Ahhhh I see. I was afraid of that ^_^ When I hear someone else play, I have no difficulties at all to know when the chord changes and to what. But when it's me at the keys, I'm just too busy trying to keep the left hand steady, right hand playing the lick and then oops..... where was I again??? Did I play every single one of 16 tum tum tam tam tum tum tam tams yet or... and where exactly in the lick do I switch from G to F again? Etc.

Perhaps I should just follow the lesson as is and accept the fact that I can't have it all 'licked' in one fell swoop 😃

Oops, cross posted with you WieWaldi! Thank you for that additional information! Very helpful 🙂 It seems that my brain has the same (dis)function as yours had 😃

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@Sophia, one thing about blues piano.
Currently, I stuck in the course, because I want to come into sight-reading. Maybe I should start a thread with sight-reading progress videos. But it is so embarrassing, to need 1 minute or more for 4 simple bars, and then there are likely still some mistakes. (it is so frustrating 😪)
But maybe having a thread with weekly updates will show the progress after a few months, could be worth tracking.
What do you think, something like "sight-reading progress" or "sight-reading, first steps"?

    WieWaldi Sure!!!! Sight reading is definitely humiliating... here we are 30 40 50 (and more) years old and reading like a preschooler... but we have each other's back because we both started as adults 😃 (now suddenly the movie Still Regarding Henry comes to mind for no reason at all, heh)

      Well, this type of music is not really my thing, but I did see a video on YT recently which blew my mind and I think you might enjoy it - link attached:
      [

      "Don't let's ask for the moon, we have the stars." (Final line from Now,Voyager, 1942)

        Sophia Watched your blues vids, but this one, oh man, just had to laugh. Our cats hate to hear the piano, well, music in general. I wish our cats got involved like yours do.

        If I may offer a suggestion.... or two... once you get that left hand thing down, whether it's just moving the thumb, or doing the walking thing, you won't have to think about it. So, try just playing those left hand licks for a bit.
        For a specific piece, like F and J, work on just the right hand melody part. Do these separately until you are bored with them. Then put them together.

        Also, there are a few left hand vamps that are pretty standard and will work with any form, 12 or 16 bars. I'm sure your book has them all in one place or another, so you can mix them up if the urge hits.

        You sound like you have a feel for it. Well done!

          @Nightowl that was incredible!!! Thanks so much for sharing!

          @PianoMonk thanks for the pointers! I heard there are no shortcuts so I guess I'll continue the grind 😁

          Fortunately, the licks in lesson 4 are incredibly cute, real fun to practise even with just the single chord. Looking forward to the day that I will be able to combine them all and start making some real music!

            Nightowl I love this video so much. IMO this is the best of her, by far the best. Even if it is hosted by Brendan.
            The good thing: she does nothing different from what we learn in the Beginners Blues Piano course. Ok, maybe a bit faster. Much faster, to be honest. And a different left hand. But besides that, it is exactly the same stuff we blues-beginners learn - except a different left hand. And the right hand plays something else, too. And the rhythm is more.... more uhm... you know, more verve. Besides that, and the fact the tempo is about triple or quad time, you can't deny it is basically exactly the same thing: two hands and a piano keyboard. We are so close to get here!!
            Come on Sophia - let's Boogie 'n Woogie!

                WieWaldi you can't deny it is basically exactly the same thing: two hands and a piano keyboard. We are so close to get here!!

                Darn right!!! We're just about there already!

                  Sophia Actually, Sophia, there are shortcuts; maybe not for a particular tune, but as an approach to blues in general.
                  Short cut 1. Since many blues tunes use 7th chords, learn the Mixolydian modes.
                  Short cut 2. Learn those 7th chord inversions, like C E G Bb, E G Bb C, G Bb C E, because this will enable you to make those chord changes faster when you crank up the tempo.
                  Short cut 3. Recognize the "blue notes" of the chord scale. for a C7, chord, Eb (the flatted third) and Gb (the flatted fifth) used as passing tones will color your lines with that recognizable "blues sound".
                  Short cut 4. When playing an improvised line, make the chord scale note land on the beat. The is one of the key elements to playing be-bop. So, for a 4 beat measure of C7, you might play eighth notes: C D C B Bb E A G . Millions of possible combinations, even if it's a little ahead of you, doesn't hurt to think about it.
                  Short cut 5. Listen to old blues tunes that have piano, either supportive or featured, and try to pick out short little phrases that you can tuck away in your bag of tricks licks, ready to be pulled out at your next jam session.

                    Wow, thank you so much! <scribbles notes> Very useful! Of course at this stage I'm still trying to lick the most basic of licks, but I think I can definitely try shortcut 5 already 😃
                    Ok, and maybe shortcut 1, if I had the tiniest inkling of what "mixolydian" means (yes, I'll look that up, I promise).

                      Sophia Mixolydian mode is just the scale that is a major scale (CDEFGABC) but flats the 7 (CDEGABbC) to accommodate the dominant 7th chord. C E G Bb makes up the 7th chord. Over a 7th chord, you can hit pretty much any of those notes in the scale/mode and it will sound ok, which is what a lot of beginners do to get their ears opened to those sounds.

                      Also, just for fun, if you want to play around with those scale/mode notes, your left hand doesn't have to cover every note in the chord, just the root and the 7th, C Bb, that way you're free to color in the missing notes with what you play in your right hand.

                          Thanks!! Sounds like fun 😃

                          Edited to add:

                          PianoMonk Mixolydian mode is just the scale that is a major scale (CDEFGABC) but flats the 7 (CDEGABbC) to accommodate the dominant 7th chord.

                          I looked it up and no explanation was as clear and simple as yours. Definitely can work with that!

                            Lesson 4... I included each lick and managed (I think) to put it in the blues progression format. Of course I could lie and say that the complete mess up at the end happened because I got distracted... but... nah. That would definitely be a lie. The truth is that I'm truly that bad still 😃

                              Sophia That is NOT bad. You're feel is good, and good timing, right on the beat.
                              And your cat was right on the beat, too. I laughed out loud. Cool cat. Keep at it. Take it slow. Accuracy will translate to muscle memory connected to your ears, so when you think something, your fingers will just go there. And, before you know it, you'll have sunglasses and a beret, or fedora, or whatever cool hat fits your style.

                                Sophia Yeah! Go bluesy! Perfect 12 bars with some finest licks. U got it. Looks like you enjoy the fun part with the do da da da da da da da do da da da da da da da.
                                Next clip is on me... then... I guess... ... well...
                                (You and your pace. You are putting a lot of pressure on me, do you know that?)

                                    Btw, how many cats do you have, and what are their names? I just know there are Sandy, and Lionel, but I can't tell them apart. They look too similar. Siblings, twins?

                                      WieWaldi Next clip is on me... then... I guess... ... well...

                                      Well of course... You're late already. Get practising you! That said I just had a peek at lesson five - introducing SIXTHs? Should I start shivering???

                                      WieWaldi Btw, how many cats do you have, and what are their names? I just know there are Sandy, and Lionel, but I can't tell them apart. They look too similar. Siblings, twins?

                                      Ah, those cats 🙂 We have three Abyssinians. The oldest is Simba, he is 11. How he got his name is a looong story so I'll spare you the details. No relationship with the Lion King 😃 He's the one who managed to jump up on the keys right at the beat, he's a smart cat!

                                      And yes, the two kittens are Lionel and Sandy. They are a almost 8 months old now. After we lost two cats quite suddenly and in short sequence this January, we got two kittens. They are indeed from the same litter. How they got their names is just as long a story 🙂

                                            TC3 Sometimes I sit and think a bit before I start playing and remind myself of some licks and other ideas I want to use while I play.

                                            Oh, I meant to say that this advice helped me put the 12 correct left hand bars in. I cheated a little and determined beforehand which lick was going to fit with the bar. All the advice I'm getting in this thread from everyone is really helpful!

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                                                Sophia It's not cheating if it works! 😃 In any case, glad it helped.

                                                Enthusiastic but mediocre amateur.