Translating pragmatic practice into written form requires accuracy you don’t need when you’re playing. I spent a lot of time doing research to get right some things I thought I already knew. And I learned in the process.
I wanted to condense all those ponderous, mind-boggling details into a few, readily understood words and procedures that the typical pianist could learn, remember, and put into practice. But as my work progressed, each new concept involved more muck and mire than I’d planned for. And to leave some of it out might tell only part of the story.
if you are compelled to play music, you will play music because you can’t not play music.
Prominent soloists and players in small ensembles were Willie the Lion Smith, Nat King Cole, and Clarence Pinetop Smith. Apparently you needed a nickname to be a successful pianist in those days.
The best way to learn the inner concepts of playing music is to play those concepts,
The point of this practice is to drill into your brain and muscle memory what each chord sounds like to your ears and feels like in your hands and to associate those sounds and feelings with each chord’s symbol/name. Your objective is to be able to see the symbol and play the chord without having to think about it. Those symbols are what you see on lead sheets, in fake books, and on big band charts. You must be able to play the correct chords in real time as the rest of the ensemble plays the tune.