Enhancing Melodies with Embellishments

Okay, then. The next approach I want to talk about is taking a melody. We're going to use the same melody over and over again and start thinking about ways that we can embellish that melody.

What is Embellishment?

An embellishment could be something as simple as:

• Adding vibrato
• Approaching a specific note differently:
  • Sliding into it
  • Picking it
  • Playing legato with hammer-ons and pull-offs
  • Tapping the note
  • Bending up to the note

There are lots of ways we can approach just one single note on the guitar.

Example Melody: Sweet Child of Mine

What I thought would be a good idea is if we take a melody that I imagine a lot of you will know. We're going to use the vocal melody, just one bar of it, from Sweet Child of Mine by Guns N' Roses.

Hopefully, this melody is familiar to you if you're familiar with that song. If you're not, go and check it out, just have a listen to the opening vocal phrase. Instantly, you'll recognize that melody.

Structure of the Melody

• Key: D major
• Starting Position: On the B string with a little finger
• Picking: Three times
• Descending: Down and then across the G string for the last two notes

It's a really simple melody to play at the moment, but it sounds a little flat since I'm not adding any articulation or embellishment to those notes whatsoever. Right now, it sounds a little stale.

Experimenting with Embellishments

What I'd like you to work on is playing that same melody, thinking about different ways of approaching various notes within it. Here are a few suggestions:

• Perhaps you might bend up to that third note you're repeating.
• Maybe add some slides in there.
• Add a little bit of vibrato.

There are so many different ways we could try playing that melody. You might change the position of it to get a different tone or end up playing it up higher for a warmer sound.

Restrict Techniques

To start with, restrict yourself and just apply one technique at a time. For example, if we were to just go for slides, it may seem like overdoing it a bit, but it gives you an idea.

Yes, perhaps a little more musical there! Just remember: we don't want to do it on every single note; that would be overkill. You'll want to find the spots where it suits a specific technique, certainly on any sustained notes, which are notes that have a reasonable duration.

Adding Vibrato

Let's get some vibrato added in there! It's one of the most expressive things you can do to a note to really make it work. So, on that third note and especially at the end, that final note of that phrase, get some nice vibrato on there.

Combining Techniques

Now, let's have a look at combining a few different techniques. For instance:

• Some slides and some bends, perhaps.
• Throw in a few bends and maybe even some pre-bends with vibrato.

There are almost infinite possibilities just by sticking with that melody and changing the way you approach playing it.

Thinking Like a Vocalist

I think it's a really nice example using this particular melody because it's a vocal phrase. This encourages you to think a little bit more like a vocalist in terms of phrasing.

For instance:

• When you play your notes as a guitar player, you can keep going up and down shapes all day long without needing to take a physical breath.
• A vocalist, in contrast, has to physically breathe when performing or talking, meaning they must have a gap to start again.

Phrasing Tips

Think about this when you're doing your phrasing:

• Play a little bit
• Breathe
• Let it sit
• Next phrase: play a bit, let it breathe

Combine all these little things together, and suddenly your improvisations start to sound a lot more musical, rather than just playing up and down shapes you might be familiar with from scales.

Conclusion

So, do give that a try and try it with your own melodies as well. Not just melodies from songs you like, though that's a great practice too.

Experiment with your own melodies using the methods we've talked about previously. Keep the melodies the same but vary how you embellish them:

• Bend up to notes
• Slide into notes
• Add vibrato

Think about all that stuff rather than the note choice, because you've already settled on a melody you like. It's a really cool thing to experiment with. Good luck with that!