Let's Speak Jazz!

Danish-born Martin Jacobsen has considered Paris his home base since 1995. Now dividing his time between Italy and Asia, the busy saxophonist keeps travelling extensively throughout Europe and the world. He has appeared at international venues in more than 25 countries. Martin has performed and recorded with Doug Raney, Bobby Durham, David Sanborn, Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen, Mark Taylor and many others. With 25+ years teaching experience, he has frequently been invited to hold jazz improvisation and saxophone technique clinics in France, Italy, Japan, China, South Korea, Indonesia, Mongolia, Vietnam and Mozambique, and has been teaching at music schools in both Paris and Copenhagen. His book “Let’s Speak Jazz! A Conversational Approach to Jazz Improvisation for Saxophonists” was published by Advance Music in 2018, with the second volume “Let’s Play Jazz! Mastering Chords and Scales for Jazz Improvisation” following in 2024. Martin Jacobsen is a SteepleChase recording artist. He endorses Vandoren reeds and mouthpieces and plays an Ishimori Woodstone tenor saxophone. For further information and upcoming events, please visit www.martinjacobsen.com “Martin Jacobsen’s most overt stylistic influence is Coltrane, yet he stands apart from the usual crowd of Traneites: He’s a self-taught player and seems to have absorbed Coltrane’s music in a very individual way, taking special interest in his early work on Prestige.”—Cadence Magazine, USA “… a bold, soulful horn blown by Martin Jacobsen with a tone that’s right on the money, and a gentle swing.”—Dusty Groove, USA “… Jacobsen seems well aware of what makes jazz a vital music. It’s the constant sense of growth and discovery, taking the old and making it new.”—All About Jazz, USA

Introduction - Some Thoughts on Saxophone Teaching - What is Jazz Improvisation? - Chapter 1 Tone - Chapter 2 Articulation - Chapter 3 Rhythm and Time - Chapter 4 Feeling and Color - Chapter 5 Scales and Patterns - Chapter 6 Vocabulary - Chapter 7 Practice - Chapter 8 Listen and Transcribe - Chapter 9 Performance - Appendix: Further Study (Jazz Methods, Etudes and Technique for the Saxophone) - An Essential Discography - Knowledge and History - Circle of Fifth - Diatonic Scales - About the Author