Grace notes are a fun and easy way to add some bluesy edge to your sound…
Each grace note is typically a blue note that slides into its related chord tone (b3 into 3 or b5 into 5).
First, listen to a typical Blues lick played without Grace Notes…
Now listen to the same idea played with Grace Notes…
Technique & Interpretation Tips
- Don’t play the grace note too short. Allow enough time for the bluesiness of each grace note to make an impression.
- Play the grace note and the target note as a single musical and physical impulse.
- When the grace note is a black key and the main note a white key, slide the very same finger off of the black note onto the white note.
- When going from white to white or white to black, you need to use different fingers, but the same notion applies: Play the grace note and the target note as a single musical and physical impulse, not two separate ideas.