Inhaltsverzeichnis für March 2020 in Guitar Techniques

SIMON BARNARD Simon is a graduate of ACM and The Guitar Institute, holding a Masters degree in music. He teaches, examines and plays everything from rock to jazz. SHAUN BAXTER One of the UK’s most respected music educators, Shaun has taught many who are now top tutors themselves. His Jazz Metal album is considered a milestone. JON BISHOP Jon is one of those great all-rounders who can turn his hand to almost any style. He’s also rock legend Shakin Stevens’ touring and recording guitarist. CHRIS BROOKS Aussie metal and prog guitarist Chris’s Speed Strategies For Guitar is published by Fundamental Changes. CDs include Axis Of All Things and The Master Plan. MARTIN GOULDING One of the world’s foremost rock and metal guitarists, Martin teaches for dime-online.org and has written for…

The beginner course on my website is probably its most popular area. The course itself is over 10 years old now, and so in 2019 I decided to re-write it, taking on board everything I’ve learned and all the comments I’ve received. It’s a mammoth task, but going great. I was happy to find that the course and my feelings about how people learn best seemed to be solid and there was a lot more positive feedback than bad. But there was room for improvement – further clarification of the steps and when to move on; breaking some things into smaller chunks and more modular mini-courses. While I’m confident the new course is going to be rocking (check it out if you’re interested) I was keen to try it out…

HERE’S A JAZZY blues phrase played over the last four bars of a 12-bar, or turnaround. To achieve a slightly more sophisticated sounding idea the chords used are V (D7), IV (C7 b 9), I (G7); and the final V chord is a Stormy Monday approved D augmented. The first two bars outline each chord by initially playing each of them as a‘hit’, followed by a similar single-note line. Notice the b 3 to 3 moves (F-F# and E b –E) and the use of strong chord tones. Also, as you play the C7 b 9 it sounds more authentic to‘shake’the chord and bend it slightly sharp - particularly the highest b 3 note of B b . Bars 3-4 are busier and again involve those b 3-3 moves (B…

Let’s start with a question: What makes a guitar solo memorable? Of course there’s no single answer, but the one I’m thinking of is ‘the lick that jumps out and makes you think... Wow! Now that was nice.’ I’m talking about that elusive set of notes that gives a musical, structured, catchy, sometimes flashy, feel to a solo, and which can instantly identify a player (BB King’s ‘high root-note stab with slide’, for example). So, just think of a lick as a succinct sentence, the perfect few words with which to convey your meaning. Learning licks is actually a great way to increase your musical vocabulary. It gives you ready-made musical sentences that may be ideal for your purposes, while also benefitting your playing by improving abilities in musical, technical…

This month we welcome back Ennio Morricone’s incredible guitarist Rocco Zifarelli, to take on another Jason Sidwell penned track. It’s a slick fusion style offering called The Moonlight Maurader, designed to test Rocco’s inventiveness and technique to the limit. As you will see, once again our hero doesn’t disappoint! The tempo is 135bpm so it’s good to have a fretboard roadmap established prior to setting sail on such a freeform-improvised solo. As Rocco explains, the track starts out in the key of B Minor and the standard approach for this type of harmony is to opt for B Dorian mode. B Dorian is built off the second degree of the A Major scale (B-C#-D-E-F#-G-A) but you can also view it as B Minor Pentatonic with added 6th and 9th (G…

SERGIONE INFUSO / CORBIS / GETTY IMAGES Zakk Wylde needs little introduction in rock guitar circles, but for the uninitiated, he rose to very swift prominence as the 21-year-old guitar prodigy in Ozzy Osbourne’s band, with his fiery Les Paul playing drawing comparison to his foremost influence, Randy Rhoads. Wylde had begun playing guitar at the age of eight and often used to practise for 12 hours a day as a teenager. During and after several lengthy and productive stints in Osbourne’s touring and recording band Zakk also formed the southern rock influenced band Pride & Glory for which he was also lead singer (the band toured with Whitesnake on their 1994 Greatest Hits tour), and the heavy, riff based band Black Label Society. It’s the sound of Black Label…

Vanilla Fudge formed in 1965, originally as The Pigeons, before signing to Atlantic Records in 1967. They switched to Vanilla Fudge after label boss Ahmet Ertegun declared his dislike for the name. At this time, the line-up was Mark Stein (vocals, organ), Tim Bogert (bass, vocals), Vince Martell (guitar, vocals) and Carmine Appice (drums, vocals). This classic line-up recorded five albums between 1967 and ‘69 before going their separate ways in 1970. They recorded sporadically from 1984, but never regained their early success. This month’s column focuses on the group’s initial period, taking inspiration from the albums Vanilla Fudge (1967), The Beat Goes On (1968), Renaissance (1968), Near The Beginning (1969) and Rock And Roll (1969). Although these featured some original material, the band was better known for extended arrangements…

Mixolydian b 6 is a mode of the Melodic Minor scale. Melodic Minor has the intervals 1-2- b 3-4-5-6-7; essentially a Major scale with a b 3rd. It has a jazzier sound than many modes and can open up interesting pathways. As with any scale, Melodic Minor can have a mode built from each degree. Today we look at a mode of D Melodic Minor with notes: D-E-F-G-A-B-C#. If we start from the 5th degree it gives us: A-B-C#-D-E-F-G; similar to Mixolydian, but with a b 6, hence Mixolydian b 6; the major 3rd and b 6 bring a rather nice quality. As with many scales, this one has many different names; you may also hear it called Hindustan, Charukesi or Aeolian Dominant scale. The sound is initially unfamiliar, but…

IT’S AMAZING HOW one’s technique can change over time. And not always for the better. On my main gig, I spend at least as much time strumming as alternate picking lead, or hybrid picking other parts. Also, as we have two guitarists I’ve chosen to strum on acoustic so as to separate us; plus there’s few songs that don’t benefit from that lovely blend of the harmonic and the percussive. For years I’ve held my strumming pick with thumb and two fingers, rather than thumb and one, and this has meant my second fingernail (and my first to a degree) brushes the strings on every down strum. This has worn away my nails for fingerstyle duties so I now have them gelled at my local nailbar (they do it brilliantly…

➊ Super Slow Blues (E) We start with an easy, very slow blues in E. Use E Minor Pentatonic (E-G-A-B-D) and E Major Pentatonic (E-F#-G#-B-C#) as your starting point and then see if you can work in the arpeggios: E7 (E-G#-B-D), A7 (A-C#-E-G), B7 (B-D#-F#-A). ➋ II-V-I Jazz Jam (G) KEITH MORRIS / GETTY IMAGES Here’s a simple but brisk jazz practice jam in G Major. Based on the II-V-I chords (Am7-D7-Gmaj7) you can use G Major scale (G-A-B-C-D-E-F#) throughout. You can also think G Major Pentatonic (G-A-B-D-E) and aim for the arpeggios along the way. Lots of fun once you get into it! ➌ C Harmonic Minor Groove Jam This two-chord camp (Cm-G7) is perfect for diving into C Harmonic Minor scale (C-D-E b -F-G-A b -B). Of course…

Tommy Emmanuel is one of the busiest musicians on the planet. When he’s not on tour somewhere around the globe, he’s in the studio producing more virtuosic acoustic music. But as far as his recorded output is concerned, Tommy is not one to stand still or allow himself to be pinned down to a single style or format. On the contrary, he’s always up for trying new things and working with different musicians from all sorts of complementary styles. During a recent stopover at our studios to record a series of tuition videos, we took the opportunity to sit down and talk about his attitude to recording, the instruments he uses and the strategies he employs to get the very best out of his instrument every time. We thought that…

HULTON ARCHIVE / GETTY IMAGES “THE MELODY IS ENTIRELY DIATONIC. THIS GIVES IT AN ACCESSIBLE, SINGABLE AND SPACIOUS QUALITY WHICH SHOULD BE CAPTURED IN THE PERFORMANCE” In this issue we will be tackling the beautiful Irish folk song Slane, which is now perhaps best known as the melody of the hymn, Lord Of All Hopefulness. This melody is also used in other hymns, such as Be Thou My Vision, Lord Of Creation, To Thee All Praise. However, perhaps closer to the stylistic roots of Slane are the traditional Irish tunes With My Love On The Road and The Banks Of The Bann. It has been quite common practice for folk songs to be appropriated for Christian Hymns, and when a title is not known the place of origin is used…

EASY LICKS EXAMPLE 1 TOM SCHOLTZ CD TRACK 19 This classic songwriter built much of Boston’s sound around a blues-rock-country blueprint, and this example involves picking a D5 and superimposing a moving bass-note for melodic effect. Pick steadily to a metronome using a medium gain on the bridge pickup but without too much edge to the tone. EASY LICKS EXAMPLE 2 ROBIN TROWER CD TRACK 20 A classic phaser effect and a fat Strat-type tone are the basis of this style. Trower was ever the‘vibe’player, and you should be aware of Robin’s slow and superbly controlled groove and that fantastic vibrato when executing this example. INTERMEDIATE LICKS EXAMPLE 3 BILLY F GIBBONS CD TRACK 21 Probably one of every guitarist’s favourite players, Billy always managed to bring great rhythm to…

Whether you are creating solo jazz guitar arrangements or improvising an accompaniment behind a singer or other instrumentalist, the ability to multi-task, delivering the crucial elements from two contrasting parts at once, can be a real asset to your playing. One impressive and musically effective combination is to mix a walking bass pattern, rather like you’d hear from an upright double-bass player, and punctuate this with syncopated chord voicings, much like what might be played in the left hand by a good jazz piano player. The principle challenges here are firstly to choose the right notes and rhythms, usually either half notes (minims) or quarter notes (crotchets), to provide either a two or four-in-the-bar feel to the bass. The higher, usually fragmented chord voicings will rely upon a combination of…

Recently, we’ve been using various medium-paced solo studies as examples of how to apply some of the different Pentatonic scales that reside within Mixolydian. In this lesson, we’re going to focus on useful Pentatonic scales that stem from the 5th note of each Mixolydian scale. Remember, the purpose of trying to extract five-note scales from within a seven-note scale is to provide us with fresh musical perspectives. Each new perspective not only sounds different, but will make us play in a different way too. When extracting Pentatonic scales (‘penta’ meaning five in Greek) from a seven-note scale like Mixolydian, one could simply choose to systematically omit two notes from that parental scale. For example, if we omit the major 3rd and major 6th degrees of Mixoydian, we effectively produce a…

Album of the Month GARY MOORE LIVE FROM LONDON Provogue/Mascot Recorded at London’s Islington Academy on December 2nd, 2009, this live CD finds Gary Moore take to the stage in a rare small club setting. The organiser of the event, Jon Norman, remembers that, “It was a full-on show and an amazing performance. He even overran the venue’s curfew – it just felt like he never wanted to stop playing.” During the album’s 13 tracks, Gary blazes through a blues orientated set that includes tracks like: Oh, Pretty Woman, Since I Met You Baby, Too Tired and, of course, Parisienne Walkways. His phenomenal soloing on the John Mayall ‘Beano’ classic, Have You Heard is awesome; in fact the guitar playing is ferocious from the outset. If you need a reminder…

Tap the links Finding your way around the magazine is easy. Tapping the feature titles on the cover or the contents page, takes you straight to the relevant articles. Any web and email links in the text are tappable too Animated tab & audio All the ’s main lessons have mag the audio built in with a moving cursor that shows you exactly where you are in the music. Simply tap the ‘play’ button and you’re off - you can fast-forward or scroll back at will. Play the videos Certain articles have accompanying videos full of useful insight and additional information. Once again, tap the play buttons to enjoy video masterclasses on your iPad (recommended) or smartphone. DISC AUDIO (PRINT VERSION ONLY) Sometimes the GT CD features some of the…

GT: What is it about instrumentals that appeals to you? JH: I guess I would say the purity of instrumental music can appeal to me, if the music is compelling and beautiful. By and large I’d guess I only enjoy about 10 percent of music of any genre, whether it’s instrumental or vocal. GT: What can an instrumental provide that a vocal song can’t? JH: Under the best circumstances, music without words can offer the listener a more focused experience of the things of music itself, like melody, harmony, rhythm, timbre, an arranger’s skill, a composer’s gifts, etc, because when listening to instrumental music the listener will be undistracted by the words, and perhaps have more attention to pay to the sounds themselves. GT: Any tendencies with that you aim…

HARMONY’S CREMONA ACOUSTIC  range gets a major overhaul with several new models being introduced; from the H1263 Grand Concert version to the top-of-the-range H1307 Cremona VII with its distinctive wine red shaded carved spruce top, herringbone trim, and flamed maple back and sides. The neck has a soft-V profile, pearl inlays and a racing stripe on the fingerboard. During wartime the whole range is modified with the tuners and tailpiece downgraded due to metal shortages, but it remains a great series of guitars. IN CELEBRATION OF KING GEORGE V’S SILVER Jubilee the London North Eastern Railway introduces the Silver Jubilee streamliner service between Kings Cross and Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, employing Nigel Gresley’s LNER Class A4 steam locomotives. The driving test is made compulsory; populated areas are given a 30 mph speed limit…

In the last issue in which we featured Tommy (GT 294) he was talking about using a thumbpick and demonstrating general picking-hand technique. So this time, we thought we’d ask the maestro to turn his attention to the fretting hand. In the accompanying video and the music examples below, Tommy will be demonstrating some of the stylistic attributes of another of his influences, country picker Merle Travis. He’ll also be taking a look at the question of thumb position and how that particular digit can be called out of back-of-the-neck duties and into occasional active service on the fretboard. There’s a lot to take in here. So watch the video, study the music and, as Tommy always says: practise, practise, practise! EXAMPLE 1 CD TRACK 8 This example shows a…

Picking-hand fingers Do you pay much attention to your picking hand’s second and third fingers (‘m’and‘a’)? As classical guitarists we are often so focused on alternating first and second fingers that the others can be overlooked. But spending just five minutes (regularly) playing basic scales with m and a can really benefit your technique. Try repeating a one-octave scale on the top three strings with m and a, slowly but with a full tone. Practise it with both rest stroke and free stroke and watch the results.…

MICHAEL OCHS ARCHIVE / GETTY IMAGES The fabulous Albert King, original name Albert Nelson, was one of the most influential blues guitarists of all time. One of the so-called Kings Of The Blues, Albert was one of the leading blues players of his generation, alongside fellow heavyweights, BB and Freddie King. Legend has it that Albert was such a big admirer of BB that he adopted the same stage name just to be associated with the legendary bluesman, often claiming he was his half brother. From his side, BB King only ever claimed Albert as a dear friend, but is reported as referring to him as a “brother of the blues”. Regardless of this, Albert influenced and inspired many of the great household names in guitar history; Eric Clapton, Jimmy…

STEVE THORNE / GETTY IMAGES Over the last few lessons, we’ve explored some conventional and unconventional strategies in our breakdown of Yngwie’s much admired, seldom revealed picking mastery. Let’s recap on the system so that you can not only perform Yngwie-style lines with authenticity, but use these ideas to create your own furious picking lines. When Malmsteen relocated to the USA in the midst of the Los Angeles hair-metal scene in 1982, new standards were set almost overnight regarding hard rock styling, technical vocabulary and picking fluidity in the post-Van Halen era. Guitar enthusiasts clamoured to understand what they were hearing and, for a time, assumed that the power behind Malmsteen’s high-speed skillset was the result of strict alternate picking. Early instructional books and videos often taught from the pure-alternate…

Martin Goulding looks at the Phrygian Dominant mode – a sound common in classical, jazz and rock styles, and used in conjunction with the Natural Minor scale when soloing over Minor chord progressions. Welcome to this month’s column on developing fretboard fluency, with the fifth part in our series examining the Harmonic Minor scale. This scale consists of the formula: R-2- b 3-4-5- b 6-7; or it can be alternatively viewed as a Natural Minor scale with a major 7th degree. Natural Minor scale: R-2- b 3-4-5- b 6- b 7 Harmonic Minor scale: R-2- b 3-4-5- b 6-7. So far we’ve looked at the five A Harmonic Minor scale shapes based around the CAGED system, plus the harmonised scale comprising seven diatonic chords, arpeggios and modes (see table at…

GT: Is there a type of pick you can’t live without? TW: When I was around 15 years old I was in Denmark Street and Rose Morris music used to have trays and trays of picks. What took my eye was the Ibanez Paul Gilbert plectrum because it has a doodle of his face on it. Ever since then I haven’t used anything else! GT: If you had to give up all your pedals but three, what would they be? Ah! I only use three, haha! I can’t stand huge pedal boards and things at my feet on stage, especially when I used to play the pub scene and you have about as much space as a phone box. I use a Korg Pitchblack Tuner and Jim Dunlop wah at…

MORE OF THE WORLD’S BEST LESSONS… FEATURE #2 VIDEO CHRIS BUCK Blues Masterclass Welsh blues guitarist Chris is making a big name for himself on the circuit. Here he offers advice and some great licks. CLASSICAL TAB VIDEO CHRISTOPHER GLUCK Dance Of The Blessed Spirits Bridget Mermikides arranges and transcribes a piece originally for flute and orchestra, here for solo classical guitar. FEATURE #3 VIDEO ROCCO ZIFARELLI Fortitude Ennio Morricone’s stunning guitarist plays and explains another superb solo over a great new original track. TECHNIQUE & THEORY GREAT STUFF TO LEARN Tritones & Phrygian Dominant Play tritones from the blues (b5) or jazz (#4) perspective; and discover what makes Phrygian Dominant so cool! MORE GREAT LESSONS 30-Minute Lickbag Six more tasty licks to try Roy Buchanan Ill-starred…