School of Rock Lesson 3: Screamin' Solos |
The School of Rock
Lesson 3 of 3
Screamin' Solos
“There’s nothing remarkable about it. All one has to do is hit the right [notes] at the right time and the instrument plays itself.” Johann Sebastian Bach
Learning Outcomes: After having fun with this lesson you should understand the following moves
Screamin' Solos!
Watch This for a Lesson Overview
And you'll also have an idea of how to apply these together by watching a sweet solo!
Muting
“…I think people overemphasize the importance of gear in their search for tone. Your sound comes from how you pick and dampen the strings, and from your attack as much as much as anything.” Eric Johnson
Muting isn't simply being quiet. It's actually a technique that introduces dynamics into your playing. Watch and see!
The Slide
“I wanted to create music that was so different that my mother could tell me from anyone else.” Les Paul
Don't confuse this technique with the "slide guitar." Those are two different things. For this technique, you don't need any equipment but your nimble fingers.
Introduction to The Slide
Popular Slide from Johnny B. Goode
The Bend
Introduction to the bend
Well-known bend from 3rd Eye Blind: Never Let You Go
There are tons of variations on the bend. Bascially, you're going to take a note and "bend" it up a half-step, whole-step, or more. The string is literally bent out of place. This is a very common technique used in solos of all varieties.
The Whammy Bar
Most Electric Guitars will come with a whammy bar, unless the bridge is fixed. The whammy bar screws into your bridge, or is permanently attached (mainly on older jazz guitars) and allows you to tighten or loosen the strings all at once by essentially moving the bridge forward or backward. I have no idea why it's called the "whammy bar" though!
Hammering
There are few things that sound as cool as a riff with hammering! Just as with the other techniques, there are a variety of ways to "hammer-on." Hammering is basically sounding notes without plucking the string--no picking is involved. The name comes from the motion that you will make with the fingers of one or both of your hands. Think of it as your fingers hammering the strings onto the fretboard to create notes. It's cool stuff! Watch!
Two different types of hammering
Putting it All Together!
Let's see if we can combine some of the things we've learned in this lesson into a sweet solo! This example will include:
Solo from Dire Straits: Sultans of Swing
Congratulations! You are now a graduate of the School of Rock! You have completed the 3 Lessons and are ready to rock the world! Keep practicing and look out for future bonus lessons!
Thanks for pollinating my lesson! Please leave some buzz and comment (below) and/or rate (top right) my lesson.
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Description: This lesson is the final in my 3-part series on the guitar. This is where all of the lessons converge and you will learn key components to building screamin' solos. You will learn about bends, slides, hammering, and hear/see rockin' samples of each of these.
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