Advanced Fall 2026

Jam Session™ Advanced Workshop

Six-Week Syllabus & Repertoire Pool

This session explores two sides of advanced ensemble playing: What do you do when the chords ARE difficult? – and –

What do you do when the chords AREN’T difficult?

Advanced musicians should be comfortable learning material independently. Songs below form our Repertoire Pool. We

will not necessarily cover every song, and the direction of the workshop will change according to the musicians in the room.

ADVANCED REPERTOIRE POOL

Harmonic / Improvisational Challenges

• Sweet Potato Pie – Johnny Bassett

• Let’s Stay Together – Al Green

• Blue Bossa

• Runnin’ Blue – Boz Scaggs

• Stormy Monday

• Rhythm Changes / I-VI-ii-V exercises and applications

Arrangement / Ensemble Challenges

• For What It’s Worth – Buffalo Springfield

• Dreams – Fleetwood Mac

• Everybody Wants to Rule the World – Tears for Fears / Patti Smith

• When a Man Loves a Woman

• Lean on Me – Bill Withers

• Crazy Little Thing Called Love – Queen

• Ain’t Nobody’s Business If I Do – Johnny Copeland

• Why Can’t We Be Friends? – War

Later-Session Challenges – Start Listening Now

• Higher Ground – Stevie Wonder

• When a Man Loves a Woman -> Lean on Me – continuous transition

WEEK 1 – Establish the Band

Stormy Monday + selected repertoire

The first question isn’t, “How much can you play?” It’s “How well can you hear everybody else?”

• Ensemble awareness

• Blues harmony beyond basic I-IV-V

• Chord-tone targeting

• Fills and responses

• Dynamics

• Musical communication

WEEK 2 – Following the Changes

Sweet Potato Pie + I-VI-ii-V work

Jam Session™ | Page 1• I-vi-ii-V and iii-vi-ii-V

• Secondary dominants

• Guide tones and voice leading

• Targeting chord tones while improvising

• Moving beyond one-scale soloing

WEEK 3 – Harmony + Pocket

Let’s Stay Together / Blue Bossa

• ii-V-I

• Minor harmony

• Extended chords

• Voice leading

• Rhythmic placement

• Soul vs. jazz phrasing

• Improvising through changes

WEEK 4 – When the Chords Aren’t the Problem

For What It’s Worth / Dreams / Everybody Wants to Rule the World

The chords aren’t difficult – so now you don’t have the chords to blame. Make this sound like a band.

• Creating an arrangement

• Developing complementary parts

• Restraint

• Dynamics and texture

• Musical space

• Reharmonization where appropriate

• Making a familiar song sound like YOUR band

WEEK 5 – Stretch

Runnin’ Blue / Higher Ground + Rhythm Changes work

• More involved progressions

• Funk and rhythmic precision

• I-VI-ii-V applications

• Rhythm Changes concepts

• Substitutions

• Connecting scales and arpeggios to harmony

• Creating solos that develop rather than simply running changes

WEEK 6 – Musicians Become Arrangers

When a Man Loves a Woman -> Lean on Me

Plus selected repertoire from the session

Jam Session™ | Page 2The challenge: move from one song into another without stopping and without someone having to

explain every move.

• Transitions

• Cueing and listening

• Dynamics

• Modulation or harmonic connection when appropriate

• Background figures and horn ideas

• Trading

• Spontaneous arrangement

ONE IMPORTANT IDEA

Advanced doesn’t always mean more chords, faster tempos or more notes.

Sometimes Blue Bossa, Sweet Potato Pie or Runnin’ Blue will test your harmonic knowledge. Sometimes Dreams or For

What It’s Worth will test something harder: Can you make a simple song sound great without filling every available

space?

That balance – harmony, groove, listening, improvisation and spontaneous arranging – will be a major focus of this

session.

This is a repertoire pool, not a required set list. Expect changes. We will follow the strengths, weaknesses and

musical curiosity of the players who show up.

Jam Session™ | Page 3