied the course.
This is all very cool! It’s one thing to create an amazing course, and it’s even better with the awesome customer service. Kudos to YouJazz for this!
In conclusion, I strongly recommend this course for anyone who enjoys Eleanora’s guitar style AND to anyone who wants a good introduction to getting some bebop vocabulary & chops into their playing. If that sounds like you, do check out the course.
Pros: Great course with well organized material. The accompanying PDF is helpful too!
Cons: There is a slight jump from the exercises to the final section but her explanation of how to connect transcriptions to the exercises & actual performance is useful.
TLDR: If you want to learn jazz guitar from someone who can really play this style, check out this course.
Get the course here:
https://youjazz.it/en/didattica/corsi-youjazz/corso-di-chitarra-jazz/
Important: You can get this course for a 20% discount by using the discount code: azyoujazz20 during checkout.
As an affiliate, I receive compensation if you purchase using the discount code.
I received a complimentary access to the course courtesy of YouJazz. Although I receive a commission if you purchase using my discount code, my reviews are unbiased and reflect my opinion of the course.
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