Welcome to... "Micro-Lesson 118"   This Micro Lesson explores a 12-Bar Blues Progression in the Key of "E."  The jam moves across the I-IV-V chords found in the key of "E Blues." Blues progressions are marked by the use of harmony from the world of "Dominant 7th"...

Welcome to... "Micro-Lesson 117"   This Micro Lesson shows how a pop-instrumental melody (in the key of "D Major"), can apply several basic melodic ideas to produce a strong and flowing melody under a common I-IV-V chord progression.  The melody begins with a pick-up...

Welcome to... "Micro-Lesson 116"   This Micro Lesson runs through a classic rock rhythm guitar idea in the style of "Aerosmith."  This "E Minor" riff operates off of the 5th string 7th fret "E" power-chord and balances several 4th intervals between the 4th and...

Welcome to... "Micro-Lesson 115"   This Micro Lesson explores the musical ideas of a Ragtime Blues Lick in the key of "C."  The lick moves through several smooth surrounding tones of the "C7" chord to highlight the effect of not only the sound of the chord, but...

GuitarBlog: Phrasing with Multiple Modes... This week on the GuitarBlog we will discuss how to phrase melody lines over chord progressions that leave the key signature and in doing so include multiple modes.  Modes are often thought of as being used within a single modal...

Motorhead front man Lemmy Kilmister is once again facing health issues. As Blabbermouth reports, Lemmy was taken to a hospital yesterday (April 25) after "suffering from gastric distress and dehydration." The health issues have forced the band to cancel their appearance...

How Do You Make a Living, as a Session Guitarist? Just ask Ron Zabrocki... This Q and A session with him breaks down his thoughts about session gigs, how the music business has changed, why he writes for Guitar World, (among others), and the value of saying no. Ron Zabrocki...

Welcome to... "Micro-Lesson 114"   This Micro Lesson Jams out on a Classic Rock Riff in the key of "E Minor."  The riff begins from off of an open, "E," 6th string and applies the, "E Power-chord," from the 5th string seventh fret position. The 5th string root, "E,"...

Have you ever wondered how a musician could become a jingle writer and how it's possible to have a career as a songwriter and a career as a composer? The truth is everyone who writes for ads has a different story of how he or she landed into the world of writing a 30-second...

Welcome to... "Micro-Lesson 113"   This Micro Lesson takes a Jazz-Blues format in the key of "A" and spices it up with a Fusion twist.  The lick combines elements of Jazz and Blues concepts with chromatic passing tones to create a smooth flowing line that works...

A new book called How Music Got Free uncovers the story of the man who was the most prolific leaker of recorded music in the wake of the MP3 revolution. The new edition of the New Yorker carries the story of one of the most important people in the history of the music industry,...

Welcome to... "Micro-Lesson 112"   This Micro Lesson takes a run through a Blues Lick in the key of "C."  This Blues idea starts out in the 8th position, "C Blues Scale." The patterns used in this lick are all very common phrases leaning toward the style of Eric...

It would seem that the reported figure of 1,200 new Metallica riffs is now down to 950 (958 to be precise), as guitarist Kirk Hammett lost the phone that contained 250 fresh musical ideas. Kirk explained during an appearance on The Jasta Show: "I put riffs on my iPhone, but...

Welcome to... "Micro-Lesson 111"   This Micro Lesson applies a moderate tempo walking style bassline guitar riff over a harmony in the key of "C Minor."  This "bassline melody" idea limits the use of bassline notes to the lower four guitar strings. In measure one,...

GuitarBlog: Jeff Beck - Lead Guitar Style... This week on the GuitarBlog we are covering the lead guitar style of legendary guitarist, "Jeff Beck." The best way to truly learn how to play in a guitarists guitar style is through the study of their music.  I'd highly...

Nowadays, it’s essential to save as much time as possible – and when you’re in an up-and-coming band, you especially need all the time you can get. From promotion to business operations, tour planning to practicing, there are barely enough hours in the day. Not to mention...

Your songs are written, the time and the money have been set aside... You've picked the studio and the person who will record them. So what can go wrong? ...A whole lot.  To make sure you only have to deal with the small fires that flare up during every studio session,...

Welcome to... "Micro-Lesson 110"   This Micro Lesson takes a look into the world of open guitar tunings with one of the all time most popular guitar tunings, "DADGAD."  This tuning is unique in how it doesn't generate a standard Major or Minor chord as an open harmony....