@ben - I think your playing is brilliant and it’s wonderful how you are adding your own touches here and there. With each new tune you learn, the easier it becomes to learn new ones.
I’d be very happy with the progress you have made within a year, to be able to play 8 tunes so beautifully. Congrats!
Here’s some ideas which may help:
Once we have learnt and memorised the harmony of a tune tune, we can start to listen to transcribe little fills and ornamentation from our favourite recordings. Perhaps create a Spotify or YouTube playlist for each of the songs you will hear little things that you like. It could be the phrasing of the melody (I hear you are already adding little ornamentations here and there which is awesome). It could be a particular voicing, introduction, fill, or ending etc… The goal is to transcribe those things are with our ears, and then add them to our arrangement.
If you are new to transcription check out Tuomo’s transcription section of the forum:
I also noticed that most of the tunes you are playing are in Eb:
Over The Rainbow
Misty
Tenderly
Someone To Watch Over Me
Like Someone In Love
It can be nice to use the 1625 progression to link our arrangements together. Particularly when playing for friends and family to create a medley of jazz standards in one continuous stream. Check out the lesson on that here:
Thanks again for sharing these, as I’ve mentioned I think your playlist will serve as great inspiration for others students. It’s also a fantastic example of what can be achieved within a year of studying.
Cheers and let me know if I can help with anything you are working on.
Ben, it’s a pleasure to listen to your tunes. May I ask how you record? I’ve been trying to learn Logic Pro X.
You mention turning 60 and wondering how to best spend your time learning jazz piano. I’ll be 68 this year and have been wondering the same thing. I study something and hear that it may take a lifetime to learn this or that. Well, based on the actuarial tables, that puts us at a disadvantage. At any rate, thanks for sharing.
Also thanks for the positive feedback. Know that without being able to see and hear your examples and this site for inspiration. I’d be stuck in some beginner song book, “a little lamb who’s lost in the wood”
so here’s to you!. thanks!
Thanks for “Nearness of you” easier but interesting. Just added it to the Sound Cloud playlist above. Gave it the old good enough for now. When I instructed golf the most rewarding part was when someone worked on the information provided to them. Figure you may feel the same way.
I took your survey, and was interested in hearing more about online one on one instruction.
Wow! Ben - so beautifully played! Really have enjoyed listening to your tracks!!! I would ask the same question - not sure if we already have a thread for Tips in Recording for Piano - etc but yeah - how do you record your songs?
That is nice to hear, you are very kind. Thank you!
They are recorded directly to a Keyboard as a wav. file which is saved to a USB drive. The sound is a multiple part performance that came on board. Just tweak the volumes of each instrument to ones preferences. If you would like more details don’t hesitate to ask, I enjoy the conversation.
Hey Ben. Thanks so much. Fantastic tip! That was helpful! And will sure ask in case I have other questions. I think I will spend some time with my digi-piano this holiday to explore it more !
Wow! on Darn that dream There’s definitely something about your playing, Hayden’s superb arrangement, then your wonderful additions to it - that gets the listener to stop! and just listen! I think I listened to it more than 3x now haha - trying to get that melody (and feels) ingrained in my brains …
seriously same with Hayden’s and other instructors’ playing in every course or lesson - their music interpretation alone (all the time for me) makes me just want to listen and shut every other sound around me that gets in the way of my listening - hahah!
Question Ben - so these first songs you have recorded, which one did you know to sing or were quite familiar with already - before you ever started learning to play it?
Was there a song that you did not know much at all - and then learned to play and interpret too?
Do you internalize them differently before playing if you already knew the song? how about those (if there are for example) you didn’t know much?
or which Piano groove lesson or song did you repeatedly listen to the most? and why?
my very little discovery (I’ve only learned a number of songs) was if I knew the song before or have sung it (for ex. When I fall in love) it was so much easier to practice or study the feels of it - no matter if I knew nothing much about the jazz chords in it at first…
Then with other tunes (I didn’t really know about) I was/am learning - am continually, repeatedly listening to how they were played, interpreted - now makes - me want to search the courses and check Hayden’s lesson on it - plus listen to YT too and find out about “Darn that Dream” Sometimes, takes me a lot more time listening to other jazz standards as I need to find clues, little research for the purpose of those tunes when they were composed or performed for example… (a day in the life of beginner jazz players haha - maybe we all can have that kind of thread too )
This was very refreshing and motivating! Thanks so much for sharing it with us. Sorry that got long Looking forward to more!
I’m just putting in lots of hours trying to copy Hayden best I can, using the suggestions from his lessons, my listening focus is there. I do find the lyrics of the song very helpful. I’m always shocked how poorly the song sounds once I start trying to record it but for me that’s where the most improvement happens for me, more of the process.
The on-board performance I’m using in the keyboard has a Pad Choir instrument along with the pianos. The Choir is set to the lowest effects setting and I recently moved this effect into just the melody keys, this change cleaned up the harmony which I like much more, but still gives me some cover in my playing. This adds a floating effect people seem to like.
Thanks again for positive feedback.
Keep us posted!
Thank you for sharing your lovely recordings. You brought Darn that Dream to my attention. How did I miss that one?!!! I am having such fun with it. I wonder how many other gems I have missed?
Finally recorded “Darn that dream” worked on it for several months- on and off- most difficult piece for me so far so I’m pretty happy with it. Also “When sunny gets blue” Very nice job on the transcription it’s fun to play, excellent beginner piece. Couple things on this one I would like to change but just revised my expectations.
They are above on my playlist if interested in a listen.
Thanks again for all your efforts and inspiration, your providing an amazing value here on PianoGroove.
Wow listening to it again Ben - so beautifully played - and I think I would like to try/start learning this piece tonight - I can’t make it wait any longer haha Thanks so much for sharing again - headed to Hayden’s lesson now …
a follow up question (to all jazz players/ learners)
also curious, for each song you all learn and study, do you all memorize each one of them? Do you have any tips as to how to be able to memorize it quicker?
A jazz pianist friend has given one tip - which was to memorize in parts if it’s for example in AABA form - do you do the same? would appreciate it if you can share your experience! Thanks very much in advance.
had to add… sorry for the additional questions
apart from listening to as many versions or recordings…
Do some or all of you - find yourself singing the jazz/blues song (whether aloud or in your head) you are learning to play?
Do you learn it because you like it? or for another reason?
how frequently do you play one piece (in estimation) before you are able to memorize it?
I do memorize all of my songs. For me, it helps to internalize the song. I only work on songs that I enjoy. I have memorized a couple that I later dropped because they did not give me pleasure.
Knowing the form helps tremendously in memorizing a song. With an AABA form, you have already memorized 3/4 of the song once you learn the first A section even though you will play each section differently. I go section by section and may only play the first part A for several days or longer. I do not rush myself.
I have a terrible voice, but I do silently sing the words or hum. This helps me in two ways. First, it is like an internal metronome as I mainly play ballads. Second, knowing the words can help with emotion. In other words, in order to express the emotion, there may be places that I wish to pull or tug on a chord or play it extra softly etc.
It is difficult to say how long it takes to memorize a song as some are easier than others. I will say that each new song you memorize becomes easier as you recognize the progressions and familiar patterns of the various chords. By memorizing, you are able to SEE those patterns as you play really helps me. ( Edit to original post: Often, I will also silently sing the chord name as I am playing it. That really helps to ingrain the progressions in my mind.)
At any rate, I am personally a fan of memorizing, but everyone is different. The most important thing is to have fun and do what works for you to accomplish that goal!
Yay. Thanks very much, Celia. These are great tips, really good points there! I love it! esp, what you said about the form, humming the chords, and knowing the lyrics …
btw, Tuomo’s ear training exercises also do help me a ton - esp on recognising the chord sound, harmonies -
another friend has suggested (the way they would practice was using a click on 2 and 4 (only) - will help with the groove too - I’ve tried this recently and liking it and finding it useful … Take care.
At any rate, thanks for sharing.
There’s definitely something about your playing, Hayden’s superb arrangement, then your wonderful additions to it - that gets the listener to stop! and 
just listen! I think I listened to it more than 3x now haha - trying to get that melody (and feels) ingrained in my brains …
- so these first songs you have recorded, which one did you know to sing or were quite familiar with already - before you ever started learning to play it?
Looking forward to more!
Thanks so much for sharing again - headed to Hayden’s lesson now …
Take care.