American Blues In 6 Weeks - Week 6 - Albert King

Dive deep into the soulful world of blues with our comprehensive guitar lesson series, "American Blues In 6 Weeks - Week 6 - Albert King." This final instalment encapsulates the essence of blues guitar, focusing on advanced techniques that Albert King famously utilized to express his unique sound. Through this course, learners will master the art of extending blues lines, executing multi-note bends, bending in intervals, and integrating skills from previous lessons to enhance their musical expression and guitar proficiency. This course is taught by Steve Trovato.

Lesson Overview

Shifting Position for Longer Blues Lines

Learning to shift positions seamlessly on the fretboard is crucial for creating extended, fluid blues lines, mimicking the vocal-like expressions Albert King was renowned for. This technique enhances your ability to navigate the neck effortlessly, allowing for more dynamic and expressive solos. By mastering position shifts, guitarists can connect phrases and licks across various scales and octaves, providing a wider range of sounds and textures in their playing.

Multiple Note Bends on a Single String

This course emphasizes the technique of bending multiple notes on a single string, a hallmark of Albert King's playing style. This approach not only adds emotional depth to your playing but also offers a nuanced way to approach melody and phrasing. Learning this technique enables guitarists to mimic the human voice more closely, adding a layer of expressiveness that resonates with the blues genre's emotive foundations.

Bending in Intervals

Interval bending introduces a sophisticated layer to blues guitar playing, allowing for the creation of tension and release within a musical phrase. This technique involves bending a string to reach the pitch of another interval, creating a powerful musical expression. It's a skill that, once mastered, can significantly enhance the emotional impact of your solos and lead lines, providing a direct connection to the listener's emotions.

Combining Techniques

Integrating the techniques from the entire series, this final week's lessons focus on the synthesis of learned skills to produce a comprehensive blues guitar playing style. By combining shifting positions, multi-note bends, interval bends, and other techniques from previous lessons, guitarists will develop a versatile and expressive blues playing style. This culmination not only solidifies the skills learned but also encourages the creation of a unique, personal guitar voice.

The Importance of Using a Backing Track

Practicing with a backing track is an invaluable part of this course, offering numerous benefits to learners. It provides a contextual foundation that helps in understanding timing, rhythm, and the dynamic interaction between lead and rhythm sections. Playing along with a backing track simulates a live band experience, improving your ability to listen and respond to other musicians. It also aids in developing a strong sense of groove and timing, essential elements in blues music, ensuring that your playing is not just technically proficient but also musically engaging.

Conclusion

"American Blues In 6 Weeks - Week 6 - Albert King" is designed to equip you with the skills necessary to express the emotional depth and technical nuances of blues music. By focusing on advanced techniques and integrating them with the foundations built in previous lessons, this course offers a comprehensive path to mastering blues guitar.

Guitar Techniques Used in This Series

• Vibrato
• Alternate Picking
• Legato
• String Bending
• Slides
• Hammer-ons
• Pull-offs
• Double Stops

Through this detailed exploration of Albert King's style and techniques, guitarists are invited to deepen their understanding and appreciation of blues music, culminating in a playing style that is both technically sound and emotionally expressive.