"Hear It and Sing It! Exploring the Blues" is a valuable resource for learning to sing and improvise in the blues genre. Tailored for singing enthusiasts, as well as students and educators in vocal jazz programs, it offers a comprehensive, step-by-step method for mastering blues lyrics, forms, harmony, scales, and improvisation, featuring a fresh repertoire of songs. The book includes vocal examples followed by accompaniment-only tracks, making the learning process both easy and enjoyable. New additions feature lyrics set to compositions by jazz legends such as Dexter Gordon (including lyrics to his solo), Johnny Griffin, Gigi Gryce, Julian Priester, and Norman Simmons, along with works by Judy Niemack and Sheila Jordan.
The book encompasses: blues forms, scales, and harmony; transcriptions of exercises and improvised solos; accurate lead sheets for 14 contemporary blues songs; examples of 12 different blues forms; scat syllables; blues riffs; a chapter on the history of "Voices in Blues"; listening and repertoire recommendations; and access to online audio.
The online audio features: 14 songs and exercises performed by Judy Niemack, Sheila Jordan, Mark Murphy, and Darmon Meader; "Hear It and Sing It" blues warm-ups, riffs, scales, and harmony; recordings of each song with vocal and accompaniment-only versions; dynamic accompaniment tracks by top jazz musicians from New York City; and more.