DEAN'S LESSON PAGE
LESSON 1
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Hey Dean! Welcome to your lesson page! I uploaded a chord chart for "Oh When the Saints" so you can keep track of where you are while you improvise. There are also play along tracks for "Oh When the Saints" (in A) and "Autumn Leaves" (Amin). This should give you some tools to work on your triads, scales, and getting the melodies together. Good luck man! Let me know if you need anything. Z
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LESSON 2D- This week we talked about the CAGED scale system. The chart to the right has all of the scale shapes in C. They can be moved around the fretboard in any key. Before each scale shape I wrote out the shape of the arpeggio so you can see the chord shapes that the scales are based on. The next chart is for the chord scales. Three shapes for each triad, so three scales. Practice them ascending and descending, and then see if you can put shapes together for Autumn Leaves. Try and use different inversions that are close to each other on the guitar neck. Good luck and have fun! Z
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lesson 3
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Hey! Here are some files you can download. One is Autumn Leaves chords and melody. The other is Somewhere Over the Rainbow melody and a star denoting chord locations. Use your triads and keep the melody note on top. Pick the chords that sound the best! Remember, you'll have three possibilities for each spot.
Songs with good chord changes: BEATLES Rocky Raccoon Oh Darlin' Hey Jude Let It Be With a Little Help from my Friends In My Life Other songs will work too. Beatles songs tend to have nice changes, so I went with the fab four. Have fun! z |
TRIAD PRACTICE SCHEDULE 1. Warm up by playing triad scales in all three inversions. 2. Work on triad scales on new string set. Be able to play each inversion ascending and descending. 3. Work on arrangement of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow." 4. Pick a song and play through the chord changes using triad shapes. Try to connect them fluidly - avoid jumping around the guitar. | ||||
lesson 4
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Here is a video and chart of the "Stand By Me" chord progression in the key of D. Take it slow and find each of the arpeggio shapes. Once you have them in your fingers, get the rhythm down and work on smoothing it out to play though the tune. These shapes are all movable to all keys, so take your time and really get them in your fingers. Have fun! z
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lesson 5
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D- This week we're looking at "Autumn Leaves." It's a great old tune, and a really good one for applying some theory. In the video I play through the melody and chords. Work on getting the melody under your fingers and in your ears, and then get the chords going. Check out some versions of the song on YouTube. Ella Fitzgerald, or Nat King Cole might be good. Anything you can find really. Have fun and I'll see you next week, z
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lesson 6
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Hey Dean! We're talking 7th chords and Autumn Leaves this week. In the video I go over the basic barre chord shapes, and I play through the Autumn Leaves chord progression. It should be pretty clear... Remember: Major 7th is a Major triad with a major 7th. Dominant 7th is a major triad with a flat 7th. Minor 7th is a minor triad with a flat 7th. Half diminished is a diminished triad with a flat 7th. A major seventh will be just a half step below the octave. A minor seventh is a whole step below the octave. Have fun! z
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lesson 7
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Hey Dean! This week we're talking about some melodic patterns you can use to practice the scale shapes. Melodic patterns are small note groupings, usually 2 to 5 notes that you can repeat up and down through a scale sequentially. Like: CDE, DEF, EFG... etc. I show you a few in the video and noted the first couple that you could start with. Don't hesitate to make them up! Also remember the new Fmaj7 voicing we learned in lessons. It's in the video too. Have fun! z
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lesson 8
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Hey D! This week we're looking at "Oh Susanna." I mad you a funky backing track to play along to. The idea here is to play the melody along with the chord changes on the track. Try playing the melody in as many places/positions as you can! I go over some ideas on how you can start to improvise around the melody and explore the scales/arpeggios too. Should be a fun one!!
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Lesson 9
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Hey D! This week we're looking at the Pink Floyd tune "Wish You Were Here." It's a classic! I made you a chart and video going over the intro, chords, and the scale we'll be using for the solo. Consider this like a prep course for starting work on the solo... Also, I was doing some thinking on what you were saying about structure and things like that. Here are some ideas to consider: 1. Building a library of songbooks is a great idea. That one I texted you is good, but there are tons out there to be had. 2. Always try to apply the theory and techniques we are working on to some music. If you're working on triads, take some time at the end of the practice to try using the triads to play a song. The same goes for scales (try making simple melodies or playing over a backing track), Barre chords, and whatever else. I'm working on putting together a long list of songs that I like. It'll take me a bit, but I'll try and get 25 or 30 tunes together that I know and have good melodies and changes for you to draw from. Until then, play songs you like, or songs we've worked on, or Beatles songs... a few that come to mind off the top of my head are: "The Weight" by the Band, "Angel from Montgomery" by John Prine, "Cold Cold Heart" by Hank Williams, "Freight Train" by Elizabeth Cotton, "Shady Grove" by who knows, "Wildflowers" by Tom Petty, "Old 55" by Tom Waits, "You Really Got a Hold on Me" by The Beatles... all good!
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Lesson 10
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Hi Dean! This week we're looking at the E Minor pentatonic scale, the first phrase or two of the Pink Floyd solo, and some blues licks in E minor. There's a backing track here for you to practice over, and I transcribed the first pat of the solo in notation and tab. When you're working on this stuff see if you can figure out what notes your playing over what chord. Is it a chord tone or a passing tone? Keep working on your vibrato, and really try and make the guitar sing. Have fun and let me know if you have questions! See you soon, z
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lesson 11
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Hey D! We're looking into the delta blues this week and continuing with the Floyd solo. I wrote out the whole blues for you, but we're really looking at the first four bars. You should be able to get it from the video and the chart! The Floyd solo is notated too, but make sure to listen to the tune and the video to get the slides and phrasing right. I couldn't notate the slides the right way on this software so don't just go by the tab. Have fun! z
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lesson 12
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Hey D- Lot's to do this lesson!! In the video there are two common blues licks, the next phrase in the Floyd solo, and we're finishing up "Dean's Blues." You should be able to get it no problem from the vid and written music. Let me know if you have any trouble. Happy Thanksgiving! z
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lesson 13
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Hey D- We're looking at the major pentatonic scales for a Blues in E. The three scales are E major pentatonic, A major pentatonic, and B major pentatonic. You'll notice that the E and A scales only differ by one note, and the E and B scales only differ by one note. Try to get these scales under your fingers and in your ears by playing them over the blues changes. Then look at the blues we've been playing to see what scales are in the licks you already know. We'll look at them more next lesson to start making blues phrases and solos. There's Floyd in there too:) Have fun, z
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lesson 14
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Hey D! Here's an extremely thorough (some might say anal) way to practice scales. It will take you through all twelve keys and if practiced regularly will get you to know your key signatures and have a better knowledge of the fretboard. Included are reference charts for all major and minor scales. Good luck! z
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