During all my teaching years, I've seen an incredibly high number of students who knew all the scales. They could play them up and down real fast - but couldn’t play a decent melodic solo if their life depended on it!

Why? Mostly because they never listened. :(

When you play a note, the audience hears that note and the backing track or whatever you are playing over it. It’s easy to get lost in your own world when improvising, but it doesn't help you make great music. You need to listen and be in the music, not on it.

In this lesson, we'll explore what I call the Re-Active Listening Method. In a nutshell, you'll learn how to actively listen to what you’re playing and then react to it. You'll become a better musician and will be able to really make music!

Good Note or Bad?

It might take you some time to hear if a note you're playing is a good one or not. The good news is that good and bad are subjective anyway! Sometimes, a ‘bad’ note will be the perfect one in a specific situation.

When improvising, you need to listen if the note you stop on is sitting happily with the backing track. Usually, that means that you'll play a chord tone. Any scale notes when you play in a run will sound fine. It’s just the note you stop on that needs to sit well.

At this point, many guitar players start learning all notes in every chord and knowing the target notes on the neck. Both are great things to do, but it takes a lot of time and effort! It's not the best approach for learning how to improvise.

The Secret of Making Music

If you stop on a note and it sounds great, you don't need to do anything. But if it does not sound right, all you need to do is move a scale step up or down. Then, you’ll probably be on a great note!

To listen and react to what you're listening to is music easier and more musical than a whole lot of thinking. The more you think, the more you stink! Remember that the ‘good notes’ will change every time the chord changes. Thinking about the notes in each chord and the scale tones can get really complicated! ;)

Statistical Reasoning

I should point out how logical this approach is! I'm sure many of you have a 'statistic mind.' :)

Let’s say you are playing over a C Major chord. The chord tones are C, E, and G. The total available notes are seven:

C D E F G A B

If you land on a C, E, or G, you are quids in. You don't need anything else - it'll sound great!
If you land on an D or F, you can move in either direction to land on a chord tone.
Land on A, and you’ll need to move one step down or two steps up.
Land on B, and you’ll need to move one step up or two steps down.

Your chances of hitting a good note or quickly stepping to a great one are very high! If you sidestep a ‘bad note’ (not a chord tone), you'll land on a chord tone 7 out of 9 times - if my statistical skills are right!

The fantastic news is that after some practice, you will just know which way to go. Our ears and musical imagination are incredible, and they will help you find the best notes. You'll create beautiful melodies without much effort, but it does take practice. And time!

How to Develop Re-Active Listening

Just playing over chords one at a time and listening to what you are playing is already great! You can even use a looper. Make sure you work on recognizing if you're on a chord tone or not. It's an excellent practice!

I often do this with students in workshops. It’s amazing how quickly some people pick it up - but others can find it hard going. I've never met anyone who didn’t get re-active listening after a few weeks of consistent practice. So, don’t be discouraged if you don’t get it right away. You'll get there!

Working on this with a Jam Buddy is super cool and fun, and you can help each other. You can also use the practice session at the end of the video lesson a few times. If it’s not working, it might be a good idea to seek out an in-person class with someone who gets it!

Re-active listening is a big deal! If you get this down, it'll help you in every aspect of your playing and musicianship. Listen to what you're playing - and then react to it! That's the way to go. ;)

Unit 2 Practice Schedule

Homework

Homework for this lesson is only 10 minutes. We're still using only the Major Scale Pattern 1. If you know others, do not use them. Build the foundation strong, and we will get high!

Part 1: 5 Minutes - Scale Practice

Continue working on playing Pattern 1 of the Major Scale up and down with the metronome.

Try to add changes in a random direction. Not always playing the whole scale but still playing even notes without stopping. Do it for the full 5 minutes if you can!
A more advanced option is to play random notes within the scale but making sure you never hit a wrong note. It's the test to see if the pattern is in your memory!

Part 2: 5 Minutes - Re-Active Listening

The aim here is to play the scale across all the strings and find the good notes over the chords as they move
If you have a jam buddy, great, take turns. One plays the chords, one tries to find the good notes. If not, then make a chord progression for yourself on a looper pedal. Or, download and use the backing track.
This exercise is all about listening and feeling what sounds good, what sounds right.

Part 3: 5 Minutes - One Finger Improvisation

Start with the G Major Backing track and jam over it using only your first finger. Remember our improvisation tips:

Breath.

Leave space.

Use repetition.

Most importantly - use Re-Active Listening! Try to hear if what you are playing fits with the backing. If it doesn’t, move to the note one scale step in either direction. You're very likely to be on a great note!

Don't forget that the ‘good’ notes change with the chord changes. So, a ‘bad note’ might change to a good one when the chords change! Experiment and explore. :)

Feedback & Support

I want to see a video of your early attempts at playing with the backing track! Recording yourself is a fantastic way of keeping track of your progress. Please, film yourself, pop it up on YouTube, and post a link in the website comments.

I will check out as many as I can and give you some feedback. I’m sure you will also get some awesome tips from fellow students!