June 22, 2021 How to Master the Blues Scale on Guitar Have you ever heard an amazing blues guitar solo and thought to yourself – how did they come up with that?
Have you ever heard an amazing blues guitar solo and thought to yourself – how did they come up with that? Now we’re not claiming to know the inner workings of the many incredible guitarists’ minds (although we do know of a few blues musicians who are sharing their secrets), but we are willing to bet that their solo is based on the blues scale.
You might recognise the blues scale from literally millions of famous songs, such as Roadhouse Blues by the Doors or Walk this Way by Aero Smith. And despite being named the blues scale, this scale also features in many other genres such as rock, jazz, pop and more.
Solo Blues Guitar
In this article we’re going to teach you what the blues guitar scale is, why it’s important and, most importantly, how to play it.
The blues scale is a 6 note scale that comes from the minor or major pentatonic scale. What makes the blues scale different from a standard 5 note minor pentatonic scale, is the extra note - also known as the ‘blue note’, or the flat 5th in the case of the minor blues scale.
The blue note is what gives the blues scale its distinctive sound, as it doesn’t occur naturally within the scale. Its slight dissonance helps to create a memorable hook for the audience’s ears and makes it perfect for creating killer riffs and solos in almost any genre.
Alvarez Lj2 Mini Blues Guitar
Any guitarist will tell you not to neglect your scales. They may not seem like the most exciting lesson or technique, but they’re the foundation you need to really get to know your guitar and what it sounds like. Once you’ve mastered this, you’ll be halfway there to writing your own blues guitar riffs and solos and ‘finding your own voice in the blues’.
At we help you get these foundations right. We offer high quality guitar lessons taught by professional musicians featuring HD video and sound, to help you take your skills to the next level.
Browse our lessons from Blues experts Ron Sayer, Marcus Bonfanti or Doug MacLeod to learn more about the blues scale on guitar, blues theory and how to improvise your own songs. We even have a full catalogue of Rockschool Guitar courses so that you can learn to play great tunes featuring the blues scale and improve your skills along the way.
The Best Blues Guitar Solos Of All Time
There are two types of blues scales: the minor blues scale and the major blues scale. Both are based on the standard minor and major pentatonic scales.
To play the minor blues scale, you need to add a flat 5th to your standard minor pentatonic scale. To play the major blues scale, you need to add a flat 3rd to the major pentatonic scale. You can do this to any minor or major pentatonic scale once you’ve found the root note (the first note in the scale) but let’s look at some examples.
To turn this scale into the blues scale, we need to add the b5 between the 4 and the 5. So, the minor blues scale looks like this:
Blues Icon Bonnie Raitt On 50 Years As A Singer, Songwriter And Guitar Hero
As an example, we can now look at how to turn a standard A minor scale into an A minor blues scale. An A minor scale looks like this:
To turn this into a major blues scale, we need to add the b3 in between the 2 and the 3 so that it looks like this:
Now, let’s look at an example for how to put this into practice. A standard C major pentatonic scale looks like this:
Hal Leonard Guitar Method Blues Guitar
Note that both the C major blues scale and the A minor blues scale have exactly the same notes. It is where we focus the attention of your solos or melodies that dictates the overall tonality. To test this, try playing phrases that start and end on the major root and then phrases that start and end on the minor root and hear the differences for yourself.
Want to learn more about the blues scale? Check out our blues guitar courses and take your skills to the next level today!
Mastering the Strings: The Best Lissie Songs to Learn on Guitar In this article, we'll explore some of the best Lissie songs to learn on the guitar and why they're worth your time. The Best Lissie Songs to Get You Through Any Mood Whether you're looking for a song to lift your spirits, set the mood for a romantic evening, or provide comfort during tough times, Lissie has a song for you. Subscription Royalties Information for artists and licensorsWhen playing this chord, make sure all those strings ring out. We want to hear every glorious note in this fantastic blues chord.
Jazz Blues Guitar Patterns
Find this chord too diffuclt? Go here: B Guitar Chord – Tips For This Tough Chord Why do we have to learn these specific chords?
All of these guitar chords are part of a common chord progression in blues music, that progression is the ’12 bar blues’.
To learn more about the key of E, go here: Chords In The Key Of E Blues Guitar For Beginners – Essential Chord Progressions
Alfred Music Real Blues Guitar Chipkin, Lehrbuch Und Dvd
The main progression in blues music is known as a ’12 bar blues’. You must know this chord progression if you want to learn blues music.
Before you start playing this progression, it’s important that you listen to it and interalize it. Once you feel comfortable with what it sounds like, have a go at playing it.
You may have noticed that, this progression can repeat freely without getting boring. That’s one of THE best things about a 12 bar blues, it doesn’t need anything else. It’s perfect as it is!
The Best Guitars For The Blues
This could be a guitar solo, an awesome guitar riff or a mesmerizing guitar lick. This is one of the best parts of learning blues guitar for beginners.
In blues music, a lead guitarist will often take ripping solos. However, the blues guitarist doesn’t just take solos. Often they will play extra riffs and licks which add character to a blues song.
Wondering who the top 30 blues guitarists are? Check out this article by Music Radar to find out: The 30 greatest blues guitarists of all time What’s the difference between a solo and a riff?
Alfred Music Real Blues Rock Guitar Chipkin, Lehrbuch Und 2 Dvds
A solo is the key moment in a song, where a guitarist gets to rip out some of their favourite licks. The solo is a key moment for any musician, this is the time when they get to shine!
The opening riff to this song by ‘The Bros. Landreth, is killer! If you want to learn to play like these blues greats, you must learn guitar scales.
This means that this shape can be played anywhere across the fret board. All you have to do is change your root note on the low E string.
Killer Blues Licks You Must Know
For example, to play this scale in the key of A, all you have to do is start this scale on the 5th fret.
Here’s the chord box for this scale. To play this scale in the key of E, start it on the 12th fret.
All of the notes in these scales work over a E blues chord progression. Don’t worry too much about why this works, just accept that it does.
Best Electric Guitars For Blues
If you’re new to blues guitar, it’s FAR more important that you get playing first, rather than get bogged down by music theory.
Now we’ve learnt a bit about what scales we can play over a blues progression, let’s learn some killer blues guitar riffs which use these scales.
Here’s a classic 12 bar blues riff. This would sound great played on bass or guitar. In the music world we refer to this as ‘walking bass line’.
Cool Blues Shuffle Riffs
You don’t have to play this riff in the E minor pentatonic position, you can move it around the fret board as the chords change in a 12 bar blues.
Learn how everything fits together quickly, easily and effectively. We share ninja tips (for instant fun!) but also timeless fundamentals that will deepen your understanding.With our cookies we would like to offer you the best shopping experience possible with everything that goes with it. This includes, for example, suitable offers and remembering preferences. If this is okay for you, simply click on Alrighty! that you agree to the use of cookies for preferences, statistics and marketing (show all).
While the blues can be played on just about any guitar, there are a few clear favourites. The first is the double-cutaway semi-acoustic. This type of guitar originated with the Gibson ES-335, which is still generally considered by many to be ‘best in class’. These guitars are usually equipped with humbuckers for a warm, fat tone (use the neck pickup), or biting lead at the bridge.
Hal Leonard Kirk Fletcher: Burning Blues Guitar
The blues in its many forms is so central to the history of the guitar, that most other major guitar types can be identified with a particular player or style, from Fender’s Stratocaster (Stevie Ray Vaughan, Robert Cray) and Telecaster (Albert Collins) to Gibson’s
0 Response to "Blues In Guitar"
Posting Komentar