From The Ukulele Yes! Vault
Re-prints of vintage Ukulele Yes! articles
Marven Shields offers advice on introducing blues improvisation to beginners. It might be easier than you think! Reprinted from Ukulele Yes! Volume 5 (1980).
Blues Improvising For Beginners
By Marven Shields
This article is in C6 tuning (g, c, e, a).
Click here to read in D6 tuning (a, d, f#, b).
In the key of A this is very easily done. One can use any open string note, any note of the 2nd fret and the 'C' (3rd fret 1st string) to create a melody:
fig. 1: Available Notes in the key of A
A preliminary exercise might be:
Play 2nd fret and open string notes (in that order) on strings 1-2-3 and 4, followed by open string and 2nd fret notes (in that order) on string 4-3-2-1.
Now, one has the facility to create many interesting improvised melodies. Start with quarter notes only, then begin experimenting rhythmically. Other techniques such as bends, hammer-ons and pulloffs may be introduced later.
This pattern of improvising a melody is moveable so we can use it in any key we wish. For example:
C / / / C / / / C / / / C7 / / /
F7 / / / F7 / / / C / / / C / / /
G7 / / / F7 / / / C / / / G7 / / /
The pitches to use in an improvised melody are: all pitches at the 3rd and 5th frets as well as the E-flat at the 6th fret, 1st string.
fig. 2: Available notes In the key of C
Here you use many of the same techniques used in cross-string scales.
Blues For Uke
In the key of A
Easy progression
Play with a lilting strum:
A / / / A / / / A / / / A7 / / /
D7 / / / D7 / / / A / / / A / / /
E7 / / / D7 / / / A / / / E7 / / /
More Advanced Progression
The more advanced version of this progression uses some new chords: A6, A7, D6 and D7. Here's how to turn A into A6 or A7:
Add finger 3 (on the "x" in the diagram above) to get A6, then add finger 4 (the square in the diagram above) to get A7.
Here's how to turn D into D6 or D7:
Add finger 4 on the "x" to get D6, then slide into fret 3 (the square in the diagram above) to get D7.
Play with a lilting strum:
A / A6 / A7 / A6 /
A / A6 / A7 / A6 /
D / D6 / D7 / D6 /
A / A6 / A7 / A6 /
E7 / / / D7 / / /
A / / / E7 / / /
An innovative and energetic teacher, Marven is the author of the landmark ukulele text A Music Reading Program for Ukulele. Formerly Supervisor of Music in Melfort, Saskatchewan, Marven is now retired and lives in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.
This month, Cynthia Kinnunen gives us some intervalactic tactics
Building recognition of intervals aurally (by ear) and on the page (by sight) helps to improve many aspects of our musical learning, including sight reading, sight singing, harmonizing and more! But knowing where to begin teaching intervals can leave us feeling like we’re on another planet.