Jazz Brain Training 

By Christopher Braig 

 

Preview  

Bb & Eb Instruments 

Treble & Bass Clef Instruments 

Guitar & Bass Guitar (with TAB)  

Vocal & Drum Set  

 

 

 

Christopher Braig  

Is an eclectic composer, author, educator, music technology specialist and independent academic. One of the few musicians playing soprano saxophone exclusively, Christopher is a sought after soloist and collaborator. With recent performances at the Whitaker Music Festival , Webster University Jazz Series , Sheldon Concert Hall , Jazz Impact and profiled by St. Louis Public Radio , he is one of the most recognized saxophonists and jazz educators in St. Louis Missouri.  

   Christopher has been performing for more than three decades in over a dozen countries. He previously worked for Carnival Cruise Lines, Disney, The Shoji Tabuchi Show and been on stage more than four thousand times in front of more than three million people. From 1987 to 1990 he was a member of the 113th United States Army Band. He has resided and worked in Miami, Orlando, San Juan, Virginia, Cincinnati, Louisville and traveled extensively.  In October 2016 Christopher released his first CD of original compositions Blue Morpho . He is the author of the improvisation book Jazz Brain Training and the saxophone technique book Stacking The Saxophone . Christopher maintains an active private teaching studio and has numerous recording credits including the theme to Living St. Louis on PBS affiliate KTEC.    

Christopher began teaching jazz at St. Louis Community College in 2010. In 2013 he started the audio production program at STLCC Meramec and designed curriculum for courses in Music Technology, Pro Tools and Audio Engineering. Along with developing course content Christopher selected the equipment and built the campus recording facility. He currently teaches applied saxophone, jazz and the audio courses at Meramec.   In 2015 he directed Saxfest! at Meramec. One of the largest gatherings of saxophonists in the St. Louis region.     Christopher was a member of the Webster University adjunct jazz faculty and Webster University Summer Jazz Camp faculty from 2005 to 2016 and has taught jazz improvisation at St. Louis University. He has taught Pre-K through undergrad, every grade, including both vocal and instrumental music Pre-K through Eighth Grade.   Christopher holds Bachelor of Music Education and Master of Music in Jazz Saxophone Performance degrees from Webster University. In addition he studied jazz saxophone performance at the Cincinnati-College Conservatory of Music and is a graduate of the United States Military Music School in Little Creek Virginia.  

 Talking About Jazz Brain Training 

 Jazz Brain Training is a unique combination:   

First is an inspirational essay that describes  

Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi's theory of �ow in cognitive 

states and applies it to the the improvising student.   

 

The essay leads to exercises that are designed to  

enable a beginning jazz improviser to stay challenged 

and rewarded while making progress. I am excited to 

see how this approach integrates into young (and 

not-so-young) musicians’ training. 

  Dr. Jeffrey Zacks Associate Chair Psychology and Brain Science, Washington University in St. Louis   

 

Christopher Braig has created a truly unique and highly practical guide for the 

novice jazz musician. Whereas most books on the subject focus on "which notes to play, 

and when", Mr. Braig's book addresses a much more fundamental issue: How to effectively 

access the state of mind (consciousness) that is most conducive to the improvisational 

process. An invaluable and very timely tool! 

 

Bill Plake Alexander Technique Teacher, American Musical and Drama�c Academy at Los Angeles Saxophonist, Author of Jazz Improvisa�on Pedagogy books

Christopher Braig has taught me to think about playing jazz in a new way. His 

conversational technique helped me gain con�dence and learn how to engage with  

the music. It has not only vastly improved my playing, but my contributions to the 

group are now richer and more meaningful. 

 

Dr. James Bohman Danforth Professor of Philosophy St. Louis University

    “That's what I call the Alpha State.   A state of relaxed concentration  and effortless creativity.”  -Stan Getz      Have you ever had a really good night playing? Maybe you were “In The Zone”, “Feelin’ It” or even “On Fire”?    Modern psychology defines your experience as Flow . Flow Theory was pioneered  by the Hungarian psychologist and University of Chicago Professor Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi in the 1970’s. Based on the work of Dr. Csikszentmihalyi and applied to jazz improvisation Flow is:    An optimal psychological state that people experience when engaged in a musical activity that is both appropriately challenging and suitable to one’s skill level, often resulting in immersion with a concentrated focus on the task. This can result in deep learning and higher levels of personal and musical satisfaction.    

 

 General Requirements For Flow Defined By Dr. Csikszentmihalyi  ❏ The activity must have a clear set of goals ❏ The activity must have immediate feedback ❏ There must be a good balance between the perceived challenges of a 

task and one’s perceived skills.  Playing For The Love of Playing Establishing Flow requires some level of intrinsic value. When asked why I have been able to make a living exclusively as a musician for thirty-two years I can only respond, “because I love playing music.”    Distilling The Material Jazz Brain Training was created to give as many people possible the opportunity to experience a sense of freedom while they improvise. It is an objective approach uncolored by personal musical preferences. Someone using Jazz Brain Training in St. Louis Missouri should report experiencing Flow the same as someone in Cape Town South Africa. Jazz Brain Training is about the process of playing. Not a collection of materials to be worked on by other means.      “You Think In Sound”  -Dr. James Bohman,   Danforth Professor of Philosophy at St. Louis University   Think of a city …   Very likely the name of a city just popped into your head.  If you were pondering several cities ask yourself, “what was the first city I considered naming?”  

 

Based on this little experiment I suggest our thoughts simply arise in our heads. This includes music thought s too. Music thoughts ARE music. Thoughts ABOUT music may include scales, chords and tempo. “What does the evidence say?”  Jazz Improvisation: Executing on your instrument the musical thoughts that arise in your mind without consciously being aware of it.          

        “It’s A Conversation”  -Willie Akins  The first step to working with Jazz Brain Training is play when you don’t hear me playing tenor saxophone on the recordings. Determining “when to come in” creates anxiety and is a Flow stopper. You’ll get the hang of it as we “talk” back and forth.    “To be or not to be? That is the question” Just as an actor rehearses dialog with a scene partner, Jazz Brain Training quickly provides the opportunity to play in a spontaneous conversational style without feeling uncertain or lost. 

 

 There are no traditional “Play-A-Long” tracks with Jazz Brain Training . The notes provided for each activity serve as a Script for connecting our playing. The Scripts will initially relieve you of the anxiety created trying to “find the right notes” or “hear the changes” while improvising. In some cases anxiety prevents a musician from even attempting to improvise.  Scripts Are Not Licks The scripts are derived from unambiguous mainstream jazz improvisations played by jazz icons. They guarantee you will “make the changes”. In other words play the “right” notes. The rhythmic value of the pitches should be ignored. Writing down rhythms would only add to the challenge and create anxiety.        Measures marked with slashes indicate when you hear me playing tenor saxophone on the included tracks.   “Where is the Theory?” My first answer is “this is not a theory book” but that is just a surface response to a complex question. The first step in any serious discussion is the parties involved agree on the meaning of relevant terms. Theory in regard to Jazz Brain Training is defined as “the mathematical explanation” of the Scripts.    

   

 

 “Where are the chord changes?” Note choice is not a subject addressed in Jazz Brain Training making chord symbols irrelevant.    “Where are the bar lines?”       There are no bar lines marked for Scripts because that would increase the challenge unnecessarily. Now let’s dig deeper.   “What light through yonder window breaks?” While working in my studio for an extended period one day I noticed how the light changed as time progressed. I was looking at the same window of course since it is fixed into the wall. This exact pattern will never be repeated as long as there is a sun and my window stays in place. Scripts do the same thing over time.   “How do they do that?” When we assign a player to a style of music we base it on Performance Practices. Jazz Brain Training is ONLY about the “way” to play not “what” to play.    The Jazz Brain Training performance practices are:  ❏ Easily discernable phrases ❏ Moving 8th notes and syncopations ❏ Short notes at the ends of phrases 

 

Can You Name This Soloist?

Performance Practices Are The Key The correct answer is James Moody lines one and two playing Lester Leaps In . Stan Getz lines three and four playing Move. Sonny Rollins lines five and six playing No Moe. You were looking at excerpts from three different players playing three different songs using nearly identical performance practices.  The Origin Of Jazz Brain Training The question of how jazz musicians create their art has intrigued me for decades. My fascination with the subject resulted in years studying cognition, flow and learning theories, linguistics, neurobiology and perception in relationship to traditional jazz pedagogy.    I hope Jazz Brain Training empowers you to create jazz improvisations strongly linked to the jazz tradition and at the same time remarkably your own. 

 

 

Jazz Brain Training Audio Tracks  Streaming Option Audio tracks for Jazz Brain Training can be streamed from www.jazzbraintraining.com  Purchase and Download Option Audio tracks for Jazz Brain Training can be purchased from iTunes and Amazon by searching for Christopher Braig or Jazz Brain Training   Track List  Track 1  Christopher Braig Playing Act 1 - Script #1  Track 2  Christopher Braig Playing Act 1 - Script #2  Track 3  Sample Solo at 116 BPM  Track 4  Act 1 at 116 BPM  Track 5  Act 2 at 116 BPM  Track 6  Sample Solo at 128 BPM  Track 7  Act 1 at 128 BPM  Track 8  Act 2 at 128 BPM  Track 9  Sample Solo at 142 BPM  Track 10  Act 1 at 142 BPM  Track 11  Act 2 at 142 BPM  Track 12  Sample Solo at 164 BPM  Track 13  Act 1 at 164 BPM  Track 14  Act 2 at 164 BPM       

 

 Critical Information Jazz Brain Training is not a Play-A-Long. There is a high probability Jazz Brain Training will transform your playing if you stick to the method and don’t dilute it by interpolating other approaches.    ❏ Play all of the notes in the Script ❏ Do not repeat any notes in the Script  ❏ Do not leave out any notes from the Script ❏ Do not change the order of notes in the Script 

 

 Jazz Brain Training Starts Now  Act 1 The first scripts can be played any time you do not hear me playing. The form of this tune is sixteen measures.    Act 2 In Act 2 the harmony in measures one, two, three and four is different than the harmony in measures nine, ten, eleven and twelve increasing the challenge. In fact basic math says it’s, at a minimum, twice the challenge.    What You Get  The full version of Jazz Brain Training includes:  ❏ Detailed explanations of each and every concept. ❏ Complete Script Library ❏ Explanations of Flow Blocking performance practices  ❏ Continuous updates via, PDF, streaming audio and video ❏ Invitations to Jazz Brain Training “virtual meetups”. ❏ Objective methods of measuring your progress