Description
In this MicroLesson (ML105), you’ll learn how to play a fun little slidey lick to blend the major and minor pentatonic scale, giving you lots of options when improvising!
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I think I’m liking the occasional micro lesson approach. It gives me some time to work on a new technique and phrasing and also work these ideas into other projects. Rock on!
This Micro lesson is a Mega lesson for me
I love this concept. I can’t wait to play around with it. I find this kind of lesson very valuable for improving improvisation skills. Thanks Brian.
‘ just enough brilliance for one week.
Enjoyed this. A couple of parts reminded me of Rhapsody in Blue meets Dickie Betts.
Like these Micro”s . Really liked lesson. Good to get a change of norm every so often. Thanks for coming up with this.Keep them coming. Dave
Thank you Brian!
Look forward to trying to work through this – I have watched the video but I have no guitar at the moment as I’m having one of the potentiometers replaced or re soldered on the wiring harness as there’s a short or something.
Hope to have the guitar back early next week. It’s a hollow body Gretsch and I didn’t want to attempt it myself!
Sounds great! I always love your approach and strive to sound like you. Thanks Brian
There are big differences in the design of acoustic and electric instruments ? Could I approach this improvisation skills to the acoustic to get the same technique of the electric.
Brian, I find every one of your lessons has light bulb moments. Your approach is perfect…you present concepts in such a way that students must do some of their own in-depth research on those concept and then practice. For example, in this lesson I needed to figure out which notes you’re playing in the different positions to see the relationships that you set out to explain. I think that is more effective than spoon-feeding us every little detail. In any case, that works best for me. Thanks.
really liked this video
Interesting concept. Fun to apply and sounds nice too. Alternating micro lessons with your longer more detailed lessons is a great idea too. Thanks Brian.
I really like these micro lessons. What the brand of your guitar? Thanks
Your micro lessons are like crazy glue, they hold everything together. Love this one
SLIPPERY, SLIDEY LICKS…WOULD SOUND GOOD IN BLUES, COUNTRY, OR BLUEGRASS. VERY JERRY GARCIA. GONNA HAVE TO PLAY AROUND WITH THIS IDEA. ESPECIALLY LIKE THE RUB OF THE FLAT 7 AGAINST THE ROOT. VERY BLUESY.
RALPH
I like it! nice and simple
excellent, thanks, dm
Great Lesson Brian, Really digging the new TAB feature adding one note at a time as you play it. Keep making them and we will keep coming back.
Thanks as always
very “digestible” and inspiring. An easily learned pattern that’s also flexible to blend with Pentatonic. Really enjoyed this.
Brian: Great lesson. As Werner says, very digestible. I wonder if you could maybe do something like with other shapes. Like the A shape and maybe the C shape. I’m much more comfortable with the E shape than I am with the other shapes, so I need to get as comfortable in the other shapes.
Hey good stuff. Tidbits are little jewels, and you provide plenty of theory and structure over your methodology.
Sahweet! Thanx Brian!
Fabulous Lesson Brian! In just the right measure! (intended) I’m channeling JJ Cale!
Love the lesson Brian. Gems always shine
Great lesson – I could enjoy playing this slidy technique along with the jam track all day! And probably will.
Brian an excellent lesson. I like these MicroLessons because I only have to focus on one item. Besides the combining of minor-/major-pentatonics, for me this lesson is also about phrasing. If I am right you start a phase by (eventually sliding in) a chord note (1, b3, 3, 5, b7). Then you play some pentatonic (minor/major) sequence of notes (I know I am oversimplifying) and you end this sequence with either a b7 with a small pause (like a comma in a sentence) or a 1 followed by a longer pause (end of sequence like a point in a sentence). After a b7 there can also be a longer pause to accentuate the blues sound even more (like in measure 2).
Please correct me if my interpretation is wrong.
If that works, and sounds good, then yes! I haven’t thought of it quite at that granular (or formulaic) of a level
Brian, thank you for your reply, this helps my learning process a lot. Now my thoughts are first establish the chord via one of the chord tones, next do something and finally return home (the 1) or the end of the phrase (point). But before returning home you can accentuate the blues feeling (the b7) by a little pause (comma) after this note. This gives me the logical explanation why these phrases work so well, and now this method can be used in general.
Brian – Question on the backing track: Toggling between the A and C# or the C? Great lesson and great sound, as usual. Thanks. BB
Very cool
Wonderful lesson and lesson format-this content for me, is achievable in a week. Thanks Brian, I love it!
Hi Brian.. this is really useful and it is well explained. Love it.
I think there is a technical glitch with the Soundslice print out showing notes and tabs… Some of the tab notes are missing. e.g. in the first bar of the piece, the first note that should be the flat 3rd, or a “C” is missing on the 5th fret, 3rd string. It does show the C# on the 6th fret, 3rd string. The end of each bar doesn’t agree with the on screen tab.. I am correcting my print out as I go!
Hi Brian.. Skip that last comment about a glitch.. looks like the tab I downloaded is only for the composition. The other tabs (without actual notes) work fine for the lesson.
Thanks again!
I agree with everything said so far. The shorter format opens up a lot of angles.
In this case I’m appreciating the focus on phrasing since I need to work on it.
The small is working for me I get a “ huh that’s cool moment “
Really enjoyed this lesson. Great lick, with easy ideas for expanding. Big question though: How do I take this idea to the IV and V chords?
thank you for interspersing the micro lessons with the weekly lessons according to date
Brian, your brain must be twice the size of your head to store all of this amazing stuff in it! Every week I’m blown away with your teaching and playing skills!
Thank you Brian, a big improvement on my Noodling…
I think it was a little too micro. Good content though.
Good / useful content should be the goal
Good lesson to learn something quickly. I think you should also connect the low E string here with the low A string, so E-F#- slide to G and low A string
Very practical lesson. I really enjoy these MicroLessons.
Hi Brian, As other members have commented, I really like these micro lessons, as in addition to some digestible content, it affords me some breathing room to go back to review old lessons and make time for scale drills, etc. Also, I stacked the licks in this lesson onto to last week’s excellent EP602 backing track and had some fun with it, and helped reinforce both lessons. Thanks for all the great work. John
My son-in-law plays mando so I sent him a link to the Mandolin instructor you mentioned. In the mean time I’m having a blast with this micro lesson. Some great sounds in there that are really cool. Can’t wait to keep going. Paul
Wow … That’s sweet Brian … Well done. Very concise, easy to understand and major lights were turned on. I found I am able to really improvise using these licks and just mixing up …. SO MUCH FUN…
Thank you
Digestible in a single session. Love it
I really like the mixture of micro and longer lessons.
As others have mentioned I agree that you are on to something here mixing in a very specific Micro to the format. I’m digging the lesson too!
Here is an idea —once a month, take a specific song and break down a specific lead part, how they did it and the scale and structure behind it. We could then apply that technique elsewhere.
More cowbell and bluegrass runs! Thanks Brian
It was nice to slide into this week’s micro lesson; it was nice to focus on one very specific thing; it was nice to add it to our major-minor blend. The Slidey lick is a nice addition to our blues toolbox.
Microlesson: Unfortunately, I often forgo the weekly lessons simply because I don’t feel I can dedicate the time I should to the full lesson (work/family/etc). With the Microlesson, I have no excuse as it is so brief & I get to add a foundational concept to my skills. Thanks Brian!
please follow this up with a 3rd and a 5th I like the groove
I love this Brian. The Micro Lesson becoming more important is a Win/Win I think for the majority. Not so full on for you, easier to grab for more I think, and for those who are above this level, you have a wealth of back lessons. Even then the more advanced could surely have fun improvising on the concept
This is the type of lesson that gives you time to improvise with the backing track and add your own bits to it.
Personally I would probably learn from the micro lessons than the longer versions mainly due to practice time.
a powerful idea in a small lesson, i get to work up to 100% speed on these simpler ideas, whereas some lessons i only get to 70% speed, so the variety is good, also like the jam track so i can practice myself and combine with the previous week idea, joining the positions and relating minor to major.
Great micro lesson again Brian – thankyou so much! Such useful content and the right amount to be able to get it under my fingers in a couple of days, then have the rest of the week to aim to perfect it. Good to work on technique without having to rely to much on memory.
Hey this deal turned out way better than I first thought. I really suck at doing anything on my own with the guitar. I’m kinda ok at coping somebody but don’t try much on my own. I bout skipped this one but after watching the whole lesson I played it a little, mainly cause it was easy and sounded cool. After working on it a little, I’m able to change it up a bit and somewhat go on the fly. Thanks again buddy
way love the micro lessons… I was thinking of ways to incorporate the concept into other keys? like in songs I already know. can you add other Keys in the lesson backtracks? or will this work if I just try it out on another existing lesson? this is going to be fun! thank you Brian
Hi Brian, Awesome ML lesson. Would have like an example with 12 bars blues. Thx man.
AndréM
Love it Brian, great lesson ,easy to follow.
Ah sensai you’ve done it again! This is the stuff that really helps with improvising. I will mess around with this concept over some jam tracks in A and other keys. Thank you.
Brian, this is really great stuff. Combining the maj/min scales is just what an idiot like me needs with the slidey lick kinda thing. I would crave more of this. Think about a mighty lick with some kinda of a lost note thing that will have listeners begging for more. Less is more when I think about it. It’s magical, even alchemical in a sense when I think about what you did with this lesson – you know what I mean.
Keep us “PICKIN” right. You’re a great teacher Brian.
Brian, I love the concept of alternating microlessons and regular lessons. It would be icing on the cake if you pulled the microlesson content into a regular lesson to study it further. I would love to see the slidey lick in the type 4 position!!!
Great job as always!
Doug C.
Enjoyed getting right into it. Found those sounds all over the neck. Feels good when you avoid clunkers!
A mighty micro!
Very nice lesson, as some other comments I find this technique easier to use on an acoustic than doing actual bends, but that’s probably just me worrying about my strings.
Hi Brian,
this is great….very Cliff Gallop is style.
cheers…Paul
Brian,
I’ve been playing A minor combined with major for a couple years now. But i really like the slidy licks up and down the neck. Thanks! Another great lesson!
What I find great about this is the possibilities that follow, applying slidies to different keys, various rhythmic backing tracks and your compositions.
Combine this lesson with Ep 492, all the backing tracks are there in every key and reunite with ya intervals!