UD#128 The Making of a Harmony Part!
UD#128 The Making of a Harmony Part!
I learned harmony from listening to my grandparents sing together, and it also didn’t hurt that my Dad had many Everly Brothers 45RPM singles.
If you look at two-part harmony singing, you will notice that the vast majority of the notes are a third apart. In the case of the Everly Brothers, Don sang the melody, and Phil sang notes in harmony, mostly a third above. I often use the song “All I Have to Do Is Dream” to introduce this type of harmony to my students…
UD#127 Learn a Song from a Recording!
Once you know the key of a song, the first chords to try, in terms of learning the song by ear, are the diatonic chords in that key.
The diatonic chords are the chords that are formed with each note of a scale as the root…
UD#126 Bluesy Bending!
1. You can bend by pushing the string up towards your face or pulling the string down towards the floor, depending on which string you are on and how much you are going to bend it.
2. It’s best to use more than one finger to bend!
3. We usually bend a note to a semi-tone or a whole-tone up. Play the “target note” before you practice a bend so you have a destination in mind.
UD#125 What’s Below the Musical Iceberg?
When we try to learn to play a piece of music, it’s tempting to go straight to the final act without attending to the steps that will lead us to a successful performance. Why is this? One reason may be that taking the preliminary steps seems like a waste of time. For example, it can be very tempting to push through a passage with whatever fingering comes most habitually to us. This can seem to be more efficient in the short term but, in the long term, maybe not.
UD#124 Secret Ukulele Notes!
One of the wonderful things about a ukulele, or a guitar, is that, unlike on a piano, the same note can be found in multiple places. Here’s a simple exercise to show you how that works in an experiential way. I find it’s a wonderful ear-awakening practice for players of all levels…