Improv Speed Builders Vol.2, “Bird” Blues for all 𝄞 treble and 𝄢 bass clef instruments by Rich Willey

Description

At last, a logical and methodical approach for developing high-tempo improv chops! Introducing Improv Speed Builders  by Rich Willey, guaranteed to take you to the next level and beyond without all the frustration and guesswork you’ve probably already experienced.

Improv Speed Builders  comes in five volumes; Vol.2 includes a book of twelve original “Bird” blues melodies with chord symbols transposed for C treble clef, C bass clef, B♭ instruments and E♭ instruments with over 17 hours of play-along tracks designed to take you from a snail’s pace all the way up to burning!

Each key has five accompaniment tracks, the first starting at ♩=80 and creeping up one beat-per-minute (bpm) for sixty choruses (ending up at 140 bpm). The second track starts at ♩=120, the third track at ♩=160, the fourth track at ♩=200, and the fifth track at ♩=240. The tempo overlap between the tracks helps you ease into the higher velocities more gracefully.

The suggested strategy for getting through sixty choruses is this: by playing a chorus and resting a chorus (or trading with a practice partner or scatting every other chorus) your chops will be able to rest as much as you play so you can go on much longer than you might think you can. Also, it’s the perfect vehicle for spending equal time on all your instruments, i.e. a chorus on trumpet, rest a chorus while picking up your flugelhorn and then play a chorus, rest a chorus while grabbing your cornet for the following chorus, etc. Or it can be a great way to spend equal amounts of time rotating through your various mutes that you might not remember to practice between gigs.

The possibilities are endless with this series!

The tempo increase is not an accelerando; each imperceptible tempo change happens precisely at the beginning of the next chorus so you are always holding a steady tempo. The tempo increases incrementally chorus by chorus so you really don’t even notice, but the next thing you know you’re negotiating changes at a much faster tempo than you ever thought you could!

Made using ProTools with real instrument sounds for your play-along tracks, this volume also includes a full set of MIDI files in case you want to practice for a long stretch at one tempo using your preferred sequencing program or Band-In-A-Box to set the tempo where you want it.

This volume is digitally downloadable directly to your computer. The book comes in digital format, meaning that immediately after your order is processed you will download a PDF containing your link to access the book and nearly 1 GB of play-along tracks. Digital downloads are nonrefundable, nonreturnable and nonexchangeable.

Sample layout for the Blues in D:
Improv Speed Builders Volume 2 Bird Blues in B Sample Pages