Blues Guitar Lesson Book - Learn & Master Courses by Legacy

(Dana P.) #1

Blues Building Blocks


Blues Scales, Picking Technique, Making the Most of Simple Ideas


Session 3 : Blues Building Blocks


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Scales for Blues


There are several types of scales that work great for blues playing covered in this
session. Scales are the building blocks of anything you create in music. The patterns
of notes used in various scales can color your sound and your solos. Here are some
of the primary scales you need to have in your bag of tricks as a blues guitar player.

The Major Scale

The major scale is the most fundamental scale in music. The major scale is a
combination of half-steps and whole-steps built off of a root. It is a specific pattern of
whole- steps and half-steps that when built on a specific note called the root create a
major scale.

Remember that there are half-steps between E-F and B-C. Apart from using sharps
and flats, these are the only two notes that are naturally a half-step apart.

The major scale pattern is...
Whole Step - Whole Step - Half Step
Whole Step - Whole Step - Whole Step - Half Step

Here is the major scale in the key of C or a C major scale.

Here is the F major scale. In order to get the major scale pattern to work out
correctly the 4th note B had to be flatted. So, in the key of F there is one flat--Bb.

“My blues are so simple, but so few people
can play it right.” Muddy Waters

Objectives


  • Understanding the
    various scales used in
    blues playing.

  • Playing using a strong
    picking technique.

  • Learning the sus to
    hammer-on blues riff.


Key Ideas

The Major Scale is a
combination of half-steps
and whole-steps built off
of a root.

Terms

Half-Step
A Half-Step is the distance
between one note and the
next note--the distance of
one fret on the guitar.

Whole-Step
A Whole-Step is the
distance of two half-steps
which is the distance of
two frets on the guitar.

Position
A Position is a specific
range of frets on the neck
of the guitar defined by
the fret that the 1st finger
is on.

Playing Tip


Understanding major scales and keys is a huge benefit when
soloing and in knowing what notes are in chords. Refer to
the Keys and Key Signatures chart in Session 2 for help.

Blues Guitar with Steve Krenz 37 http://www.learnandmaster.com/bluesresources

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