Introduction to E minor A-toodz studies
E minor is a very popular key in the modern styles… especially in guitar dominated Rock and Blues music! These studies can help you build up a vocabulary of ideas, licks, and tricks that you can then call upon in your improvisations later.
The exercises are also good to simply train your fingers to move in the Pentatonic patterns needed for these styles. Pentatonic (five note) scales have more skips than straight major or minor (seven note) scales. Classically trained players will especially benefit from playing these, just to train their muscles to move comfortably in these new ways.
The studies below are set up in three levels of difficulty:
- “Jammer” Level 1 features simple Pentatonic finger movements starting with single strings before moving on to string crossings and finger patterns. Great for the less experienced.
- “Gigger” Level 2 introduces the “in-between” or “blue” notes in this key. This is the stuff that really begins to increase your “coolness factor!” …a great boost for the intermediate player!
- “Artist” Level 3 adds more advanced licks and tricks that include double strings, double drones, parallel fifths and more sophisticated mixtures of all the elements. Meant to challenge even the more advanced Classically trained players.
- “Groove Toodz” are mini-tunes that apply what you’ve learned in the exercises.
“Call & Answer” audio tracks feature the “teacher” playing or “calling” to each double bar, to a steady beat, followed by a space for you to “answer” the same. Great for those who might have trouble reading staff music. Also good for ear training… challenge yourself to NOT read the music and see how close you can get to the teacher’s “call”… or, just use this space to improvise your own similar ideas!
E minor Level 1 Warm-ups
E minor Exercises Level 1 – “Call & Answer” 55bpm
Play along. “Teacher” calls/plays to double bar, then “students” answer same.
When you are ready (anytime at any level), try using these licks and tricks your fingers are getting comfortable with in these jam lessons!:
1) E Funki – Funky example using the E blues/pentatonic scale, from the original Fiddle Jam Book.
2) E12 – Standard 12 bar blues progression from the original Fiddle Jam Book.
Want to learn more about this?
“Fiddle Jam Club” & enrolled “All Access Pass” members get to see more learning materials below…
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Hi! The link at the bottom of the lesson to “E-Funki” is not working.
Sorry I missed your comment! Thanks! Should be all fixed now.
“Practice Loop Track – E” doesn’t play.
All fixed
It might help if you had additional faster tempos 100, 150 bpm etc… for the call response track to help us get used to playing the licks at speed. Playing to 55 bpm is good at first but the jam track is way faster which makes it tough to phrase the licks with the jam track if you are not used to the tempo. Just a thought.