Blues in Thirds

Final Lesson: Exploring Forward Motion in the Key of G

In this final lesson, we're going to go back to the key of G and explore forward motion, which basically means playing across the bar lines. Most of the ideas we've played so far have started on the first beat or sometimes on the "one."

Playing Before the Bar Line

We're now going to try and get used to:

• Playing before the bar line.

This will make your improvisation sound much more professional.

The Seventh Chord Scale

We're also going to revisit the idea of using the scale of the seventh chord.

• In the key of G for G7, that'll be all white notes.
• We will be playing that in thirds this time, just to reinforce the concept of using double notes.

G7 Chord Positions

You know that a G7 chord can be played as:

• Root and third
• Third and fifth
• Fifth and seventh

Any of those will be fine by itself for G7. But if we're going to put them together, for instance, in a five-finger position, we've already looked at doing it like this with the thumb on the third.

The Secret to a Bluesy Sound

Now, because we know there's more to the scale than just the first five notes, we can:

• Go up to the seventh
• Start on the third

This is the secret to getting that really bluesy sound with the seventh on top: start your five-finger position on the third of the chord.

Application: I and IV Chords

This piece does that for the I chord and the IV chord.

• On C, it's going to go:
  • Make sure you get the B flat in there with the little finger.

We're going to start this phrase on the 3 and 1, 2, 3. Notice that in bars 3 and 4, those thirds go across the whole scale from 5th and 7th down to root and third.

Fingering Tips

Look at the fingering:

• I'm using a five-finger position at the top.
• Cross over with 2 and 4.

Avoid Detachment

Important note: Never jump between consecutive notes or thirds with the same fingers. If you do this, it won't sound smooth enough , it'll sound too detached.

Exercises for Fluency

Here are a couple of exercises to help you get used to this idea:

1. For all three chords, try playing:

   • Thumb on root
   • Then repeat it with thumb on third

   Do this on C and D7 as well.

2. Another useful exercise for getting these thirds really fluent is to play as legato as possible:

   • Start at B, the third of the G chord, then try that one backwards starting from the top.
   • Also, try the first exercise backwards.

Practice on All Chords

Try all of these exercises on C and on D, of course.

• Remember:
  • In C, you've got B flat
  • For D, you've got F sharp
  • G is all white notes.