Slow Blues In C: Harmony & Improv

This course is designed for students who have already completed the slow blues in F course, which provides an introduction to the slow blues piano style. While accessible to all levels of players, this course will move at a slightly faster pace and incorporate more advanced theory.

In this course you will learn how to play the slow blues in the key of C. We start with the most basic chord voicing options and gradually introduce more sophisticated chord substitutions and improvisation in the slow blues style.

Chord Inversions & Warm Up Drills

In our 1st lesson, we introduce the basic blues form in C and cover a series of drills and exercises to help you become familiar with triad and 7th chord inversions. Mastery of these techniques is essential as they form the foundation for more advanced concepts that we cover in the subsequent lessons.

Understanding 9th Voicings

We start by identifying the 9th note of the scale and how this is the same note as the 2nd note of the scale, but an octave higher.

Incorporating the 9th into our chord voicings creates a richer sound and provides us with more melodic and harmonic options. Similar to the previous lesson, we start by visualising the different inversions of the 9th chords and we practice them up and down the keyboard.

Understanding the 12/8 Pulse

The 12/8 pulse involves subdividing each of the 4 beats in a bar into 3 quarter note triplets. This creates a 12/8 feel that ‘stretches out’ the time and provides space for melodic and harmonic embellishment. This is an important element for slow blues piano as it creates a more relaxed and spacious groove.

Instead of counting the 4 beats of the 4/4 time signature, we count each of the 12 subdivisions which can be done by vocalising the word "tri-p-let" or counting from 1 to 12.

Combining The Left & Right Hands

Now that we are familiar with the left hand bass line, our goal is to fill in the space by combining the bass lines with right-hand chords and fills. This lesson builds upon the bass line covered in the previous lesson and we now introduce the new challenge of hand coordination.

Suspended Triad Fills

We introduce the ‘suspended triad fill’ which is a space filler that can be used very effectively on all primary chords in the blues. We practice this fill over C7, F7, and G7, and in different positions on the keyboard to familiarise ourselves with the sound, voicing shapes, and fill movement.

Descending Fourths Fill

In this lesson we dive into a new fill technique using descending 4th intervals. This fill is an alternative to the suspended triad fill that we explored in the previous lesson. Alternate the suspended triad fill and the descending 4ths fill throughout the blues form to add more variety and interest to our right hand.

Adding Passing Chords in 12-Bar Blues

Chromatic passing chords are particularly effective to enhance the transitions between the primary chords in the blues progression which are the 1 chord, the IV chord, and the V chord. Passing chords create brief moments of tension and dissonance which is then resolved as we move into the next bar.

Starting from the top of the form we add various passing chords into the 12-bar blues progression. Our first opportunity is to use a passing chord in the first bar of C7 which sets up a smooth transition to the F7 in the 2nd bar.

Understanding Walk-ups and Walk-downs

Walk-ups and walk-downs are sequences of chords that bridge the gaps between the primary chords in a blues progression. These sequences of chords create a sense of movement and anticipation. They can be chromatic, diatonic, and often a mixture of both chromatic and diatonic root movement.

Starting with a basic walk-up from the I to the IV chord, we explore various voicings and left hand configurations whilst maintaining a consistent note on top which can also be referred to as a ‘drone note’.

Gospel Chord Progressions In The Blues

Gospel-style chord changes add a soulful feel to the 12 bar blues progression. In bars 7 and 8, we introduce a new sequence of chords that are commonly found in gospel and church music.

These chords include a dominant III chord and a minor vi chord which bring a distinctly gospel flavour to the 12 bar blues progression.

Gospel Walk-downs

We then introduce a gospel walk-down sequence that can be applied in bar 8 of the 12-bar blues in C. This walk-down serves as an alternative to the 1-3-6-2 progression that we covered in the previous lesson.

12 Bar Blues – Final Line Substitutions

We continue our exploration of gospel-style chord changes with a focus on chord substitutions for the final line of the 12 bar blues. In the basic chord changes, the final line of the 12 bar blues is the V chord in bar 9, moving to the IV chord in bar 10, and returning to the I chord in bar 11.

Whilst this progression is characteristic of the blues, it is not the only option available. We explore some additional chord substitutions that complement the gospel chord changes from our previous lesson.