Several months ago, I decided to focus on pushing myself - to learn different solos and individual parts of songs, but to treat each one as an exercise to improve my technique, but also to analyse each piece in terms of understanding note choice, intervals etc and improve my theory knowledge.
I try to tab every part out using yt but accepting that most yt videos are not accurate, and also using software to slow the original track down and isolating the part and get closer. Once analysed I try to understand the key, underlying chord progression and then the individual notes, how they relate to the key, box positions etc.
Quietly smug with myself in that this evening I did a passable stairway to heaven solo at full tempo. Also smug with myself that I recognised all notes were in A minor pentatonic with the addition of a sharp 5.... or actually a flat 6, which is actually one of the 2 additional notes that you add to a minor pentatonic to create the Aeolian scale.
Interesting that there is a repeated flat 6 used throughout the solo but never a 2nd or B. Also that there is a fair amount of bends to raise the pitch up to the next note. Also that actually I have decided I don’t like his vibrato- which is wholly subjective. His is quite rapid and shallow, and currently I think I prefer slower and wider vibrato.
How did I do?
An official Foo liked guitarist since 2024
Comments
First note/root- A
flat 3 - C
forth- D
fifth- E
sharp 5/flat 6 - F
flat 7 - G
What I fail to clarify it’s the repeated additional F with an Am pentatonic? Is that better?
on the subject of “flat 6”, there are two ways of describing minor scales:
1) with reference to the major scale (which is 12345678). In this case the natural minor, or Aeolian, scale would be 1 2 b3 4 5 b6 b7 8.
major 2nd
major 3rd
perfect 5th
major 6th
major 7th
octave
major 2nd
minor 3rd
perfect 4th
perfect 5th
minor 6th (not flat 6)
minor 7th
octave
This system is older and is the method taught in classical music. In this system, other scales are described not relative to the major scale but to their respective MAJOR OR NATURAL MINOR scale. So Dorian (which has a major 6th) would be said to have a ‘raised 6th’, as, being a minor scale, it would be compared to natural minor.
So you’re right to call it a flat 6, (NOT A SHARP 5 btw!) because you’re using the first system. But so is Danny when he says the F isn’t flat, or flattened, because he’s using the second system.
Supportact said: [my style is] probably more an accumulation of limitations and bad habits than a 'style'.
Supportact said: [my style is] probably more an accumulation of limitations and bad habits than a 'style'.
There are 4 notes that contribute to the tonality of a scale - the 2 3 6 and 7. Subjectively speaking, and IMO only, each of them carries a certain contribution - I’ve written about this elsewhere - and I reckon it’s approximately:
3rd: 50%
6th: 30%
7th: 10%
2nd: 10%
This is by no means definitive but it would mean dorian would be 60% minor, whereas once you add that tragic minor 6th for Aeolian it becomes 90% minor.
So yes, it’s between minor penta and aeolian/phrygian, and closer to them than to minor penta, IMO.
Supportact said: [my style is] probably more an accumulation of limitations and bad habits than a 'style'.
There are two ways I would look at this.
Are you playing the b6th of the tonic, or are you playing a b6th with respect to the chord underneath it?
As pointed out above the b6th of "Aminor" is F which of course is the root note of F major, so you could simply consider it as a chord tone, and forget about scales.
In a blues environment I don't really like the sound of the b6th over the i chords (ie F over Am), and tend to avoid it.
I also don't find it that useful over a I7 chord.
However I don't particularly like it as a passing note either, only as a chord tone over a iv chord (Dm in Am) or say in a F.
That's not to say it's "wrong" and you shouldn't play it, it's really a matter of personal preference.
Supportact said: [my style is] probably more an accumulation of limitations and bad habits than a 'style'.
Supportact said: [my style is] probably more an accumulation of limitations and bad habits than a 'style'.
Supportact said: [my style is] probably more an accumulation of limitations and bad habits than a 'style'.
- ABbCDEFGA
honest question, not a trick
Supportact said: [my style is] probably more an accumulation of limitations and bad habits than a 'style'.
Personally for me I would say the song and the solo is basically in Am, some of the note choice is due to guitar box cliche really I think rather than being meticulously planned out