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David's Tip of the Day: Sneak Peak - Rob Roy Parnell on Accompaniment Playing

Posted Fri, 09/12/2014 - 08:05 by David Barrett Admin
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Sneak Peak - Rob Roy Parnell on Accompaniment Playing
http://youtu.be/LX4Ti1Ze_XI

David's Tip of the Day: Lick Interchangeability

Posted Thu, 09/11/2014 - 05:59 by David Barrett Admin
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A student asked this question this morning: "Can most bluesy licks be used over any of the three chords but are there some licks that are just more suitable for the IV chord?"

The answer I feel is worth sharing...

"Yes, you are correct, most bluesy licks can be used over any of the three chords, and there are some licks that are more suitable for the IV7 Chord, and especially the V7 Chord. continue reading...

David's Tip of the Day: Easy Reeding - The Hohner Harmonica Newsletter

Posted Wed, 09/10/2014 - 05:42 by David Barrett Admin
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Easy Reeding - The Hohner Harmonica Newsletter

David's Tip of the Day: Getting Ready to Play with Others (Jam or Band)

Posted Tue, 09/09/2014 - 06:16 by David Barrett Admin
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A new house band rotation is starting at School of the Blues in a couple of weeks and in their prep email they're asked to watch this video. This work provides a great perspective for new players getting ready to play with others. Below is an annotated transcript for your reference.

"Journey Into Jazz" by Gunther Schuller, Narrated by Leonard Bernstien (1962)
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x15bpi_leonard-bernstein-journey-into-j... continue reading...

Improvising - Focus Notes, Part 1

Posted Mon, 09/08/2014 - 06:30 by David Barrett Admin
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One of the most common questions posed by students is, "How do you know what to play next?" The answer is that we usually don't... it's very rare that we know what we're going to play next... it's what hole we start the new chorus on that determines which lick from our vocabulary is played.

For example... continue reading...

David's Tip of the Day: Improvising - Start Softly

Posted Fri, 09/05/2014 - 06:39 by David Barrett Admin
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Another comment I give daily in my teaching is to play softer, especially when playing amplified. Play at 40% of your capable volume as your normal volume. This gives you great dynamic range for expression later in the song. Little Walter did this and it worked for him. Have a great weekend everyone!

David's Tip of the Day: Improvising - Leave More Space

Posted Thu, 09/04/2014 - 08:23 by David Barrett Admin
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My most common comment to students when improvising (I state this every day in my lessons) is to leave more space. Main licks and fills can quickly run together into a frantic mess when space is not utilized... like a run-on sentence. You often hear music coaches of non-wind instruments say to pause, as if to take a breath. This provides space between your phrases and enough time for the listener to digest what you just stated. This also tends to fix rhythmic issues. continue reading...

David's Tip of the Day: Tad Robinson Interview at Blues Blast Magazine

Posted Wed, 09/03/2014 - 06:43 by David Barrett Admin
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This new Blues Blast Magazine interview is a nice addendum to Tad's interview on the site: http://www.bluesblastmagazine.com/category/magazine/current-issue/

David's Tip of the Day: Kim Wilson - Son Records A Testimonial To Muddy Water's Electric Blues

Posted Tue, 09/02/2014 - 06:54 by David Barrett Admin
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I hope everyone had a great holiday weekend. This released over the weekend with Kim Wilson as a guest.

Son Records A Testimonial To Muddy Water's Electric Blues
http://www.npr.org/2014/08/24/342873680/son-records-a-testimonial-to-mud...

David's Tip of the Day: Note-for-Note - Transposing 2nd Position to 3rd Position

Posted Thu, 08/28/2014 - 06:45 by David Barrett Admin
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And now for 3rd Position. Play the Rhumba rhythm again over the 12 Bar Blues Progression in 2nd Position.

C Harmonica in 2nd Position (Key of G)
I = G B D = 2 3 4
IV = C E G = 1+ 2+ 3+
V = D F# A = 1 2' 3"

Now grab your Low-F Harmonica and play the same notes in 3rd Position:
I = G Bb D = 4 5 6
IV = C E G = 6+ 7 8
V = D F A = 6 7+ 8 continue reading...