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Worldwide Students Speak

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This IS the guitar of one’s dreams…

First, the punch line: After a month I’ve concluded that this guitar is not a substitute, surrogate, or compromise for that more expensive jazz box that one longs for and cannot afford. This IS the guitar of one’s dreams.

I’ll be as brief as I can. I have many guitars. But no real jazz guitars. I don’t play much jazz, but sometimes want to go there, and somehow my .strandberg* just isn’t right. I try to stay away from retail stores because there is ALWAYS something that catches my eye. But, I needed a set of strings and since I was near a store, I stopped by. As usual, I looked at used wall. There was nothing interesting. Walk away. Quickly. But… what’s that? Needing a ladder to get to it, there was a red wine archtop high on the wall. Conti? What’s a Conti? I’d never heard of them. I suspected that it was some Asian product, à la Cort (Nothing wrong with Cort. I believe they made my .strandberg*.) I found someone to get it down and I played for three minutes. I was meeting someone for lunch in fifteen minutes so I had no time to play much. I put it back.

It was two weeks before I was back in that neighborhood. In that time I did some research and if you are reading this, you’ve done the same and I won’t bore you with the details of Robert Conti’s business model to bypass the middleman. None of his guitars would be sold in stores. No distributors. Instead, he sells direct to player. He asks his prospects to trust that the guitar he gives them will make them exceptionally happy. That’s a big ask. You can’t play one to see if you like it.

Armed with this information and with more time set aside I went back to the store. While every other Conti customer needed to muster faith to buy, I had the luxury of actually playing one. The model is Equity, discontinued after the first production contract ended. The guitar played well and seemed well taken care of, 99% brand new. There were very few scratches, no dings. I copied the serial number and went home.

I went back to the Conti website but could find no serial number reference, nor a support page, but I could chat online with Steve. I asked about the serial number, and he told me the guitar was built in 2013. He also said that from what he knew of the previous owner, it should have been well taken care of. Wow. Steve told me the guitar was solid wood, not laminate. He asked me about the price and told me it was a very good deal. So, I went back the next day and bought it.

The next day I cleaned it and changed strings. It was clean but needed a little detailing. The cleaning process brought me closer to the instrument (LOL the truss rod cover on the headstock still had it’s original protective plastic covering). At every turn I was surprised and impressed by the build.

I love this guitar and I consider myself lucky to have it.

T
The Formula
Tancredo Netto - Brazil
I think it is the best

I think you are the only one that explains the magic of chord melody! I admire Conti's method, I think it is the best, a hands on approach and at the same time it teaches the way professionals play. Like we Brazilians say, he doesn't only give the fish, he teaches to fish! I love jazz standards and I hope I will study a lot with Conti's help!! Thank you very much! It's a pleasure for me to recommend a very good teacher and Conti is one!!!

Will re-energize my daily practice routine.

Robert is an entertaining and competent instructor with a wide range of past real-playing experience of the bandstand. Mike provided tech support and sent ZOOM setup instructions before the lesson to avoid wasting time on video-audio snags.

Robert took a few minutes at the start of the ZOOM lesson to review my personal history, music experience, and to assess my technical skills. He came well prepared for my lesson (3 handout documents) with a focus on improvisation, as requested. He “tuned” this first lesson to my level of interest and playing ability.

His approach to improvisation is direct, different, and perhaps unique. He presents a down-to-earth focus on fingering the fretboard rather than using a theoretical approach of pairing various scales/modes to each chord in a progression, one at a time.

Robert demonstrated the wide application of major scale riffs to a surprisingly wide range of chords built from the major scale. This simplification avoid overthinking (my bad habit) which creates lock-up, anxiety, and lag when suddenly called upon to solo on the jazz bandstand. He played these riffs over backing tracks “live” that he called out to Mike who played the audio files on-demand. Both Robert and Mike were attentive to my music lesson. Robert concluded the lesson with additional tips and a clear assignment and challenge to be completed before a future lesson.

To conclude, the “hands-on” Conti method avoids over-complicating the improvisation process and it will re-energize my daily practice routine.

Video Comments

See attached video for Lee's comments

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A brilliant approach

The Precision Techniques has helped me hone my technique tremendously and like every Robert Conti Book with CD it is extremely practical and gets you running in the real world playing while mastering the theory as you go so it is extremely efficient and all-encompassing and frankly, better than the dozens of books and classes that I’ve tried. It is a brilliant approach.

Robert's teaching approach stands out

It was a pleasure to spend the two hours with Robert and I must also thank you for the technical assistance and making sure everything went smoothly - I know it’s a team effort on your end.

As for my comments on the lesson : Robert gave me plenty to think about and I’ll be putting the ideas into practice in the woodshed. It was particularly enlightening to hear how he approaches improvisation over certain chord changes and this is something I look forward to picking his brains about in future sessions too on other standards. Roberts teaching approach is something that stands out - he has a way of making you feel comfortable and engaged whilst also being very to the point. I particularly appreciated that he didn’t waste precious time just having me play things over and over as from experience a lot of ‘teachers’ seem to do that instead using the time to impart as much advise and information they can on the student - often a means to get more money out of students and not give too much away in terms of valuable information. As Robert said - he’s not here to teach someone how to play, he’s there to show you what to play and why etc. this is exactly what I need. He had me play the lines to get them under my fingers and ensure I understood the concepts and knew that I am to take them away to practice in my own time. This allowed Robert to use all the time available to feed me more and more ideas and pearls of wisdom.

I will most certainly be booking another lesson after I’ve got some more practice in as there are many more things I’d like to ask Robert and certainly a lot for me to learn!

Best and most efficient way to learn jazz guitar

So much easier for me to practice and learn all of the valuable information Robert has shared on these videos! This is without question the best and most efficient way to learn jazz guitar and I plan on ordering more around Thanksgiving! I totally stand behind Mr. Conti's teaching methods 100 percent as they really work! He truly understands what he is talking about and knows how to teach it to others in the most comprehensive and applicable ways possible! It also helps that he is one of the best Jazz guitarists I have ever heard!

Vol. 4 – Ticket To Improv

$19.95

Subject Lesson Songs:

  • Days of Wine and Roses
  • Wave
  • Bluesette
  • Bonus Project! Georgia On My Mind

In stock

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Streaming Video Options (Info About Streaming Video)

Description

The time-tested and acknowledged pathway to become a skilled improvisor is to play your instrument at every jam session or other opportunity that becomes available. That’s exactly how the early greats learned their craft, simply by playing jazz, not wasting time talking about modes, scales or unimportant activities that prevented them from actually playing their instruments. As seen in 25 prior DVDs, the core success of the Robert Conti approach is his ability to teach the jazz language at the street level, where it actually began. Ticket To Improv will get you off the ground.

If you’re an entry level jazz guitarist such as a blues or rock player trying to make the crossover to jazz, Ticket To Improv will take you on one of most exciting and productive musical events of your life. Very soon, you will be impressing your friends with your new playing skills.

As in each of his learning products, once again, Conti delivers another “Motherlode!” How? By teaching you exactly how to start playing an arsenal of lines over the chord progressions to three “must know” tunes that are played in every real life jam session. More importantly, after you learn the first three tunes, he will also teach you how to quickly begin reshaping those lines for usage in other tunes.

Read a Review in Just Jazz Guitar Magazine

Volume 4 Subject Lesson Songs:

  • Days of Wine and Roses
  • Wave
  • Bluesette
  • Bonus Project! Georgia On My Mind

Ticket To Improv, Volume 4 Includes:

  • Printable PDF of lesson solos in notation & tablature
  • MIDI & MP3 files of single note solos & rhythm sections

DVD Running Time: 4 Hours 38 Mins

Customer Reviews

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L
Lawson Stone - Wilmore, KY
Ticket to Improv - the genius of it...

(Excerpted from a jazz guitar discussion forum)

The genius of it, in my view, is that your fingers will say "Hey we've played this before" but your mind will be saying "But this is a different chord progression..." and you start seeing how licks and lines can be moved around. For a strong intermediate player or advanced player, these solos would not be very challenging; but for folks trying to learn improvisation using tunes, and for folks who also would like, as a secondary benefit, to actually end up with something they can play with friends or at pick-up jam sessions, it's quite helpful.

R
Rick Leichman - Mt. Mourne, NC
A desperately needed "jump-start"

Robert, I just wanted to thank you for putting all the patterns together, and providing a desperately needed "jump-start" to my single line soloing. After years of books and lessons, I finally am developing a platform for pulling it all together. Much gratitude for your guidance and looking forward to accomplishing more with continued work on your DVDs. Best wishes to you.

J
James Macneil - Fayetteville, NC
These products are top notch

I’ve already ordered a whole array of products from Robert. This recent order will complete the Source Code series and the Ticket To Improv series. These products are top notch. I have tried products from other players and I find them to be too time consuming for people with families and jobs. Robert’s products get you straight to the point. Yes, you need to put in the work, but the work you put in is directly related to real world playing. There are products available from players that Robert knows but their material isn’t presented in a manner that gets you up and running.

T
Tony Pereira - Las Vegas, NV
A must for the aspiring player

I have been playing guitar for many years and had many instructors along the way. I started with Ticket to Improv and got hooked. He has you playing lines right from the start and takes great pains to show you the simplicity in what he is doing. I would also suggest taking lessons with him. He goes into great detail and shows you his thought process. It’s a bargain, 2 hours with a master that is videoed and sent to you in a timely manner. His staff is courteous and responsive...couldn’t be better.

G
George Wrigley - Tucson, Arizona
Learning how to add beautiful single note solos...

I have been playing for over 50 years and this is the first teacher I have ever had that made single note soloing make sense. For the first time in my life I am now learning how to add beautiful single note solos to my chord melody arrangements. Everyone else I ever studied with or purchased their dvd's etc, always sounded like a bunch of notes, they never made any sense to me. I know all the scales, but I could never make them sound like anything other than scales. Thanks Robert Conti for your amazing products.

M
Mark Wilson - New Zealand
Like a kid in a candy store!!

Hello I have just received my package from RC and Pinnacle Group. Thank you for the speedy deliver and also the complimentary Ticket to Improv # and Chord Melody V2. A real blessing. I have just purchased all new equipment and recording gear so the timing is fantastic. My playing has been at plateau stage for a few years. But now I'm like a kid in a candy store!! Thanks again and keep up the good work. If ever in NZ or want free accommodation overlooking an incredible bay, just let me know. Mark Wilson New Zealand

D
David Brennan - Phoenix, AZ
Gotten more from Bob's material than...

Bob's DVD instruction is the best...period. I'm 60 years old and have been skuffling with this stuff for 40 years. I've gotten more from Bob's material than the room full of books I've managed to accumulate.

Streaming Video Option

DVDs are now available in an affordable, instantly available streaming video format. Videos may be watched on any device with an internet connection. Printable PDF download file is included.

Upon clicking the Streaming Video Options button, you will be directed to a checkout with two options:

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Note: You will be asked to create an account at checkout. The account to access your streaming video purchases is different than your RobertConti.com account. Please view our FAQ for additional information.

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black friday sale Details

Take advantage of this great opportunity to save big on the most effective jazz guitar learning resources on the planet – as verified by nearly 5000 reviews.

Through November 30, 2023, use coupon code BFCM23 at checkout (be sure to click the apply button!) to save 30% on all learning resources, both shipped and streaming. Please note that Conti Guitars are not included in this sale event, but we still have a couple of the heavily discounted Entrada prototypes available!