Latin Jazz Guitar

Corcovado Part 2

In this next section we will look at the next 8 bars. The next four bars utilise bar chords Gm7 and C9 barring the 3rd fret and chords F#m7 and B7#5 barring on the second fret.          

Corcovado Bossa Nova Tutorial (part 1)

 Corcovado, also know as Quiet Nights of Quiet Stars is a popular Brasilian Bossa Nova by Antonio Carlos Jobim. In this intermediate guitar arrangement I have changed the key from the original key of C and moved up one tone to D major to make use of more open strings.  The feel is not […]

5 Essential Latin Chords

Latin Jazz includes jazz music that is written in a Jazz style. These pieces usually take the form of Bossa Novas, Sambas, Cha-Chas, Mambos, and more. Here are some common jazz chords found in Latin Jazz Guitar Pieces. Minor 7 This minor 7 chord is part of the Minor Chord Family (there are 5 chord […]

E Minor Pentatonic – Latin Blues Tutorial

Today I want to talk about improvising in a Latin Blues style. I’m going to be using the E minor pentatonic in various positions along the fretboard and showing you my approach to using the scale in my solos. We’ll also explore some extra notes and ideas you can use to help improve your solos […]

Mediterranean Sundance

This is an iconic guitar piece of the Latin guitar world. Three giants of the acoustic and nylon guitar come together to collaborate in a guitar trio. This piece was recorded on a live album and is featured in a number of YouTube videos (see below). The piece is an elaboration of Paco De Lucia’s […]

Spain Guitar Version (Chick Corea)

   Spain is a Jazz Latin piece written by Chick Corea inspired by the second movement Rodrigo’s Concerto Concerto De Aranjuez. It features a syncopated melody that is played in unison and also includes a flamenco-inspired circle of fifths: the chord progress Gmaj7 – F#7 (b9) – Em – A7 (b9) – Dmaj7- Gmaj7 […]

Besame Mucho Bossa Nova

 Title: Besame Mucho Key : D minor Time : 4/4 Style: Bossa Nova Composer: Consuelo Velazquez Notes Originally written as a Bolero, this piece is one of the most famous Mexican songs. I have arranged it here as a Bossa. Two sections – Binary form Melody and Bossa Nova accompaniment. Chromatic chords and triplet […]

3 Bossa Nova Exercises

Here are 4 Bossa Nova exercises, each exercise uses the same 2 chords : Am6 and Am7 with voicing on strings 2 to 4. Its a good idea to practice with a metronome at a comfortable tempo. Note that the bass part is always on beats 1 and 3, while the chords vary between begin […]

Major 7th Chords

Here are the main major chord shapes you can play on the guitar: Root 6 (Tonic on the 6th String) Root 5 (Tonic on the 5th String) Root 4 (Tonic on the 4th String) There are other major type chords with can often also be used like 6, maj 9, 6/9 etc depending on the […]