Soloing over a II V I with Pentatonic scales - Modern Jazz Improvisation!

The II V I is one of the most common and important progressions in jazz. So playing over a II V I is a necessary part of being able to play jazz. One way to get started with this is to use pentatonic scales as a starting point. In this lesson I will give you 3 pentatonic scales to use over a II V I in C, talk a bit about how you use them and give you 3 lines using the pentatonic scales.

You can download a PDF and read the article on my blog via this link:

Check out more lessons on Pentatonic scales:

Check out another lesson on Improvising on a II V I with arpeggios:

More stuff on altered dominants:

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[Silh]

The more I grow, the more I come back to your channel!

[justinlee]

Dearest Jens, i have been so fortunate as to have been blessed with a subscription to your channel of jazz guitar content.

It is the right time in my guitar life to be working with you. My taste have grown to truly appreciate and enjoy the sound/soul/ and all that belongs to the jazzer.

Your calm demeanor and proactive practices resonate with my inquiries.

I wanted to say thank you and i really appreciate all you are doing

Thanks,
Justin from New Orleans Louisiana

[mqb]

This is probably one of the best guitar lessons on youtube.

[MrJoeyBoombotz]

This may be the best jazz lesson of its kind anywhere.The licks are great.I'm very grateful and appreciative of you sharing your brilliant insights and work product. Every note in these licks I can use to enhance the solos I am working on. You are a very kind and generous person. I feel a little guilty though. Hopefully I can find a way to afford some way to study with you a while.

[word]

Fantastic. coming from a blues background this is reassuring that Jazz is within my grasp ( finally) always listened to it -- especially 50s and 60's Jazz, but never could call myself a Jazz player

[MrJlee]

Love this channel, the best I’ve found this far. Jens is one of the best guitar professors I’ve come across. So grateful for the content he’s worked hard on to share his knowledge.

[rgr]

I wanted to know some Jazz Basic concepts. This lesson is so inspiring. Couldn't stop playing in this mood for hours. Thanks for sharing this lesson to a young guitarrist.

[marcromanrosich]

Hi!
Very good lesson!
I also play B minor pentatonic over Cmaj 7 and it sounds great!

[richardsorice]

Hey Jens, . Thanks for another great lesson. You are an amazing teacher!

[tomrechsteiner]

great lesson Jens, great guitar playing

[muzika]

Another great lesson. Thanks a lot Jens!

[donfox]

Really some great pentatonic concepts. I definitely plan on using these.

[josiecrotwell]

another great lesson, thank you! I also use a B pentatonic over a C Maj7, it has that sharp 11 sound, anyway it works for me. I love these examples, thanks as always...

[alainvey]

This is very helpful. For whatever reason your approach helps me 'get it' more clearly than I have before, if that makes sense :)

[marcosdimagi]

Very useful Jens a was running out of ideas :) !

[dkwvt]

Great lesson on the versatility of pentatonic applications. I've always used bits and pieces but never taken the time to study the structural relationships. This and the lesson using Lady Bird are going straight into my playbook! BTW the LadyBird material was also very helpful for the jam last Sunday, we will be revisiting along with the Segway to the Miles piece... 😎. Thanks as always!

[bk]

Great help for piano ..Thank You! You teach well.

[OriginalEyeball]

Great!So i could move this down a whole step and use it in my Bb Jazz/Blues 👍🏻

[piotrhobbysta]

Very interesting knowledge. Once I've thought that pentatonic is strongly related to blues and rock, but it's impossible to play solos in jazzy way. Yet it's possible, so interesting are the theoretical aspects - factors making that using the same mode/scale, comparable players can play jazz or rock. I would like toadd - I am beginner, laic, not professional or advanced player.

[Shuzies]

Jens....I like going back and checking out your videos just to refresh my mind....thank you....ron