The ultimate guitarist's reference book with playing techniques, solo and improvisation concepts, exercises and jam tracks. The purpose of this book is to demystify the relatively simple concepts or tricks around which much of rock guitar is built. The book is designed modularly, allowing the reader to choose any topic at any time, but is can also be sequentially as a method. Topics includes warm-ups, pentatonic scales, bending and vibrato techniques, blues scales, string skipping, major scales, alternate picking, modes, economy picking (sweeping), arpeggios, two-hand tapping, minor scales, legato techniques, exotic scales, whammy bar, how to build a solo, practice planning, and improvisation. Each concept is discussed in a thorough and easily understandable manner. The accompanying CD includes over 80 licks and exercises plus more than 20 jam tracks, helping the student put the concepts directly into practice. In notation and tablature.

FOREWORD

 

SIX TIPS FOR PRACTICING

 

SURVEY OF THE  STUDY PROGRAM

 

CD PLAYLlST

 

Chapter 1: WARM UPS

Note location - chromaties -the spider

 

Chapter 2: PENTATONIC SCALES

Stretch pentatonies -sequences - jam tracks

 

Chapter 3: THE BLUES SCALE

Blue notes -scale positions - licks

 

Chapter 4: STRING BENDING/VIBRATO

Smear, release and unison bends

Circle, rock and jack-off vibrato

 

Chapter 5: THE MAJOR SCALE

Scale Positions - licks - projects

 

Chapter 6: ALTERNATE PICKING

3-notes-per-string scales - pedal tone licks - mega-chops - Paganini

 

Chapter 7: THE MODES OF THE MAJOR SCALE

3-note-per-stringscales- modes - tonal colors- pitch axis system

 

Chapter 8: LEGATO TECHNIQUE

Hammer ons - pull offs - slides - shapes

 

Chapter 9: TRIADIC ARPEGGIOS / TRIADS

Welcome to the land of arpeggios!

 

Chapter 10: ECONOMY PICKING

Sweeping -scales -arpeggios

 

Chapter 11: FOUR- NOTE -ARPEGGIOS

Standard/long form fingerings - the Jan Hammer scale - chord substitutions

 

Chapter 12: STRING SKIPPING TECHNIQUE

Scales - arpeggios - sequences -repeating patterns - licks

 

Chapter 13: TWO HAND TAPPING

Tapping scales and arps - eight-finger tapping - harmonies tapping

 

Chapter 14: THE HARMONIC MINOR SCALE

Modes - jam tracks - projects

 

Chapter 15: THE MELODIC MINOR SCALE

Positions - modes - altered scales - licks

 

Chapter 16: EXOTIC SCALES

Whole tone scale -diminished scale -the enigmatic scale

 

Chapter 17: THE VIBRATO ARM

The whammy bar - the dive bomb - wang bar dips - legato phrasing

 

Chapter 18: EFFECTIVE LEARNING - PRACTICE PLANNING

 

Chapter 19: IMPROVISATION- BUILDING SOLOS

 

APPENDIX

Discography and literature

 

LIST OF SYMBOLS