Playing With a Rhythm Section

Lesson 2/194 | Study Time: 5 Min

Course: Complete Rock Guitar

Playing With a Rhythm Section

If you were going to add a guitar part to the bass and drum parts shown in the previous example, there are several things you could do. The first thing is to play a constant eighth note rhythm along with the hi-hat part as demonstrated in the following example. When playing this type of part, listen carefully to the drums and make sure your playing is exactly in time with them. Because the hi-hats create a short, crisp sound, it is a good idea to use right hand damping when playing along with them. This helps the band to sound tight.

Another approach is to play with some parts of the bass line and some part of the drum part, but leave space in between for the other instruments to be heard. This is demonstrated in the following example which uses exactly the same bass and drum parts as the previous example.

The following pages contain examples of guitar, bass and drums working together. Analyze them and notice where notes are played together and where one instrument leaves space for the others. A good general principle to use is: if one part is busy, it is best to have something simple played with it, rather than all the parts being busy. Interplay, communication and "locking in" together are the most important aspects of playing as a band. Always learn your own part well enough that you can listen to what everyone is playing rather than just hearing yourself.

Here is an alternative guitar part to go with the bass and drums from the previous example. There is always more than one part which will work with the rhythm section. The most suitable part for any instrument depends on the style of music. The best way to broaden your knowledge of what to play is to listen to a lot of different music and pay attention to how the instruments work together. Ask your teacher or guitar-playing staff in a music store to recommend some albums in different styles until you know what to listen for.

The next two examples are shuffles, as indicated by the swing symbol next to the CD number. Use the ideas presented here to create some parts of your own.

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1- INTRODUCTION 2- How to Read Music 3- Getting Your Hands Moving 4- Notes on the First String 5- The Eighth Note 6- Notes on the Fourth String 7- Playing Two Strings Together 8- Chords 9- Rests 10- Identifying Rhythms 11- Using the Guitar Pickups 12- Minor Chords 13- Arpeggios 14- Learning all the Notes 15- Syncopation 16- Using Guitar Effects 17- The Major Scale 18- More About Major Scales 19- How to Learn a New Key 20- Transposing 21- Minor Keys and Scales 22- Relative Keys 23- Intervals 24- Understanding Chords 25- Chord Construction – Triads 26- Scale Tone Chords 27- Minor Key Scale Tone Triads 28- Suspended Chords 29- Bar Chords 30- Learning the Whole Fretboard 31- The Minor Pentatonic Scale 32- The Triplet 33- More About 12 Bar Blues 34- Sixteenth Notes 35- Slurs 36- The Slide 37- Bending Notes 38- Vibrato 39- The Trail-off 40- Moving to Different Keys 41- Analyzing What You Play 42- Five Forms of the Pentatonic Scale 43- Moving Between Forms 44- The Major Pentatonic Scale 45- The Blues Scale 46- Moveable Chord Shapes in Five Forms 47- Moveable Minor Chord Shapes 48- Seventh Chords 49- Major 7th Chords 50- Extended Chords 51- Playing With a Band 52- Playing With a Rhythm Section 53- Moveable Major Scales 54- Using the Natural Minor Scale 55- Modes 56- Using the Harmonic Minor Scale 57- Right Hand Tapping 58- Harmonics 59- GLOSSARY OF MUSICAL TERMS 60- How to Tune Your Guitar 61- Using the Compact Discs 62- Chord Symbols 63- Right Hand Technique 64- Overdrive and Distortion 65- Alternate Picking 66- Notes on the Fifth String 67- Power Chords 68- Strumming 69- Percussive Strumming 70- Pickup Selector Switches 71- Visualizing 72- Playing Two Strings With the First Finger 73- Tones and Semitones 74- The Lead-in 75- The C Major Scale 76- Keys and Key Signatures 77- The Natural Minor Scale 78- Learning Minor Scales in all Keys 79- Interval Qualities 80- Fingering Variations 81- C Major Chord 82- Major Key Triad Pattern 83- Slash Chords 84- Add Nine Chords 85- Changing Between Shapes 86- Note on the Guitar Fretboard 87- Swing Rhythms 88- New Topic 89- Common 16th Note Figures 90- Slurs Using Open Strings 91- Pattern 1 Extension 92- Pick Tremolo 93- The Trill 94- Identifying Scale Patterns 95- Sliding Pattern 2 96- Relative Major and Minor Pentatonics 97- Five Forms of the Blues Scale 98- Three Note Chord Voicings 99- Three and Four Note Minor Chords Voicings 100- Moveable 7th Chord Forms 101- Minor 7th Chords 102- Eleventh Chords 103- The Bass 104- Twelve Eight Time 105- 5 Forms of the Natural Minor 106- Mode Formulas 107- Five Forms of the Harmonic Minor 108- Adding Left Hand Slurs 109- Pick Harmonics 110- Electronic Guitars 111- Picking the Open Strings 112- Notes on the Second String 113- Notes on the Sixth String 114- Moveable Power Chords 115- Major Chord Formations 116- Developing Rhythmic Control 117- Staccato 118- Sharps 119- Riffs 120- The G Major Scale 121- The Key Cycle 122- The Harmonic Minor Scale 123- Table of Minor Scales 124- Interval Distances 125- Arpeggios in all Keys 126- C Minor Chord 127- Primary Chords 128- Bass Runs 129- Adding Scale Tones To Chords 130- Notes in More Than One Place 131- The Shuffle 132- Pentatonic Blues Solo 133- Gaining Control of 16th Notes 134- The Quick Slide 135- Double Note 136- The Symbols 8va and Loco 137- Four Note Chord Voicings 138- Voicings 139- Thirteenth Chords 140- Bass Music Notation 141- Thirty Second Notes 142- Relative Major and Minor Fingerings 143- Modal Tonalities 144- Touch Harmonics 145- Tuning Your Guitar 146- Left Hand Technique 147- Notes on the Third String 148- Right Hand Damping 149- Pivot and Guide Fingers 150- Ties 151- The Chromatic Scale 152- The F Major Scale 153- Major Scales in all Keys 154- The Melodic Minor Scale 155- Finding Intervals on the Fretboard 156- C Augmented Chord 157- Harmonizing Melodies 158- Chords in Other Minor Keys 159- Position Playing 160- Understanding Triplet Rhythms 161- Power Chord Sixteenth Note Rhythm Parts 162- Licks Using the Slide 163- Root 4 and Root 3 Chords 164- Swamp Sounds 165- Memorizing Scale and Chord Degrees 166- The Drums 167- Jam Along Progressions 168- Electric Guitars 169- The Open Position 170- The Octave 171- Rock "n" Roll Chords 172- Flats 173- Identifying Intervals by Ear 174- C Diminished Chord 175- Common Progressions 176- Transposing in Minor Keys 177- Higher and Lower Octaves of Notes 178- Sixteenth Note Triplets 179- Omitting Notes From Chords 180- Drum Notation 181- Listening 182- Electric Guitars Pickups 183- Twelve Bar Blues 184- Augmented and Diminished Chords 185- Chord Shapes 186- Harmonic Minor Scale Tone Chords 187- Sliding Chords 188- Chord Formula Chart 189- Amplifiers 190- Melodic Minor Scale Tone Chords 191- The Seven Sharp Nine Chord 192- Types of Amplifiers 193- Understanding the Control Knobs 194- String

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Playing With a Rhythm Section