PaoloB82
Verified buyer
12/04/25
Great course!
Jeff is a spectacular musician and a clear and precise teacher. I highly recommend the course!
Take 5: Diminished Blues
Power Your Blues Soloing with Diminished Lines
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About this course
Great jazz-influenced guitar players like Robben Ford, John Scofield, and Scott Henderson use the diminished scale to add a fresh harmonic dimension to their blues solos and improvisations.
Jeff McErlain’s Diminished Blues edition of Take 5 kicks off with a revealing primer on the diminished scale and a versatile collection of guitar-friendly diminished fingerings, both of which will demystify the elusive scale and put it to work immediately in your own blues solos and improvisations.
”This course is near and dear to my heart, as the diminished scale looms large in my own playing. I'm very excited to share with you what I’ve learned over the years through trial and error. I’ll clear up any confusion you might have about the scale and show you how to effectively use the diminished scale in your own blues improvisations and solos.”
After the primer, Jeff guides you through five soloing performance studies, which utilize the diminished scale to create tension and release in a blues solo. You’ll play through a series of studies ranging from start basic approaches to more advanced applications.
Jeff will explain and demonstrate all of the key concepts and approaches along the way. You’ll get standard notation and tabs. Plus, Jeff includes all of the backing tracks for you to work with on your own. In addition, you’ll be able to loop or slow down any of the videos so that you can work with the lessons at your own pace.
Grab your guitar and let’s play some diminished blues with Jeff McErlain!
Jeff McErlain’s Diminished Blues edition of Take 5 kicks off with a revealing primer on the diminished scale and a versatile collection of guitar-friendly diminished fingerings, both of which will demystify the elusive scale and put it to work immediately in your own blues solos and improvisations.
”This course is near and dear to my heart, as the diminished scale looms large in my own playing. I'm very excited to share with you what I’ve learned over the years through trial and error. I’ll clear up any confusion you might have about the scale and show you how to effectively use the diminished scale in your own blues improvisations and solos.”
After the primer, Jeff guides you through five soloing performance studies, which utilize the diminished scale to create tension and release in a blues solo. You’ll play through a series of studies ranging from start basic approaches to more advanced applications.
Jeff will explain and demonstrate all of the key concepts and approaches along the way. You’ll get standard notation and tabs. Plus, Jeff includes all of the backing tracks for you to work with on your own. In addition, you’ll be able to loop or slow down any of the videos so that you can work with the lessons at your own pace.
Grab your guitar and let’s play some diminished blues with Jeff McErlain!
Jeff McErlain's Preferred Gear
Below is a list of Jeff McErlain's preferred gear including guitars, amps, pedals, accessories, and more. What you see in Jeff's lessons may or may not be this actual gear, but if you are trying to capture Jeff's sound and tone, the gear listed below is recommended by Jeff and it's a great place to start!
Guitars
- Gibson SG Guitar
- Gibson Les Paul Goldtop Guitar
- Fender Stratocaster Guitar
- Tuttle Carve Top Supreme Guitar
Amps
Pedals
- Fulltone Octafuzz OF-2 Fuzz / Octave Pedal
- Strymon Flint Tremolo and Reverb Pedal
- Xotic EP Booster Pedal
- Ibanez Tube Screamer Overdrive Pedal
- Fulltone OCD Distortion Pedal
- Dunlop Jimi Hendrix Fuzz Face Pedal
- TC Electronic Hall of Fame Reverb Pedal
- MXR Carbon Copy Analog Delay Pedal
- TC Electronic Flashback 2 Delay and Looper Pedal
- Fulltone Supa-Trem Tremolo Pedal
- Boss Super Chorus Pedal
- MXR Flanger Pedal
- MXR Phase 90 Phase Shifter Pedal
- MXR Dyan Comp Compressor Pedal
- Ernie Ball VP JR Volume Pedal
- Dunlop Original Cry Baby Wah Wah Pedal
- MXR M199 Tap Tempo Pedal
Accessories & More
What you'll learn
- Play a fast diminished scale lick as an intro break over a I chord
- Use diminished arpeggios as guide tones for improvisation
- Use symmetrical fingering patterns that repeat every minor third
- Create jazz fusion lines in the style of Scofield and Henderson
- Understand how diminished works as both major and minor
Release date: 05/20/2019 • 1h 21m runtime
Sample lessons
Level 3: Diminished Blues
Overview
Level 3: Diminished Blues
Performance
Level 3: Diminished Blues
Breakdown
What's included
19 lessons • 5 charts • 5 Jam Tracks
Take 5: Diminished Blues
Hi, I'm Jeff McErlain and welcome to Take 5: Diminished Blues. This course is near and dear to my heart, as the diminish scale looms large in my playing. I'm very excited to share with you what I have learned through trail and error, and how to effectively use the elusive and confusing diminished scale.
This course only scratches the surface of the what the scale holds, but it's a good start in getting a solid footing. The examples increase in difficulty somewhat, but none are all that easy, but that's OK! It's more about the concept and getting the scale and sound under your fingers. So, grab your guitar and let's get started!
This course only scratches the surface of the what the scale holds, but it's a good start in getting a solid footing. The examples increase in difficulty somewhat, but none are all that easy, but that's OK! It's more about the concept and getting the scale and sound under your fingers. So, grab your guitar and let's get started!
Diminished Blues Approaches
The diminished scale is a little complicated when you first get into it. It's an eight note scale, as opposed to a seven note scale like the major scale or five notes like the pentatonic scale. It's not derived from the major scale. It's a symmetrical scale in that the intervals remain consistent. We'll spend our time using the half whole diminished scale. The pattern is quite literally half step, whole step, half step, whole step.
In this course, we're mainly using the scale over a dominant seventh chord to add tension. In doing so, the scale gives us the following notes: R b9 #9 3 b5 5 13 b7. As you can see, the chord tones of the dominant chord are there with an added b9, #9, b5 and 13. It's these notes that add the characteristic tension and sound to the scale.
Get used to the sound of the by jumping to the final study and use the jam track. Just play the scale to get the sound in your head. This course really only scratches the surface of the depths of the diminished scale. Please watch this intro a number of times as it is ultimately more important than learning the examples note for note!
In this course, we're mainly using the scale over a dominant seventh chord to add tension. In doing so, the scale gives us the following notes: R b9 #9 3 b5 5 13 b7. As you can see, the chord tones of the dominant chord are there with an added b9, #9, b5 and 13. It's these notes that add the characteristic tension and sound to the scale.
Get used to the sound of the by jumping to the final study and use the jam track. Just play the scale to get the sound in your head. This course really only scratches the surface of the depths of the diminished scale. Please watch this intro a number of times as it is ultimately more important than learning the examples note for note!
Level 1: Diminished Blues
In this study, we're going to use a #VI dim7 arpeggio on a blues. The #VI dim7 chord is a chord embellishment very often heard in blues and jazz specifically on bar six.
On this example, we're playing a G blues. So the #VI diminished 7th chord will be C#dim7, C#EGBb. Note how each of the notes are equi-distant apart made up of the interval of minor 3rds. As a result, each of these notes can be seen as the root, so this chord can be C#dim7, Edim7, Gdim7 and Bbdim7. Very cool, and a key element of understanding diminished scales and theory.
On this example, we're playing a G blues. So the #VI diminished 7th chord will be C#dim7, C#EGBb. Note how each of the notes are equi-distant apart made up of the interval of minor 3rds. As a result, each of these notes can be seen as the root, so this chord can be C#dim7, Edim7, Gdim7 and Bbdim7. Very cool, and a key element of understanding diminished scales and theory.
Level 1: Diminished Blues
Let's do a little math: There are 12 notes in music, four notes in each diminished 7th chord and each note of the diminished 7th chord can be the root. So, how many different diminished 7th chords are there in total? Give up? 12 divided by 4 equals 3. So, three diminished chords.
OK, technically there are 12 diminished sevenths I guess, but if each note can be the root, we can look at it in a simpler way that's a total of three separate diminished chords. Easy right? Well if it isn't now, it will be!
OK, technically there are 12 diminished sevenths I guess, but if each note can be the root, we can look at it in a simpler way that's a total of three separate diminished chords. Easy right? Well if it isn't now, it will be!
Level 1: Diminished Blues
A very cool thing to try is using this dim7 lick or arpeggio on bar six even if we don't actually play the C#dim7 chord in the rhythm section. We can superimpose the diminished seventh chord via the arpeggio over a standard VI chord in a blues. Now THIS is very cool, as it gets us into implying changes that aren't there by playing the notes of the chord. This is a very common concept in jazz and an excellent place to start thinking about this concept.
Level 2: Diminished Blues
Well here it is, The Big Kahuna: The use of the half whole diminished scale on a I7 chord before changing to the IV7 in bar four of a blues. The Robben Ford thing! You know it, you love it, and here's how to do it. Shhhh, don't tell anyone...
Level 2: Diminished Blues
Here we're encountering the idea of superimposing harmony not present in the chord changes. Here we're using the half-whole diminished scale on bar 4 of the blues to add some more musical tension to create a stronger resolution to the IV7 chord. That's the idea behind what Robben Ford does on a blues when using the scale. By using the scale, we're implying an A7b9, #9, b13 chord. Sounds complicated I know. So, take it slowly, write the notes down on paper and the scale degrees as they apply to the chord. It may take a little time to sink in, but it'll happen and you'll get used to the sound of the scale and the harmony.
+ 12 more lessons
Reviews
28 results
Addahia
Verified buyer
11/02/24
Diminished amazement
Fist of, Jeff is grate at explaining whatever he has to explain. Second, diminished blues is a thing that needs much more attention and this course is a gateway to some extraordinary melodic shades to your pentatonics.
Bluesluva55
Verified buyer
01/15/22
A Great Course
Jeff is one of the best guitar teachers and one of my favourite contemporary players. The course has greatly helped in taking my skills to the next level.
giosef
Verified buyer
10/28/21
Jeff: a guarantee!
Jeff MacErlaine is a great teacher! He can explain even complex concepts like a friend sitting in front of you with his guitar do. This course is not an exception, Jeff teach an uncommon way to soloing friendly and gradually.
Mario64
Verified buyer
10/21/21
A very cool Course
Another super fine course from my favorite instructor. He is able to explain the subtleties of the diminished scale with extreme ease and with unfailing fun. An unmissable knowledge for all lovers of the genre.
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