I'm Justin Highland, the founder of Play Better Jazz.

Are you really getting the results you want?

Still wondering how to actually get better at jazz piano?

• You have watched hours of YouTube videos.

• You have read lots of books.

• You have transcribed solos

Maybe you have taken lessons and felt like it was a

waste of time — especially when it comes to what and how to practice.

You have done everything until your brain felt like a bowl of jazz-flavored oatmeal.

And still… your playing sounds more like ‘mildly confused keyboard player’ than confident improviser.

You can play piano — well, even. You’ve got chops. Theory knowledge. Maybe even a degree.

But when it comes time to play — to improvise and create...

Cue the inner panic...

The second it's time for you to solo, your soul leaves your body.

(And probably hides behind the fake plant in the corner of the jam session.)

You don't know what you "should" really be doing, or if it's the right way to do it.

You second-guess everything and are constantly looking for new ways

to improve, but end up overwhelmed with options.

You might feel like your playing sounds stiff or underwhelming.

And deep down, when you hit that final chord…

you don’t feel proud. (More like hoping no one heard it.)

It’s frustrating as hell.

You might be coming from a Classical background.
You might be technically solid, can read music, or can play other styles.

But somehow, all of that training did not prepare you at all for jazz piano.
You are stuck trying to turn scales, licks, what you transcribed,

and theory into real music...

And yet, it's NOT WORKING like you expected.

When I first got into jazz, I was a classically-trained pianist of 15 years

thrown straight into a university Big Band with some serious players.

I thought, “Okay, how hard can this be? I’ve got chops.”

Yeah… famous last words.

I'll never forget that first day of rehearsal.

Lead sheets with alien-looking chord symbols were

being passed around like candy.

I was nervously trying to build chords I didn’t really know, hoping no one would notice.

My anxiety was climbing by the second.

And I knew theory. But actually using it in the moment? HA!

Then we started playing a tune — I was praying I wouldn't get called on.

And then right in the middle of it, the director pointed at me and said:

"Alright, now take a solo."

I froze. NOTHING. My fingers didn't move. My brain short-circuited.

Anxiety. Embarrassment. Internal identity crisis.
Fifteen years of training — all gone in one panic attack.

I walked out of that rehearsal with my ego in a body bag.

That moment hit me hard. REALLY HARD. I realized I had NO IDEA how to play.

How was this possible after 15 years of piano playing?!

I tried absolutely everything:

• Transcribing solos, learning transcriptions.
• Working on every technique I could find.

• Learning lots of theory
• Practicing endless licks, scales and exercises.

• Reading lots of books.
• Practicing to backing tracks for hours on end.

Yet, I still felt like I was spinning my wheels, making little to no real progress.

AND, battling with myself and if jazz was really for me.

Sound familiar?

It took years of trial and error, and questioning my life choices...

but eventually I figured it out over time and with serious mentoring.

Not from one “magic method”, but from breaking the bad habits,

simplifying and focusing on what actually matters, and learning

how to think and practice like a real jazz musician.

Now I help people shortcut that long, frustrating and chaotic phase.

I’ve taken everything from my 30+ years of playing
and 15 years of teaching hundreds of students
and turned it into clear, practical systems that actually work.

You’re in the right place especially if you're coming from Classical, or

you’re tired of guessing your way through jazz and are ready for professional

guidance that GETS REAL RESULTS.