Blues tips for beginners
lori...@my-deja.com
I have started a new tips for beginners. The reason is the old one is
getting to long and it is loosing the focus. Here are some good things
to try for beginners who are wanting to get good with blues and rock
guitar styles.
The focus of my tips is and has been on ear training so I will keep
going in that direction. If you have looked at any blues tab or songs
you know that the 7th chord is used a lot. So I would like to help you
understand how to hear scales and melodies over this chord. So let's
say we have an E 7th chord. The notes are E G# B D. This chord belongs
to the key of A major. So play the E 7th chord or record it on a
recorder. Now go back and play the A major scale ( A B C# D E F# G# A)
over the chord. Listen to what it sounds like.
Note it will sound in key. Now put a blues song on that you know is
starting with E 7th. If you have to look at the tab or music do so.
Note you will not hear the A major scale over the E 7th chord. Infact
what you will hear is a melody or scale that sounds a little off key in
comparison to the A major scale over the E 7th. If you hear that then
that is good. This is what I want you to hear. Now play the D major
scale ( D E F# G A B C# D ) over the E7th chord. Note how this sounds
closer to what you are hearing with the blues song you have choosen for
your example.
Now try to sing the A major scale while you strum the E 7th chord. This
will seem hard at first but go slow. Now do the same with the D scale
over the E 7th chord. This will seem even harder to do. The reason is
your ear will want to pull you back to the A major scale. These
exercises are teaching you hear what is going on with the blues. Now
take the E minor pentatonic scale ( E G A B D) and sing it over the E
7th chord. See if this is more like what you are hearing with the song
you selected. Here is what I want you understand. When you listen to
most blues and rock you are hearing out side scales against the chords.
By learning to sing the inside scales ( scales that belong to the
chords) you can tell the difference.
In the example I gave with E minor pentatonic over the E 7th chord you
are playing the 2nd pentatonic scale from the key of D. The reason why
D works agaisnt the E 7th chord is because it is only one note
difference from the key of A where the E7th belongs. Here are the notes
for the key of A ( A B C# D E F# G# A). Now look at the key of D ( D E
F# G A B C# D). Note the difference is the G# and the G. When you play
a G natural agaisnt a chord that has G# in it you create a tennsion
known as a blues third or flat third. Thus the blues is named from the
use of blues notes against chords.
Now by learning to go from the inside sounds over the E 7th chord to
outside sounds you can now be more creative. However, just knowing it
and not hearing it will always leave you missing something. That is
whay it is so important to sing the scales over the chords. Learn to
hear what is inside and what is outside. I hope you get some things out
of this and you really try these ideas. Lorijeanm
Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/
Before you buy.