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Melbourne Guitar Lessons

Guitar Scales. The 1-4-2 Chords

Cool Jazz Guitar Soloing techniques. Advanced  Jazz Improvisation.

This is an introduction to my jazz improvisation course. This course will soon be available online, but at present, you are welcomed to learn in person, at my Creative Guitar School in Melbourne .

In my Jazz Guitar courses, you will learn how to develop melody and harmony of a given song, to the limit of your creative abilities.

You will learn to choose what sounds good or bad, and there fore, maintain  the flow of your creative dialogue.  This is an extremely rewarding  experience.

I love to improvise, to flow, and create constant variations of a motif a song of any musical idea. It feels great. 

It did not feel good

At first, in the 80s, when I started playing professionally,   I was not  comfortable improvising, since  even though I was playing the correct notes, I did not like what I was doing.  It did not feel good. 

I knew I needed more information on how to choose, how to be aware of what sounds good or bad. I needed more options to express those feelings, I had an urge to scream out. 

Berklee College of Music

So, I went to Berklee College of Music, Boston, U.S.A  for 3 years, and I was bombarded with practical good and evil. I loved it.

While at Berklee, I came across Jon Damian,  who taught one of my  favourite guitar players, ( Bill Frisell ). I soon discovered an amazing pathway, to harmonic and melodic variation, to cover, for the rest of my life, all my creative and artists needs.

Guitar Scales: The 1-4-2 Combination

Did you know there are 24 ways of creating chords on the go and you can combine them,  play them any way you wish as long as it sounds good for you.

Listen to the guitar scales

In the intro of the video on this page, I used a combination of sounds based upon the 142 pattern of a scale but, applied only  to one chord. There fore, imagine the colours that can pop up, in a song with many chords and with all guitar scales.

Check out the video to hear this combination of a G scale. 

  • one string
  • in one position

But, more magic occurs when you apply the 1-4-2 sound to a more complex harmonic structure.

Since this combination creates a lot of tension, we can then use it, when we need tension on a note, or area of a chord in relation to the guitar scale.

The 142 sound in a more complex harmonic setting 


Guitar Scales all the things you are

This is the melody of the Standard: All the things you are. 

The red lines are the places I have decided to play with more tension, than what the chord will give me.  If I play without the red feeling I produce a  static sound, boring.

See video

When I play, and apply the 1-4-2 pattern to the red section, I get more movement, more excitement and it just feel great.    

See video

You can apply this sound also to a solo.

See video

So come along and let´s explore together more of these sounds . Send me an email, get in touch. Book Your Course now .

Melbourne Guitar Lessons, Must Read

Writing on the Guitar-Songwriter Exclusive

WRITING ON THE GUITAR – SONGWRITER EXCLUSIVE

I am currently finalising my new online course for songwriters and guitarists who need more emotion from their songs. And uniqueness in their melodic and harmonic choices.  Especially, for those who wish to deliver the most powerful live performance of their song  and  record it with others.

What do you need to know to get the most out of a song  ?

Module 1 Harmony

  • What chords do I have to work with the song I have in my head ?
  • What other chords can I use for variety ?
  • What chords can I choose to create more excitement?
  • Is my voice shining ? Do I need to transpose?

    Songwriter

 

Module 2 Structure

  • How can I choose a flowing structure ?
  • How to add a surprise to the structure?

Module3 Groove

  • What is the groove of my song ?
  • How to make even it more groovy, especially in the most exciting parts?

Module 4 Intensity

Module 5 Variety in the melody 

  • How can I make my melody more interesting ?
  • How can it stand out more ?
  • Does my melody reflect the emotional content of the words ?
  • What tools do I have to achieve the desired emotion?

Module 6 Variety in the accompaniment

  • Do I hear backing vocals?
  • Can they help my melody stand out ?
  • What type of vocals lines do I have to choose from ?
  • Do I hear background lines? How can I translate them to the guitar?

Module 7 Enhancing bass lines 

Can I make the bass line more interesting and therefore make the harmony even more powerful? And the melody more emotional ?

Module 8

Decide how the song is be played by others to enhance the final product. Think and define the roles of each section and how you would like them to play, to accompany your desired emotional goal.

  • What is the outline of bass I need to define the chords and the groove of the song  in each section? And the climax ?
  • What is the rhythm I need, to  define the groove and pulse in each section, and the climax?
  • How should the accompaniment be played in each section ?
  • What is the background line of the accompaniment in each section and the climax ?

This course is to take your music to the next level and make it sound totally professional.