Music Lesson: Pop Section Overview

We've come to the last section of Pop. As I mentioned previously, we're going to be learning some cool songs in different styles at the end of the course.

Introduction to Party People

For now, we have a small section from the song Party People. This is a bit of a test in terms of rhythms. You should notice:

• There are no rests
• We have three different note values:
  • Quarter notes
  • Half notes
  • Whole notes

Rhythm Breakdown

• Bars 1 and 3: Use quarter notes

  • This means playing on the beat as we tap our foot.

• Bars 2 and 4: Incorporate half notes and finish with a whole note.

Note Changes

An additional challenge is that with the quarter notes, we're changing notes every time‚ we don't play the same note twice. This is important for our fingerings.

Fingering Instructions

• G: Play 3rd fret on the E string
• A: Follow with
• B: Use the 2nd finger
• D: Use the open string

So we can see that again:

• G: 3
• D: 0
• B: 2
• A: 0

Keeping our fingers in that position, in the next bar with our half notes:

• C to B: This is a semitone difference‚ just one fret apart.
  • Use the 3rd finger for C and the 2nd finger for B.

Count: 1, 2, 1, 2.

Descending Line Practice

Now, a tricky descending line here. This might take the most practice. In this example, we're playing the open D string, then descending down on the A string.

What I mean by descending is that we're going down in pitch each time:

• C (3rd fret)
• B
• Open A
• Finally, finish on G (3rd fret on top) for a whole note, four beats.

These are the last two bars (3 and 4).

Let's Try It Together

I'll count out loud, and we'll go at a slightly slower tempo:

• Count: 1, 2, 3, 4.
• Repeat: 1, 2, 3, 4.
• Continue: 1, 2, 1, 2.
• Final count: 1, 2, 3, 4.

Play Along

Let's have some fun playing with the backing track! It gives you a taste of what it's like to play with the band and a preview of what we have coming up.