This important exercise /drill is the key to improving your guitar fingerboard awareness. The drill focuses on helping guitar players become better acquainted with their fret-board. Plus, it also helps with performing scales, getting better with playing licks, and with applying melodic runs (no matter how complex they might be)...
This lesson will focus on developing better awareness of the fret-board regions by taking a short guitar lick, and then learning how to play that exact same lick in two other areas of the fingerboard. In the end, you'll have three versions of this guitar lick, and you'll increase your knowledge of the fret-board. The best part is that you'll also have a cool new exercise to help you continue to expand your understanding of the guitar neck even better than you know it now.
STEP 1). THE FOUNDATIONAL LICK Begin by developing the foundational lick. This lick will be your primary melodic phrase that we will later be re-located over to other fret-board regions. For our "example" foundational idea, I've composed a short one measure phrase in the key of "F Minor." It is located in the 10th fingerboard position, built off of the 3rd guitar string. Here's the foundational phrase...
STEP 2). RE-LOCATING THE LICK (1st REGION) Re-locating the "Foundational Lick" over to the first new region will initially involve determining where the new fretting area will be on the neck. Once you've established your foundational lick, (and a starting area on the guitar neck), work out re-locating the lick into another area. IMPORTANT: Maintain all tones as "Unison Tones" In doing the re-location with this exercise, we will set a goal (with the entire exercise) of maintaining every note as unison pitches. So, in other words, every notes pitch will be identical to the pitches we'd started with from our foundational lick. The lick is going to be re-located in the sixth fingerboard position, based off of our 2nd guitar string. Learn the new location as shown below... Here's the 1st re-located phrase...
NOTE: Re-locating to new regions and string sets will re-arrange note flow, this means fingerings and phrasing devices (slides, bends, hammer-on's, pull-off's) may become an issue into each new region.
STEP 3). RE-LOCATING THE LICK (2nd REGION) Once you have established a phrase, and then relocated that phrase (over to another fingerboard position), your final step will be stretching your skills with this exercise to be able to take that same scale phrase into one final fingerboard area. For our example, the final position on the neck will be located up high at the fifteenth position based off of the 4th guitar string. Here's the 2nd re-located phrase...
CONCLUSION: Learning to re-locate guitar parts across the neck into other fingerboard regions is one of the more valuable exercises that you can do as a guitar player. Plus, this exercise can easily be made more complex by simply lengthening the melodic phrase, or by trying to develop other harmonic options like, changing the licks key center, or by creating a interval harmony line out of the foundational statement. You could even try making a new harmonized phrase by performing the melody as diatonic 3rd's, or in 5th's, or as 6th intervals. Basically, there's a lot of fantastic work that can come out of an exercise like this one. Try putting the effort in, get some quality time into developing a few guitar licks and you'll start to notice a number of great advantages will start happening in your playing.
VISIT THE WEB-SITE: Thanks for joining me, If you'd like to Find Out What You Should Learn Next on Guitar - take a look at the courses over on my website at CreativeGuitarStudio.com. My step-by-step; Beginner, Intermediate and Advanced courses will cover what you need to know, along with how to be able to move forward and become the best guitar player that you can be. I've worked on developing these courses since 1992 and I feel that all together they're the best guitar program you'll ever find. The courses will help you learn to identify what's required to get you up to the next level of guitar playing, in a very organized way, that makes sense. I look forward to helping you further at CreativeGuitarStudio.com ...Until next time - take care and we'll catch up again on the next lesson. Bye for now!
The first volume of this two-volume lesson plan explores some of the important basics that are involved with performing folk fingerpicked guitar patterns.
Vol. 1 breaks down how to play various fingerstyle sequences using; open position chords, moveable arpeggiated patterns, double-plucked 16th-note ideas, and fingerpicking patterns performed in triple-meter time.
Study the basic elements of folk pattern playing. Learn how to cover both "in position" and "moveable chords," and how straight-time and triple-meter time signatures may operate...
PART ONE: Example one, applies mixed fingerpicked patterns using two-note chords (dyads) and single-note lines. The patterns all relate to using a four-string layout in the key of "D Major."
Study the chord shapes, and the fingerpicking patterns applied across each measure, (the 4-string pattern of this example is applied to the chords of; "D, A, Bm7 and G").
Example two, explores the idea of using arpeggiated patterns alongside melodic lines. This is a very popular sound for folk fingerstyle players. The patterns in example two are anchored off of each chords bass-note performed from an open (lower) string.
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PART TWO: The exercise in example three breaks down another popular folk fingerstyle approach that involves double-plucked down beats (two-note plucks upon the beats of one and three).
This fingerpicking pattern has a rhythmic feel that is very balanced rhythmically. Its design maintains a uniform rhythmic duration that is performed upon every chord.
Example four, operates around a unique continuous triple-meter feel. The key of "G Major" chord progression covers a busy series of chord changes through, "Dadd4, C/E, D7/F#, G and C."
Each chord is highlighted by way of a steady 2-part plucking pattern. The first half of the pattern is focused upon the first two beats of the measure and is centered upon the lower tones of the chord. The second half of the pattern extends the range of the chords coverage to include the use of more upper register tones.
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Eric Clapton is probably one of the best known guitar players out there. In this lesson, we're going to discuss his playing style, the scales he
enjoys, and we'll look at a few of his blues licks to better understand
how he formulates his approach to playing lead...
In this episode of the
"Guitar Blog Insider," we'll cover, "Eric Clapton's Guitar Style." WATCH THE VIDEO:
E.C.'s CAREER: Eric Clapton's career dates all the way back to the early 1960's with the group the "Yardbirds." From there, he moved onto John Mayall's "Blues-Breakers" and then there's also his work with the band, "Cream." And, we can't leave out his solo career... With all of that music under his belt and with such a huge catalog of recordings, touring and years working in the business, it's no wonder that he has become so well known - and not just to guitar players... I think you'd be hard pressed to find very many people who haven't heard of Eric Clapton.
E.C. Sound Basics: Guitars, Amps and Style Well, it almost goes without saying that Eric Clapton has a fairly diverse playing style. He's very competent on both electric and acoustic guitar, and he can play guitar using both flat-picking and finger-style and he can do it with ease. Clapton's playing style isn't based upon shredding up the neck like; the
legendary playing of Stevie Ray Vaughn, or modern blues shredders like
smokin' Joe Bonamassa. But, even though Clapton is a fast player when he
wants to be, he also has a way of deeply drawing on a lot of
soulfulness and slow energy through his guitar parts. When it comes to his guitars, he started on Gibson Les Paul's, then he switched over to use Fender Stratocaster's in 1970, with his legendary "Blackie" probably being the most publicly well known Eric Clapton Stratocaster.
When it comes to his powered sound, Clapton will generally, use a fairly clean guitar tone with some natural tube overdrive. Through the last decade he's been sticking with the amazing tone from a Fender Twin - Custom Shop "Tweed" amplifier. Fender Custom Shop - Tweed Amp:
E.C. Scales: When it comes to scales, Clapton has a high-level of control over both major and minor sounds. In fact, he's very well known for mixing the scales of major and minor pentatonic. Below, I have provided a Clapton style lick that blends these two scale colors together - all within one phrase. Example 1). Mixed Major and Minor Pentatonic Clapton Style Lick:
By blending together both Major and Minor Pentatonic scales, Clapton achieves a modern Blues sound that still retains the interesting scale tones of our classic Blues Pentatonic.
When Clapton isn't blending together the Maj. and Min. Pentatonic scales, he sticks quite close to home with a lot of his sound taken from the notes of the Minor Pentatonic. However, as you play more and more of his leads, you'll start to notice something interesting. He likes to include the sound of adding the major second interval into the Minor Pentatonic. Clapton tends to place it into the scale tones of Minor Pentatonic quite randomly, creating a smooth sounding scale-tone effect as he sees fit. When adding it in, place it where you feel it can generate a smooth melodic flow to the notes. The sound of the Major 2nd will get you impersonating Eric Clapton, rather quickly. Here's an example of him doing this exact idea in a short section of his lead from the song, "Lay Down Sally." Example 2). Minor Pentatonic with the "Major 2nd" interval added: (Lay Down Sally)
E.C. Phrasing: Phrasing is a huge part of exploring the Clapton style and his application of using multiple ideas like; vibrato, position slides, bends, and legato can be combined into even the shortest of guitar licks. This side of his playing style is a really huge factor to generating that Eric Clapton guitar sound. To give you an idea of exactly what I'm talking about, I've taken a short segment from his solo of the song, "After Midnight," to help you better notice on how he works at combining a number of phrasing concepts into one short lead statement. Example 3). Phrasing devices (After Midnight)
E.C. "The Blues Feel" The final idea I wanted to go through with you, is Clapton's approach to playing within the blues feel. It's one of his specialties, and it's an area that if you enjoy Clapton's guitar playing, you'll definitely want to spend some time exploring this side of his guitar personality. In this realm of his playing, one of the best albums to spend time listening to (and working on songs from), is his 1994 "Blues Cover" album, "From the Cradle."
This is not just an amazing album, but it's a chance to take in the full scope of his trademark blues guitar phrasing, along with his approach to playing blues licks. To help you best understand this, I want to have a look at Clapton's cover (of the Sonny Thompson song), "I'm Tore Down." It was originally made popular by Freddie King, and Clapton's cover is a great example of his skill for Blues Phrasing. Example 4). A Clapton-style Blues lick from the song, "I'm Tore Down"
CONCLUSION: Eric Clapton's phrasing and his technique have (without any doubt) established him and his guitar playing as one of the greatest guitar players around. Once you start learning how to organize the Clapton style (of both "phrasing concepts" and his approach to using scales, and technique), you'll be able to apply his guitar playing concepts into your own music. He's a fantastic player, and one that can tap into a very smooth and soulful guitar sound. I hope the ideas presented here in this lesson help get you started down the path to developing the Eric Clapton guitar style.
VISIT THE WEB-SITE: I'd like to end the discussion by saying, thanks for joining me... If you want to learn more about what I do as an online guitar teacher, then head over to my website at creativeguitarstudio.com and sign up your FREE lifetime membership. When you want more, you can always upgrade to either a Basic, or a Premium lesson package and start studying the guitar courses I've organized for the members of my website. Also, I'd be interested to hear your thoughts on all of this in the comment section below... if you enjoyed this video, give it a thumbs up and subscribe for more on YouTube. Thanks again and we'll catch up next time, on another episode of the, "Guitar Blog Insider."
Posted by Andrew Wasson
Wednesday, January 24, 2018
NEW: QwikRiffs Series - Video (018)
The latest QwikRiffs video, Harmonic Minor Heavy Metal Riffs in "E Minor" is available in the members area. Includes PDF handout!
QwikRiffs are available to members at Creative Guitar Studio.com. Lessons in the QwikRiffs Series run through collections of rhythm guitar riffs covering all types of playing styles. I cover different 'famous artist' playing approaches and I will demonstrate ideas based on rhythm guitar techniques...
Episode #018 covers three "Harmonic Minor - Heavy Metal" Riffs.
Riff one is a low register diminished riff that operates around the lower four strings. The melodic push is off of the 7th and 2nd scale degrees of "D# and F#." The scale tones of "C and A" also help promote the diminished harmony.
Riff two is a steady eighth-note idea within a dominant harmony. The consistency of an eighth-note groove combined with outlining the "E Harmonic Minor's" dominant 7th chord of "B7" creates a strong Harmonic Minor effect.
Riff three is applying a two-note chord idea centered around power-chords of "B5" and "C5." The color of both "Em" and "C major" harmony create ties to the "D# Diminished" scale, (a scale found within "E Harmonic Minor").
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Sign into the website (or create your free members account) to join the members site. Sign up for the Basic Monthly or Premium (annual) membership to download the PDF handout for this lesson and study all of the other classes available on the website.
Become a FREE member of the website, sign up today!
In this video I want to explain some of the most common problems that guitar players will face when they're trying to either write songs or play solos. The funny thing is, that for the most part, they're the same problem.
Whether you're writing a song, or playing a guitar solo, many of the same problems will affect both of these creative areas. The root cause of a lot of the frustration (for why guitarists experience problems with applying their creativity), has to do with a lack of exposure to source material. SOURCE MATERIAL: What I mean by source material is, "where are you getting your creative ideas from." In this discussion, I'm going to explain two important lines of thought to help you move toward solving this issue, gain more source material and eventually help you begin writing better music.
Learn Every Idea You Think Sounds Cool: Every guitar player who wants to rip out an nice melody line, or write a good /catchy riff, or play some smooth lead needs some reference points. Every guitar player who wants to do anything creative will need to start by building some back-ground awareness for how phrases they enjoy listening to (from other musicians), work on the guitar. If you hear something cool, learn it... For example, let's say for instance that you hear a guitar part and you say to yourself, "that sounds really cool." Maybe it's a fast Pentatonic lick - like this... Lick Example:
Whatever the interesting musical idea is, what you'll want to do next, is LEARN it. And, even better yet, learn it using your ear. Don't run to Google and look for somebody's TAB chart. Learn it yourself by ear. Because, not only does this add another phrase to your repertoire, doing the transcription yourself also improves the overall skill of your ear.
Break Down the Structure of Popular Songs: When I was attending the Musicians Institute, Paul Gilbert was in and out of the school teaching some classes when he wasn't on tour at the time, with his band, "Mr. Big." And, during one of his classes, he mentioned how he was learning some chord changes of a pop song by Amy Grant - called, "Baby, Baby." Baby, Baby: Amy Grant (#1 Billboard Hit in 1991)
Now, hearing that Paul Gilbert was learning a radio hit pop song surprised me because he was one of the greatest shredders around LA, and there he was learning an adult contemporary pop song. It just didn't make any sense to me at the time. I thought instead he'd be learning Steve Vai licks, or Yngwie Malmsteen runs, not chord changes from a Billboard pop tune. I just did not understand the point of learning music like that.
I mean, sure, I knew that Amy Grant song (Baby, Baby) was a #1 song on the Billboard charts. And, I knew it was catchy, but I still asked Paul why was he learning it. And, I'll never forget his answer, he said, "I just wanted to know what the chord changes were."
That's it... I thought wow, what have I been missing all of these years by not learning the chord changes used in all of the #1 chart topping songs! And, what could I learn from studying them? What was there to discover, and most of all what could I take in and use from all of these huge #1 chart-topping songs and then - apply into my own music... The bottom line, is that those chart topping hits, became #1 for some reason. And, as I got older and met many more famous musicians, I learned that all of them did what Paul Gilbert did. Why? Because learning chords and melodies from the #1 hits, will pass along effective ideas that could be re-vamped and then re-applied differently in my own music.
Establishing Reference Points: In order to be able to create cool ideas of your own, you're going to need to spend time learning what other musicians have done to; create licks, chord progressions and phrases, that you feel are effective musically. You don't have to learn every song that hits #1 on the Billboard charts. But, if you hear something cool in a song, figure it out. That idea probably caught your attention for a reason. And, if you learn it, the next time that you sit down to try writing a melody, or to try composing a group of chords, or to make up a new guitar solo, you'll have reference points. The more reference points you have, (the more song-writing ideas that are stored in the back of your mind), will help you jump forward with ideas that you can use quickly and easily to compose music. And, the music you compose will be both interesting and unique. Reference points build creativity because even though some parts of what you'll do are based on another song or solo, you're still unique, and you'll do those ideas differently.
VISIT THE WEBSITE: Well, hey, thanks for joining me, If you'd like to Find Out What You Should Learn Next on Guitar - take a look at the courses over on my website at CreativeGuitarStudio.com. My step-by-step; Beginner, Intermediate and Advanced courses will cover what you need to know, along with how to be able to move forward and become the best player that you can be. I've worked on these courses since 1992 and I feel that all together they're the best guitar program you'll ever find. The courses will help you learn to identify what's required to get you up to the next level of guitar playing, in a very organized way, that makes sense. So, I look forward to helping you further at CreativeGuitarStudio.com ...Until next time - take care and we'll catch up again on the next lesson. Bye for now!
Power chords are one of the most popular ideas on guitar. They're used by guitarists in almost every style of music. However, most guitar players are not familiar with a lot of the details surrounding the power-chord...
Details like; the theory of Perfect Intervals, optional shapes for power chord patterns on the neck, or ways that the interval of the power chord can be used in licks and in riffs....
In this lesson, we're going to run through a number of these ideas and make you better equipped with the use of the power chord on guitar. So, let's get started on this episode of the "Guitar Blog Insider," covering the "Things You Need to Know About Power Chords."
WHAT IS A "POWER-CHORD"? Let's begin by quickly discussing what a Power Chord actually is. This term "Power Chord" refers to the use of the Perfect 5th interval. And, the Perfect 5th interval is a part of a group of other perfect intervals that are very balanced in their sound. In fact, when Perfect intervals are struck, they project a uniform impression of tone, almost as if there were only a single tone existing, rather than two separate tones played together. For example; the perfect group of intervals includes; Unisons and Octaves; the Perfect 4th and the Perfect 5th. When played, you can tell these are very balanced when they're struck together. However, listen to the difference that a Major 3rd sound has in relation. Or how a Minor 6th interval sounds. After player other intervals, (Major and Minor for example), you can tell, the Perfect class of interval is far more balanced sounding compared to the other classes of Major and Minor. This can make for a big difference in sound when the perfect intervals are applied musically.
EXPLORING THE POWER-CHORD: Next, I want to explore power chord layouts on the neck. The power chord is a very simple interval, since it only involves taking a starter tone, (what we'll call our root), and then traveling away from that root (five scale steps). In the Major Scale, that would equal, two tones, a semi-tome and another tone. That's 7 half-steps. From a Root note of "A" that would take us up to an "E." From a "Bb" a Perfect 5th would take us up to an "F."
Play through the most common shapes for the power chord. These shapes make up some of the most popular shapes played in all kinds of styles of music.
RIFFS AND LICKS WITH POWER-CHORDS: Along with the Power-chord shapes on the neck, another really interesting area where the power-chords 5th interval can come alive in our playing is with the 5th interval being used within both licks and riffs. The sound created with this Perfect 5th interval approach is pretty cool. Mostly because of the strength of the impact that the 5th interval has upon our listener. For example, check out this 5th interval sliding lick that I've got for ya, it travels along the upper two guitar strings. Lick #1). Upper two strings, 5th's ascending position shifting lick
Next, we'll go and flip that 5th interval around, creating a similar lick that still applies all the strength of our Perfect 5th (Power chord) interval. Lick #2). String skipped 5th's sliding lick (4th and 2nd strings)
CONCLUSION: The application of power-chord concepts (and the Power-chords foundational interval, the Perfect 5th), are abundant in music. And, the application of this popular sound on guitar is by no means limited to its typical use in Rock, and Heavy Metal music. The Power-chord shape on the neck and the use of the Perfect 5th interval can go a long way in many different music styles. So, take some time to learn how to view the power chord patterns that we've introduced here, and spend time practicing how to take them into all of the different directions that we've discussed throughout this video. The power-chord and the use of the Perfect fifth interval are a great sound with all types of really cool stylistic applications. Even if you only learn a couple of new Power-chord ideas, I'm sure you'll enjoy adding them into your next riff or guitar solo.
Well, I'd like to end the discussion by saying, thanks for joining me... If you want to learn more about what I do as an online guitar teacher, then head over to my website at creativeguitarstudio.com and sign up your FREE lifetime membership. When you want more, you can always upgrade to either a Basic, or a Premium lesson package and start studying the guitar courses I've organized for the members of my website. Also, I'd be interested to hear your thoughts on all of this in the comment section below... if you enjoyed this video, give it a thumbs up and subscribe for more on YouTube. Thanks again and we'll catch up next week , for another episode of the, "Guitar Blog Insider."
