Continuation of the diminished scale video…in this Pt2 I show how to incorporate triads into phrases or altered chords voicings.
If we take a C half step/whole step scale C, Db, Eb, E, F#, G, A, Bb we see that four triads can be found within the notes of this scale: C major, Ebmajor, F#major, A major. In the video I show you how to add this new ‘flavour’ to your phrases.
You can get quite a modern sound by alternating and combining major and minor triads. In the video I use variuos combinations like C minor and D major that touch different degrees of the key of the moment. Try different combinations and write down those that sound more interesting to your ears. You can find a pdf file with triads in different positions and inversions free to download HERE
Very simple concept widely used in jazz ( but good for other styles). Like shown in the video, G7 and Db7 are two chords a tritone away (tritone=6 semitones) that share the same 3rd and 7th.
G7= G B D F
Db=Db F Ab B
as you see the notes B and F are common to the two chords. This means that I can also substitute the IIm chord that usually comes before it (as in a II-V-I)
I can play both
Dm7 G7 Cmaj7
Abm7 Db7 Cmaj7
This is where things get quite interesting. In this video I will show you how to use material from other solos you might already know, or you want to learn. All this will build your vocabulary of musical ideas/ knowledge of styles if you do it the right way:
1. Learn a phrase (=musical idea from a solo, in the video I use the very famous pickup from ‘Another brick in the wall Pt2’ by Pink Floyd as played by David Gilmour on ‘The Wall’)
2. Analyze the phrase…how is it built? from what scale? What Key? In the example the phrase is based around the D minor pentatonic.
3. Learn it in every key so that it becomes available to you in every key.
4. Use it adapting it to the song you are playing on. In this case I had to transpose it to G minor pentatonic, using it to give a ‘bluesy’ sound to the track. I also used it in E minor pentatonic as E minor is the relative minor of G major, which means that this phrase can also be used as G major pentatonic. Furthermore I had to adapt its rhythm as the original is in 4/4 and the track is in 3/4.
Again, the backing track can be downloaded >HERE<
This is a scale I know as ‘Jog scale’. I am sure even though you might not know it by name, you have heard its sound before, as it is featured in a lot of Beatles tunes, and also a favorite of guitarist Eric Johnson. It has an Indian flavor to my ears…just watch the video and you’ll understand what I mean. In the PDF file below you’ll find the 5 inversions/modes and relative fingerings in the key of G. It sounds best over G7 (or G7sus4), Fmaj7#11, and B7#9, but feel free to experiment…
Download: Jog Scale PDF
Good Luck.