What is Jazz Piano Phraseology?

Jazz Piano Phraseology

The following article was written by  team Cool Piano Teacher LLC. All rights reserved 2022.
Alex Bohrer created Piano Phraseology in 2001 as a means of accelerating musical growth In his more advanced composition and performance students.
Before deep diving into this method let's focus on actual proven results since it's inception.
Sam Hooper - In only two years Sam went from a 16-year-old playing Rocket man to composing for the Austin Symphony. He then went on to win the prestigious National Composition Award. Today he is a full time successful thriving piano teacher with many students of his own.
Joey Listrom - Before finding Alex, Joey had just come from a teacher unequipped to further develop his potential as a serious jazz musician. Within two years of lessons with Alex Joey won 1st seat as a jazz pianist for Westalke High school. He then won regionals before winning "Best in State" TMNA award as a 16-year old jazz pianist. He went on to graduate from NTU as a jazz performance major. Today he is thriving a performing recording artist.
Nathan Hook - Literally identical scenario as Joey. Before finding Alex, Joey had just come from a teacher unequipped to further develop his potential as a serious jazz musician. Within two years of lessons with Alex Joey won 1st seat as a jazz pianist for Westalke High school. He then won regionals before winning "Best in State" as a 16-year old jazz pianist. He went on to graduate from Williamson Petterson University as a jazz performance major. Today he is thriving as both performer and music teacher.
Elise Moltz - Started with Alex at a very young age but always had her own style of playing marching to her own beat. Alex did not use the traditional approach of trying to get her to conform to a set  teaching format. He encouraged her style of learning to nurture her into being the youngest composer (Age 14) to have her original compositions performed at the famed Austin Long Center. She graduated from Oberlin Conservatory and today is a thriving piano teacher.
Hunter Nyhouse - Hunter like many came to Alex due to ill-equipped previous teachers. Within one year of studying with Alex, Hunter won the Jazz Festival and today is attending Eastman college as a Jazz Performance major.
As the highest-rated piano teacher in Texas with over 90+ five-star online reviews for solo jazz piano, piano phraseology has more than proven its continued success rate.
So what is Piano Phraseology?
First consider that music is another language. Learning and communicating in any language are more effective and rewarding when learning in phrases rather than isolated words.
When learning through phraseology your playing will become far more expressive and professional in quality.
A phrase is a meter unit that possesses a complete musical sense all on its own.
It is composed of cells, motifs, and figures that work together to form melodies, periods, and larger sections. 
There are many different types of phrases and how to recognize them is crucial for composing music.
Firstly, a phrase has a rising and a falling contour. 
It may begin with a pickup measure, or it might end with a repeat sign. 
In either case, the musical phrase should have a distinct beginning and ending.
In music, a phrase is composed of two or more distinct parts: an antecedent phrase and a continuation phrase. 
A parallel antecedent is a longer, more complicated piece than a simple repeated antecedent. 
The former, the cadence, is a shorter, repetitive section that usually follows a song. 
It also includes the cadence point. This is a common musical term used to indicate a specific transition.
A musical phrase is a segment of a piece of music. 
It can be vocal or instrumental, and can be short or long. 
It can be as simple as a single breath, or as complex as a whole song. 
It is also possible to subdivide a phrase by dividing it into subdivisions. 
A diatonic phrase is a segment of a song. 
It is composed of three or more notes and can be very complex.
A musical phrase is a unit of music that serves a specific function in the piece. 
It provides structure to a piece of art and provides a cohesive framework for its various parts. 
For example, a chorus can be considered a musical phrase if it has four or eight measures. 
Similarly, a song phrase can be a simple chord progression. 
A musical phrase can be an entire phrase or a single word.
A musical phrase is a group of notes performed in a specific order. 
A piece is defined by its length. 
The shortest unit in music is a motive. The largest musical unit is a phrase. 
This musical term is not as well defined as a written language phrase. 
It is often interpreted by famous composers as contradictory. 
It is a metrical term. It is also a part of a melody.
Musical phrases have two main components: a melody and a chord sequence. 
The melody is the main component of a musical phrase, and its duration can vary between three and eight measures. 
The second is a musical cadence. It is the progression of two chords during a piece of music. 
It gives the piece a sense of finishing. 
The 'presentation' of a phrase is the main element of a song.