Robert Fripp Guitar Picking Exercise for Unique Phrases and Patterns

Robert Fripp Guitar Picking Lesson and Exercises

Hi Guys,

Today, a Robert Fripp style Guitar Picking exercise that incorporates various Fripp/King Crimson guitar picking patterns.

These are angular, string skipping and awkward intervals that can be picked with either strict alternate picking or “Down Down up”. I employ alternate picking mostly, but, there are parts where I exploit the “Down Down Up” pattern purely because some string skipping intervals are too wide and awkward for alternate picking alone.

The first bar is quite awkward and so I “Float” with my right picking hand. This way I am not stuck in any one position and I can freely pluck the passage without any intrusions.

king-crimson-fripp-guitar-picking-lesson-example

At this part of the bar you will notice the awkward string skipping part between the C and C# down to the E note. You will need to pivot with the fretting hand for this. [Please see video above for detailed info].

fripp-guitar-picking-lesson-example-intervallic

The next bar is starting on an “Upstroke” with strict alternate picking:

fripp-guitar-picking-lesson-example

The next Phrase is reminiscent of “Larks Tongues in Aspic III” by Fripp. Notice the C note to the open E string to the C# note. This connects the phrase nicely by breaking the chromaticism up and at the same time making it fluid.

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In the next part we can see how phrases might be counted or felt as groups of 5 or 3. [See video above]

crimson-fripp-guitar-picking-lesson-example

To round the phrase off I employ a descending Eb Dominant pentatonic scale: This employs alternate picking starting on an upstroke. [I finished on the note F# purely becasue I like the sound].

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The final part employs a 5/8 chordal picking vamp:

The picking pattern I use is : “Down down down up up” and “Down down up down up” with the plectrum.

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This was just an exercise/example by taking some King Crimson, Robert Fripp signature licks, patterns and phrases and making a little etude from them. This in turn creates some familiarity with the right hand picking in order to create patterns of our own.

Making your own patterns and coming up with your own original and unique phrases is the key rather than to just copy.

There are so many variations to exploit, which gives any player a mountain of material to work with. So, anyone can make some really original, colourful and interesting music from this.

Fripp-guitar-lesson

Pat Martino Intervallic Studies: Un-Published Book Lesson

Pat Martino Intervallic Studies: Un-Published Book Lesson

Hi Guys!

Guitarist Mark Koch one of Pat’s students kindly sent me a copy of Pat’s un-published book on “Intervallic studies“.

pat-martino-intervallic-studies-umpinlished-book

It’s a fascinating look at the imaginative thought process and creative concepts that Pat was investigating for the development of the improvising guitarist.

pat-martino-intervallic-studies-unpublished-book

In this first example we will look at the “Whole Tone Scale” Study:

pat-martino-intervallic-studies-unpublished-book

From a music theory perspective if we take away the intervallic approach and place the notes in order we will get a whole tone scale ascending followed by a whole tone scale descending:

pat-martino-intervallic-studies-unpublished-book

Now, we will put them back into the “Disguised” form with the clever approach of the intervallic design:

pat-martino-intervallic-guitar-studies

The key to playing these studies on the guitar is to decide on a methodical fingering and stick to it. [Below=Pat’s Fingering]

pat-martino's-unpublished-book-intervallic-guitar-studies

pat-martino-intervallic-studies-unpublished-book

I am employing strict alternate picking for this study starting on an upstroke:

pat-martino-intervallic-studies-unpublished-book

pat-martino-intervallic-studies-unpublished-book

Same Study: From Pat’s book with fingering examples:

pat-martino-intervallic-studies-unpublished-book-whole-tone-scale

Now we will look at how Pat breathes life into the pentatonic scale:

pat-martino-intervallic-studies-unpublished-book

As before we will take this from a music theory perspective and remove the intervallic approach:

pat-martino-pentatonic-scale-guitar-lesson

Now, let’s disguise this with the use of intervallic exploitation and alternate picking starting on a “Downstroke”:

pat-martino-intervallic-studies-unpublished-book

Same Study from Pat’s unpublished book:

pat-martino-intervallic-studies-unpublished-book

Finally, we will employ these intervallic concepts through a iim7b5 V7 i cadence.

Once again, we see the intervallic set up:

pat-martino-intervallic-improvisation-example

Now, let’s employ our music theory and place the intervallic notes in order. Here we find that we have the exploitation of the chromatic scale.

pat-martinochromatic-scale-guitar-lesson

This clever approach is really effective because in the second bar beats 2 and 3 we have a literal chromatic scale that then anticipates the coming minor tonic chord of Em with an Em arpeggio.

pat-martino-intervallic-improvisation-example

Full Example:

pat-martino-intervallic-improvisation-example

This was just a quick look at the creative thought process and unique approach of Pat Martino, resulting in the application of this material into a minor iim7b5 V7 i improvised line to hear how they work and sound.

This approach to scales and improvising [and composing] with them is highly original and extremely useful when there is a need to bust out of cliches and seek colour and creativity in our playing.

Fripp/King Crimson style Guitar Picking Exercise:

Modern Jazz Fusion Chords part 2. Steely Dan, Dan Chord and Slash Chords

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Robert Fripp/King Crimson Style Guitar Picking Exercise: Alternate Picking/Cross Picking

Hi Guys,

Today, a “Quirky” Fripp-esque/Crimson-esque guitar picking exercise.

Here is the first part:

fripp-king-crimson-guitar-techniques-lesson-example

As you can see this is very intervallic and as Robert Fripp might call it, “Finickity” picking pattern.

Alternate picking starting on an upstroke works really:

fripp-king-crimson-guitar-techniques-lesson-example

Also, the pattern “Down Down Down Up” works well: [with a short amount of alternate picking on the C B E notes in the bass]

Fripp-king-crimson-cross-picking-guitartechnqiue-example-lesson

Moving on from this we have chromatic movement: So from here on in we employ strict alternate picking starting on an “Upstroke”:

fripp-king-crimson-guitar-techniques-lesson-example

In this next phrase we have a contrapuntal effect with arpeggio and scale movement put to good use.

fripp-king-crimson-guitar-techniques-lesson-example

We finish the first part with more descending chromatic movement with the last line imitating the phrase before it.

fripp-king-crimson-guitar-techniques-lesson-example

  

In the 2nd part we exploit whole tone scale movement:

fripp-king-crimson-guitar-techniques-lesson-example

We will decorate this by employing 4ths:

fripp-king-crimson-guitar-techniques-lesson-example

Now we will dismantle the whole tone scale by making a chordal quartal melody and strum this up a semitone and back to create a colourful sound:

fripp-king-crimson-guitar-techniques-lesson-example

This is then repeated up in Major thirds.

fripp-king-crimson-guitar-techniques-lesson-example

Up another Major third:

fripp-king-crimson-guitar-techniques-lesson-example

Finally we descend from the 12th fret with this little motif:

fripp-king-crimson-guitar-techniques-lesson-example

Modern Jazz Fusion Chords part 2. Steely Dan, Dan Chord and Slash Chords