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ChristopherSchlegel
Guitar Tricks Instructor
Joined: 08/09/05
Posts: 8,380
ChristopherSchlegel
Guitar Tricks Instructor
Joined: 08/09/05
Posts: 8,380
08/20/2007 2:10 pm
No problem. Based on what you wrote in your last post, I think the concept you are after is essentially scale visualization. In other words, how to move up and down the neck to different positions, while still staying in one scale.

Based on your example riffs, I would say you need to be able to visualize the A minor scale all the way up and down the fretboard on two adjacent strings. Like this:

||---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||---|---|-C-|---|-D-|---|-E-|-F-|---|-G-|---|-A-|---|-B-|-C-|---|-D-|
||---|---|-G-|---|-A-|---|-B-|-C-|---|-D-|---|-E-|-F-|---|-G-|---|-A-|

Using that mental visual image you can see that your riff is part of the A minor scale. Now you can move up to the next position and change this:

E |---------------------------------------------------|
B |---------------------------------------------------|
G |---------------------------------------------------|
D |---------------------------------------------------|
A |-5-----5-----7-----7-----8-----8-----8-7-5-8-7-5---|
E |-5-555-5-555-5-555-5-555-5-555-5-555---------------|

To this:

E |---------------------------------------------------|
B |---------------------------------------------------|
G |---------------------------------------------------|
D |---------------------------------------------------|
A |-7-----7-----8-----8-----10----10----10-8-7-10-8-7-|
E |-7-777-7-777-7-777-7-777-7-777-7-777---------------|

Or down from the original position to this:

E |---------------------------------------------------|
B |---------------------------------------------------|
G |---------------------------------------------------|
D |---------------------------------------------------|
A |-3-----3-----5-----5-----7-----7-----7-5-3-7-5-3---|
E |-3-333-3-333-3-333-3-333-3-333-3-333---------------|

So you can move the melodic idea up and down the fretboard, but if you want to stay in one scale (or in one key) simply observe the pattern the scale forms on the frets. You can of course simply move the same pattern up and down the neck, but that is not staying in one key. That is called either modulation (momentary key changing) or transposition (longer-term key changing). These, of course, are also valid methods of changing a riff to add variety.

Hope this helps, let us know how it goes.
Christopher Schlegel
Guitar Tricks Instructor

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