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Practice Track: E Minor Pentatonic

One of the songs I teach my beginning students is known affectionately as “Em Pentatonic on the First Two strings”. It uses only four notes, B, D, E and G, and three simple two finger chords, Em, G6 and Amin9 (really A5 add2). Here I have recorded the tune with the melody, and also without the melody so that you can (1) practice playing the melody yourself, and (2) practice making up your own tune (improvising) using the notes B,D, E and G from the E minor pentatonic scale. Of course if you know the entire E minor pentatonic scale, feel free to use it!

Here it is with the melody. Try and play along, reading the melody from your music (the music is printed in Rob’s Guitar Method, Book 1, on page 16).

Em pentatonic practice track – with melody.

When you have played along with the recorded melody above, try the next MP3, which has only the accompaniment. Try to play the melody along with the accompaniment. Then try making up your own tune using notes from the E minor pentatonic scale!

Em pentatonic practice track – no melody.

Have fun!

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Practice Track: Acoustic Blues in E

Here is a 12 bar blues in E which you can play along with. The accompaniment is just acoustic guitar playing basic open position chords. Use the E blues scale, or the E minor pentatonic scale as the basis for your improvisation. Try using bends on the b7 (D, 3rd fret 2nd string), the b3 (G, 3rd fret 1st string) and the 4th (A, 2nd fret 3rd string). Once you can play through confidently using the E minor pentatonic scale, try mixing in notes from the E7, A7 and B7 arpeggios when those chords come up.

Free MP3 download: 12 Bar in E – Acoustic

The chord progression is:

Enjoy!

 

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Improvising against IV and V chords

In some pop and rock songs, there are passages of music where there are major chords two frets (a tone) apart, such as D and E or F and G. To improvise over these passages, one approach is to recognize that these chords are the IV and V chords of a major scale. For example D and E are the IV and V chords of the A major scale, so an A major scale will work over this passage. Likewise, F and G are the IV and V chords of a C major scale, so use a C major scale to solo over a passage of F and G chords.

Here are some practice tracks to try over passages of IV and V chords:

Example 1: D and E chords (2 bars each): Free MP3 Download

Example 2: F and G chords (2 bars each): Free MP3 Download

If you listen to Pearl Jam’s Better Man, you will hear just such sections as these! Have fun!

 

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Practice Track: Country G major

Here is a practice track for practicing a basic country strumming pattern and basic country lead scale. It is just one chord, G major. The first track has a basic melody, running up and down the G major pentatonic scale, which is widely used in many forms of country music. See if you can play along. Once you have mastered the scale, use the second track with rhythm only to make up your own melodic lines using the scale. Try using some hammer ons and pull-offs to get that country picking sound. The track is quite slow, at 80 bpm, but you need to play slow before you can play fast! Enjoy!

With Lead

Rhythm Only

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Notes On Third String: 35 bpm backing track

Hi,This post is for students of mine working on “Notes on the Third String”. It is a backing track for the piece, recorded at 35 beats per minute. Download from the following link and try playing along! You will need the sheet music from your lessons!

NotesOn3rd_35bpm_chords

Here it is with me playing the melody as well. Use this to check that you are playing the right notes and have your timing correct!

NotesOn3rd_35bpm_melody

Enjoy!

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Practice Track: Reggae

Here is a basic practice track for beginning to intermediate bass players in a simple Reggae feel. It is to help you practice your reggae bass lines. The chords are A and D:One way to get a reggae feel happening in the bass is to be sure to hit the root note of the chord on beat one of the bar, or at the change of chord. Use octaves and fifths as the main notes of your line. Avoid thirds and sevenths, and use sixths and seconds for runs – as in the following fingering chart (root notes in boxes):

Slide from the lower position with finger 3 on the 7th fret, up two frets so that finger 3 falls on the 9th fret, where the 2nd and 6th can easily be played. Don’t forget to leave plenty of space!

Here is the track:

A_D_Reggae

Have fun!

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Practice Track: Indie Rock

Here is a practice track which I have done in an Indie Rock style, to show that simple things can be very effective. It is suitable for guitarists and bass players of beginning to intermediate level. The chord progression is a very common one in lots of songs, involving the chords C, G, Am and F:To solo over the progression, first recognize that the progression is in the key of C major. So use the notes from the C major scale. One concept that you can use is to hit the first beat of every two bar group with a sustained note from the chord. That way you accentuate the harmony and sound “in control” of the progression. C chord: C, E, or G. G chord: G, B, or D. Am chord: A, C, or E. F chord: F, A, or C. To add interest, follow the strong note with some linking scale tones that lead to the next strong chordal note at the change of chord. Add interest by hitting the chordal note more than once, in different rhythms, to more strongly emphasize it. Interest and emphasis can also be added by first hitting the tone above or below the chord note, and quickly moving to the chord note. Another idea is to follow the first chord tone by another chord tone, thus doubly emphasizing the harmony.All these ideas can be heard in the following track including my solo (try to play along with me):

C_G_Am_F_lead

To practice your own solo, here is the track without the lead guitar:

C_G_Am_F

Have fun!

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Practice Track: G minor groove

This practice track is suitable for intermediate guitar players interested in rock, funk and blues grooves, and is especially good for practicing the G minor pentatonic scale. A distinctive feature of blues and blues derived styles is the use of the bend: try to get some bends happening on the b3rd (Bb), the 4th (C) and b7th (F). Use your ear and bend till it sounds good! There are just two chords, Gm7 and C9:Two Bars Gm7 and 2 bars C9Here is the practice track, with just drums and guitar. Use it for practicing lead guitar or bass.

Gm7-C9_groove_Rhythm Guitar_Drums

After playing with the above track, try the following track, which adds a bass line. How does this change what you play?

Gm7-C9_groove_Bass_Rhythm Guitar_Drums

Finally you may care to listen to the following version, which adds a lead guitar riff. Practice playing in the ‘gaps’ left by the riff, or try to play the riff or a harmony line. The riff drops away after 16 bars, leaving you 16 bars to play on your own, then comes back for16 bars. Once again, how does this change what you play?

Gm7-C9_groove_Riff_Bass_Rhythm Guitar_Drums

Have fun!

Rob

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Practice Track: Le Plume Part 1

Hi! Here is a practice track for intermediate guitar players interested in developing their jamming style, with application to jazz, especially Gypsy jazz, and similar styles. It is an example of a “ii-V-I” progression, with a passing diminished chord (I# dim) between the I and ii chords. The key is G major.

 

You could get away with playing G major the whole time, but it is much more fun and sounds great if you play the G#dim arpeggio over the G#dim chord. Download the practice track from the following link:

[audio:http://www.robsguitarschool.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/LePlumePart1.mp3|titles=LePlumePart1]

In due course, I will post part 2 of the progression, and then the full progression for you to play with! Have fun!

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Practice Track: Em Pentatonic on First Two Strings

This tune is great fun to play, and sounds good played in many different ways, from fast to slow. Most of my beginning students will spend some time on this tune, as it is a great introduction to jammimg and improvisation using the pentatonic scale, the foundation of much rock and roll, blues and jazz playing. There are only four notes in the tune, so it is perfect to learn for those in the first stages of learning. Listen to my track with the recorded melody, and try to play along as you read the music. Then try to play the melody using the track without the melody recorded. Then practice making up your own tunes, using the same four notes, or adding other notes from the E minor pentatonic scale.

Em Pentatonic on First Two Strings – with Melody

Em Pentatonic on First Two Strings – just chords