WISDOM OF THE HAND
A GUIDE TO THE JAZZ PENTATONIC SCALES
BY MARIUS NORDAL

FORMAT: SPIRAL-BOUND.
PAGE: 219.
SHER MUSIC CO.

DESCRIPTION:
-JAZZ PIANISTS HAVE BEEN TRAINED TO USE ONE-OCTAVE, “THUMB-UNDER” FINGERINGS, BASED ON THE WESTERN CLASSICAL TRADITION. BUT THIS SYSTEM FALLS SHORT WHEN DEALING WITH THE WIDER INTERVALS OF THE PENTATONIC SCALES. SO PIANIST, COMPOSER AND EDUCATOR MARIUS “BUTCH” NORDAL HAS COME UP WITH A SYSTEM OF “POSITIONAL PLAYING” THAT WILL ALLOW THE PIANISTS NEW VISTAS OF FREEDOM AND EASE OF PLAYING ON THESE CRUCIAL ELEMENTS OF JAZZ.

WISDOM OF THE HAND IS A THOROUGH EXPOSITION OF A NEW WAY TO APPROACH PLAYING PIANO:

-HAS TWO-OCTAVE FINGERINGS IN ALL 12 KEYS FOR THE FOUR MOST COMMONLY USED VERSIONS OF THE
PENTATONIC SCALE.
-HAS TWO-OCTAVE FINGERINGS FOR ALL 12 BLUES SCALES
-INTRODUCES THE CONCEPT OF “PIANO DRUMMING” TO HAVE THE READER CONCEIVE MUSIC RHYTHMICALLY
INSTEAD OF JUST AS MONOTONOUS STREAMS OF PITCHES.
-WEANS THE STUDENT AWAY FROM PLAYING SCALE PATTERNS BY HAVING THE IMPROVISER CONCEIVE IDEAS
IN TERMS OF THE INFINITE VARIETY OF LITTLE 3 AND 4 NOTE CHORD SHAPES TO BE FOUND IN THE
PENTATONIC SCALES.
-INTRODUCES THE CONCEPT OF POSITIONAL PLAYING TO ENABLE TRANSCENDING THE CLUMSY “THUMB
UNDER” MOVES THAT PLAGUE KEYBOARD PLAYERS.
-INTRODUCES THE “88 NOTE SCALE” CONCEPT HAVE THE PLAYER UNDERSTAND THAT EACH REGISTER OF
THE KEYBOARD SPEAKS A DIFFERENT LANGUAGE. THIS BREAKS THE HABIT OF THINKING OF THE PIANO
AS MERELY A SINGLE OCTAVE OF TWELVE NOTES REPEATED ACROSS THE KEYBOARD.
-PROVIDES 200 PRACTICE EXAMPLES COVERING RHYTHM, BENDING NOTES, POSITIONAL PLAYING AND
CREATIVITY.