Week 18 of 24
Goal: You know the blues pattern with steps I, IV and V and jam with the band.
Review
Play C with quarters, halves and a whole note, counting out loud.
Step by step
- In C major the most important chords are C, F and G. Musicians call them steps I, IV and V – count from C: C (1), D, E, F (4), G (5).
- The blues has 12 bars: C C C C | F F C C | G F C G7. The last bar leads back to the start. The band plays all three as seventh chords (C7, F7, G7).
- Level 2 in Blues: root and fifth. For C those are C and G – two open strings!
- Level 3 is the boogie riff. Over C it sits entirely on open strings: C, E, G, A. More: 12-bar blues.
Time to make music: your piece
Blues with the band in C: first level 2 (root and fifth), then level 3 (boogie riff). The band plays the chords, you play the notes.
Play the blues Level 2 · Root and fifth, key C
Play the blues Level 3 · Boogie riff, key C
Homework for next time
Five days, about ten minutes each:
- Write out the pattern and strum it with C, F, G7.
- Blues level 2 with the band, slow.
- Blues level 3: the boogie riff.
- Fun: make up blues lyrics about your day.
Done when …
- you play along with all 12 bars once without stopping
- you can say which chords are steps I, IV and V in C
If you get stuck
- You get lost in the 12 bars? The app counts the bars – watch “Bar n of 12”.
- The riff is too fast? Choose the tempo “Very slow” and play over C only at first.
For teachers: lesson plan
- ≈ 10 min Warm-up: pattern on the board (3 lines × 4 bars). The class counts the bars out loud while the teacher points.
- ≈ 15 min Practice: three groups play C, F or G7 only when their chord is up. Then everyone plays everything.
- ≈ 20 min Together: blues with the band over a speaker – one group strums, one plays the boogie riff.
Differentiation: those who are confident play the piece with down-up or help a partner; those who need more time strum only on beat one of each bar.
For the board: openstring.de/ukulele/en/lesson/18/