How long have you been playing? You are fantastic!
1 Like
Thanks, Kirk; thatās very generous! I played a lot as a kid (classical then high school and college bands), set it aside for about 40 years (job, kids, etc), then picked things up again about 18 mo ago with pianogroove as a pandemic activity. My main goal has been to improve at improv and reharms, which is still a work in progress. I very much enjoy the community and PG resources.
1 Like
Several months ago I shared a tune on the occasion of being at pianogroove for a year; I thought today would be appropriate to share something else for two reasons. First, itās now been about a year since I started regular lessons with @Tuomo; it also happens (inside knowledge) to be his birthday today. Happy birthday Tuomo!
My goal was and still is to improve with improvisation and early on, Tuomo suggested that I start with one of the tunes in his beginning transcription series. Confirmation is a famous Charlie Parker tune; seemed like it took me forever to learn it, and Iām still working on a more interesting LH and the improv of course. Hereās a version with three choruses of improv, the first of which is Hank Jonesā first solo. Upon listening to my rendition, I realize I have lots of room for improvementātempo is a little irregular at times despite using a metronome, I overdid it with triplets, thereās not enough breathing room, and it doesnāt swing as well as I would like. As Tuomo has told me, itās all about the eighth notes.
2 Likes
@gregb Thank you so much for birthday wishes! Now got to the age where Iām closer to 70 than my birthā¦ 
Your arrangement of Confirmation is getting better every time I hear it! Also your left hand accompaniment in the solo sounds authentic and supportive, and youāre right, itās all about the eight note feel.
One of my main influences, and a pianist I learned a ton about eight notes and phrasing is Tommy Flanagan, hereās a recording of his with similar (a bit faster) tempo, but a good example of great eight notes in the solo:
For my birthday, Iād also like to share my renditions of Confirmation, first one recorded at Mezzrow Jazz Club in NYC sometime pre-Covid, the second one is a solo recording I did ca. February 2021:
Hope you like them,
All the best,
-Tuomo
2 Likes
Hey @Tuomo , Happy Birthday!!! Most generous of you to give us such a delightful present on the occasion of your Bday. A treat to hear you play outside of the zoom sessions.
Best,
James
Happy birthday, Tuomo. 
You said that youāre now ācloser to 70 than my birth.ā Guess that makes you 36?
Thanks for sharing the clips. That second solo recording is really fine!
2 Likes
@Tuomo youāve only got a few more decades to catch up to me (in age).
Iād seen the mezzrow video before and look forward to the not too distant future when youāll be playing there again. The solo version is a real treat and a beautiful example (and inspiration) of how itās possible to put an original stamp on a classic bebop tune!
1 Like
Happy belated birthday Tuomo!
Great Toumo. Both of them. I really like your solo piano recording. You are a talented āveryā young man!
Tom
About three weeks ago, I posted a clip of a version of Charlie Hadenās āNightfall.ā Iāve recently come back to working on that and incorporated one of @gregbās great suggestions on improving it. The chord changes on bar 12 are a bit muddied. But itās still very much a work in progress. I welcome any helpful suggestions. (Turn the volume down to about a third.) Enjoy! 
3 Likes
Very nice Scott!!! Thanks for sharing.
@scott1 Great sound, great chord changes, full of yearning. Thanks for the update of you working on this.
beautifully played! Scott 
if I may ask, what tools do you use to do your audio recording? Thank you!