Indice dei contenuti per August 2023 in Guitar Techniques

GUITAR PLAYING doesn’t come more honest, raucous and exciting than the early days of rock and roll. With the world in a post-war flush of 50s optimism, and America’s teenagers finding their voice, there were certain things that came to epitomise the times. For our purposes, one was the car (freedom, excitement!) and the other was the electric guitar (music!). Made by trailblazing companies such as Fender and Gibson, the amplified guitar was a huge entity, as was the sound it made. Grasped in the hands of Buddy Holly, Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley, James Burton, Cliff Gallup and others, America’s guitar developed a sound and a vocabulary that resonated around the world. It’s that flush of excitement, that notion of playing loud using string bends, double-stops and Pentatonic flurries, that…

IF WE PRESUME you already know the root, 3rd and 5th notes are taken from the Major scale to form a Major triad, or chord (flatten the 3rd by a semitone for Minor chords) then it shouldn’t be too much of a leap to see how adding further notes from the scale into our chords gives us an extended chord, with names ranging from A6 to D7 (b9b13). Basically, these names describe what the notes are and whether one of the notes has been‘altered’ by raising or lowering it. Here are a few examples to get us started, and there will be more to come in future articles. Example 1 THIS A6 CHORD is the simplest example of an extended chord. Root, 3rd and 5th (A, C#, E) are all…

Brought to you by… EXAMPLE 1 NICK BOCKRATH (CAGE THE ELEPHANT) This phrase is based in G Minor but includes both the Major 3rd (B) and Minor 3rd (Bb). By moving between these two notes, the melody feels unsettled and more mysterious. Use downstrokes to achieve an authoritative delivery. For continuity throughout the sequence, use your first finger and slide to each note change. To get the sound, use your bridge pickup, set your amp to moderately overdriven tone and add a long reverb. EXAMPLE 2 NEIL YOUNG This sequence alternates between strummed chords and single-note melody. This brings shape and direction to the phrase, making it sound like it belongs within a song. Familiarise yourself with the strumming pattern on the C and F chords, then play through each…

Originally from Rio de Janeiro, Kiko Loureiro has a rich musical background, having been influenced by jazz, classical and Brazilian music from an early age. In 1992 he entered the guitar scene as a fully formed metal guitar virtuoso with the band Angra which released several albums. Angra was of the first groups to tread the line between progressive and power metal with an incredible level of musicianship. Kiko has also released several solo albums, which lean into a rock-fusion instrumental guitar style. In 2015 he joined Megadeth, filling the position left by his predecessor Chris Broderick. Kiko’s style has been embraced by Megadeth fans for his ability to channel the style of the legendary Chris Poland and Marty Friedman era, while maintaining his own personality and perfectly complementing Dave…

Don’t get me wrong. It’s a fun thing to run a wee band and to perform a few times each year in the heart of London’s particularly fashionable but vehicularly inaccessible West End. To that end, for 10 years I’ve been purveying my particular brand of jazz-melodic-groovebased-fusion-crazy-sounds for the audience to dig. Yet I still find myself driving home with the familiar sense of frustration that my personal performance level sits at a deflating 85-90% of where I’d really like it to be. But before I succumb to an exercise in ritual self-abasement (something in which we guitarists are often known to indulge), I suggest that it’s not hard to understand why this is a constantly recurring personal theme in the small-but-imperfectly-formed world of Mitch Dalton & The Studio Kings.…

VIDEO & AUDIO https://bit.ly/3pw0dAh In this feature we are taking an in-depth look at a guitar style that provided the foundation to the playing of later legends including Jeff Beck, Jimmy Page and Angus Young. It’s an exiting style that’s a fusion of several music genres, most notably country, blues, jazz, and western swing. We have selected 10 of the best- known 50s pickers as our inspiration. These are: Chuck Berry, Buddy Holly, Duane Eddy, Link Wray, Dan Cedrone (Bill Haley and His Comets), Cliff Gallup (Gene Vincent’s Blue Caps), Carl Perkins, Scotty Moore (Elvis Presley) Bo Diddley, and James Burton (Ricky Nelson and later Elvis Presley). TECHNIQUE FOCUS Picking techniques When playing through the examples it’s well worth considering your picking technique. Most of the ideas here can be…

VIDEO & AUDIO https://bit.ly/3pw0dAh BB King devoted his life to performing the blues in every corner of the world, and he was perhaps the genre’s greatest ambassador. His remarkably expressive sound, rhythmically inventive, melodically sophisticated and incredibly influential style, spoke to audiences ranging from prison inmates to presidents and everything in-between. BB did so for well over 50 years and never lost his infectious enthusiasm, vitality and commitment to performing. His work earned him numerous awards, including a Grammy for Best Traditional Blues Album, plus an induction into both the Blues and the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame. He even has a museum in his honour, the BB King Museum and Delta Interpretive Centre, in Indianola, Mississippi. TECHNIQUE FOCUS The BB King Note Pool BB would never just run…

Simon McBride is one of the world’s greatest guitar players, with a career spanning over 25 years in the music industry. Simon has proven himself as both a session musician and as an artist in his own right. His skill and musicality has been admired by some of the most legendary musicians on the planet, and he is currently the full-time guitarist in the Deep Purple. But how did McBride get there and what makes his playing particularly special? Hailing from Ireland, Simon started out aged nine, having grown up on a healthy diet of Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin, Free and other classic rock icons. By the time he was 15 years old he had become a very accomplished player, entering Guitarist magazine’s Young Guitarist Of The Year competition and…

Matt Schofield’s style is an interesting blend of modern blues from the likes of Albert King and Jimi Hendrix, with the jazzier influence of Robben Ford. Manchester born Matt has been leading his own band for a long time now and has a large body of original songs to call upon. He often works in an organ trio format and this informs his rhythm style greatly. Matt’s phrasing is flawless and this partly explains why he has been welcomed into the blues scene in the US, where he now resides. He often cites BB King’s playing as an early influence but Hendrix is also an enduring inspiration. There are also traces of Albert King and Freddie King mixed with touches of Stevie Ray Vaughan’s style. These influences are melded with…

In the previous two articles Martin covered the essentials of creating walking basslines for jazz guitar accompaniment. Now it’s time to add some creative variations around the basic structure. We’ll explore how to play walking bass with a ‘two’ feel, how to play up at the dusty end of the fretboard, how to add a little bit of melody, and how to play the minimum of chords while still laying down the essential harmony of the tune. “Chet Atkins and Merle Travis would play using walking basslines, but I knew I didn’t want to go country pickin’!” Martin will begin with one of the most tangible elements of texture: playing in twos. Until now, we have been walking with four even bass notes in each bar, but now we will…

I’ve been running week-long residential guitar workshops for over 15 years now. They have evolved into something really special since the early days where I tried to cram a music degree into a week. Intense eight-hour days that nearly killed the students and myself. I soon realised that many of the students really needed to play with a band. So I created a jam workshop, where we’d teach a song in the morning and all the students would get up and play it with a professional drummer and bassist in the afternoon. It was incredible, so many wide smiles and it really ignited the students to continue their guitar journey. When I think back to my own adventure with guitar - the times I learned the most were in bands,…

➊ Super Slow Blues -BMinor We start with a super slow blues jam in B Minor, where the B Minor Pentatonic scale (B-D-E-F#-A) is a great place to start. Next up, try hitting some of the chord tones: Bm7 (B-D-F#-A), Em7 (E-G-B-D), Gmaj7 (G-B-D-F#) and F#7 (F#-A#-C#-E). ➋ GMixolydianVamp Here we have a simple G Mixolydian chord vamp (G-F) that's perfect for exploring G Mixolydian mode (G-A-B-C-D-E-F). You can also add more blues vibes to the scenario though and go town on the G Minor Pentatonic scale (G-Bb-C-D-F). ➌ Reggae Blues Jam (A) This one is a fun blues in A, with a reggae-ish vibe. Mixing A Major Pentatonic (A-B-C#-E-F#) and A Minor Pentatonic (A-C-D-E-G) will get you sounding great. ➍ D Minor II-V-I Groove Jam…

This month we welcome Shane Therio, best-known for his work with Hall & Oates and the TV show Live From Daryl’s House, hosted by Daryl Hall and featuring guest artists like Billy Gibbons and Joe Walsh. He has also toured and recorded with New Orleans legends such as Dr John and The Neville Brothers. For this feature, Jason Sidwell recorded a new piece for him, Bump And Bind. Shane then filmed himself soloing over it and discussed how he approached his performance, highlighting notable aspects of his playing style. The track starts out in the key of E Minor and there is a pre-recorded riff to navigate. Shane went for a fingerstyle approach, which provided dynamic and intervallic freedom, such as the use of arpeggios and chord tones to navigate…

ON VIDEO Along with Ángel Villoldo’s El Choclo (GT334), La Cumparsita is one of the earliest examples of the tango style, and certainly one of the most definitive. Written by Uruguayan musician, composer, and journalist Gerardo Hernán Matos Rodríguez, the tune was first premiered in Montevideo, Uruguay, in 1916 at the old Café La Giralda; now the Montevideo Tango Museum. La Cumparsita actually started life as a march - the title translates as ‘processional march’- but the orchestral leader of Café La Giralda at the time, a musician named Roberto Firpo, tweaked Rodríguez’ version and incorporated some of his own lesser-known tangos and a section of Verdi’s Miserere to create the version we are familiar with today. Born in Montevideo in 1897, Rodríguez was the son of don Emilio Matos,…

If you’re a musician with the surname Van Halen, you’re probably going to have a degree of attention given to your music, with comparisons drawn to the family members that went ahead of you. Thirtytwo-year-old Wolfgang Van Halen, whose father was Edward, has in just a few short years carved out a career of his own by singing plus playing guitar, bass and drums. The young VH has been fronting Mammoth WVH since the release of the band’s debut album in 2021, and he has been seen on the touring and festival circuit since then, gathering a good fan base built entirely on his own merits. The name Mammoth WVH is a tribute to his dad’s band, since the initial name of Van Halen was Mammoth, before David Lee Roth…

American bluegrass trio Nickel Creek formed in Southern California in 1989 as part of a regular jam session in a pizza parlour. The group would go on to be considered pioneers of the ‘newgrass’ sound drawing influence from traditional bluegrass and country but also modern indie-rock bands like Pavement. The group comprises guitarist Sean Watkins, fiddle player Sara Watkins and the virtuoso mandolinist Chris Thile. They realised their self-titled debut album in 2000 and quickly took the bluegrass and folk worlds by storm. Over the ensuing 20 plus years the band has released several other albums, toured globally and taken various breaks along the way. Beyond the group, solo careers and many collaborations keep the band members busy with Thile in particular gaining global recognition and social media fame for…

The Italian word legato roughly translates as ‘smooth’. For guitarists, the legato techniques involves a series of slurs using hammer-ons, pull-offs and slides to create a smooth sound, void of a busy pick attack. This legato techniques works well in many genres, but particularly those where overdrive and distortion are used, which helps create sustained notes, which in turn help with fluidity and even out dynamics. The legato technique can be used alongside two-handed tapping, to add further reach and opportunities. Make sure that you check out next month’s column where I will taking at look at the two-handed tapping technique. Legato, due to its very nature, offers a different sound compared to other techniques such as alternate picking. It can be challenging at first because the fretting hand has…