Improvisation #1: Melodic Style

Assuming that you already familiar with the base, analyzed in the previous page, we can now analyze different styles of improvisation. In fact, it's possible to play with various harmonic, melodic and technical methods in the same base. Clearly the result changes with the selected style, but this is important for versatility and for the musical taste of the performer.
The first line is based on the melodic improvisation using notes mainly from the C major scale, and adapting them to the chords that we come across.
You can listen to the solo in mp3 format.

Chord of Cadd9 - Bars 1 and 2
Often the beginning of a solo, either improvised or written, is moved forewards or backwards in the beat of the measure. In practice, you play or anticipate the notes in the last movements of the preceding bar (or of the so-called 0 bar if working on the first bar of a song), or delaying the notes (for instance, to raise the next movement). In our specific case the start is in the second movement. In one way or another, this common procedure has a variation to the immobility that would give a dry beginning in beat in the first movement. This doesn't mean that it's not correct to start from the first movement. It's only a personal observation, that can be very subjective.
The opening phrase requires a melodic line using an uncommon fingering (you will see by the labeled positions for the fingers), to be able to obtain the initial slide. Pay attention to the movement of the index finger on the 5th fret. Notice the use of the rest in the sixteenth that enrichs the rhythm of the notes. The phrase at the end of the second bar introduces the next chord of Am.

Am11 chord - Bars 3 and 4
Pay attention to the two slides between the G - A (2nd string) and E - D (3rd string) notes. The use of the slide can be interesting from an expressive point of view when playing one or more notes. At the end of the bar, a phrase begins that moves the melodic line into an upper register, which finishes in the 4th bar with the bending of the G note (20th fret, 2nd string) to the A note.
The second part of this bar requires a slightly blues use of the major scale, a characteristic that we will see again in the bending of a tone in the D note (15th fret, 2nd string, immediately followed by the E note on the 12th fret of the 1st string). The phrase connects with the following Fadd9 chord.

Fadd9 chord - Bars 5 and 6
Begin with a support between E and F on the 1st string. The use of the triad of C is interesting (the next notes E-C-G), that mainly identifies the ninth (G note). At the end of the bar we pick up the bluesy phrase from before, which develops a sixteenth tercet sequence in the second part of the 6th bar. These finish in beat in the next chord of Gsus4.

Gsus4 chord - Bars 7 and 8
The use of the descending fifth interval in the fingerings indicated in the score is quite interesting, which are always played with the pinky (higher note) and index fingers (lower note). Start on the raise of the third movement with the A-E notes, which are the 17th and 12th frets of the 1st string respectively, played at sixteenth. The following pairs, always sixteenth and played in descending scale, have the following interval between themselves: G-D, F-C, E-B and D-A.
In the second movement of the eighth bar we find an ascending and descending slide between the G-A-G notes on the 2nd string. Finally, another blues-style bending (always accompanied by the doubling of the taut note, this time between the 2nd and 3rd string) raises the A note a tone. Below are a succession of 32nd's in scale, where the last four identify an Em7 arpeggio. The entire phrase then closes in beat on the C note of the ninth measure, which would start another chorus of the song.

You can observe and print the complete score. In the next page a country type solo is analyzed.

Score

Base mp3 (3.272 KB)

Example Melodic Style mp3 (571 KB)

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