How Herbie Hancock Keeps Jazz Standard “Maiden Voyage” Fresh Using Improvisation

Maiden Voyage was a follow-up to Hancock’s previous album, Empyrean Isles. The concept album, recorded by specialty jazz producer Rudy van Gelder and put out on Blue Note Records, is considered one of Hancock’s best pieces of work. The album also includes other classics like “Dolphin Dance,” “Survival of the Fittest,” “Little One,” and “In the Eye of the Hurricane.” But Hancock himself has said that “Maiden Voyage” is his favorite composition. It’s not hard to understand why, as Hancock wrote in the liner notes that it was written to evoke “the splendor of a sea-going vessel on its maiden voyage.”

Nevertheless, just because Maiden Voyage is one of the most essential jazz albums in history doesn’t mean it’s static. After all, the beauty of jazz is that it’s not simply sheet music: jazz is always changing and evolving, depending on who’s playing it. Hancock himself talks about how he loves to experiment with the title track, improvising to change the song we know and love. And the best way to approach that kind of improvisation? Playing alone.

Hancock remembers a realization that forever changed the way he approached solo piano playing. It sounds simple, but it opened up worlds of complexity for him: if you’re playing alone, you can do whatever you want. Unlike playing with a band, where you usually stick to a certain tempo and a certain key, a soloist can change tempo and key at will. Soloists can also adjust the form of the song, repeat parts, and leave parts out. You can even add completely new, improvised sections when playing solo, without confusing or losing your accompanists.

One way Hancock approaches a jazz piano solo is to use thematic material from the original song and interpret it in different ways. For instance, he might latch on to a few chords or a section of the main melody and transform it across different keys or over different periods of time.

“You can play solo piano or a solo instrument using thematic material from the original song and not being stuck to use the form of the original song,” he says. “And you come up with something entirely new and hopefully fresh.”

With “Maiden Voyage,” Hancock takes segments of the original melody and repeats them in different keys. He plays with the song, creating something based in the familiar, but still new to the ear. (Indeed, Herbie has done this with several subsequent pressings of “Maiden Voyage,” including two live recordings with fellow Jazz pianist Chick Corea.) It’s that combination of familiar and fresh that makes an improvised piece great.

“Sometimes the relationship was the same; sometimes it was slightly different,” he says about his improvised version of “Maiden Voyage.” “But I think you can clearly hear that this was played in different keys and I moved around in ways that, frankly, I didn’t use to do before.”

If you want to try out Hancock’s improvisation method with “Maiden Voyage,” start with the “Maiden Voyage” lead sheet. Practice the song as it’s written on the sheet music until you can play it by heart.

Once you’ve gotten there, you can leave the lead sheet behind and start improvising. Change the keys. Move things around. Don’t be afraid to experiment, as Hancock and other great jazz musicians do. Who knows? Maybe you’ll take a classic Herbie Hancock song and create the next great jazz standard.

Whether you’re an aspiring singer-songwriter or have dreams of changing the world with your jazz and compositions, navigating the complex world of record labels and contracts can be daunting. No one knows this better than Herbie Hancock, one of the most celebrated musicians in the world. His jazz career started in his family’s living room, listening to his favorite records and trying to play along. In Herbie Hancock’s MasterClass on the art of jazz, the musician shares his approach to improvisation, composition, and harmony.

Want to become a better musician? The MasterClass Annual Membership provides exclusive video lessons from master musicians, including Herbie Hancock, Carlos Santana, Itzhak Perlman, Tom Morello, and more.