Happy Thursday! This lick is an introduction to a closed pentatonic box shape. Today’s lesson uses an A minor pentatonic blues pattern over 6/8 time. Really, it’s the first 2 bars that’s the lick with the 3rd and 4th bars putting the lick into context.
Tablature and blues mandolin lessons at Patreon.com.
Working on this lick
The focus is a closed A minor pentatonic blues shape in 6/8. Treat the first two bars as the phrase to learn, then use bars three and four to hear it in context.
Before you start: Be comfortable picking single notes and following a short phrase from a demonstration or tablature. You don’t need to have the whole pentatonic shape memorized before working on this example.
Practice approach
- Count six eighth notes in two groups: “1-2-3, 4-5-6.” Keep that feel while learning the notes slowly.
- Repeat just the first two bars until you can play them without pausing to find the next note.
- Add bars three and four. Listen for the connection between the lick and what follows, rather than treating each bar as a separate exercise.
For a rhythm-playing companion, try Blues Lick of the Day #6, which works on backing a 12-bar blues. Find more lessons on the mandolin lessons page.
