Online Music Lessons During the COVID-19 Shelter-In-Place of 2020

I teach jazz improvisation, non-jazz improvisation, composition, harmony, counterpoint, orchestration, arranging, and Hindustani rhythm. These are ideal topics for a few online lessons while we’re all staying home, and are the same no matter the instrument. Now is the time to empower kids to learn to make their own music.

My primary instruments are double bass and electric bass. However, starting double bass with online lessons might not work. Physical technique in general is harder to convey over a camera than in person. If you already play double bass, and would like some bass-specific online lessons, let’s do it! The mechanics of bass guitar are simpler at the beginning stages, so if you have a bass guitar at home, now is a great time to pick up the basics.


I can also teach jazz piano to students that already play piano and would like to learn to voice chords from a chord chart. For non-pianists, I can teach these same skills, often referred to as “arranger’s piano.”

If you’d like to learn about how music is put together, now is an ideal time. Perhaps you’d like to analyze your favorite song by your favorite band? Or learn to write your own songs?

Platform: either zoom.us or FaceTime.

How much do these lessons cost? For the duration of the lock-down, the price is a sliding scale: pay what you want, pay what you can.

You can contact me to schedule a lesson or ask questions here.

John Graves
Trio Aligraya

Wanted to share some videos of Trio Aligraya, featuring Marco Piali on drums, Cengiz Yaltkaya on piano, and yours truly on bass.

8:04 film (Session 7 Improv 3). Off the cuff Trio Aligraya performance later titled "Aligraya". Recorded in 2011 at the M.P. Garage San Pedro California. Cengiz Yaltkaya - piano, John Graves - bass, Marco Piali - drums. "A Musical Experiment with Sacred Frequencies, Shumann Resonances, Acoustics & Free Improvisation" [Full Moon Nights Video Session "s7i3"\Ghost Recordings Series 2011] TM,SM(P)©2012 M.P.
3D r. Film (Session 7 Improv 1 Excerpt). Off the cuff Trio Aligraya performance later titled "Underwater Full Moons". Recorded in 2011 at M.P. Garage San Ped...
Provided to YouTube by CDBaby Downtown Sunrise · Trio Aligraya Aligraya - EP ℗ 2013 Marco Piali Released on: 2013-06-11 Auto-generated by YouTube.
Provided to YouTube by Ingrooves Area 396 (Clean) · Trio Aligraya Aligraya 2 - EP ℗ 2012 Marco Piali Released on: 2014-03-17 Composer: Cengiz Yaltkaya Compos...
John Graves
highSCORE 2019

“Time-Knife” for unaccompanied viola, and “Four Canons” for violin & cello, both premiered at the highSCORE 2019 Festival.

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John Graves
May All Beings Be Happy at Heart

A setting of the Karaniya Metta Sutta (translation by Thanisarro) composed for my dear friends Emily and Jeff’s wedding.

soprano: Ann Sheridan, alto: Katharine Hoye, tenor: Jeff Eames, bass: Michael Miersma

© 2019 Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0)

John Graves
Downton Abbey

"Leaving the Nest" from audiomachine's Awakenings is featured at 1:25 for this Downton Abbey trailer.

John Graves