The blues on mandolin?

[ald]

Re box patterns, does anybody have any tips about use double stops as boxes as a basis for solos, etc.? What ones to use for minor chords? Use them as a basis for penatonic positions? ...

[JimRichter]

every major chord doublestop can double as a minor/blues doublestop. For example, one C double stop (7th fret E A string/3rd G # string) can double as a minor blues A doublestop, forming a 7th chord. I commonly use this. Frankly, there is where a little music theory is helpful as a C major pentatonic scale also doubles as an A blues minor pentatonic scale--each just starting on a different note. Others may want to jump in w/ their theory expertise, but this is connected to the relative minor of a major scale built on the 6th note of the major scale (built around aeolian mode). This directly ties in with the blues pentatonic. If I'm playing an E blues and want to know what the minor pentatonic is, I would use a G pentatonic as Eminor is the relative minor of G. C major pentatonic for A blues pentatonic; F major pentatonic for D minor pentatonic; etc. You can also look at is as what is the major pentatonic of the note three semitones up from the key you want to a minor blues in. 3 semitones from A is C, therefore play the C major pentatonic starting on A

That's a terrible job of explaining it, but hopefully the general point comes across. For double stops, if I'm using a G major pentatonic as the basis for my E minor pentatonic blues scale, the double stops I would use in G are all useful for E. Sometimes I can use these doublestops as the basis to bend into a note, ala guitar playing. For example, the G double stop of G (5th fret D string) and B (2nd fret A string) is an excellent double stop in E when you do a semitone bend on the G (up to G# or close to it). There's a video/lesson I do on E turnarounds that demonstrates this.

Also, any two notes in your blues box can be put together for effective double stops.

[ald]

Thanks a lot, Jim. Very informative. I'm working on Sam Cooke's Wonderful world. Playing in D I am using double stops as anchor points for working out a solo. On the bass strings 11 and 7 frets forD, middle strings 9 and 5 for the bm etc.

[kitakatakilburn]

Feel a bit dumb asking, but who is this in the video? He's a great player, but I haven't seen him before.

[Marc Woodward]

Er, which video? Its me in the one with the guitarist and the blues workshop video and the great Jim Richter has linked to his youtube channel!

Let me know if I can help

Marc

[hellindc]

I play a lot of blues mando in my bands, and I keep it simple. One I know the key, a figure where the flatted 3rd is. In G, that's Bb. In E. that's G. If some one wants to show off and play in Db, it's E. Now two things: Play normal scales, but where it feels right, go for that blue note (yes, I know there's no agreement on what the blue note is; it's the flatted thrid for me). Even when it doesn't feel right, hit it once in a while. The other thing is to play the scale for the flatted third against the major. When in E, try playing some pentatonic G scales; play some C scales against A. Anything more for me is in the right hand maybe some flatted 7th now and then.

[lowtone2]

Ok, but what about the b5th? A blues scales is: 1, b3, 4, b5, 5, x7.