MODULE 8
12 Bar Blues In A

The 12 bar blues is a great way to become familiar with a chord structure that is used with hundreds of songs from pop, rock and blues. This 12 bar progression contains just 3 chords with a shuffle rhythm. 

THE 3 CHORDS

Most 12 bar blues progressions contain just 3 chords. For this sequence you will explore the 12 bar blues using dominant 7th chords. These chords are made up of 4 notes, the 1st, 3rd, 5th and 7th note of their associated major scales, but more about that at level 2. Or for a full exploration of the theory behind music, try out An Introduction To Music Theory For Ukulele Players online course. 
  • ​A7 = A + C# + E + G
  • D7 = D + F# + A + C
  • E7 = E + G# + B + D

Strumming & PCIKING Patterns

You will explore two styles of playing this sequence, the first is the CALYPSO strum, as in module 3 and the 2nd a picking pattern known as the CAGE pattern, as explored in module 5, only this time using 8th notes which means there will be two CAGE patterns per bar as illustrated below:
CALYPSO STRUM:
The Blue letters underneath the CAGE pattern tab illustrate the picking fingers:
T = Thumb
M = Middle Finger
I = Index Finger
CAGE PICKING PATTERN
Both sequences are played with a shuffle rhythm which is based on triplet subdivisions of the beat rather than on dividing each beat perfectly in half (a.k.a. straight 8th notes). It's easiest to understand it by hearing it.

12 BAR BLUES in A - CHORDS

The 12 bar blues in the key of A utilises 3 chords; A, D and E7. This can also bel translated in musical terms as 1, 4, 5 as the root notes fall in that position on the scale of A Major. More about all that at level 2. 
Watch out for the walk down (also known as the turn around) during the last bar. 

12 Bar Blues - CAGE 

The 12 bar blues in A also sounds great when the CAGE finger picking pattern is used along with the chords. All you need to do is repeat the pattern over and over and change chords at the right time. Look out for the walk down at the end where this time triplets are used to create a more unique blues sound. Have a go practicing along with the audio at 80BPM and 90BPM before attempting the video play along at 100BPM.