Tuesdays 6 - 7:30 pm 9/19 - 11/28 (10 weeks) no class 11/21

Whether you play jazz, rock, R&B/soul, funk, or country, your music is influenced by gospel. This class covers the historical development of gospel piano styles from the 1920s to the present day. You’ll play some classic songs by quintessential artists and will develop the gospel sound in your own playing with idiomatic piano licks and grooves, song forms, and chord progressions. The instructor will provide supplemental viewing, listening, and additional resources.

Prerequisites: familiarity with 7th chords and ability to read standard notation; strong Internet connection, laptop by your piano/keyboard, and wired headphones. Materials provided by the instructor.

Instructor – Jennifer Jolly (keyboards)

B.A. UC Berkeley. Keyboards and melodica, multi-instrumentalist, vocalist, composer/arranger, bandleader. Specialist in Americana, blues/R&B, New Orleans, rock’n’roll, Caribbean, and African roots music. Founder of Jennifer Jolly & Friends, co-founder of and composer for The Jolly Gibsons. Additional current projects include Pamela Rose’s touring theatrical concert “Blues is a Woman,” Zulu Spear, Kotoja, Tom Rigney & Flambeau (sub), Chelle! and Friends (guest), Bait & Switch Blues Band, Big Band His Snake Oil Saviors, The Party Monsters, The Linwood Chorus (accompanist), and the Creekside Community Church Worship Band. Previous credits include Phil Lesh, The Broken Angels, Hot Links, Barbara Dane, Rusty Zinn, two dozen theatrical productions, and numerous reggae, blues/New Orleans, singer/songwriter, and country bands; twenty-plus recording credits. Faculty instructor at The Jazzschool, Cazadero Family Camp, Jazzschool Women’s Jazz and Blues Camp, after school programs, workshops, and private studio.