Theory for Blues Lessons 1-10

Note: Unless otherwise mentioned, the chords and keys mentioned in lessons 1 -10are major chords.

Intro to Basic Blues Piano Video Lessons:

Im-pro-vise – to make something up on the spot: to perform or compose something, especially a sketch, play, song, or piece of music, without any preparation or set text to follow

    In blues, we want to improvise within a simple musical structure. The most common blues musical structure is a I, IV, V chord progression in a 12 bar structure.

Common blues and rock I, IV, V 12 bars progressions:

I  I  I  IIV IV I  IV7 IV I  I

Or

I  IV I  I

IV IV I  IV7 IV I  I

    We don’t use sheet music when improvising. We create on the spot. The only confines we have are playing in the structure of the music. Knowing what the structure of the music is, we can create a sound that reflects the themes of blues which are mostly broken heart, betrayal, bad times, love, drinking and partying. OK, there might be some other emotions that are expressed in the blues, but the ones mentioned are the first to come to mind. By the way, these same themes come up in country and rock. And opera. Everyone experiences the blues.

    The definition of "improvise" above is slightly inaccurate. We do not improvise without any preparation. Blues players prepare by learning the structure of the major scales and chords from which blues is based on. By changing the structure of the major scales and chords, we can create that “blues” sound. We also prepare by practicing blues scales, licks, riffs, tricks and runs. Improvising blues is a combination of playing our “bag of licks, riffs, tricks and runs” in a blues song and occasionally playing something that we create on the spot to best express our emotion at that time. Most blues players will never play a song exactly the same from performance to performance because they are improvising.

    And that is the beauty of improvising the blues- we get to express ourselves at the given moment in which we are playing or singing.

    In this course we offer no sheet music. We believe that if you study your major chords and scales, you will have little problem picking up the blues scales, riffs, licks, runs and patterns that are presented in the videos. If some rhythm or pattern throws you, then rewind and try it again. Blues players will listen to other players to get ideas, which often means hitting the rewind button on our CD or mp3 players.

   This course offers no charts, power points or dazzling 2-4 split screen presentations. Everything a blues piano player needs to know is right before them… on the white and black keys of the piano. If you study and play the major chords and scales enough times you will eventually “see” the chords and scales laid out before you without having to refer to any chart or “secret study aid.”

    If you’ve read this far, that means that you’re interested in playing blues and curious in learning different ways of approaching your blues music. Good. So, let’s talk about the numbering system.

   In this course, we will mostly refer to our scale notes and chords as numbers. It is quicker than having to spell out each riff, run, pattern, etc. using the alphabet. Also, the number system allows you to transpose these patterns to other keys… which you will eventually have to do if you want to play with other

musicians and singers.

   Here are two examples of the “number system:”

Key C:Sound of Music: do-re-mi-fa-so-la-ti-doAlphabet: C-D-E-F-G-A-B-CNumber:    1-2-3-4-5- 6- 7- 8 (1)

Key A:Alphabet: A-B-C#-D-E-F#-G#-ANumber:   1- 2- 3-  4- 5-6-  7-   8(1)

A question that students ask: “How do I learn the major chords and scales?”There’s no one-answer-fits-all. There are so many Piano Methods out there from which a student can choose. You have to find one that works for you. But the basic answer to the above question is: get your hands on the keyboards and play them. While you’re playing them, take time to know the alphabet name and number of each note.

We realize that players who look at these videos and “theory” notes will be at different levels. So, take what you can use and leave the rest behind.

Have fun with the blues…

Lesson 1:

The objective in Lesson 1 is to get you started playing blues with two hands. The left hand is a simple bass beat using the root note of whatever chord is being played in the right hand. The right hand riff is the famous and often used: 1-3-5 to 1-4-6

Example:

In the key of C major:The C chord 1-3-5 to 1-4-6 is C-E-G to C-F-AThe F chord 1-3-5 to 1-4-6 is F-A-C to  F-Bb-DThe G chord 1-3-5 to 1-4-6 is G-B-D to G-C-E

Go to the piano and check this out:

Play the C chord 1-3-5 to 1-4-6 riff. Look and see that you’re going from a C chord to an inverted F chord. Both major chords. The relationship between a C chord to an F chord is a I-IV chord relationship as in I-IV-V blues chord progression.

Play the G chord 1-3-5 to 1-4-6 riff. See that the riff takes us from a G chord to an inverted C chord.The relationship between a G chord to a C chord is I-IV.

Guess what the I-IV chord relationship is with the F chord using the same riff.That’s right- Bb.

Do we need to know this stuff to play this riff? Nope. But start noticing these chordrelationships as you continue your journey into blues piano. The I-IV-V relationships show up in rock and blues. Look and listen for these patterns. It will train your ear as you gradually recognize I-IV-V chord progressions and other variations such as I-IV, I-V or V-IV-I.  Knowing these patterns and being able to play them at the drop of a snare drum beat will make you a better blues improviser.

Lesson 2:

In Lesson 2 we introduce a simple but very popular and powerful left hand rhythm pattern. Matter of fact, when played fast and steady, this pattern can be a hard hitting rock and boogie woogie beat.

The left hand pattern is: 1-5 to 1-6.Example: For C chord the 1-5 to 1-6 is C-G to C-A.Check it out. Can you see the I-IV in this left hand pattern?Hint: take 1-3-5 to 1-4-6 and don’t play the 3 or the 4. You get 1-5 to 1-6. This is a I-IV relationship just as the right hand riff.

How to Play the Blues, Secret #1: start by learning the 12 major chords and scales. All blues scales, minor scales, riffs and tricks are based on variations of the major chords and scales. (And the major chords and scales come from the chromatic scale.) By knowing the major chords and scales you can still learn the riffs and tricks that are sold in countless books and DVD’s,  but you’ll be able to more easily pick them up from blues CD’s and even create your own.  Mastery of the major scales and chords will bring you closer to being the best blues player that you want to be.

Lesson 3:

In the left hand we are expanding the 1-5 to 1-6 pattern to 1-5 to 1-6 to 1-b7th.Introducing the flatted 7th turns our major chord into a 7th chord, also known as the dominant 7th chord. In blues, the dominant 7th chord is mostly referred to as the “7th chord.”

In the right hand we are adding a 5-b7th interval to the lessons’ previous riff.The right hand pattern is now 1-3-5 to 1-4-6 to 1-5-b7th to 1-4-6. If you look closely, you can see the right hand in Lesson 3 playing the triads of a C 7thchord. Sometimes referred to as the Dominant seventh, the 7th chord is basically a major chord with a flatted 7th. The structure of a 7th chord is 1-3-5-b7.

Exercise: Play all of the twelve 7th chords. Then play them again in the root position, first inversion and second inversion positions.

Lesson 4:

We take the old standby left hand pattern of 1-5 to 1-6 and give it a shuffle rhythm. Change the tempo of this simple pattern from slooooow to fast and you’ll see and hear how this shuffle can deliver a slow hard blues feel or a fast dance beat.

Exercise: Once, you’re right hand riffs get to be second nature, play with the tempo of this left hand shuffle at various speeds and get the feel of its power.

Lesson 5:

Left hand pattern: 1-3-5-6

The left hand pattern in this lesson is another one of those patterns that can be overlooked because of its simplicity. If you listen to enough blues and swing tunes you’ll notice that this is a common pattern among bass players. Every blues bass player will use this pattern or a variation of it in their repertoire. Depending on the tempo, this pattern can serve up a slow, sorrowful blues feel or help the player deliver a the-joint-is-a-jumpin’ beat. Try this pattern on a simple 12 bar blues song such as Kansas City and you’ll experience the fun possibilities of this simple 1-3-5-6  left hand pattern.

Lesson 6:

Flatted note: sometimes referred to as the lowered note or minor note, is a note that is one step below the written note. Example: b3 means that the third major note is lowered one half step. Therefore, a b3 in the key of C would be Eb. In the world of working musicians, the number notation of a flatted note can be written either with the b (to denote flatted note) in front or after the number. Example: flatted 3rd can be notated either as “b3” or “3b”.

In this lesson, we start playing-off the flatted thirds and flatted fifths of the major scale by sliding the finger off the flatted note (minor) onto the major note. This type of action gives a blues flavor to songs that are played in a major key. Not all blues songs are played in a minor or blues scale. “Crossroads” is an

example of a song that is played in a major key but utilizes blues notes.

Lesson 7:

Lesson 7 is a continuation of Lesson 6 where the flatted 7th is used in conjunction with the b3 and b5 to add to our toolbox of blues riffs and patterns.

A popular blues lick, is shown in two variations, then the viewer is given some tips on how to create his or her own blues licks as we now dive more into

the world of improvising.

Lesson 8:

In this lesson we cover a common blues scale in Key of C.

This is the structure of that blues scale:

1-     b3- 4- b5- 5- b7

Example:

Blues scale in key of C:1- b3-  4- b5-  5-   b7C- Eb- F- F#- G – Bb

This pattern will turn any major key into a blues scale.

The above blues scales was derived from the "conjunction of 'African scales' and the diatonic western scales". There exist other blues scales, and musical scholars even argue about what constitutes a blues scale. Blues players are more concerned about the practical applications than the philosophy of music. In essence, if a note or a pattern of notes helps the player convey the sense of blues to the listener, then musically that’s blues.

Exercise 1: Using above example, write out and play the blues scale in the keys of G, F, A.

Example:

Blues scale in A:A-C-D- Eb- E- G

Lesson 9:

A simple left hand pattern is introduced but with a rhythm that is not usually associated with 4/4 straight time or shuffle blues that is used in the styles of Chicago, Kansas City or St Louis blues and even country music. This three note left hand pattern has more of a New Orleans feel with a hint of influence from Latin or Caribbean music. The right hand uses a few new licks that can be varied and used in 4/4 straight time or shuffle rhythms. If you’re not too familiar with New Orleans blues, then start with checking-out Dr. John, Henry Butler, James Booker, Professor Longhair and, of course, Fats Domino.

Lesson 10:

Graduation Day! If you studied Lessons 1 – 9 Basic Blues Piano,  practiced the patterns and riffs with both hands, and you pretty much understand the ideas that were presented in the lessons, then you are on your way to playing and improvising the blues. The short clip in Lesson 10 is a video of the instructor

sitting down at the piano and improvising lessons learned in Lessons 1 – 9 without any preparation or notes. Instant improvising.

OK, now it’s your turn. Sit down at the piano and play some blues.

What’s next?

Come back to www.homecookedblues as we add more stuff for beginning and intermediate blues piano players, such as our Beyond Basic Blues Piano videos and Theory You Can Use.