RockSo Music and Muziekschool Plug & Play hosted In-Store Blues Clinic #5 13 April 2024

This was the first Blues Clinic of 2024 and our 5th In-Store Blues Clinic to date. This time, we had 10 people that joined, including some new members.

We started out with some basic blues music theory for the new members. In the first hour, Christian taught us 3 blues licks in E major. All three of the licks were in the E major pentaonic scale. One of the licks was a double stop lick. The members had a chance to come up and try the new licks out before the break. This was good practice and helped everyone understand how to use the new licks.

During the break, we had a chance to talk to the new participants and look around the shop.

After the break, Lucas led the group and introduced 3 more licks in E, including a minor pentatonic lick and a lick that used chromatic notes. After the last licks were gone over, all participants had a chance to come up and play the blues!

This time, we tried a “4 note challenge”. The challenge was to try to solo over a 24 bar E blues shuffle backing track using only the 4 notes in different combinations and patterns. It was tough, but everyone tried their best.

Everyone had a great time and learned alot about soloing in E blues. The next In-Store Blues Clinic will be in September. Until then, keep on playing and learning the blues and see you next time!

RockSo

RockSo Music and Muziekschool Plug & Play hosted In-Store Blues Clinic #4 on 7 October 2023. 

This was our 4th In-Store Blues Clinic. This time, we had 10 people that joined in the informative and fun filled 3 hour Blues Clinic. We started out with some music theory. Lucas explained the Mixolydian mode for the first time to the group. In the first hour, Lucas taught us 3 blues licks. One of the licks uses the Mixolydian mode.

Before the break, we asked participants to come up and try out the new licks with Lucas one by one. This was a good practice and helped us understand the new licks.

During the break, participants had a chance to talk about guitars and get to know eachother.

After the break, Christian led the group and introduced 3 more licks that use the Major blues scale. After the last licks were gone over, all participants had a chance to come up and play the blues! Participants, in pairs jammed for the group with the backing track. Slow and up tempo tracks were used at the clinic. Everyone had multiple chances to jam in front of the others. This is the best way to improve your guitar skills and gain experience playing with other people.

Everyone is waiting for the next In-Store Blues Clinic. Will you join us next time???

Stay tuned for information on the next In-Store Blues Clinic at RockSo Music.

RockSo

On 20 May 2023 RockSo Music in collaboration with Muziekschool Plug&Play hosted another Blues Clinic.

This time we challenged the group with 10 licks from several style of blues including BB King and Eric Clapton influenced riffs.

Lucas started the clinic with a short introduction of the blues and the different styles. Then Christian explained the first set of 5 licks. The explanation included tips on the feel and characteristic of each lick.

After a well needed break, Christian and Lucas played an example of the first 5 licks being played, then we continued with teaching the remaining 5 licks. This time, Lucas explained how to play and use them in a solo.

During the last hour of the clinic there was a chance for the participants to try out the new riffs and improvise. We all enjoyed listing to the everyone.

The Clinic ended with a final jam from Lucas and Christian. There was a lot of material this time, but everyone enjoyed the challenge. We will have our next clinic after a summer break. See you all for the next one, and keep on jamming!!

RockSo Music and Muziekschool Plug&Play hosted the second In-Store Blues Clinic on Saturday 11 February 2023. Again, the nearly sold out event was a great success. Lucas and Christian got the mood going by demonstrating the concepts of the clinic with the use of a backing track. The 17 participants were then ( 2 could not attend) introduced to blues rhythm guitar parts used in the demo. Participants were called up front at random to perform what they learned in front of the group.

Participants enjoyed a drink and conversation during the break time. This gave the participants a chance to talk amongst themselves, to network, and make new friends. Some participants enjoyed playing many of the interesting vintage and new guitars available at RockSo Music.

During the second half, participants were introduced to the concept of “mixed blues” improvisation. The term mixed blues is in reference to building a guitar solo that uses notes from both the minor and major pentatonic scales. Again, participants were called upfront at random to try their hand at some of these new ideas in front of the group.

The clinic finished with a Q&A session and a final performance by Lucas and Christian.

We would like to thank Lucas @ Muziekschool Plug & Play and all the participants who joined us for In-Store Blues Clinic #2.

Stay tuned for information about our next In-Store Blues Clinic.

On Saturday 19 November RockSo Music and Muziekschool Plug & Play had their first in-store blues clinic.

The Clinic was developed for beginner-intermediate guitarist and was designed to help guitar players learn about blues music including the theory, scales, and chords that are used to play the blues.

After learning about the blues structure, the participants had the chance to learn blues licks for each minor and major blues scales. Then, the participants had the opportunity to try soloing for the group.

Everyone had a good time learning and playing the blues at the clinic. The In-Store Blues Clinics will continue in 2023 with the next one in January or February. Stay tuned to RockSo Music or Muziekschool Plug & Play for information about the next clinic.

Christian