Blues Harp Music Theory #1

A deep dive into the secret structure of the major scale and the most powerful ways to use scale degrees to understand even the most advanced music theory concepts.
Links - Scott Ainslie, blues musician and teacher
cattailmusic.com/
Free harmonica course on blues harp fundamentals
www.ultimateha...
Want to master bending notes on the blues harp? Check out this course:
www.ultimateha...
Richard Sleigh's website:
hotrodharmonica...
And email:
[e-mail]
The scale degree cards shown in this video are available here:
hotrodharmonic...

[@norfolknwhey4787]

I actually use a bit of your method when I’m improvising… I will play a lick in the “1-4 box”, and then play response in the “5-8” box to add variance and build tension later in the phrase. I find myself doing the same thing in the upper register more often than I realized until watching this. Super useful info! Thanks

[@richardroysleigh]

Thanks for your input! Sorry for the long lapse in responding. If you see this and feel like it, please tab out a couple examples of what you are talking about. It could be very useful for others...

[@Frownlandia]

This is actually how the ancient Greeks thought about scales. A scale is two tetrachords, or sets of four notes, and whatever tetrachords you put together determines your scale. Of course they had microtonal intervals that got abandoned by western music for centuries. Lucky for us we get to have our blue notes!

[@NiekopTube]

Great story; I prefer "singing" on my chromatic harmonica (which sings better than my vocal chords, I think).

[@Nick_Dantonio]

Wow this is so helpful
Thank you

[@allenhawker3911]

Wow! Very interesting!

[@garybowell9792]

Brilliant

[@HuiyenManton]

Thank you Richard, your lesson is so helpful. I'll definitely use this method to find my notes 🎶

[@rupuze69]

Wow! You made a light go on in my head!! Thank you. That was brilliant.

[@alanmolsberry849]

Very helpful. Thank you

[@greasemonkeymobile]

Great video! Thanks

[@jdoe1988]

I grew up playing music, but there were a few Aha moments in this video. Very insightful.

[@richardroysleigh]

Thanks, man! I am just trying to share some things that helped me see the major scale with fresh clarity...

[@houstonsam6163]

Kind of amazing timing for me here. I'm a beginner at music theory, trying to apply to learning the harmonica and learning the various positions/scales on a richter-tuned harp, and just this morning driving to work it occurred to me that I need to learn to sing the scales to really set them in my mind.
Breaking the major scale into two portions of whole whole half, then seeing that the second half for a given key is also the first half for the key one fifth higher, and the first half for a given key is the second half for the key one fourth lower, is a real eye-opener.

[@richardroysleigh]

I really got a kick out of learning to see the major scale as two 4 note segments that have the same structure... The cool thing about discovering patterns is once you see them, they stick in your memory.

[@softailspringer9915]

Brilliant lesson!

[@rickshover1950]

Brilliant. Sitting in a restaurant. Working out the major scales on a napkin!

[@richardroysleigh]

Fun!

[@perrywhite3147]

You are a very generous person and we appreciate you for wanting to help others learn. This video really clicked for me Richard. I’ll be in touch as my favorite harp of all custom ones, needs a reed fixed and tweaked. Your a master at that too!

[@richardroysleigh]

Thanks for checking in! Good to hear from you...

[@richardroysleigh]

PS - I'd be happy to fix that harp if you send it to me...

[@Zemael]

THANK YOU!!! I'm amazed!

[@richardroysleigh]

My pleasure!

[@mariolima8221]

Thank you!

[@richardroysleigh]

You are welcome!