Lesson video

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Hi everyone.

I'm Ms. Pryor, and I'm really excited to be your music teacher for today's lesson.

We are halfway through a unit, which means we are at a pause lesson.

It is a chance for us to recap and look at all the different musical features of the style blues that we've been exploring so far.

So, make sure that you've got everything you need, because we're going to be doing lots of music-making today.

Let's get started.

Right, our first activity today is going to be a listening activity.

I am going to demonstrate different musical ideas from the blues style that match with the boxes with the names on the left hand side of your screen.

All you need to do is listen to the musical feature that I'm playing and match it to one of the names on the tiles, the boxes on the left hand side.

Right, here we go.

Here's the first one.

Here it is again.

Which one of those boxes do you think is that musical feature? Tell me or write it down in five, four, three, two, it is the blues scale.

Well done if you got that.

Here's the next one.

Which musical feature matches which name? Here it is again.

Telling me or writing it down in five, four, three, two, one.

It is swung quavers.

Well done if you got that.

Here's the next one.

Hopefully you recognise that tune from somewhere.

But what is the name of that feature here? Here it is again.

Again, quick answer.

Write it down or tell the screen in five, four, three, two.

It is the blues head from bag's group.

Well done if you got that.

Here's the next one.

Hopefully, you know what that one is.

Again, write it down, telling me in five, four, three, two, It is the walking baseline.

Good.

And I've got one more to show you.

Now be careful, because one of the names on the left hand side might be there to catch you out.

Here's the last one.

Did you get that one? Tell me or write it down in five, four, three, two.

It is the blues chords.

Right, well done.

Really lovely recap.

I think we've got it clear now in our mind, exactly what the features are that we're going to go on to recap for today's lesson.

So the first thing we need to do is make sure you have everything you need for today's lesson to go really well.

Go and grab a piece of paper, or a booklet if you're using that to write your notes.

Or you can use the worksheet.

Grab yourself a pencil and a different coloured pen.

And we are definitely going to be making lots of music today.

So, you're going to need either a music app where you can play different parts, especially keyboard.

If you've got access to a keyboard or piano, that's great.

But there are going to be options for you to play chords on ukulele and guitar and using the bass guitar as well or double bass.

If you have one of those instruments and happy to play it, either at school or at home.

If you need anything from that list, pause the video now and go and get them.

So now we've got all our resources, let's have a look at our plan for today.

The first thing in the lesson is having a look at the twelve-bar blues baseline and chords.

So I'll demonstrate those for you.

And then you'll have time to go off and practise those and make sure you remember how to play them.

Then we're going to have a look at how rhythm, certain rhythms in the way we play, show us that it's the blues.

Okay.

So a lot about the rhythms we play, make it really clear that we're in the blues style.

Then we're going to have a go at improvising using the blues scale, which we did recently in the unit.

So this is just, again, playing it over and building our confidence.

Okay.

First thing on the list is having a look and recapping that structure of the twelve-bar blues.

We originally did this at.

We originally looked at this by looking at baselines and chords and we'll do both.

So, to make sure that the twelve-bar structure is really clear in your mind and where the chords and the baseline change.

The first thing we're going to do is clap the first beat of the bar.

Along with this backing track.

So we know exactly where the changes are in the harmony.

Here we go, clapping hands ready.

Here we go.

Clap.

One, two, three, four.

Change.

One, two, three, four.

So, that is our twelve-bar blues structure.

Okay.

How do we find the base align notes? Hopefully you remember that they are the root note of the chord, the bottom note of the chord.

Which is how we get our C, F and G, C F and G.

So, first thing we're going to do is just recap the really basic baseline, the root note of the chords.

And we can either do that on a piano, on an app, on a bass guitar, or even on app with a bass guitar.

So.

We're in C, we need C, F, and G.

And it's simple.

Nice, low octave.

Okay.

So there's one, two, three, four, one.

two, three, four.

One, two three, four.

One, two, three, four.

One, two, three, and down to F.

Two, F, and back to C.

C, then we got one G.

Down to F.

And back to C.

Okay, so there's our basic baseline and that marks where the cord changes are.

Remember, I showed you in one of our previous lessons, that there is the great option again, on apps to do this, but as a bass player.

So, we go one, two, three frets up.

F, okay.

Just like it shows in the diagram on the bottom left hand of your screen.

So follow the same pattern.

And if you want to start to put a bit of a blues rhythm in with it, you can, that would be great.

C is our starting note.

Here's the demonstration.

One, two, one, two, three.

And C.

Get ready to F.

Back to C.

We're on our last four bars.

Sorry, C.

Okay.

So, pause the video now and either on an app, on a keyboard if you've got one, or if you want to try it on a bass guitar, great.

Go and practise that baseline.

Five minutes off you go.

Okay, welcome back.

So now you've got the twelve-bar blues structure really clear in your head, and you've practised playing through that.

Using the root note of the chord.

Let's recap how we did transposing.

Do you remember what transposing means? It means that we are going to change the key that we played this twelve-bar blues in.

We just use the same structure but we start on a different note.

Here's my question.

If C is number one and there it is on my keyboard, what numbers are F and G? So you need to find F and G.

And then I want you to tell me what numbers they are in this scale.

30 seconds.

See if you can remember.

Keep the scale in your mind and see if you can find the numbers that it associates to.

Okay? So, here's how you work out and hopefully you've got the answer.

If one is C, then F is four and G is five.

Here's how.

Here's C.

We just go up the scale.

This is one.

One, two three, four is F.

Five is G.

So keep one, four, five in your mind.

And here's how we transpose.

Same rules apply.

Right now, number one is G.

If number one is G, what pitches are four and five? Use the keyboard as a reference.

Or think of the scale in your mind.

20 seconds.

What pictures would be numbers four and five in the scale, if you start on G? So the pictures we're looking for, following the same rule.

Here's G.

We go up four notes, one, two, three, four.

And that gives us C.

Five, D.

So C will be in the grey boxes and D will be in the white box.

Well done if you got that.

Now we've transposed into G.

Let's look at how we can build those cords up in that key.

To play the twelve-bar blues chords on the keyboard or on a piano, these are the chords you need.

G, by playing G, B, D.

C, playing C, E, G.

And D, playing D F sharp, A.

Let me show you those.

So, cord G.

G, B, D.

Three notes playing at the same time.

C, C, E, G.

Again, you can move your hand up, trying good technique using your fingers one, three, and five.

You can move your hand up to C.

Or if you want to use inversions, you can use C, D, G here.

And it's the same chord.

It's an easier transition.

G, to C.

And then our last cord, D.

D and sharp A.

So again, instead of having to leap from here to here to here, you can use the inversion, which is here.

D, A, F sharp.

Exactly the same notes, we're just playing them in a different order.

So, G.

So there are chords in G major of the twelve-bar blues structure on the piano or the keyboard.

The ukulele.

There's our chord chart that we can use.

So, just to give you a little demonstration of where these chords are.

The top line here is the top of your ukulele.

And these are the strings, and the gaps are the frets.

So, C would be one, two, three.

G, you want these two on the second fret.

Plus this one on the third fret.

And then D, you want the top three strings all in the second fret.

So we've got G.

So if you want to play the chords through in a minute on the ukulele, you can.

Also, we've got the option here, if you'd rather play the chords on the guitar, if you want to have a go or you're already a guitarist, by all means, remember the guitar was played often in blues music.

So it would be a great instrument to do this on.

And if you look back into worksheet three of this unit, you'll be able to see a great example of a guitarist called temp playing through these chords for you.

Let's put it together and play through now.

So we're going to play the basic baseline notes with the chords on top.

Grab whichever instrument you are using to play the chords.

So if you play the guitar or maybe the keyboard or the piano, and play the chords with me.

Okay, here we go.

One, two, G's our first one.

One, two, one, two, three, go.

One, two, three, and change.

Back to G.

Then there's a D.

With a C.

And a G.

Now, do you remember why we have the option of going to G or to D? Hopefully, you remember from our lesson, that D, chord five, is our turnaround chord so that we can start again.

G sound like we're going to finish D sounds like we're going to carry on.

So that's our turnaround cord.

Why don't you have a go at playing the chords while I play just the baseline.

We're going to do a paired performance.

Here we go.

One, two, one, two, three, chord.

Get ready to change to chord C.

Chord G.

Now, D.

And C.

Now, G.

Play turnaround chord.

And then be ready to repeat it.

Great, well done.

Alright, so we've really looked our twelve-bar blues baseline and chords now.

I think we recapped that really well.

Let's have a look at how certain rhythms show us that we are in a blues style of music.

This is the walking baseline.

It is a classic feature of blues music.

Can you spell the difference between the walking baseline and the chords above? Here's the baseline.

And here's the chord.

The biggest link between the two is that the walking baseline are the notes of the chord, but we play them one at a time.

That's a broken chord.

So we're still paying GBD, but we're playing them one at a time.

But there's only three notes in our chord So where do we get our fourth note from? The one that's circled in blue.

Can you see that note anywhere else? The fourth note in our walking baseline is the same as the second.

So it's G, B, D, back to B, C, B, G, back to A.

For D, D, F sharp, A, back to F sharp.

So it is the second note of the chord that we play again.

We return to it.

Well done.

Let's take that walking baseline and think how could we make it sound really bluesy? And we do that by making it swung.

We give it a swung feel.

Hopefully you remember the double shuffle that we learned as a drum part.

Let's just recap what that shuffle that swung rhythm feels like.

I'm going to clap a few rhythms, call a response.

I just want you to copy what I'm doing.

And then we'll have a go at improvising some rhythms. So the first one is just the basic shuffle.

Instead of playing quavers, Three, four, five, six, seven, eight.

We play long, short, l-long, short.

One.

Two.

Three.

And four.

We all go, ch, ch-ch, ch-ch, ch-ch, ch-ch.

Keep going, ch-ch, ch-ch, ch-ch.

Five, six, seven, eight, good! The other rhythm that we often hear in blues music, is triplets.

One, two, three.

One, two three.

Da-da-da.

Join in.

Da-da-da, ch-ch, da-da-da, ch-ch.

Da-da-da, ch-ch.

Good, let's play a quick game of call and response.

But we're going to play different rhythms. So I'm going to clap a four-beat rhythm that's got a swung feel.

And then when I finish, you're going to clap a four-beat rhythm that is in a swung feel.

But it has to be different to my one.

Okay, so start thinking really creatively.

Here's an example.

So I might clap and then, because that adds up to four beats, You would then clap back with a four-beat rhythm but that's different to mine.

Let's have a go at doing that twice.

Here we go.

Me first.

One, two, one, two, three, four.

Good, now I go.

One, two.

Nice, good@ We're really getting it.

We're really getting into the swung bluesy feel now.

So what I want you to do is I want you to take our walking baseline, the broken chords that we learned at the bottom there, and we're going to play them in this twelve-bar blues structure.

But I want you to swing them.

Here's an example.

Okay.

So take the same twelve-bar blues structure.

I want you to play the walking baseline either on keyboard or on bass guitar, if that's what you want to use.

Or an app if that's what you've got to hand.

You know swung rhythms. Remember your broken chords in that twelve-bar blues structure.

Pause the video and recap the swung walking baseline.

We are on the final section of our lesson, where we're going to improvise using the blues scale.

First, what we need to do is recap what that blues scale sounds like and what it looks like.

On my screen, is your basic piano keyboard.

And the green dots are showing you the notes of the blues scale.

So just to play through it with you, use an app because it's a really easy demonstration.

G is our first note.

We'll end on G.

We're going to travel up the scale.

Few questions.

The blue scale in G major is a hexatonic scale.

Do you remember why? It's because there are six notes in this scale rather than eight.

One.

Two.

Three.

Four.

Five.

Six.

And then we return to G at the top.

Do you remember why else this is a blues scale compared to the normal G major scale? We have flattened notes.

So we use flattened third, which is B flat.

Flattened D, flat, which is the fifth note that's been flattened.

And F, instead of F sharp, which is the seventh note that's been flattened.

So, G.

B flat.

D flat.

So get your piano ready or get your app.

And I just want you to play the blues scale with me in a swung rhythm.

One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight.

Okay, let's have a go together.

Here it is again.

I'll do one more demonstration and then we'll do it together.

One, two, three, four, one, two, three, sorry, one, two, three.

One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight.

Do that with me.

One, two, one, two, three, and.

Let's see if we can go back the other way.

Start with a high G and then back on low G.

Together.

One, two, one, two, three, go.

G, F, sorry.

FD.

D flat, C, B flat.

Pause the video now and spend three minutes just playing up and down that scale, so you're really familiar with the notes.

Okay.

How do you take this blues scale and turn it into an improvisation? Remember, improvising is just making something up on the spot.

But we might want to build it up.

Okay.

Sometimes it can be really hard to just go straight in and start to improvise using this scale.

So, let's do a clear response activity.

Where I'm going to start improvising, and I want you to just copy what I'm doing.

Okay.

So we'll start with just one note of the blues scale, but we're going to make it in a really swung rhythm.

We'll start with G.

So have G ready.

And I just want you to play the same G pattern as me.

But we're going to do a slower rhythm.

Here it is.

One, two, copy after me, and.

Good.

Let's try a different one.

One, two, one, two, three, four.

We all go.

Good.

Let's take it up a notch and include three pitches.

So we're going to use G.

B flat.

And C.

Okay.

It'll get a bit more challenging.

So I'm going to use just the note, G, B flat, and C.

But we're going to put them in a slightly swung rhythm.

Remember, you're just copying what I'm doing for now.

Let's have a go.

One, two, three, E, first.

And go G, B flat, C, C, C, C.

Good.

Let's try another one.

One, two, one, two, three, four.

Go, G, G, G, B flat, B flat, C, C.

Great.

So you can see how we can start to use some of the notes to build up longer musical ideas.

Pause the video now and take five minutes to play around with that blues scale.

Coming up with different musical ideas, all in swung rhythms that we can turn into a two bar or eight beat improvisation.

Five minutes, off you go.

Now that you've had a go at playing through some improvisations, hopefully up to eight beats long.

We're going to do a pair performance now.

Following the twelve-bar blues structure.

And we're going to take the head.

Do you remember what a head is in blues music? It's the main theme or melody that keeps coming back.

Good.

So we're going to use the twelve-bar blues chords.

Okay.

So we're going to use those chords.

I'm going to play the head part.

And then you're going to improvise for two bars.

Then I'll play the head.

And you're going to improvise for two bars.

And then you're going to improvise.

So each time that there's two bars of improvisation, you're going to have a go and we'll do that as a performance now.

We'll do one rehearsal.

And then the second time we do it, have a go recording yourself so that you can hear it back and you can share it with other people.

Okay, so here's our rehearsal.

I play the head first.

Good.

Ready, again.

My turn now.

Good.

Well done.

Okay, let's have another go.

This time, grab something that you can use to record yourself so you can listen back and hear your successful piece.

Here we go.

Remember it's just eight beats.

You can repeat phrases.

Don't worry.

You can always run up and down that blues scale if you draw a bit of a blank while you are playing.

Okay, here we go.

One, to, here comes the head, and.

Your go.

Good.

Well done.

And the head.

And your improvisation.

I hope you recorded that.

Remember you can always pause the video, rewind and have another go and really be perfect and build your confidence with improvisation.

After you've recorded it, why don't you go ahead and see if you'd like to ask your parent or carer to share your work on Instagram, Facebook or Twitter.

Tagging @OakNational and #LearnwithOak.

Well done today, everyone.

A great recap of all the different musical features that you'd expect to hear or compose or play in blues music.

It's really good that you take time to practise and go over any new parts that you learn in new styles.

And I think you've done that really well today.

Please make sure you go and take the quiz, so that you can show me all of your musical understanding.

And hopefully I'll see you in the next lesson.

Take care.

Bye.

I've finished the video