12 bar blues scale pdf page

I break everything down, and explain what i am playing on the hand of tabs. The 12 bar blues is a 12 bar long chord progression that solo blues. The vast majority of contemporary blues music is based on what is termed a 12 bar format. To get the minor pentatonic scale, add the black notes egabd. Sep 16, 20 here is the guitar tab for the first position e blues scale and a second position that extends the range of the scale a little bit. In the above examples, each chord was played with a very simple strumming pattern, without altering the chords or the rhythm. We call this section basic blues harmonica improv, but the information here applies to most types of popular music you would like to jam to. Free downloads blues scale in aguitar lesson breakdowndownload your free guitar cheat sheet to solo in any key description ahhh the blues scale in a virtually everyones favorite. It is assumed that you are familiar with the 12 bar blues progression. This pdf contains the scale charts for the blues scale in all keys for guitar in standard tuning. Lets learn the blues scales on piano and keyboard in every key. We hear snippets of scales all around us in phone ring tones, elevator tones, airport tannoy systems, games sound effects. The most common form of the blues is a 12bar pattern of chord changes.

Then well talk about how to apply it in a 12 bar blues context. To play the blues is a fascinating undertaking because it can be both simplistic and yet intangibly tricky to. On page 1, the notes of the c blues scale are shown both on the keyboard and on the staff. All the scales featured on this page work over the standard 1 4 5 blues progressions, but ive made it clear when a scale can be used in a minor key, major key, or both. The 12 bar blues has long been a favourite amongst music educators for teaching form, triads, the blues scale, cyclical chord progressions and music history. You will most likely recognize it from about a billion songs that youve heard already, so its already built into your nervous system most likely. The power of the 12 bar blues however, is in the potential to use it as a starting point.

Often new players are drawn to the instrument because of a desire to play the blues. Strumming lessons are also included, along with 37 worksheets for days youre sick, dont have a classroom, there is mcas testing or would just like to test your students on what they have learned. Blues music paved the way for many other genres of music we know and love. Blues harmonicablues harp basic blues improvisation and jamming instruction for diatonic harmonica. Theres just a different order to a three chord song that isnt a 12 bar blues even if it has 12 bars in it. Ray charles ray charles style 12 bar blues improv sheet. Choosing a specific key, have students repeat this. Four dominant blues chords that you can use in the 12 bar blues.

In todays lesson, we are going to take an indepth look at how the form, or structure, of a blues chord progression is made. The blues progression has a distinctive form in lyrics, phrase, chord structure, and duration. Blues notes are scale tones that are adjusted slightly from their normal major scale. The most common and easy to play rhythm is a very simple thing called the 12 bar blues. You could base this on the blues scale, you could base it on mixolydian, you could base it on the byzantine or any other given scale, if you really wanted to. The traditional 12 bar blues has a total of 12 bars or measures of the iivv chords that keep repeating in 12 bar blocks over and over. Two of the most common 12 bar patterns or arrangements are the. With only 3 chords in a 12 bar blues, it has the power to move you.

Other common blues progressions include the 8 bar, 16bar, and 24bar blues. It includes the first chords you should know and some substitutions that you can try. Although blues music has evolved over time, a fundamental chord progression called the 12 bar blues still lives on. Four dominant blues chords that you can use in the. Aug 12, 2019 in the fretboard patterns on this page, the tonic note of the scale i.

The reason for the plaintive, melancholy melodies is the type of scale used in this music. The 12 bar is an extremely common structure when playing blues. This image shows the standard 12 bar blues progression using roman numerals. This will not only simplify the way that you play the blues, but itll also show your fellow musician buddies that you know how to sit in a band mix like. For a more complex sound a lot of people opt for 9 chords instead of the dominant 7ths. Unfortunately, having grown up playing tuba in a lot of bands, i might be using terminology and notation and forgetting that not everyone knows it. The image above represents the harmonization of the a major scale. Each 12 bar blues lesson includes a specific strum pattern, a scale, and 3 chords at the end of the neck. This lesson covers the traditional, quick change, and shuffle blues. The blues scale is very similar to the minor pentatonic scale, but with an additional lowered 5th note lowered by half a stepsemitone, or blues note. A bar is a musical phrase, a way of measuring the music against its rhythm, and blues songs are structured in a 12 bar format.

Eb, gb and bb are the so called blue notes of the scale. Examining the 12bar blues pattern if youve ever spent any time around a serious blues musician or music aficionado, youve probably heard the phrase 12 bar blues tossed about. Blues guitar curriculum chords, strumming, scales, 12. There are plenty of arrangements, based on chord progressions, to use. A blues scale consists of 6 different notes, namely the root, flat 3rd, 4th, flat 5th, 5th and flat 7th of the major scale. I put the student sitting on the treble side of the keyboard in charge of playing a melody using these notes. To open a full size 12 bar blues, pdf file example click on the thumbnail image below. Two of the most common 12 bar patterns or arrangements are the slow change and the fast change. To see the blues chord progressions with their relevant blues scales in every key please see the the chart on the next page. Its called the 12 bar blues because its only 12 bars long. Want to take lessons, and discuss the ideas with other guitarists and with ian.

Mastery of the blues and rhythm changes are critical elements for building a jazz repertoire. Most jazz standards are 32 bars long and so the blues form is less that a third of the length of a typical jazz standard. Today were taking a look at how the pros like to play the blues, which is much simpler than you might think. After watching the overview video, try one of the lessons below to experience a lesson at.

Aug 15, 2019 ill explain and break down these blues guitar chords and how you can pull them off just by using this one simple shape. I have also included the 5 box patterns you need to learn in order to memorize the blues scales in all keys. For instance, in the c blues scale the notes are c eb f gb g bb c. In fact, it involves much more stripped down versions of blues guitar chords when playing the 12 bar blues. A 12 bar blues is performed, as the name implies, by playing twelve bars in a given arrangement that are repeated through a song. Blues harmonica blues harp riffs, licks, jamming, and. You can now play in safe mode with these notes, each note will sound more or less good, there are no wrong notes.

Because blues is a simple, consistant form of music, it is a great place to begin your improv regardless of which musical styles you to play. To assist the students playing the melody, recommend the following formula. May 24, 2017 in this video i am showing how to play a 12 bar blues combining chords and leads into one guitar. The cadence or last four measures uniquely leads to the root by perfect intervals of fourths. Lets say we have a standard 12 bar blues in e with the chords e 7a7b7. When playing a twelve bar blues in the key of bb, use the bb blues scale anywhere in the chord progression. In the fretboard patterns on this page, the tonic note of the scale i.

Here are some of my favourite online music resources. Blues scale in 12 positions the notes below are for a harp in the key of c, but the tab holds for any key harmonica e. Other common blues progressions include the 8 bar, 16 bar, and 24 bar blues. Understanding the 12 bar blues form rock class 101. The progression we play over is a 12 bar blues e7 for four bars, followed by two bars of a7 then two bars of e7 again. I play baritonsax in a blues band and it would help me a lot in my improvisations. Now you have the basic 12 bar blues progression under your belt why don t you try having a go at improvising over the top. Here is the guitar tab for the first position e blues scale and a second position that extends the range of the scale a little bit. My blogging has been rather sporadic so far this month this is a busy time of year for piano teachers, isnt it.

Use the pattern shown above to play a c blues scale by positioning your hand at the 8th fret. For instance, in the c blues scale the notes are c. Otherwise the last four measures is the blues turnaround, this with or without seventh chords is probably the most common form in modern blues rock. Now, when i thinkwrite about the scale, i tend to put in both flats and sharps, which is kind of a musicgeekfauxpas, and so the scales on that page tend to. The blues scale doesnt necessarily mean that it will be used in every 12 bar blues progression just as every 12 bar blues progression wont be based on the blues scale. The twelvebar blues or blues changes is one of the most prominent chord progressions in popular music. Of course, you dont have to just play the blues scale in cconcertbb, this page has it listed starting on all sorts of notes. The gullah net website includes information about the evolution of blues music and how it influenced. The 12 bar blues is a pretty simple chord progression. To play the blues is a fascinating undertaking because it can be both simplistic and yet intangibly tricky to master. Im so glad my spring recital is over, but this month is still somehow very booked. The simplicity of blues is what draws people to it.

Blues scales blues is an irresistible tonality for a guitar player. The blues teachers guide playing the blues show, via overhead projector or handout, the notes in a blues scale. In this video i am showing how to play a 12 bar blues combining chords and leads into one guitar. The traditional 12bar blues has a total of 12 bars or measures of the iivv chords that keep repeating in 12bar blocks over and over. There are only so many combinations with this format, so the feeling of familiarity is just not one you can escape as a musician or a listener. Scale a rising or falling series of notes, beginning and ending on the same note. Tongue blocking study 2 this study is for the newer player or the player new to tongue blocking. The first 4 bars are g7, so according to what we have learned, the appropriate scale is g major pentatonic. The 12bar is an extremely common structure when playing blues. Here are the blues scales in all 12 keys listed in circle of fifths order. This dvd set contains seven dvds and three audio jam track cds. The 5th note and chord of the diatonic scale is known as the dominant and its.

In the basic f blues, the 12 bars are only made up of 3 different chords. On page 1, the notes of the c blues scale are shown both on the. Blues harmonica improv, what about other styles of music. Most classic blues tracks follow a standard 12bar blues progression, or a slight variation still using the i, iv and v7 chords. This 12 bar blues uses the repeatedchord technique which was a hallmark of the ray charles style. The blues scale is used to improvize over the 12 bar blues, which leads to that very familiar blues guitar sound. The blues teachers guide cd bessie smith, lost your head blues. The turnaround occurs in the last two measures of a 12 bar progression and is often a critical element of the progression, so a solid understanding of the 12 bar format is needed. Use the e scale below and locate the red root notes e. You can get more charts in with custom tunings using my interactive scale generator here. Yet again, looking at the sequence from, say, hey joe, which certainly isnt a 12 bar, and certainly not a 3 chord song, the blues scale notes can be made to work in it, but one needs to be careful which notes get favoured over any. Scale choices for 12bar blues effective music practice. Blues is undoubtedly one of the most popular forms of music to come out of america. So lets look at the form of a simple blues in g look at the pic below.

I put the student sitting on the treble side of the. The reason i pointed this out is because for every chord in our blues in g example, we will have a second scale option, the g minor pentatonic or blues scale. The 12 bar blues and the minor blues scale online guitar. Apr 09, 20 on page 1, the notes of the c blues scale are shown both on the keyboard and on the staff. The focus of this lesson is to learn 24 blues licks, but with a twist. Please practice handwashing and social distancing, and check out our resources for adapting to these times. Without these 7th chords a blues scale would sound a little out of place because it contains those 7ths. We hear snippets of scales all around us in phone ring tones, elevator tones, airport tannoy systems, games sound effects and so on, so the sound of them will be familiar. In its basic form, it is predominantly based on the i, iv, and v chords of a key. Its not always about playing complex blues guitar chords. Guitar mastery method online guitar lessons subscribe for new free lessons weekly. This image demonstrates how you would find the i, iv, and v chords in the key of a using the a major scale.