Example 3 Melodic ‘Guide Tones’

NOW THAT YOU HOPEFULLY know all the notes in the progression you need to string them together to form coherent melodic lines. At this point I like to strip things back and try and find a few simple lines that I like, preferably using the minimum amount of notes. These lines can be viewed, as collections of safe musical ‘target’ or ‘guide’ tones that you know will work consistently over the chords.

In Ex 3 you will see how I’ve gone through the eight-bar progression twice and during the first eight bars there are only two different notes used. Knowing which notes can remain static while others move around is a powerful tool – you can often say a lot melodically without moving anywhere! The second eight bars have a little more movement. Notice from the F chord onwards how the notes descend in thirds – first a b3 from F-D then a Major 3rd from E-C then a b3 from D-B. Being aware of this kind of movement is melodically powerful and great for thematic development, which by its nature often demands repetition. There are many ways of playing guide tones through these changes – find more on your own. At this stage it’s a good idea to play these sustained notes with a vibrato that is in time with the music and is as wide or as narrow as appropriate. If you can’t make one sustained note sound great how will things improve when you add in more?

Also, be aware of how the chord tones connect with each other and how they relate to the underlying chord progression. I’ve written the intervals above the notation to help get you thinking in this way.