Great stuff again! I really like Hal Galper's comments about learning licks, which is along the same lines as this and JS's interview. I am more and more learning that it is all about learning the sound of intervals and the effects they produce. Most of this is coming to me by learning riffs/licks and analysing the intervallic relationship between the note and the chords they're being played "over".
God, I wish someone told me this while I was in school. I spent like eight hours a day practicing scales and I was sure the next metronome marking would be what gave me the ability to hang. My teacher was convinced I never practiced even after I developed an overuse injury. What a great teacher you would have been!
The Scofield interview is great and everything he says is true. Scales are a means to an end as is technique. A whole lot of technique doesn't equal music just like knowing all your scales doesn't mean you can play music. This reminds me of the Sco video he did in he 80s, "On Improvisation". At one point he talks about "chops" and how everyone gets hung up on it at some point or another.He says however that if all you do is sit around and play your scales up and down with a metronome that that will be all you are able to do when you get on the gig (play your scales fast) because you aren't PRACTICING making music with them. Keep up the good posts Adam!
If you want to be able to play melodically, you need to be able to play a lot of decent melodies! You can't shortcut just learning a lot of melodies to understand them, but there are good books that let you understand how to analyse them and break them down - there's a free PDF online called 'Figuring Out Melody' that explains that any melody can be thought of as a combination of various figures which tend to repeat or be common. Hell, it even makes the point that if you're playing in a style with a harmonic backgrounds there are only three types of figures. Arpeggio figures, neighbour tone figures, and scalar figures (which are notes of the chord at the moment with passing notes in between them.) It's something I like, because it gave me a way to analyse melodies I learn based on the chords involved and lets me sort of position them.
The only mode Miles plays on his solo on "So What" is pentatonic minor. cannonball sounds as if he's in search of a chord progression. Coltrane is the only one that uses a modal approach here and , yes, he doesn't stick to the modal; lot of chromaticism
Great stuff again!
I really like Hal Galper's comments about learning licks, which is along the same lines as this and JS's interview.
I am more and more learning that it is all about learning the sound of intervals and the effects they produce. Most of this is coming to me by learning riffs/licks and analysing the intervallic relationship between the note and the chords they're being played "over".
God, I wish someone told me this while I was in school. I spent like eight hours a day practicing scales and I was sure the next metronome marking would be what gave me the ability to hang. My teacher was convinced I never practiced even after I developed an overuse injury. What a great teacher you would have been!
The Scofield interview is great and everything he says is true. Scales are a means to an end as is technique. A whole lot of technique doesn't equal music just like knowing all your scales doesn't mean you can play music. This reminds me of the Sco video he did in he 80s, "On Improvisation". At one point he talks about "chops" and how everyone gets hung up on it at some point or another.He says however that if all you do is sit around and play your scales up and down with a metronome that that will be all you are able to do when you get on the gig (play your scales fast) because you aren't PRACTICING making music with them. Keep up the good posts Adam!
Very valid points. And the bits from Sco's interview...just amazing.
Great, great advice. Scales are not the secret shortcut.
If you want to be able to play melodically, you need to be able to play a lot of decent melodies!
You can't shortcut just learning a lot of melodies to understand them, but there are good books that let you understand how to analyse them and break them down - there's a free PDF online called 'Figuring Out Melody' that explains that any melody can be thought of as a combination of various figures which tend to repeat or be common. Hell, it even makes the point that if you're playing in a style with a harmonic backgrounds there are only three types of figures. Arpeggio figures, neighbour tone figures, and scalar figures (which are notes of the chord at the moment with passing notes in between them.)
It's something I like, because it gave me a way to analyse melodies I learn based on the chords involved and lets me sort of position them.
Cool. I'll check out that PDF. Thanks, Dave.
Thank you so much for your insights and advice!
Hello, Adam! So happy to see you here again because you have always been my guitar hero! Thanks for the great tips!
+Mar T Ah-thank you so much!
wow! thank you for the reply! have a great day, sir!
Excellent video. Love the Scofield quotes.
Dude thank you...I interviewed Scofield...Nice man.He was just like that very salt of the Earth cat.This is a Great post.
Really good.
The only mode Miles plays on his solo on "So What" is pentatonic minor. cannonball sounds as if he's in search of a chord progression. Coltrane is the only one that uses a modal approach here and , yes, he doesn't stick to the modal; lot of chromaticism
"I usually use a tuner or have a friend tune my guitar" Joe Pass (said before tuners were unbiquitous)
"I spend half my time tuning my guitar and the other half playing out of tune."
- Joe PAss
"They told me it was tuned at the factory!" Joe Pass