When in doubt I prefer to play piano for our main stage gigs. But when on the road, or playing small venue shows, having a Uke is easy to transport and gets the job done. If you want to start including music in your improv, and don’t have a musician in the troupe OR don’t have a lot of cash to burn, Ukelele is inexpensive and easy to learn. Below are two video tutorials and how to play Irish Jig aka Irish Drinking Song, and Blues in the key of C.
You only need to learn three chords to play 1000s of songs. Over time you can learn to play a variety of chord patterns, the order in which you play the chords, styles and more. Then, learn these three chord patterns in other keys, learning 3 more chords.
FIRST, DO YOU HAVE A UKE?
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I have three of these Aklot Ukelele, one at the club, and one in each car. They are usually less than $60, and better than anything under $150 at Guitar Center. And of course with Amazon, you could potentially have one tomorrow if you order now.
THE BLUES
The chart above shows how to play all the chords you will need to play the blues in a number of keys. I usually play the blues in F when at the piano. But on UKE C is always easiest.
I will never forget the time someone said to me, “You really like those 7 chords, don’t you?” Most folks don’t truly know music, especially not Jazz. But you really can’t play the blues without 7 chords.
Most chords are know as a triad. In teh key of C, the C chords includes the notes, C E G, or the 1 3 5 of the C major scale. A minor chords are created when you lower the 3rd, or play C Eb G. 7 chords, technically speaking, flat 7 chords, are created when you add a Bb to the C E G triad. If you know your Sound of Music Do Re MI, we are adding flat Ti to the Do Mi So.
A brief note about a blues scale. Many folks think I am playing a minor F key in the blues. This is because the melodies in blues rarely play the major 3rd. The blues scale in C is C D Eb F F# G A Bb C. We play these notes over every chords. The sound of an Eb in the key of C gives it a minor quality, HOWEVER I still play the E natural in my chords.Technically the Eb is actually a D# or an augmented 9 (+9). We are getting into the weeds of Jazz, but one of the coolest voicing in jazz is quartal harmony. On piano, try playing E Bb Eb in the right hand for the key of C. OR Bb E A. That augmented 4th, or devils tone created by Bb & E are interchangable. They are exactly 1/2 way up a chromatic scale. Popping the Eb on top creats an augmented 9 chord. Popping an A on top creates a 13th. These words may sound bizarre if you have not studied music theory, BUT you will recognize the JAZZ qualities once you okay them. Experiment with how each note sounds in a melody or chord. Like in Improv comedy, there are no wrong notes in Jazz musical improv either.
THE BLUES IN D
Or if C is too low, you can raise up to a D.
IRISH JIG
See my previous post about Irish Jig here.
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