Re: Blues scale: is this accurate?

"Danny Schorr" <.@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote in message 
news:6jmq54l0lmb29ulb9td4ltcle9jcj9vim4@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> On Sat, 21 Jun 2008 17:44:17 +0100, "David Webber"
> <dave@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote:
>
>>And in doing so - you're going beyond the "blues scale" essentially as a
>>necessity, rather than an optional add-on extra.
>
> No - it's an optional add-on. I could cite thousands of blues tunes
which
> *don't* use the relative major pentatonic...

I am getting even more confirmed in my feeling that just playing a blues 
scale is extremely limiting.  Maybe I'm misinterreting it but you seem to
me 
to want to get by with just 6 notes.   None of the blues I listen to does 
that - it is all much more interesting.

>>Well the last time I fell over it myself was a big band chart called
>>"Emancipation blues" - I think it was by Oliver Nelson.   I had 36 bars 
>>for
>>myself in amongst other soloists, and the blues scale felt all wrong in
>>rehearsal.   A more standard harmonic approach based on I IV7 and V7 
>>chords
>>workd much better.   I'll try and think of a more accessible example.
>
> Please do. Because if you play the blues scale over this
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M-aDm5Te8gI
>
> it works just fine.

It may for you, but, as I say, I found it a very unproductive and limiting

approach in this case.  The harmonic approach to the changes worked much 
better.   [I am encouraged by that video though because I think, without 
commenting on my ow contribution as I get very self-critical, we played it

much better.]

>>....
>>> - the
>>> people who noted it and cataloged it came after the fact.
>>
>>I'm sure that's true, but I'm equally sure that it is only an 
>>approximation
>>to the music it was taken from.   Nevertheless one which makes getting 
>>into
>>blues a lot easier when one is starting out.
>
> Yes. That is what teachers do. Make music accesible.

Then we'll agree on that.

Dave
-- 
David Webber
Author of 'Mozart the Music Processor'
http://www.mozart.co.uk
For discussion/sup****t see
http://www.mozart.co.uk/mozartists/mailinglist.htm