Reader,
I was playing cocktail hour at a wedding a couple of years back. Someone requested Secret Love (which is, for the record, a funny song to play at a wedding) and I segued smoothly into it from the current song.
After a few bars, I realized I had segued into it in the “wrong” key. Secret Love is a song I always play in Eb, but I had just landed in Ab instead. Oops.
I panicked inside a little bit… but I made it through okay.
Most of us learn a tune in one key. Whatever the Real Book says, or whatever recording we first learned it from. But, well-rounded jazz musicians can navigate all the keys comfortably.
Most of us aren’t there yet, myself included. We have a handful of keys where the ideas flow, where our hands play freely. But then there are other keys (I’m looking at you, B major) where we’re just managing.
That's why I asked my friend Thembi Dunjana to join us this Friday as a guest at our workshop. She has a very practical approach to working through techniques and tunes in all the keys. I've learned a lot from her, and you will too.