Photo by Mikkel Bech on Unsplash
Beginner
Intermediate
- Explain how chords are generated from scales.
- Create unusual harmonies, chord progressions, bass lines, and melodies using the blues scale.
- Demonstrate how music theory and musical intuition can coalesce to create unique sounds from traditional materials.
Chord Creation
The idea of harmonization is relatively simple. It means is to play two or more notes together at the same time. Technically speaking, two notes performed at the same time create a dyad, not a chord. It takes three or more notes performed simultaneously to create a chord, although the one exception, the two-note so-called "power chord" in Ex. 1, skews this theory a bit.
So, which two or more notes should you harmonize? Any you want! But, if you desire continuity in your compositions and playing, it's a good idea to harmonize notes from a specific scale.
Most musicians usually start with the major scale, stacking every other note of the scale on top of each other until a triad is created (Ex. 2).
From there you can start adding, or replacing notes, to create variations from these basic triads, as seen in Ex. 3.
I must point out that you can also arpeggiate these chords, playing the notes one at a time (Ex. 4). Since we are emphasizing harmony in this lesson, it helps to let them ring out.
That's the most common way to create chords, but in this lesson we're looking for something unusual. So rather than being so formulaic, let's proceed with the basic idea that playing two or more notes at the same time will work as long as they all come from the blues scale.
The blues scale is just the minor pentatonic scale with one additional note, which gets labeled #4 or a b5 depending on context. Ex. 5 shows the most common "box" pattern for the A blues scale (A–C–D–Eb–E–G). After getting a hold of this scale, I recommend working on it in the key of E and D since many of the notes can be played with open strings.
There are two considerable disparities when it comes to generating chords from the blues scale as compared to the major scale. First, the blues scale only has six notes and second, the intervals between the notes in each scale are significantly different.
This means that the blues scale creates radical changes in chord construction and nomenclature, the theory of which is far beyond the scope of this lesson. For instance, Ex. 6 is a selection of relatively common chords you can generate from the A blues scale. Later on, we will get into more exotic harmonies.
For now, all you really need to understand about the theory is that, the chords, and the melodies I've composed to fit them, all come from harmonizing notes from the A blues scale.
When Theory, Intuition, and Creativity Meet
Once the concept of harmonization is understood, the possibilities are limited only by your imagination. The following examples are just a few of the endless ideas you could generate. I have designed my examples to imitate the styles of well-known composers and guitarists and broken them down into how they are fingered on the fretboard.
Ex. 7 is a particularly fun place to start as this arpeggio is just the A blues scale, but the notes are displaced into different octaves to create chords.
For Ex. 8 I've rearranged the notes ever so slightly to create a slightly more uniform, pseudo-Slayer progression and melody.
Ex. 8
The bent note at the beginning of Ex. 9 immediately made me think of Jimmy Page, so for guitar two, I mimicked Robert Plant's chromatic vocal melody on "Misty Mountain Hop" to create this Led Zeppelin-inspired etude. Note that the first chord is labeled A5(#11) because it contains the D# almost an octave and half higher than the root, making it a #11 in relationship to the A.
Ex. 9
Ex. 10 was a happy accident I discovered while playing around with this lesson's concept. It's unashamedly Nine Inch Nails meets Andy Summers. The second chord in the progression is a little tricky to label, so I went with D5(b9) as it contains Eb an octave and one half-step away from the root, making it the b9.
Ex. 10
Ex. 11 demonstrates the power of playing unexpected, three-note chords over a static bassline, very similar to funk/fusion keyboard players in the 1970s (think Herbie Hancock and Chick Corea). To provide continuity, I've actually harmonized the blues scale using the same method discussed in Ex. 2. The chord labels I've chosen are derived from a combination of the chords and the bass line, though you'll see there are really only two chords: Cm and Asus4, played with different voicings. And take my word for it, the fact that this progression contains both Cm and Am chords is highly unusual and worth more investigation.
Ex. 11
Ex. 12 Is a pseudo-power chord riff a la Fugazi or other bands found in the post-punk/emo genres. I've started here with a variation of the A5(#11) chord. Perhaps this is the defining chord of the harmonized blues scale? The rest of the progression seems to alternate between variations of Am and G, but notice that the bass is playing different notes over the chords, providing harmonic variation. Also pay attention that B and C sections are slightly different.
Ex. 12
Comprehend and Create!
I hope by now you've realized that the key to exploiting the harmonized blues scale is to include the #4/b5 in all your progressions. This is the vital element that distinguishes the blues scale from so many others. Make your own progressions, melodies, and songs based on what we've started here. You are only limited by your imagination.
The Global Scale?
The major pentatonic scale, (Ex. 1), is regularly cited as one of the most ancient and commonly used scales in the world. But is it true? While I have found several examples that highlight the use of the major pentatonic in music across the globe, there are fewer than I imagined. Much more common is the use of various hexatonic, or six-note, scales.
Conceivably, my research for this lesson may have been too limited. Or maybe it's the lack of non-Western music transcribed in standard notation that was a pitfall? If so, I welcome correspondence from readers remedying my shortcomings. But for now, let's investigate a few of the melodies that prove the claim true (if more limited than I thought when taking on this lesson).
China
The first destination on our global journey is China and the 18th-century folk song “Jasmine Flower" aka “Mo Li Hua." This song has lyrics, but it is also performed as an instrumental. As with all the examples in this lesson, the first performance, shown in Ex. 2, features a stylized version of the melody. In this case, I have recorded it on an electric guitar using volume knob swells and an exaggerated vibrato, doing my best to emulate an Erhu, a two-string bowed instrument akin to a violin. This first version uses the G major pentatonic scale (G–A–B–D–E). The second version, (Ex. 3), is a simplified performance using the C major pentatonic scale (C–D–E–G–A).
Click here for Ex. 2
Click here for Ex. 3
Thailand
Up next on our world tour is Thailand and the traditional song “Ngam Sang Duan," which is used for a Thai dance. This melody is typically sung with lyrics, accompanied by xylophone. Ex. 4 features tremolo picking, using the Eb major pentatonic scale (Eb–F–G–Bb–C), imitating a xylophone performance. Ex. 5 is a basic rendition using the C major pentatonic scale.
Click here for Ex. 4
Click here for Ex. 5
India
And we're off to India, playing “Vara Vina" aka “Vara Veena" a Geetam, the simplest form in Carnatic music, one of the two subgenres of Indian classical music. Like the previous melodies, this one is both sung and performed instrumentally. To honor traditional sitar technique, Ex. 6 is performed on one string (still using the pentatonic scale, though that may be difficult to discern), with exaggerated vibrato, plentiful slides, and an A drone accompaniment. Ex. 7 is a rudimentary interpretation using the C major pentatonic.
Click here for Ex. 6
Click here for Ex. 7
Ireland
The closing stop on our international expedition brings us to Ireland and “Peg Ryan's Polka," a jaunty little dance tune (Ex. 8). The D major pentatonic (D–E–F#–A–B) includes a few ornamental 16th-note flourishes and unexpected syncopations, whereas Ex. 9 is a plainer, though nonetheless sprightly, reading out of C major pentatonic.
Click here for Ex. 8
Click here for Ex. 9
As you can see, the major pentatonic does indeed span the globe. Nevertheless, I was surprised to find that it's not the major pentatonic per se but variations, including the minor pentatonic, the so-called Japanese pentatonic, Dorian pentatonic, the Ambassel scale of Ethiopia, a few pentatonic scales that don't conform to the Western tuning system (Javanese in particular), and the aforementioned hexatonic scales that appear to be more prevalent. That realization, rather than discouraging this lesson, led me to be as transparent as possible regarding my research findings. And, more importantly, it fed my interest in learning more about different cultures and their music. I hope you'll continue to explore as well. Bon voyage!
