Hi Guys,

Today, a quick look at how John McLaughlin moves from chord to scale or scale to chord on the nylon string guitar.

FAST ALTERNATE PICKING LICK!

In this lick we can see John exploit the 3/4 time signature with rapid fire alternate picked tetrachords!

This is classic “Music spoken here” style in regards to the application of pentatonic scale fingerings and melodic arpeggio shapes that connect together to create a fluid improvised line.

CLOSER LOOK:

Here, we can view the exploitation of a quick pentatonic fingering that ascends,

Now, we go the opposite way and answer the phrase with a descent. This employs the A Major Arpeggio shape/fingering:

Finally, we have a little melodic rise in the top line over a barred static chord. [Mind the stretch!]

MCLAUGHLIN GUITAR TECHNIQUE 2

In the next example, we will apply the concept of a chord to scale fragment that anticipates to the next chord in 4/4 time.

Technically, I am playing the chords on a downstroke and the scale on an upstroke. [This employs alternate picking guitar technique once more].

What makes it work so well on the guitar is that this concept employs 1st Inversion chord voicing’s- E,g B/D# to E/G# to A/C# to D/F# etc

Also, as a compositional device, this works brilliantly because it employs the cycle of Vb to Ib.

HERE IS THE DESCENDING IDEA:

HERE IS THE ASCENDING IDEA:

Notice: this is the same, but, this time we are ascending with the same concept.

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