Playing through the chord changes. For most rock guitarists, there is a standard approach to playing lead ideas. They pick a scale and wail in it. Hopefully the scale covers all the chords being played underneath. This isn’t a dig or criticism, it’s just what we/ they do. This approach can work fine for most scenarios, but what do you do when it doesn’t work? When the chords are moving about and going to other keys or tonalities? Obviously the answer is play faster and use

How do I harmonise stuff? Well that is a much bigger question that you realise. But not unanswerable. Firstly, we need to understand a few things in order for you to correctly grasp what it is you are doing. When you harmonise it is defined as “in music, the implementation of harmony, usually by using chords, including harmonized scales” What the hell did that mean? So let’s set up a scenario. You bring me a simple 3 note line and ask for it to be harmonised. Firstly, we need

A sparkling second part of the exercise, sequins, get it? Oh come on these puns are free. Previously we have ascended the natural minor scale in 4 note groups. This exercise is changing one note but the sequence is the same. The new scale is the harmonic minor scale. The only difference is the 7th note in the scale is sharpened. It is only one note different but you are going to find the fingering now throws up some interesting finger combinations. These are demonstrated in

Fingers looking fat? Need to get that beach finger look? Well here is an exercise to slim your knuckles down and make you the most wanted image on the guitar beach. WTF am I going about? Anyway here is an exercise. This exercise is going to come in 3 parts, so we will look at part 1 for now and once you have mastered it we will move it along. Hopefully you will see how it evolves and start to devise ideas for yourself. Initially you may look at the above and think, "well t