How do you learn to Jam?

There's a saying in Bluegrass jams: "If you don't know a song when it starts, you will by the time it's finished."

That's 'cuz most songs played in that style are simple chord progressions repeated over and over...and over again. It's actually a great way to learn. You can listen and watch the other players chording hands for the first few verses, then try it yourself quietly, then when you get the hang of it, you start playing a bit more confidently and try more interesting rhythmic figures or lead lines. And then for the next 90 verses, you've got it. ;-)

In my jams, we play a wide variety of styles, so we try to have copies of chords and lyrics printed out, or we bring them up on my big screen monitor, and everyone can play off the paper if they like.
Some of us just strum and sing. Those who either know the song or can improvise play fills, leads, etc, and will show the rest of us how to do bit and pieces on request.

I think the only factor to consider is be considerate to the jam. If everyone is playing way above your level, don't force your playing on them. Listen, play muted, sit on the outside of the circle, etc.
And also, if you can, find a jam...or start a jam...closer to your own level.

I've been to jams in the park where I'd be sitting on the outside just sort of watching people play WAY above me, and I'd notice two or three others doing the same thing, so we'd just walk over to our own corner of the park, and start playing, and soon others would join us.

Have fun!

ApK

Tom and other beginner jammers.

I am an avid jammer and can't think of anything more fun than jamming. It is intimidating at first to go to a jam and try to play along because the experienced jammers already know many of the songs, but more importantly, can wing it if they don't. Here are some suggestions to get you started.

1. If you want to lead a song, go to the jam prepared. Pick a song with a simple chord structure (later about that later) learn the song and practice keeping the beat good and steady so the jammers can follow. You might even start with a well-known song like "You Are My Sunshine" or "Amazing Grace." That way you can be assured that on your test run as a leader the group already knows the song. Then branch into other songs with simple structure until you get the feel for what the group can follown. A steady beat is really important.

2. Learn a little about music theory and what chords are likely to show up in a particular key. Start with learning the I, IV, V chords in each key. I typed I, IV, V into a Google search and got a number of sites to check out. Some tell you the make up of chords, some tell you about I, IV, V chord progressions and there are sites of I, IV, V chord songs.

3. After you get the I, IV, V concept down, move on to relative minors and circle of fifths progressions -- but mostly, work on songs. Understanding common progressions helps you begin to anticipate the next chord in a jam.

4. Find a reliable guitarist in the group who plays chords in 1st position (not those bar chords up the neck), and follow his or her fingers as you play softly. I assume from your post that you are working on guitar, but if not, learn how to read guitar finger positions at least for A, C, D, E, F, G, B7 and Am, Em, Bm, F#m, Dm.

5. If the guitarist you are following uses a capo, put your capo in the same position (at least at first). Later, learn how to translate capoed chord shapes to chord shapes without a capo.

If you want more suggestions, check out www.playwellwithothers.com and the book, "Play Well With Others, A Musician's Guide to Jamming Like a Pro." Mike Walker and I (Martha Haehl) put this book together to help musicians learn jam ettiquitte, understand how rules change by genre of music and some basic music theory to enhance your jamming skills.

Martha
Martha.Haehl@mcckc.edu

Martha,
thanks for hosting the beginners jam. it was very successful ! i know that everyone enjoyed the experience and came away with alot of new info shared from your great book "PLAYING WELL WITH OTHERS" and the experienced jammers that atteneded.

looking forward to the next beginners jam and you joining us on our next cruise to MEXICO.

till the next note !
barbara
602-549-6205

www.BarbarasTravelPlace.com

click on the "GROUPS TAB"
scroll down to
"BARBARA'S MUSIC CRUISE MEXICO"
"BARBARA'S MUSIC CRUISE MEDITERRENEAN"
read all the cruise info and book your cabin.

Thanks for the replies and all the great information. I'll check out your book Martha and get a copy. At this point any help would be great. Thanks again.

Tom

You're welcome. For those of you in the Kansas City area, we are going to make a beginner's or slow jam a monthly event (at my house) unless other people want to host it sometimes. We plan to make this an ongoing event on the 3rd Tuesday of each month.

This week, we split into 2 jams. In one jam, many of the players were new to their instruments so the experienced jammers called out chords and taught the songs. In the other group, the players were quite proficient in their instruments but wanted to work on jamming skills as learning to play lead parts or some other fined tuned tricks of playing. We had a great time. Look for the postings on Folkjam.org.

Martha

I think the most important thing is to make the beginners feel welcome and encourage them to try and relax and join in whenever they can. Also to feel free to ask questions about any song , chords or whatever. I enjoy reading all the comments and good advice you offer, keep it up. thank you Bill

There's a group that has started a jam nearby and they are trying to do the same thing, one jam with experienced musicians and one to for newer musicians to get them to the point where they can join in. Actually, it's listed as John's Jams here on the site. It's in Mt. Gretna, PA every Monday throughout the summer.

I went to Martha's second beginners jam last night and it was wonderful. I was in the upstairs group and they were great folks who were really easy top play with and we had a great time. It was my first jam and I was very nervous at first but by the end I was really doing much better. The other better players really pulled me up. At least I thought so anyway LOL! Thanks Martha!!!!

Martin D18VS Recording King RD227

Hi all - I just joined this site, and am impressed with all the positive comments and advice. I'd just like to add that there are many online lessons, band-in-a-box and play-along slow jam DVDs available these days, esp for bluegrass and old-time music. Blues and jazz, not as much, but there are some. Use some of these options as part of your practice time, and it can help you when you start joining a jam. I also have started a few slow jams in the Berkeley, CA area, and these have been really well-received by people who are trying to move from playing alone to playing in groups. Here is part of an article I wrote for a local Bluegrass magazine:

"People that are ready to join in a Slow Jam need to be aware of a few things: first, it is really different to play with a group of people after only playing on your own. It can be distracting to have so much else going on around you! But, it's also a lot of fun. You'll also need to be able to physically hold your chords for a longer time, both during a song, and for a few hours during the jam, so it can get tiring. It's okay to take a break, and remember to shake out your hands and relax the muscles after an hour or so.
Second, most people don't practice at home playing louder and especially, playing QUIETER. When you're jamming, you're expected to be able to play quieter when someone else is singing or soloing. And, singers often don't know what key they can sing with their "loud" voice; you may sound just fine at home when it's just you and the cat, but in a jam, you may need to sing much louder. I've also found that most people don't practice playing while STANDING, and for guitar and banjo players, it can really change how you see and feel your instrument. Many jams won't have chairs available, so practice standing up sometimes.
Last thing, you may need to brush up on the Nashville Number System, aka I-IV-V, and you should spend part of your practice time playing with a capo. There's a lot of information on the Internet about both of these topics. Pete Wernick's website www.drbanjo.com has a lot of useful information, including lists of "jam standard" songs, and tips for jamming."

One more thing, if there are no Slow Jams in your area, look for people at a jam that seem to be at about your level. Approach them and ask if they'd like to practice with you occasionally, or set up a slower-paced jam session.

Have fun.

Ran Bush
510 525 8156

What a fine compilation of jamming wisdom on this site! Anyone interested in jams should read 'em all.

Some additions:

1. At most folk jams I've attended, the guitar is the primary instrument, with banjo, mandolin, fiddle, harmonica also represented. In such jams, the critical major keys are G, D, C, E, and A. If you learn the chords in those keys (including Dm, Em, and Am), you'll be fine. At first don't worry about 6ths, diminisheds, augmenteds, etc.
(or the Keys of F, B, Eb, etc.)

2. Great suggestion in another post about learning the Nashville numbers. Once you get the basic idea that chords have common patterns (rather than what may seem like random letter sequences), everything becomes much easier. The basic, simple chords in any key are the 1, the 4, and the 5. Your first step in learning to hear/play chord changes is with those chords in each key: in the key of G, 1 = G, 4 = C, 5 = D, in A 1 = A, 4 = D, 5 = E etc.

3. Jams vary greatly in structure. If song choice goes around a circle of players, it's ideal to bring in or suggest songs -- again, ideally ones that many people are likely to know. Having copies is helpful. If there's a jam leader/organizer, it can help a beginner to talk with that person and request that for each song someone go over the chords or call them out the first time around. (We do that at our Thursday night jams at the Old Town School of Folk Music).

4. For folk jams, having copies of a resource book can be helpful. Rise Up Singing is wonderful and extensive; at the School we have a very good book of songs, but it's limited to those out-of-copyright.

If you visit Chicago, think of stopping by the Old Town School of Folk Music, 4544 N. Lincoln -- we're as much a community as a school: everyone is welcome. Wednesday jams are roughly 12-2 pm, Thurday jams are 7 pm-10 pm -- and also see First Friday.

hell o
I go to jam's also. You need to learn the scales in the most popular key's that are played at jams. There is a system to figuring out the cords. Most country songs are what is called a I IV V cord progression.That is the first note in the scale and the fourth note and the fifth in the scale, In the key of G that would be G C D.
The melody is what determines the cord progression. In bluegrass there are a lot of I V IV cord progressions. It is not so hard once you see what is going on. Learn the G scale the A scale and the D scale and the E scale and you can play most songs.

Hope this helps you out

Gary C

Tom,

You have to keep going to the Jams. As you get better with chords your abiltiy will get better. Watch the other players finger positioning on their instrument. Eventually you will recognize what chords they are playing. Also, if you are attending blue grass jams you woll find most songs have only three chords and are played in the chords of C, G, and D. Ask tye players if they have the kusic of songs you like. You can also find mist music at www.chordiy.com and www.lyricsplaygriound.com

Tom:

For DVD's and CD's on how to jam, there are many resources. One of the absolute best is homespuntapes.com

They have hundreds of lessons on all styles and many instruments, with an emphasis on acoustic music-bluegrass, folk and blues. They even have a section of lessons just on jamming, mostly slow jams in the bluegrass style.

They have dozens of world class musicians who can really teach you how to play. Check it out, you'll be suprised at how quickly your playing will improve. You have to get lessons that are on you level, which they explain in detail, but other than that you almost can't go wrong!