Year 8
Year 8

How is a blues melody structured?

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Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. In this lesson, we are going to create a structured blues melody above last lesson's accompaniment. We will make creative decisions about who from the 'band' improvises in our blues piece.

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6 Questions

Q1.
What is a blues accompaniment in a band?
Correct answer: Drums, bass and piano.
Flute, clarinet and saxophone.
Trumpet, trombone and saxophone.
Q2.
What part in blues music does this instrument play?
An image in a quiz
Slow hip hop beat
Straight rock beat
Correct answer: Swung shuffle rhythm
Q3.
What part in blues music does this instrument play?
An image in a quiz
A countermelody
The solo improvised section
Correct answer: The walking bass line
Q4.
What part in blues music does this instrument play?
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Correct answer: The 12 bar blues chords
The head melody
The walking bass line
Q5.
What pitches can you add to a walking bass line to make it sound stylistic to blues?
Correct answer: Flattened blues notes
Notes in a different key
Octaves
Q6.
What is vamping on the piano in blues music?
Correct answer: Adding interesting changes to a repeating chord progression
Creating an improvised melody
Playing the 12 bar blues

6 Questions

Q1.
What is this instrument called?
An image in a quiz
Saxophone
Correct answer: Trombone
Trumpet
Q2.
Which of these instruments often play the melody parts in blues music?
Bass, piano and guitar.
Drum, bass and piano.
Correct answer: Trumpet, clarinet and vocals.
Q3.
What melodic idea is a 'head' in blues music?
An image in a quiz
The backing vocals.
The introduction of the song.
Correct answer: The main theme or melody which is repeated throughout.
Q4.
What is improvising in blues music?
An image in a quiz
Copying a part from someone else.
Correct answer: Making up melodies on the spot, during the live performance.
Reading the rhythm section from a lead sheet.
Q5.
What is the melodic structure AAB?
An image in a quiz
Call and response by copying the other part.
Correct answer: Two lines the same (question) and then a different third line (answer).
Verse and chorus.
Q6.
Name the song that made Duffy a famous artist.
2002
Love me like you do
Correct answer: Mercy