Improvising Study 1
Fri, 10/03/2025 - 12:30
David,
I am working back through older material I have been through before, since my practicing/playing has been so sporadic over the past few years.
In looking at AAA Chorus structure, and the same note pattern as your A lick, is there a problem to use:
6D 6D 7B 6D 5D 5D
I didn't grab the note combination from anywhere other than what sounded good to my ear. Without bends it might not be the "bluesiest" lick, I was going to build the homework assignments off it - unless there is something just foundationally wrong.
Thank you.
Hello Peter757.
Let's look at the notes you chose...
6 6 7+ 6 5 5... which is A A C A F F. Thinking on a C Harmonica in 2nd Position, the I7 Chord is G B D F. The only notes that match from you lick on the I7 Chord are those last two F's. It's probably not the best lick because of that.
Take a look at the first lick (A) of each chorus in your study songs and you'll see that most of the notes (or the long-held notes) are of the chord. That's a good rule to follow when you make up your own licks.
With all this said... there's no need to make up your own licks at this point. Take a lick that grabs your attention in one of the study songs on the site, or from your record collection of great artists. In your formative years (typically first 4-7 years), it's best to grab licks from the greats... you'll come up with your own ideas down the road.