S E S S I O N S

Go Outside
fromWithin
B Y J O D Y F I S H E R

STARTING
STARTING AN IMPROVISED PHRASE maining notes carry you out of the chord—often
from a chord tone produces a very traditional, entirely out of the key. You control the degree
“inside” sound. That’s
That’s useful in many situations, of tonal disintegration by the structure of your
but did you know you can use chord tones to original melodic idea. The more chord tones you
generate rather radical ideas? Here’s the concept: include, the more “inside” the sound. The more
Compose short, interesting melodic ideas, and notes you use from other tonalities, the more
launch them from different chord tones. With “outside” the sound.
this technique, you’ll come up with phrases that Hands on. Let’s try this technique over an
are inside enough to sound intentional, but out- E7 # 
#9 
9   , as in E x. 1,
1, where we launch the same
side enough to intrigue listeners. rhythmic and intervallic pattern from each
orks. By beginning your phrase on
How it w orks. chord tone. Notice how we always wind up a a fifth above each chord tone and takes us well
a chord tone, you establish a connection with fourth higher than our starting note. beyond the blues box.
the harmony of the moment. The phrase’s re- Play Ex.
Play  Ex. 2 over Gm7 . This pattern ends up Ex. 3 illustrates what happens when you

Ex. 1  E7 9

4    
1
 4
   1

    
2

  4 3
 
  
 4 
 
  
1


   
1


    
1 3

  
1

   

  

3 3

( )
3
1
1
2
3

   3

8
3
1

etc.
4 1 1
2
1
4
1 1
2

1
( )

4 1 1
2

1 4 1 1
2
4

3
8 11 8 7 8 3
T 7 10 7 6 6 4
A 6 9 6 5 7 6
B 7 10 7 6 7 4 7
7 10 7 6 4 7 4 3 0
circled notes = target chord tones

Ex. 2

4    Gm7

   
4

        
4

    4

 4

   3

4
 
 
 
1 1


1


1

 
  
1


1

    
1


 

4 1

 
4

    
  
1

 1
4 1
1
4

( ) 4
3

4
3

4
4
1
3

   3

8 11 8 7
10
6 9 6 5
3

8
etc.
3

10
3
1 4 1 1 1 4 1 1
1
4 1
1
2

6
T 7 10 7 6 10 7 7
A 8 11 8 7 5 8 5 4 10 7 5
B 8 11 8 7 5 8 5 4
6

Ex. 3

4
Fmaj7

           
 4 4

 4  
 
     
3
  
   4

   
3

1
 4
  
  1
3

4
2 1 4

( )
2 1 ( )
4
1
1
4
1
1

3
3
2

1
1 2 2
3 3
2
3

12
9 12 10 13 10
T 6 9 9 12 9 10 9
A 6 9 7 10 7 10
B 7 10 7 8 8
8
 launch a major triad shape from each
Fmaj7  chord tone. Not the stereotypical
arpeggiated maj7 sound!
the #5 tension.
Ex. 5 encircles Am7 chord tones in an
ear-tweaking way.
Jody Fisher is an associate director for
the National Guitar Workshop’s California
S
In E x. 4, we start an augmented chord Finally, be sparing with techniques that and Nashville campuses. His Thirty-Day 
shape from G7  b 5 chord tones, and alter- generate outside sounds. Remember to Workout for Guitarists is published by Al-
nate ascending and descending patterns. play such ideas with confidence and au- fred. For info on Fisher’s CD Old Songs,
Even though we’re thinking in terms of a thority so your dissonances don’t simply   New Licks , write to Ear Fruit, Box 1602, Red-
dominant 7b5, this example also produces sound like mistakes. g lands, CA 92373.

   
Ex. 4
G7 5

  E
4   3
   2

  
2

1

 
1

   2
        
   2
1 1 1 2
1
3

4   
2 3 2 2 1 2

  3 2
2 3
3 2 2
2
3
3
1
4
2

13 9 7 3 1 3 7

S
14 10 8 4 2 4 8 8
T 14 10 8 4 2 4 8 6
A 15 11 9 5 3 5 9 9
B 8

4    
Ex. 5Am7

2

                      
1 2 4
2
1 2
4 2
2 4

4         1 2 1 2 4
2 4

  1 2
( )

2 1 2 4 2
3
1
4
4 2

S
2 1

8 7 8 10
10 9 10 12 8 7 8 10
T 9 8 9 11 9
A 10 9 10 12 7 6 7 9 7
B 10 9 10 12 10
8

S
 S E S S I O N S
Lenny Breau’s
Comping Workout

IN MAY ’84, MASTER  ing on D . “To get the most out of 
fingerstylist Lenny Breau offered this exercise, you should begin on
this insight into his harmonic wiz- other scale tones as well,” sug-
ardry: “The more command you gested Breau. “Depending on
have over chord voicings and  which note you start with, some
their inversions, the more you’ll of the resulting chords may sound
be able to implement your musi- dissonant—F  , for instance, as the
cal ideas in situations ranging  upper voice of Cmaj7 . Keep the
from spontaneous comping to melody chromatic, and simply al-
meticulous arranging. This exer- ter the harmony as needed to
cise is designed to help you gain make the sequence flow more
better control of the voicings you smoothly.”
already know.” For instance, if you prefer to
The chord sequence is based avoid such unsettling chords as
on I-VI-II-V root motion, a very  Cmaj7  with G #  in the melody,
common progression in jazz and simply change the harmony to E7 .
pop. Each chord is modified to ac- Just keep in mind that in doing so,
commodate the melody line—an  you’ve changed the progression
ascending chromatic scale, start- from I-VI-II-V to III-VI-II-V. g

Cmaj9
X2 1 4 3 X X
A7 5
2 3 1 X
Dm9
X 2 1 3 4 X
G7 5 9
3 X4 1 2 1
Em9
X4 3 2 1 X

A7 5 9
3 1 2 1
Dm7 5
X 2 X3 4 1
G13
1 X2 3 4 4
IV IV

4                 
  
 4            
  ( )
( ) ( )
( )

 Em7 5
X 2 X3 4 1
A13
1 X 2 3 4 4
 Dm7
X1 3 1 2 4
G13 5 9
X1 3 3 3 3
Cmaj13
1 X2 3 4 4
VI V V VIII VIII

      
   
  
 
   
  
  
( )
( )
( )
( )

1 5 2 GUITAR PLAYER OCTOBER 1998

 S

L i c k o f t h e M o n t h
I
F O U R O N T H E F L O O R

O
CHARLES CHAPMAN, AN ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR  this lick will do it every time. My students find it useful,
at Berklee’s guitar department, is our October Lickster. “If  no matter what style they play. Play with a swing feel, and
 you need a hip turnaround for a swing tune or shuffle blues, keep the four-on-the-floor bass nice and steady.” g

C7 A7 D7 G7

4
4    

                  
3
2

  
3
2
3
1
( )
3
2


1 1 1 2


2

1
1
2

N
T 9 6 5 4
A 8 5 4 3
B 6 5 4
8 6 5 4 3

Send us your candidate for Lick of the Month (preferably notated to Lick of the Month, Guitar Player , 411 Borel Ave. #100, San Mateo,
and on cassette), along with a brief explanation of why it’s cool and how 
to play it. If we select your offering, you’ll get a funky custom T-shirt
that’s available only to Lick of the Month club members. Mail your entry 
CA 94402. Include your name, address, and phone number. Materials
 won’t be returned, and please don’t call the office to check the status
of your submission. You’ll get your shirt if your lick is chosen. g
S
 S E S S I O N S
L A P T O P G U I TA R  

A Trip to Hawaii
BY STACY PHILLIPS

STEEL GUITAR PLAYS A PROMINENT or third below. The hula pick usually occurs on Tomi,” and is based on the playing of the first
role in country and bluegrass, but it was orig- a different string from the melody note, but you steel-guitar superstar, Sol Hoopii, who rose to
inally called Hawaiian guitar, in honor of its can use the open first string if it fits in the key. prominence in the late ’20s.
birthplace. The technique of using a piece of  The result resembles the voice break of a yodel. Cry ing and sliding. A right-hand effect that
metal to fret a guitar was solidified (and perhaps In Ex. 1, the first three notes played on the became synonymous with Hawaiian music is
invented) by native Hawaiian Joseph Kekuku third string are hula picks. The melodic moves the steel guitar’s version of tremolo. This involves
in the last decade of the nineteenth century. in this line are prototypically Hawaiian. A slow, quickly alternating notes on two (usually ad-
Here is a short list of moves identified with the  wide vibrato is a must.  jacent) strings. This alternation usually has a
original slide sound from the “Land of the Hula.” Hawaiian hiccups. On uptempo tunes, triplet rhythm, but the rate can vary. When you
 All examples use high open-G tuning (G , B , D , steelers often transform the open-string hula add a dollop of lazy, wide vibrato, and let each
G , B , D ), and are intended for lapstyle guitar. picks into series of very staccato notes that serve pair of strings ring together, the individual pitch-
Hula picks. One signature bit of phrasing  as rhythmic interjections in the melody. When es become murky and morph into a crying, war-
is called the hula pick . This involves approach- they are fast and short enough, they become bling sound. As you try E x. 3, sync your vibrato
ing a melody note by first playing a staccato Hawaiian hiccups, as illustrated in Ex. 2. This to your picking: Slide up when you pick the
note of lower pitch—typically located a sixth is an excerpt from a hula number called “Tomi higher string and down when you pluck the low-
er string. This is hot stuff in some circles.
Ex. 1 The amen turnaround. Another Hawaiian

 4  
= 84

 
w/slide


  
   
C7

      
F music trademark is a one- or two-measure
turnaround that’s tacked to the end of an eight-

4
  
 3
or 16-measure stanza. These turnarounds are
similar to the “amen” response of a church con-
gregation, and usually involve a I-V-I or V7-I
cadence. E x. 4 shows the latter. g
D 10 8 5 7 5
B 5 5 6 6
G T 9 7 5 5 3 5
D A
B B Stacy Phillips is the author of The Art of  
G
Hawaiian Steel Guitar andThe Complete Dobro 
Player (both distributed by Mel Bay). His most
Ex. 2

   
= 112

    B
    
recent album, Stacy Phillips/Paul Howard 
[Malahat Mountain] is a duet with vocalist/gui-

 
w/slide


    
   3
tarist Howard.

D 8 8 8 8 0 10 0 0 12 0 10 8
B
G T
D A
B B
G

Ex. 3 Ex. 4
 
4 
w/slide

  
= 80-116

  C
           4            F
= 76
w/slide
D7 G

4
   3
4
  
3 3 3 3
3

D 5 7 7 9 10 10 10 10 D 0 2 0 0 0 4 5
B 5 5 6 8 8 10 10 10 B 2 1
G T G T
D A D A
B B B B
G G
slant bar - - - - - - - - - -

1 5 4 GUITAR PLAYER OCTOBER 1998

Upper-Register S

Chords E
BY PINO MARRONE

 WHEN COMPING IN A MODERN

 jazz setting, it’s important to create color and
contrast. One way to accomplish this is to
change registers. Typically, the guitar’s low 
and mid registers are where most of the ac-
tion takes place. While used by pianists, the
S
high register is often neglected by guitarists.
For some it’s a bit uncomfortable to reach
voicings above the 12th fret, while others
can’t seem to find rich-sounding voicings
 way up there.

S
Ex. 1 contains beautiful upper-register
voicings. Play through them slowly, and try  four at around 85 bpm. Go for rhythmic Paul Desmond, as well as any music by 
singing the roots to help focus your ears on sparseness and space, and try playing these guitar genius Ted Greene. Also check out
their sound. Take your time. voicings with a bass player. how pianist Bill Evans comped behind the
Ex. 2 illustrates how you can use these Suggested listening. To get a feel for bass solo on “Beautiful Love” on his album
chords in a standard progression. Practice this approach, listen to anything by Cana- Explorations . This magic cut really illus-
 with a metronome clicking on beats two and dian guitarist Ed Bickert with saxophonist trates the point. g

Ex. 1

E9 5 
X 2 1 3 4
Amaj13
X1 1 1 2 4

F 7 5 9
X1 2 2 2 4
Bm11
X2 2 1 43

E13 9
2 X1 4 3
Amaj13
X3 4 2 1 1
 A Ted Greene alumnus, Pino Marrone
has also studied and performed extensively 
 with Joe Diorio. A former instructor at G.I.T.
I
and Grove School of Music, Marrone has
XI XI XIII XI X XII
played and recorded with Joe Farrell,
 Alphonso Johnson, Kenny Kirkland, Dianne
Reeves, Abraham Laboriel, and Herb Alpert.

O
Ex. 2

Em7 5 
X X3 2 2 4

A7 5 9
XX3 1 2 4
Dm/maj9
XX1 3 2 2

A 13
X1 2 1 4 4
Gm11
XX 2 2 1 4
XV XV XV XV XIII

 44         
 
  N
 
C13 9
X 12 2 2 4
Fmaj13
X1 1 1 2 4
A13 5 9
X1 2 2 2 4
Dm/maj9
XX 2 1 1 4
XIII XII X X

       
 
  S
 S E S S I O N S

TheFingertip
StringQuartet

BY MORRIS ACEVEDO

THE SECRET TO PLAYING SMOOTH versions, we can creep along on the same
chord changes lies in voice-leading. Sim- string set throughout an example.
ply put, this means paying attention to  As you move from chord to chord,
how each note in a chord moves to the imagine each string is a separate instru-
next chord’s notes. To get a feel for voice- ment or voice. Listen for common tones
leading, let’s try several variations on the and stepwise (half- or whole-step) motion
same progression:  Am 7 - D7 - Gmaj7 -  within each line. Now try to hear the pro-
Cmaj7 -F  # m7  b 5 -B7 -Em7 . gression as a set of four independent lines
Notice how Examples 1 and 2 stay on moving up or down the fretboard. Hey—
the inside four strings, while Examples 3  you have a string quartet at your fingertips!
and 4 descend and ascend on a split string  Once you’ve played these examples,
set: six, four, three, and two. By using in- transpose the progression to different keys.

Ex. 1
Am7 
D7 Gmaj7 Cmaj7 F m7 5 B7 Em7

 4
4 
 
 
 
 
 
 
     
   ( )

10 10 8 8 7 7 5
T 9 7 7 5 5 4 4
A 10 10 9 9 7 7 5
B 10 9 9 7 7 6 5

Ex. 2
Am7 
D7
 Gmaj7 Cmaj7 F m7 5 B7 Em7

 4
4 
 
 
 
 
  
  

 
  
     ( )

5 7 7 8 10 10 12
T 2 5 4 5 9 8 9
A 5 7 5 9 10 9 12
B 3 5 5 7 9 9 10
 Finally, try voice-leading other common
progressions—Imaj7-VIm7-IIm7-V7, for in-
stance, or a backcycled series of IIm7-V7-
string-set concept, experiment with
changing string sets in the middle of the
progression, and try voice-leading the
North Texas State and Berklee alum
Morris Acevedo lectures on jazz improv at
S
Imaj7 cadences. Some pointers: changes to your favorite tunes. Skillful use U.C. Berkeley, directs the Berkeley Jazz Gui-
• Be careful how you use major 7th of inversions and voice leading makes for tar Ensemble, and teaches at the Blue Bear
chords in the 3rd inversion, such as Ex. 1’s colorful comping. g School of American Music in San Francisco.
Gmaj7 . In some contexts, this voicing 
sounds too dissonant; in other situations,
it’s totally cool.
• Stay on one string set for the entire
Ex. 3
Am7 
D7
E
Gmaj7 Cmaj7 F m7 5 B7 Em7
progression. Doing so will force you to hunt
 44        
for new voicings—that’s good.
• Use the lowest note in each chord as
 your focus point.
  
        ( )

• Keep traveling in one direction along 

the fretboard, until you run out of room, 10 10 8 8 7 7 5
T 12 11 11 9 9 8 7
or your ear tells you it’s time to change di- A

S
10 10 9 9 7 7 5
B
rection. 12 10 10 8 8 7 7
• Wherever possible, build each line
from common tones and stepwise motion.
Once you’ve explored the single- Ex. 4
Am7  D7 Gmaj7 Cmaj7 F m7 5 B7 Em7

 4
4   
 
 
 
  

  
        ( )

T
A
1
2
2
3
5
4
7
7
5
8
9
9
7
9
7
10
11
9
12
12
12
S
B
3 5 7 8 8 11 12

N O T E S O N C A L L I
October ’98 Guitar Player  lessons:

1665 - Go Outside from Within,  ACCESSING NOTES ON CALL

O
BY JODY FISHER

To sample or record any lesson in

1666 - Comping Workout, BY LENNY BREAU
this month’s Sessions, call 1-900-370-
1667 - A Trip to Hawaii, BY STACY PHILLIPS 0020 and enter the appropriate four-
digit code. It costs 75¢ per minute.
1668 - Upper-Register Chords, BY PINO MARRONE
 You’ll need a touch-tone phone and
1669 - The Fingertip String Quartet, BY MORRIS ACEVEDO parental permission if you’re under
1670 - Lick of the Month: FOUR ON THE FLOOR
18. To better control your phone time,
use these touch-tone commands: 7
1671 - 7-String lesson, BY JOE GORE
= forward ten seconds; 8 = rewind ten
seconds; 9 = pause ten seconds; # =
skip to end; * = repeat lesson.
N
This month’s lessons are also
Try GP  ’s Sessions sampler with 11 grooving lessons for only five bucks. available on CD for only $6.95 (plus
Such a deal! Call 1-800-222-5544. $3.95 s/h). For credit card orders call
1-800-222-5544, or send check or
Net-heads: For the lowdown on GP  ’s music notation symbols— money order to Notes On Call, Octo-
and to hear Sessions sound samples—visit  ww  w.guit arplay er.com. ber ’98 Lessons, 146 2nd St. N., Ste.
201, St. Petersburg, FL 33701. S