Blues piano, from the ground up
Learn to play the blues like you mean it
A left hand that keeps time on its own, boogie patterns, turnarounds and the phrasing that makes a solo sound like speech. Taught in order, at your own pace.
Taught by Frank Montis — 25 years on the bandstand
Five out of fiveI highly recommend lessons with Frank Montis. His sense of time, groove, harmony, and soloing is phenomenal. His lessons are fun and progressively challenging. Frank is a great human being and patient teacher.
Eric Roos, New York
What you get
Everything in one place
Video lessons
Filmed from above and from the front, so you can see exactly what both hands are doing.
Sheet music that follows along
The score scrolls with the video, bar by bar, so you never lose your place.
A route, not a pile
Courses run in order and remember where you stopped, so you always know what is next.
How it works
Three steps
Pick a plan
Start free to see whether the approach suits you. Upgrade whenever you want more.
Follow a course
Each course is a sequence of short lessons with sheet music and a backing track.
Play along
Slow the track down, loop a passage, and bring it up to tempo when it is ready.
Courses
Where to begin
Comping & Voicings
What to play when somebody else has the tune: voicings that stay out of the way, where to put the chord so it lands with the drummer, and when to leave the space alone.
Essential Scales for Mastering the Blues
Six scales, twelve keys each. The material every blues line is built from, one key at a time.
Free Previews : Basic Membership Content
A free sample of what Basic Membership contains. No account needed.
Left Hand & Boogie Patterns
The hand that keeps time while the other one plays. Shuffle and boogie figures, walking basses and stride, taken slowly and built up until the left hand runs on its own and you stop having to think about it.
Licks & Tricks
Short phrases you can drop straight into a solo, and the hand tricks behind them: crushed notes, grace notes, tremolos and glissandi. What they are, where they fit, and how to play them so they sound offhand rather than rehearsed.
The Blues Etudes
Learn to speak the blues on the piano, one 12-bar chorus at a time: from your first Blues Prelude, through the Blues Etudes, to the Blues Toccatas.
Turnarounds, Intros & Endings
The phrases every blues pianist is expected to know: how to start a tune, how to get round the last four bars, and how to finish so the band knows…
Reviews
What students say about Frank
Five out of fiveI highly recommend lessons with Frank Montis. His sense of time, groove, harmony, and soloing is phenomenal. His lessons are fun and progressively challenging. Frank is a great human being and patient teacher.
Five out of fiveFrank has expanded my musical vocabulary and understanding of when, where, and why to play something. He is a fantastic player, listener, and patient, encouraging teacher with a wealth of knowledge.
Five out of fiveFrank's hands-on, fun-first approach, with deeper analysis where appropriate, really makes a difference. He helps me become a better player by sparking my interest and satisfying my impatient soul.
Pricing
Pick a plan
Basic
€12.99 per month
- Every course
- All sheet music
- Backing tracks
- Progress tracking
- Flexible monthly billing
Student
€75 per month
- Everything in Basic
- One live lesson a month
- Flexible monthly billing