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Jeff's Lesson Notes

"Dark side of the wall"

 

This lesson looks at Floyd and of course David Gilmour.  Floyd is one of my Big 5 favorites, and for good reason too.  There is a lot to be learned from this style.  So much so that I plan to produce a whole CD / DVD on this style.  One of the words that comes to mind with Floyd is "innovation".  There's more to Floyd than what most people break it down to.  You ask some people about Floyd and you get the answer I often hear which is, "Oh just play some Dorian mode, and you're all set".  While they do use the Dorian mode, that's not necessarily what gives them their sound.  They use other modes too, and many subtle techniques as well.  It takes more than one mode and a basic mood to create a sound.

On the Video lesson we'll to break down what makes a track like "Dark side of the Wall" tick.  Including harmonized leads, and sick twisted bends.  We'll also look into the sound a bit, and equipment you should get your hands on to effectively pull off Floyd style guitar.  I'm sure many more things will be coved on the video too.  Things like song structure, scales, and chords.  There is a lot going on with this lesson example track "Dark side of the Wall".  Probably too much for one lesson, but I'll do my best as always....
 

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Lesson

We have 3 main scales that are in play with this lesson.  I've listed those out below.  The rest of the lesson for Floyd deals with a combination of sound, layering, and various performance techniques.  All of which are covered on the Video Lesson.  The performance techniques are laid out in the song track tabs of course.  So there is no need for me to repeat them here.

Below are the 3 main scales in use.  Take note of the pitches contained within these scales.  That will be important, especially for the harmonized parts. 

D minor (Aeolian)  D, E, F, G, A, Bb, C

E_______________________________________10_12_13_15_17_18_20_22___
B______________________________10_11_13___________________________
G______________________9_10_12____________________________________
D______________8_10_12____________________________________________
A__5_7_8_10_12____________________________________________________
E_________________________________________________________________

D Dorian (minor scale with Major 6yh)  D, E, F, G, A, B, C

E_______________________________________10_12_13_15_17_19_20_22___
B______________________________10_12_13___________________________
G______________________9_10_12____________________________________
D______________9_10_12____________________________________________
A__5_7_8_10_12____________________________________________________
E_________________________________________________________________

D Major (Ionian)  D, E, F#, G, A, B, C#

E_______________________________________10_12_14_15_17_19_21_22___
B______________________________10_12_14___________________________
G______________________9_11_12____________________________________
D______________9_11_12____________________________________________
A__5_7_9_10_12____________________________________________________
E_________________________________________________________________

The rest of the lesson is best covered both on video, and by examining the tabs for the lesson song track below.  I'll go into detail on the techniques, and much more on the video lesson....

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