About this run
This is my favorite jazz piano run for a C7, F7, and G7 chord. It just feels great when played over those chords. It's one of those devices Oscar Peterson or Teddy Willson liked to play. It sounds very impressive but is actually quite easy to play at even very fast speeds.
See me using the lick in this short video
About playing it only with specific chords or keys
Jazz pianists all have their favorite runs with which they dazzle their audience. They prefer different runs in different keys. The reason for that is that what comes easy in one key might be very tricky in another. That's, of course, because of the asymmetrical layout of the keyboard.
For example, I prefer to play the run featured in this post with three chords only. Those chords are C7, F7, and G7.
Here is the run with fingering for all three chords
About the idea of playing a run in all keys
I can't entirely agree with jazz educators who demand from their students that they should play the same run in every key, with every chord. Although this is certainly a great exercise, it isn't very practical. We are talking about very fast runs here. I have studied many solos by all-time great jazz pianists like Oscar Peterson, Tatum, and Teddy Wilson. They all have runs they only use in certain keys.
Have you ever heard someone play a Chopin etude in a different key than originally written? No one does it because they are composed in a specific key that works the fingers in a particular way.
Building a repertory of runs for specific chords and keys
Building a repertory of great runs that work well in specific keys will ultimately be very rewarding. Of course, it is important to create rhythmic variations of those runs, combine them with other runs, or play only fragments of them to avoid sounding predictable. But that's a topic for a different post.
Please feel free to leave a comment
What do you think about this topic? Do you play your favorite runs in all keys or only in those they feel good in?