playing in the box

[fenderrules]

hey guys..

im playing a gig for my school's gradshow on the 14th and i have been invited by my other guitarist who's really good to improvise along with him. knowing that i cant shred he told me i could just soulplay (play with feeling) and do any tricks i want. i have alot of stupid whacky whammy bar tricks up my sleeve, but the problem is i know some blues scales but i always keep playing them in "box" mode if you know what i mean..i dont know how to move out of the scale.

for example i wanted move out of the E blues scale, so i picked up the E mixolydian to give it a touch of arabic-like sound. but the last note i ended up playing is a G

but since i have been asked to soulplay, will playing the scale caged up in that particular pattern bore the audience? and how do i move out of the scale to play its relative keys? what do i need to learn besides

help! i only have a week left!

thanks a bunch!

 

[Black_Death]

hmm..IMO...a good guitarist who plays with alot of feel..even if confined to a "box"...will be able to capture the audience's attention..i tink its how u go abt doin things..altho it's good to have variation..or else it'll get monotonous.

 

[fenderrules]

oh, so ive got to have more feeling?

 

[Black_Death]

erm..i dunno if feeling is a right word...


here's one..when i was in sec 2 or 3..cant remember..there was this pianist who came to my skul...


he asked a teacher to pick for him 3 notes..and she did juz so..

and he played juz that 3...to the untrained ears..they do not sound the same..


get my point?


well..basically..i dun quite know how to bring my point across.. :lol:

 

[fenderrules]

its alright, maybe ill really just meditate on some blues scales alone....maybe that'll churn out more licks in a box

 

[Black_Death]

free ur mind..ahahhaha..


juz add some random notes as "passing" notes...tho they might be mismatched..if applied correctly..will sound fluid..


bt well..let the better ones help u out.

 

[fenderrules]

yep, ill free my mind lolx

mismatched notes huh.....i think im starting to get what you mean....

 

[Crawldaddy]

Hmm.

All I can suggest to you is listen to stuff like Pink Floyd... selected tracks include:

Shine on You Crazy Diamond
Comfortably Numb
Money

David Gilmour is probably the one guy I have heard who uses these bluesy runs in a progressive rock format, and yet it feels so good.

If you're talking about *feel*, this is the guy to take heed towards.

Not to mention economy of notes, especially in blues.. many a time it's what you DON'T play that matters.
Hope this helps

 

[ShredCow]

Well,.... i'm going to be very practical.

1 week left.

Record the backing you will be soloing over, just strum the chords, anything.

Practice a solo over that, yes, compose a solo.

Practice frantically, memorise it, play it with your eyes close, play it will walk around, etc etc

I think that is more crucial now.

 

[fenderrules]

Well,.... i'm going to be very practical.

1 week left.

Record the backing you will be soloing over, just strum the chords, anything.

Practice a solo over that, yes, compose a solo.

Practice frantically, memorise it, play it with your eyes close, play it will walk around, etc etc

i actually did that already, and the solo is short and sweet, should be okay for the first time playing lead.

it would be nice tho if i had a better musical ear and more knowledge on music theory. i wouldnt have to confine myself in a box.

btw what would today's audience love to see more? tricks or solid guitar playing? or a mix of both?

 

[Crawldaddy]

Hmm.

IMO the audience would want to see you smiling and lookin at them, and knowing that you, as a performer are actually playing for them as an audience. That's very important: performer-audience interaction.

So walk about while playing and don't look down at your pedal-board or your axe.. look at your audience and have a bit of a smile so that you exude confidence.

Practising in front of a mirror works wonders :wink:

 

[Black_Death]

the mirror wise..MIGHT NOT work..well..becos..looking at urself smile at urself..feels weird..to me..i smile better without looking at how im smiling..

i dunno if i can call tt a smile..or a grin..

 

[Crawldaddy]

Hmm.

Yes, smiling to yourself might be weird.. but then again, use your imagination and use the mirror only to correct stuff like posture, the expression on your face etc.

I used to have this problem with having my mouth hanging slightly open while playing guitar, so I would check myself periodically to make sure I wouldn't look dumb while playing onstage.

Needless to say.. the mouth issue has been rectified like... 4 years ago? I'm still working on stuff like my posture onstage, and how some of my tricks would look from an audience point of view.

But practically, use the music as a point of inspiration, but practise hard on your solo and work on your stage presence.. should be more than enough. Use tricks only to spice up the performance.

 

[fenderrules]

Hmm.

So walk about while playing and don't look down at your pedal-board or your axe.. look at your audience and have a bit of a smile so that you exude confidence.

Practising in front of a mirror works wonders :wink:

yeah, i practice in front of a mirror too and its a full scale mirror too

thanks for the tips so far. you guys have been very helpful. thanks shredcow, hope i can meet up with you for the 2006 soft jam and exchange ideas.

 

[ShredCow]

it would be nice tho if i had a better musical ear and more knowledge on music theory. i wouldnt have to confine myself in a box.

Believe me. I've struggle a heck of a lot just to try to get out of the box. The Music Society does not approve of out-of-the-box-ness. Trust me. You ain't getting anywhere if you got out of the box. Just be branded noise.

 

[hifi_killer]

i think one should try to cover every single area proficiently within the box before he ventures out of the box.

I also think you will know better than us what the your school crowd will appreciate.. Imagine yourself as someone who knows nothing about guitar and think about it.