tookatooka
2397 posts
Jul 31, 2011
10:25 AM
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Hi Guys,
Wonder if anyone can help me here please. I'm playing around with some 12 Bar Blues on a synth program and making a track but have come across a question which is puzzling me.
With GGGGCCGGDCGD I'm using G in one octave on a keyboard but when it comes to the C and D Bars do I jump to the octave above the one I'm in (eg higher) or do I drop down and use the C and D from the same octave as the G I'm using.
They both sound OK but I wondered whether there was a standard way of doing this.
Many thanks for your help.
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Swezey8
95 posts
Jul 31, 2011
10:45 AM
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The standard way would be to have the C (IV) and D (V) above the tonic of G (I). In a normal 12 bar they are a 4th and 5th above tonic, not below. I'm guessing the program has something like G3 and then C4, D4?? Often it is in piano notation. C4 would be middle C on piano. So if you use those in the program it will sound most like the "standard" sound of a 12 bar.
Just a note but usually the turnaround (last D chord) is a 7th chord. You might have already had that, but if not just wanted to let you know as it'll transition back into the I chord nicer because of the leading tone. Hope that helps!c
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tookatooka
2398 posts
Jul 31, 2011
10:55 AM
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Thanks Swezey8. Just what I needed.
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nacoran
4410 posts
Jul 31, 2011
11:15 AM
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Standard is up, but there are all sorts of ways to do it. Sometimes you'll hear two different singers sing the a song differently. One will go up, one will stay down, just to stay in their range. On the final note of a song sometimes it's fun to have a note jump way up into the NEXT octave or drop way low.
If you do it the whole way through the song one way sometimes you can set a piece of the song off by changing one time through. In a full band you'll often have a bass instrument playing root of the chord an octave lower anyway, so you'll get that lower register taken care of.
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Nate
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arzajac
594 posts
Jul 31, 2011
9:16 PM
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There is no standard way. Both are fine. The choice doesn't depend on anything about the 12-bar blues progression.
The choice of what octave to play (or what chord inversion to play, for that matter) depends on a lot of things. First off, what instrument? In what context? Is there a singer? What's the singer's vocal range?
For example, you may want to accentuate the vocals and let the singer wail on the high notes. So I would try to not play the notes in that phrase as top notes in my chord inversion. If that means that I have to shift my left hand down (because I'm inverting my right-hand chord and going downwards) then the lower octave would get played.
If I was playing a solo on piano, I probably would stick to higher pitches for most of it. Maybe not.
It depends on the setting - if everyone, or every voice in the piece (synth, vocal, harp) played in the same octave, it would sound pretty thin and jumbled.
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