al di meola – Making Music Theory and Jazz Improvisation work for you

“Al di Meola” Alternate Picking Acoustic Guitar lesson/lick

Posted on April 5, 2020 by Jazz fusion guitar Improvisation lessons and modern music theory

In this video and lesson we look at a basic but very useful repetitive alternate picking 2 string guitar lick.

This is an excellent way to develop the right hand picking technique and get the left hand fretting fingers into synchronisation.

Alternate Picking 2 string “Al di Meola” guitar lick/lesson

al di meola alternate picking lesson — Al Di Meola 2 string alternate picking guitar lick

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Jazz/fusion improvisation Altered scale Theory Lesson

Posted on December 11, 2019December 26, 2019 by Jazz fusion guitar Improvisation lessons and modern music theory

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Today we will look at a John Mclaughlin alternate picking Jazz/Fusion improvisation cadence employing the altered dominant chord! Please watch the video below and then try it out yourself.

As you will see this cadence employs the Altered scale. It is a 2 [minor 7 flat 5] going to 5 [ “Altered Dominant”] 1 [major 7th]. This being Dm7 flat 5 G7 altered resolving to C major7.

I also employ a flat 5 substitution on the Dm7 flat 5. All of this resolves though and slips nicely into the altered dominant 5 chord. I also use pentatonics within the altered scale for rhythmic flow. Please look at the TAB/MUSIC below and play through it yourself to see and feel how it all “Naturally” unfolds. I employ alternate picking the same as John Mclaughlin.

John Mclaughlin alternate picking altered scale line Music/Tab

John Mclaughlin Alternate picking Altered scale jazz improviser line

VARIATION With an A flat Pentatonic shape replacing A flat minor/Major Arpeggio for the flat 5 substitution.

Altered scale jazz improvisation, jazz improviser lesson

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Chordal Picking Arpeggios Guitar Lesson

Posted on November 8, 2019October 5, 2020 by Jazz fusion guitar Improvisation lessons and modern music theory

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In this Lesson we will look at Arpeggio “Chordal Picking” patterns as used in compositions like “Orient Blue”.

This style picks the notes of a chord by employing specific picking patterns to bring out the resonant arpeggios.

basic 3/4 pattern: “down down down up up up”

Al di meola basic chordal right hand picking pattern

4 bar sequence of basic 3/4 chordal picking pattern

Al di meola 3/4 right hand chordal picking pattern lesson basic

with the addition of a triplet pattern going “down down up”

Al di meola 8ths to triplet chordal picking right hand guitar patterns lesson

chordal picking with melody notes in the treble [1st string]

Al di Meola chordal picking guitar technique lesson

3/4 chordal picking riff

Al di Meola chordal picking guitar patterns lesson right hand guitar technique

Transposed Modes of the Melodic Minor With C as Parent key.

The C melodic Minor 2nd Mode transposed with C as the parent key note. We now have “Dorian b2” this being the same as Bb melodic minor but starting on the parent key root note of C.

Altered Scale Jazz Fusion Guitar Concepts [John Mclaughlin lick]

The chord sequence is Dm7b5 G7″Altered” resolving to C major7th. Break each four note grouping into tetrachords, learning a group at a time. Altered Scale Jazz Fusion Guitar Concepts [John Mclaughlin lick]

2 Short Bebop Jazz Guitar Lines [Breakdown]

Notice the off-beat set up and triplet figure that pushes the line along. This is a typical bebop phrasing technique that always works well. These simple little rhythmic figures are very common but give command to good jazz bebop phrasing.