Jazz Trumpet Licks

Here’s a neat sounding turnaround Jazz lick that leans on the b9 when it’s on the V7 chord. The b9 is what makes the lick sound really cool because it makes the pattern want to go towards the next chord change.

Here is a sound sample on trumpet:

How to memorize this turnaround in 12 keys:

First know that it is a iii VI ii V7 I turnaround (3, 6, 2, 5, 1). In other words, it’s a ii V7 up a whole step, then a ii V7 I pattern in the tonic key. Very easy to get used to and it’s used in a whole lot of Jazz charts. If you’ve already worked a lot on various ii V7 I patterns, this Jazz lick will be very easy for you to get down.

Here is my take on it in a snap shot, starts on the 5th of the iii chord and is a minor arpeggio to the 3rd of the VI chord, up to the b9 and down the scale to the minor 3rd of ii chord, then do a turn on the b7th to the 3rd of the V7 chord up to the b9 and down the scale to the III of the I chord.

You’re obviously not going to think about all of this while playing the lick. You’ll mainly just want to mess around with your ii V7 I Jazz patterns and you’ll be able to come up with some really nice turnarounds on your own.

This bebop exercise or calisthenic, will help you in developing your use of arpeggios into your improvisation skills. The bebop exercise goes up the dominant scale with a half step before each arpeggio. Once you get the pattern down, you’ll be able to incorporate the pattern into a Jazz lick you can use to start bebop licks off with.

I also think it’s important to let you know where I got this bebop exercise from. I got this bebop exercise from The Be Boppers Method Book Volume I with CD. This Method book has a lot of great practice material and bebop licks to work on.

Here is a sound sample played on trumpet:

How to memorize the bebop exercise in 12 keys:

The half step between each arpeggio is what makes this harder to learn than most exercises, every thing else is within the bebop or dominant scale. The exercise just repeats itself over and over going up the dominant scale one note at a time. Once you start incorporating the pattern into your solos you can start on any note when starting off your Jazz licks. This is a lot easier because you will generally only play one arpeggio of the bebop pattern above.

You’ll notice in my video demonstration that a doodled a little bit. I like to doodle in every key to help build my technique in every key. This helps me break away from being only comfortable in certain keys. The only way you can get better in keys you don’t normally play in, is by practicing in those keys.

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A guitar player I used to work with showed me this easy ii V7 I lick.  The lick is based off the major 7th of the I chord, this is how I remember the lick.

Here is a sound sample of the lick played on trumpet:

How to memorize this ii V7 I lick in 12 keys:

The easiest way to memorize the ii V7 I lick in 12 keys is to first know that the lick starts on the major 7th of the I chord (it’s also best to think in C major throughout the entire lick). Then you go up the chromatic scale to D or the 9th. Next you go down the major 7th arpeggio until you land on the major 7th.

After you hit the 3rd of the V7 chord it goes up diminished for 3 notes then one whole step until you get the b6 (b9 if thinking in the V7 chord). Finally, the lick finishes by ending the major and landing on the 3rd of the I chord.

I know this seems like a lot of steps, that is why it’s pretty much easier to think of the whole lick in C major. Like any lick or pattern, you’ll eventually develop a feel for it and not have to think about it anymore.

Here is a ii V7 I lick that uses the bebop scale for pretty much the entire lick.

Here is a sample of the lick played on trumpet:

How to memorize this lick in 12 keys:

If you just think about the C bebop scale throughout this entire lick, you’ll learn it very quickly in 12 keys. This lick simply starts on the tonic of whatever bebop scale you are playing, but on the 5th of the I chord. So for a G ii V7 I, what bebop scale would you play? That’s right, the D bebop scale, because it is a 5th above the I chord.

So you start on the tonic of the bebop you are playing and go down the bebop scale until you hit the 3rd. Once you hit the 3rd, you just go up a diminished arpeggio which will hit the b9, then finish out the bebop scale however you would like to and land on a chord tone of the I chord. In the above sample, the lick ends on the 3rd of the I chord.

Here is a ii V7 I lick you can play where you will think in harmonic minor for the beginning of the lick and use a minor arpeggio at the end of the lick.  I got this lick listening to Tom Harrell. I believe I got this lick from one of Tom Harrell’s April Mist trumpet solos.

Here is a sound sample played on trumpet:

How to memorize this lick in 12 keys:

You pretty much need to think in minor for this ii V7 I lick. You can see that we start on the tonic of whatever ii chord we start on and go up the minor scale to the 5th go to the minor 3rd back down to the raised 7th (harmonic minor) up to the 2nd. Then you just go down the Bb Major scale (no longer thinking in minor) until you hit the 3rd of the I chord. Once you hit the I of the one chord, it is just a simple D minor arpeggio up to the 7th from there. You can end or continue this lick however you would like to.