IntellectualMusician.com

Sounds of the Orient

Kenneth Robertson — Fri, 30 Nov 2007 16:51:44 +0000

Hey there! In this lesson we’re going to be looking at emulating the tones and sounds of other instruments on the guitar, focusing on 3 instruments from the Far East, the Pipa, the Koto and the Shackuhachi (Japanese Flute). Being brought up on a diet of old Kung Fu movies and Manga, the distinctive music of the Orient has always been of great interest to me (more…)

The Danger Zones

Scott Taylor — Sun, 11 Nov 2007 20:18:17 +0000

As drummers our most important task is to keep the tempo steady and make it feel good while tastefully and musically leading our band through the song. We are laying down the roadway along with our Bassist in order to give the melody a solid foundation. I see it as a pyramid with Drums and Bass on the bottom, Guitars, Keyboards, Horns and whatever you have as the higher pitched melodic instruments next, and finally the melody line itself as the capstone. (more…)

Thinking About Recorded Music

Lyn Horton — Sun, 28 Oct 2007 19:20:31 +0000

The band Radiohead recently (2007) offered music for free on the Internet. This initiates an entirely new view of recorded music. Not in the obvious sense. Such a move is one towards the gradual dematerialization of society. It won’t be long before it happens. And it will still cost to consume over the Internet. But the object is leaving for good. The earth’s resources are dwindling and there is no reason to make what can be translated into a form that can be sold electronically. (more…)

The Perfect Guitar

John Endris — Mon, 17 Sep 2007 03:30:15 +0000

Every guitarist wants to have the best tone. In fact we all work so hard on perfecting our technique and our style that sometimes the most important part of the equasion is forgotten. Your guitar of course. (more…)

Superimposing Arpeggios Part 2 - Blues Progressions

Mike Holt — Wed, 05 Sep 2007 10:51:16 +0000

If you look at my last article, “superimposing arpeggios” you’ll read how it is possible to superimpose a different arpeggio of a chord from the same parent scale over the chord that you are improvising on. In this lesson I am going to take it one step further and combine it with another of my previous articles “Jazz Up Your Blues Progressions”, in which I describe how to add a jazz flavor to your blues progressions by adding different chord substitutions throughout the sequence. (more…)

Superimposing Arpeggios

Mike Holt — Tue, 04 Sep 2007 15:08:08 +0000

When playing over a particular chord how many different arpeggios would you consider using? Over any chord you can superimpose a large number of different arpeggios which can give you greater harmonic choices. In this lesson I am going to look at one approach of doing this. By having a parent scale in mind (ie playing in a specific key) whether it’s for one chord, a chord sequence or for a whole piece of music, I’m going to show how to determine all the different arpeggios that are available to play over each chord in that key. (more…)

Kumoi Joshi Study

jcreed — Sat, 25 Aug 2007 06:42:51 +0000

Kumoi Joshi is an exotic sounding Japanese pentatonic scale comprising of the intervals R b2 4 5 and b6. This scale can be used to spice up your solos with a fresh sound and as it is similar to Phrygian can be used to great effect in modern metal. (more…)

Chord Melody 101. Part One of Two.

Caleb Raney — Sat, 18 Aug 2007 17:54:48 +0000

Some basic skills in arranging jazz standards for solo playing are a great addition to a jazz guitarist’s abilities for several reasons:

1. With a large enough rep or enough skill to arrange tunes on the fly you can stop splitting up the money from all those “music to be ignored by gigs” that we all love so much. (more…)

Robert Johnson: King of the Delta Blues Singers

Ed Lozano — Tue, 14 Aug 2007 03:54:20 +0000

Robert Johnson was born in Hazelhurst, Mississippi on May 8, 1911 and died in Greenwood, Mississippi on August 16, 1938. During those 27 years he recorded 29 songs that influenced modern blues and paved the way for the future of blues-based rock.
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The Singer-A Musician’s Curse?!

Edward Hatton — Mon, 13 Aug 2007 11:07:16 +0000

Let’s get one thing straight before I get loads of complaints. Singers ARE musicians. We do a very good job at being musicians. The title is a bit pedantic, but I am trying to make a point here. I think it is about time that those of you who are not singers, need to understand our “ways”. Yes I know some of us throw tantrums, lash expensive mic’s to the floor, kick speakers, and walk out of rehearsals in disgust-never to be seen again, or in the nearest bar drowning our sorrows and saluting Freddy Mecury, et al: “why can’t I sing like them?”. (more…)