Indholdsfortegnelse for July 2021 i Guitar Techniques

SIMON BARNARD Simon is a graduate of ACM and The Guitar Institute, holding a Masters degree in music. He teaches, examines and plays everything from rock to jazz. RICHARD BARRETT Tony Hadley’s longstanding guitarist Richie has worked with everyone from Roger Daltrey to Ronan Keeting, and is currently working on his own album. SHAUN BAXTER One of the UK’s most respected music educators, Shaun has taught many who are now top tutors themselves. His Jazz Metal album is considered a milestone. JON BISHOP Jon is one of those great all-rounders who can turn his hand to almost any style. He’s also rock legend Shakin’ Stevens’ touring and recording guitarist. MARTIN COOPER A tutor at BIMM Brighton, Martin’s Rock columns show an incredible breadth of technique and style. His 2006 album…

GT: What is it about guitar instrumentals that appeals? AM: I love the guitar, but I also love all music in general. So I suppose my passion for guitar-driven music is a product of wanting to compose and complete fully realised pieces that don't rely on another element to feel complete. It's not a preference, but perhaps born of necessity, rather. I like knowing that I can paint on the canvas without limitation, or compromise. GT: What do you think an instrumental can provide a listener that a vocal song can't? AM: There is certainly more room left for interpretation from the perspective of the listener. Instrumental music doesn't pander politically, religiously, or even emotionally from an explicit standpoint. Music itself is a universal language that is subjective and I…

JUST to recap: a pedal note (or tone) repeats or sustains throughout a chord progression. It’s most commonly found in the bass, but can also be a higher note, or even a whole chord, as we discovered last issue. Start off by familiarising yourself with the sound of the basic progression, and then we’ll try something new. Instead of just repeating or sustaining that first A Major chord, this time, we’re going to convert it to Asus2 first. In a Suspended 2nd chord, the Major or Minor 3rd is replaced by the 2nd. So in A Major, we replace the C# with a B… SO, there’s our Asus2 chord, with that characteristically open, ambiguous sound. Get used to holding those top three or four notes, because they’re going to act…

Taking for granted that the majority of us will use a pick at least some of the time - using your pick at an angle to allow the tip to‘escape’between the strings (rather than snagging on them between pick strokes) is a great way to tidy up rhythm playing and arpeggiated chords - not just rapid-fire lines. Done in the right way, it will remove the need to keep adjusting your hand and wrist position on complex phrases and help you stay relaxed and in control. It’s also amazing how much a fundamental adjustment like this can improve the tone and consistency, maybe needing a little less drive or compression and helping your playing sit in the mix better.…

Israeli guitarist Oz Noy is one of the brightest lights in contemporary guitar music today. Oz moved New York in 1996 aged 24 and in the subsequent years he has made his mark in a city bustling with talent and opportunity, especially in the field of jazz. Oz was no stranger to success, however, with over 10 years of playing experience and an established reputation as one of Israel’s top-rated studio and live performers. A quick peek at Noy’s CV reveals a who’s who of the New York scene, balancing a respectable portfolio of work as a session player Stateside with an equally impressive and rapidly expanding list of releases in his own right. If you can judge the quality of a player by the company they keep then Oz…

Sitting correctly is important for a good classical guitar technique. Finding the optimum height and angle of the instrument is key for optimum facility of both hands. After years of experimenting, I have found my favourite solution to be a combination of a very low footstool together with the Gitano guitar rest. The low footstool is better for the lower back than a high one and the guitar rest is slightly adjustable so you can find the best position to suit you.…

PAUL NATKIN / GETTY IMAGES From the mid 1960s into the 70s, some very exciting things were happening in music. Heavy guitar was starting to come into its own, with Cream, Hendrix and Led Zeppelin blowing people’s minds with their heavy, blues-rock tones, pushing the guitar onwards both tonally and musically. As the 60s became the 70s we started to see the foundations of what would become heavy metal, with British band Black Sabbath releasing their self-titled album in 1970. Fast forward to 1976, and we welcome Canadian rocker Pat Travers to the scene. Although his playing was clearly from a blues heritage, Travers took a much rockier approach, in keeping with the heavier styles of the day. Wider vibrato (which would later become a staple ingredient of any rock…

JACK VARTOOGIAN / GETTY IMAGES Last time we looked at the first of four Altered scales I use in my playing to create tension and release when soloing, especially over Dominant 7 chords. We explored the Altered scale that comes from the Melodic Minor. This time, we are looking at an Altered Mixolydian scale. “This time we are looking at an Altered Mixolydian scale. This scale may win the award for having the most aliases!” This scale might win the award for having the most aliases! Renowned guitar teacher Mick Goodrick always referred to it as the Mixolydian b 2 b 6 scale, and that name just kind of stuck with me, so that’s how I always refer to it. In the Berklee scale system it’s called the Mixolydian b…

FEATURE #2 VIDEO ALEX SILL Buoyancy The young fusion supremo shares and discusses another unique solo on a brand new, specially written track. CLASSICAL TAB VIDEO FERNANDO SOR Study op.35 Exercise no.18 Bridget embarks on a new series of slightly more approachable pieces, beginning with this great Sor etude. FEATURE #3 ROBBEN FORD Half-Whole and Altered ideas John Wheatcroft demonstrates how Robben uses exotic sounds to bring jazz sophistication his blues solos. NEW SERIES MIKE STERN Jazz and jazz-rock soloing The fusion master continues his series from Fundamental Changes on Altered and outside-inside playing. No amps allowed as we examine... 10 UNPLUGGED GREATS! Clapton, Nirvana, McCartney, Paul Simon, REM, Pearl Jam, Rod Stewart (band), Bon Jovi, SRV and Sting, all gave amazing Unplugged concerts. We offer superb examples…

AFTER MORE THAN a year of no gigs, and with the end of lockdown hopefully in sight, I’m sure there will be many out there (including me) wondering what playing live again will be like. Will my amp still work? Do my guitars need a service? Can my hands actually stand an evening’s sustained playing? Are my chops still there? So many questions, each as valid as the other. I’ve spoken to loads of musicians about it, and while each one was gagging to get ‘back on the horse’, as it were, they have all stated similar fears to those above. I’d imagine that the really big bands, those with seriously deep pockets, will book into professional rehearsal studios for a fortnight, to reacquaint themselves with their songs, relearn their…

NICK DELANEY In the last instalment we got into some musical statistics and how you can play the odds in your favour when improvising with the Major scale. This month I’d like to hit on the blues. I’ve been teaching the idea of improvising on a 12-bar blues for over 30 years now, and must have taught the Minor Pentatonic a thousand times. And there’s this funny event that happens in maybe 20-30% of students. Usually, I teach the A Minor Pentatonic after a student has learned to play a 12-bar shuffle. I teach them the regular fingering using first, third and fourth fingers and send them off to memorise and practise it for a week before trying to improvise with it. The most commonly taught fingering is using first…

➊ Super Slow Blues (A) We start with a very slow 12-bar blues in the key of A. In terms of vocabulary, you’ll get off to a great start by hitting up the good old A Minor Pentatonic scale (A-C-DE-G) and using slides, vibrato, hammer-ons and pull-offs. ➋ D Minor Blues Ballad This slow blues ballad in D Minor lends itself well to trying out all your Gary Moore licks. Use D Minor Pentatonic (D-F-G-A-C), D Minor scale (D-E-F-G-A-B b -C) – and D Harmonic Minor (D-E-F-G-A-B b C#) for the turnaround. ➌ High-Energy Jazz-Funk Jam (G) Here we have a fun and fast jazz-funk jam in G. The main chord here is what some people call the ‘Hendrix chord’ in G – a G7#9. The B sections are a…

MIKAEL THELMER GT: Do you have a type of pick that you cannot live without? TS: I cannot live without the Dunlop Jazz 3. When I first started playing, this pick was on the guitar my dad gave me. I learned how to play with this pick and I never bothered to try another. I guess I just got lucky. GT: If you had to give up all your pedals but three, what would they be? TS: My Foxrox Octron is a beast, and a huge part of The Damn Truth’s sound. Mad Professor’s Little Green Wonder is the best tube screamer ever made (I have the hand-wired version). PHG Mark 1.5 (my signature fuzz), It is just badass. I was chasing a tone in my head for a long…

STEVE MORSE First thing is to keep your calisthenics/ mechanical practice to where you can handle your difficult parts without strain. I figure that if I can make a part 10 times in a row in my home, that I have a decent chance of pulling it off at a gig where there are multiple distractions, and no second chances. Left hand strength is something I concentrate more on before a tour. The vibrato, bending, and building up calluses is very important. Most players find that their fretting fingers are sore after the first or second gig. Toughen up two weeks before with extra fretting work. Make some chord and drum loops to play along with, preferably of solo sections you might play at the gigs. Just spend time experimenting,…

Oz Noy is no stranger to hard work. Check out his tutorial-based interviews online or the exclusive soloing video masterclass he did with Jason in GT319 and you’ll see that he has definite development strategy. It’s clear that he has obviously put the hours in and, like all great players, continues to study the tools of jazz improvisation so that he can apply these devices in an aesthetically appropriate and hugely entertaining way when he plays. It’s a great idea to define a specific target or goal either before or just as you begin a practice session. It’s crucial that you select a topic, concept, technique or idea that is both measurable and achievable in the time available. Doing it this way you’ll feel super-inspired to look forward to your…

JIM DYSON / GETTY IMAGES Soundgarden sits among an elite group of artists that have helped define music over the past 50 years. Where the likes of The Beatles, Hendrix and The Rolling Stones shaped the sound of the 60s (and music in general), Van Halen, Genesis and Queen did the same in the 70s, with U2 and Bon Jovi following in the 80s, it was Nirvana and Soundgarden that pioneered the grunge movement of the 90s, immediately heralding the demise of big-haired pop-metal. If the 80s was the decade of decadence (as the Mötley Crüe compilation album says), the 1990s were given over more to reflection, introversion and, for want of a better word, ‘shoegazing’. This inevitably came with prices to be paid, and some of the grunge pioneers…

ANDREW BENGE / GETTY IMAGES The Cribs comprises three brothers from Wakefield in Yorkshire. Twins Ryan and Gary Jarman are on guitar, bass plus vocals, while younger brother Ross plays drums. The Cribs have been a three-piece for the majority of their career, but they were at one point joined by Johnny Marr, who was a fully fledged member from 2008 until 2011, playing and co-writing the 2009 album Ignore The Ignorant. After Marr quit the group, the brothers continued as a trio, supported by an additional member for live shows to cover guitar and keyboard duties. Since forming in 2001, The Cribs have released eight albums and a host of singles. Ryan Jarman is perhaps one of the most underrated guitarists in indie rock. But being the sole six-stringer…

Tap the links Finding your way around the magazine is easy. Tapping the feature titles on the cover or the contents page, takes you straight two the relevant articles. Any web and email links in the text are tappable too Animated tab & audio All the mag’s main lessons have the audio built in with a moving cursor that shows you exactly where you are in the music. Simply tap the‘play’button and you’re off - you can fast-forward or scroll back at will. Play the videos Certain articles have accompanying videos full of useful insight and additional information. Once again, tap the play buttons to enjoy video masterclasses on your iPad (recommended) or smartphone.…

It seems from the available evidence that Homo Sapiens Mark 1 is not without one or two key design faults. Sadly, we still await a software update that addresses important security and operating issues, unlike any smartphone that justifies the prefix. I’m referring to the human inability to learn from mistakes. So I take pleasure in reporting that on one occasion early in my travails as a recording roustabout, I bucked this trend, to commercial advantage. Back then, when TV ‘jingle’ sessions were an actual thing, I was invited to perform on a 30-second item, most likely in order to sell cat litter or toilet cleaner. Maybe both. The sticking point was the enquiry “You do play flamenco guitar don’t you?” With heavy heart and suicidal artistic integrity, I found…

THIS LICK WAS influenced by jazz-blues Hammond organ playing. It applies mainly to the rapid-fire arpeggio phrasing (end of bar 2), which is reminiscent of the great Jimmy Smith. Harmonically, it’s very simple; it’s just the opening four bars of a‘quick change’slow blues involving two bars of the I chord (A7) followed by two of the IV chord (D7). However, slow tempos like this can be tricky to subdivide accurately. Here’s what’s going on: Bar 1 contains a short phrase using the Major Blues scale (A-B-C-C#- E-F#) with the last two notes a b 3-3 bend followed by an accented A note on the first string. Add a touch of Albert King or SRV by plucking this note hard with your first finger; the extra attack sounds totally authentic. Bar…

Apart from some notable online collaborations (cat-based heavy metal anyone?) there has been a distinct lack of opportunity over the last year or so to get out there and strut our stuff in real time. Be that in a rehearsal room or on stage. Playing or practising while binge-watching TV on the sofa, will no doubt have helped some improve their game. But how relevant will these improvements be when we’re back standing in front of an amp, drumkit and audience? These are the concerns I’ll be addressing in this article. The areas covered here will also be helpful to those who have decided to go back out into the world and start or join bands. At the risk of stating the obvious; it’s incredibly useful to develop our skills…

This month we are looking at another tastefully crafted solo courtesy of fusion wizard Alex Sill (guitarist in Simon Phillips’ Protocol band). For his solo on Jason’s Wipe The Slate, Alex favours a combination of sophisticated phrasing, clever chord choices and a rounded overdriven tone which makes this a great piece to study. Jason’s track clocks in at an upbeat 142bpm with chord changes and rhythmic feels reminiscent of fusion bands like Steely Dan. Much of the track is in odd time as it has a 7/4 time signature, enhanced by a slight swing feel during each beat. This triplet feel is favoured by many West Coast AOR artists (Steely Dan, Toto, Boz Scaggs, etc). Much of Alex’s phrasing and rhythmic motifs are constructed from this eighth-note triplet subdivision. It…

In this issue we are tackling a piece by the prolific and influential French composer of vocal, ballet and opera music, Léo Delibes (1836-91). His beguiling work was highly respected by such composers as Tchaikovsky who rated Delibes as a “greater composer than Brahms”. Delibes’ music, like that of his contemporaries Grieg and Tchaikovsky, found its way from ‘classical high art’ into broad contemporary popular culture. His Divertissement-Pizzicato from his opera Sylvia, for example, is instantly recognisable, appearing in countless films, TV shows, cartoons and adverts whenever a light, balletic and humorous character is required; and his stunning Flower Duet from his opera Lakmé also manages to intersect ‘high-art’ and wide popularity. It’s a classic of the opera repertoire as well as being used widely in Film, TV and perhaps…

EASY LICKS EXAMPLE 1 JOHNNY MARR CD TRACK 39 This exercise features big open chords and a mix of onbeat and offbeat rhythms. Count 1 & 2 & 3 & 4 & while syncing your down strums with the downbeats (1-2-3-4) and your up strums with each &. Maintain a wide strumming motion, even when you don’t need to strike the strings. This will lock down your timing, achieve a big sound and ensure you land on the correct strumming direction. The E and A chords are modified to include neighbouring notes. This creates internal melodies and interest within the phrase. Make sure you fret each chord from the tip of your fingers, rather than the side of your fingertip. EASY LICKS EXAMPLE 2 LINDSEY BUCKINGHAM CD TRACK 40 Lindsey…

CHRISTIE GOODWIN / GETTY IMAGES Welcome to our inaugural series of lessons in which we’ll focus on virtuoso players from the rock, metal and instrumental guitar oeuvre. Who better to kick things off than the Maestro himself, Mr Yngwie Malmsteen, who irrevocably changed the face of heavy metal guitar when he burst on to the scene in the early 80s with the bands Steeler and Alcatrazz. The virtuosic Paganini style arpeggios and blistering classical-esque scale runs, all performed with his larger than life persona meant that Yngwie was destined to be a solo artist. In 1984 he released the first of 21 solo studio albums with Rising Force. In this lesson we will look at the cornerstone techniques that make up Yngwie’s style, starting with a Harmonic Minor based riff.…

This current series of lessons has been devoted to employing different interval skips within the Mixolydian mode or scale. So far, we have looked at each interval in sequence, all within an octave (2nds, 3rds, 4ths, 5ths, 6hs, 7ths, octaves). In this lesson, we are going to look at ways of using intervals greater than an octave to create very ear-catching lines and effects. DANIEL KNIGHTON / GETTY IMAGES Focusing on a particular concept, such as 10ths, will force you to think of the notes of a scale in new ways and provide you with many new and fresh-sounding ideas. Diagram 1 shows what each of the intervals that we have studied so far are called when played an octave higher (a 2nd becomes a 9th; a 3rd becomes a…

ALBUM OF THE MONTH PAUL GILBERT WEREWOLVES OF PORTLAND The Players Club l 9/10 With Paul’s 16th studio album, we hear once again how a guitar into a distorted amp can catch audiences’ attention! Paul played all guitar, bass, drums and keyboard parts, his Ibanez Fireman guitars being the most used. The album’s title was partly inspired by Warren Zevon’s Werewolves Of London but (Paul lives in Portland, USA) with the music shaped by creating lyrics and melodies to form the essence of his lead playing. This song-based approach to creating instrumentals works well and provides a lot of expression; while Paul is one of the most jaw-dropping shredders around, his vibrato, string bending, phrasing, slide technique and rich Marshall tone make him an appealing musician all round. Hello! North…