How do you describe blues?
How do you describe blues?
How do you describe blues?
Although instrumental accompaniment is almost universal in the blues, the blues is essentially a vocal form. Blues songs are lyrical rather than narrative; blues singers are expressing feelings rather than telling stories. The emotion expressed is generally one of sadness or melancholy, often due to problems in love.
What are the elements of the blues?
What makes the blues sound like the blues?By Chris Slattery.Call-and-Response. One element of the blues traces its roots back to the fields. Lyric Structure. Perhaps one of the easiest clues to identifying a blues song is the pattern of the lyrics, or words. The Blues Scale. Blues Chord Progression. Improvisation.
What is the typical form of a blues song?
AAB / 12 Bar Blues is the most common blues song form. An AAB pattern is used in both lyrics and melody (this is often set out in a “question-question-answer” format) made up of three 4 bar phrases in AAB Song Form. The fundamental structure of 12 Bar Blues is three four-bar lines or sections.
What are the 3 blues chords?
The standard 12-bar blues progression has three chords in it – the 1 chord, the 4 chord, and then the 5 chord. In the key of E blues, the 1 chord is an E, the 4 chord is an A, and the 5 chord is a B.
What is the structure of many blues songs?
The lyrics of a 12-bar blues song often follow what’s known as an AAB pattern. “A” refers to the first and second four-bar verse, and “B” is the third four-bar verse. In a 12-bar blues, the first and second lines are repeated, and the third line is a response to them—often with a twist.
What are 3 characteristics of the blues?
Metre, rhythm and tempo swing rhythms are heard- quavers are uneven and give a triplet feel to the beat. early blues music was very slow but got faster as the style developed. walking bass lends a steady rhythm to the music.
How do you write a blues melody?
Blues songs are often texted, and the lyrics consist of a lyric line which gets repeated, then followed by a contrasting line (aab). Melodies often follow this structure. The blues scale is like a minor pentatonic scale with an additional chromatic passing tone: 1–♭3–4–♯4–5–♭7.
Who is called Father of the Blues?
William Christopher Handy
What is the most common form of the blues?
The most common form of the blues is a 12-bar pattern of chord changes. That is, a repeated twelve-bar chord progression. This is called “12-Bar Blues”.
Who started the blues?
The blues has deep roots in American history, particularly African-American history. The blues originated on Southern plantations in the 19th Century. Its inventors were slaves, ex-slaves and the descendants of slaves—African-American sharecroppers who sang as they toiled in the cotton and vegetable fields.
Where did the Blues get its name?
The name of this great American music probably originated with the 17th-century English expression “the blue devils,” for the intense visual hallucinations that can accompany severe alcohol withdrawal. Shortened over time to “the blues,” it came to mean a state of agitation or depression.
Where is blues music most popular?
Chicago
When did blues become popular?
1920s
What is the purpose of the blues?
Blues is an African-American music that traverses a wide range of emotions and musical styles. “Feeling blue” is expressed in songs whose verses lament injustice or express longing for a better life and lost loves, jobs, and money. But blues is also a raucous dance music that celebrates pleasure and success.
What are the two categories of Blues?
Modern studies of the blues identify a range of different styles of blues: delta blues, country blues, down-home blues, urban blues, harmonica blues and so on.
Who are the most famous blues singers?
The main source being The All Music Guide To The Blues (Miller Freeman Books).Otis Spann (1930 – 1970) Albert Collins (1932 – 1993) John Mayall (1933 – ) Freddie King (1934 – 1976) Paul Butterfield (1942 – 1987) Johnny Winter (1944 – ) Eric Clapton (1945 – ) Stevie Ray Vaughan (1954 – 1990)
Who is the best blues singer in the world?
Robert Johnson Johnson’s songs, vocal phrasing, and guitar style have influenced a broad range of musicians; Eric Clapton has called Johnson “the most important blues singer that ever lived”.