Examples MIXOLYDIAN - 7TH INTERVALS

cd track 49

EXAMPLE 4 This line demonstrates how it’s possible to create a mixture of two, three and four-note motifs from basic 7th intervals. Again, although the transcription shows economy picking being used for each three-note motif at the start of bars 25 and 26, use alternate picking if you prefer.

EXAMPLE 5 This one shows how effective it can be to augment interval-based ideas with some ‘auxiliary’ notes derived from the parent scale. Here, a series of four-note motifs (each comprising a repeated descending 7th) is followed by a side-step back and forth to an auxiliary note one scale-note below.

EXAMPLE 6 Like Example 3, this example follows a castle-wall configuration by alternating between descending and ascending 7ths as they are taken down the guitar neck (lateral motion); however, here we see a mixture of rhythms, alternating between eighth-note and quarter-note triplets. Again, as recommended in the transcription, it’s probably easiest to play this passage using the first and third fingers of the fretting hand, although it may not feel very natural at first. As with all the examples, slow and steady practice is far better than a ‘bull at the gate’ approach, so take it steady at first.