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Play With Fire: Ground, Path, Fruition

Pioneering Modern Electric Blues Guitar

Marty FriedmanTommy EmmanuelSteve VaiEric GalesEric Johnson

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Play With Fire: Ground, Path, Fruition
Robben Ford

Robben Ford

Educator

blues, modern blues, blues-rock

Genres

About this course

TrueFire’s Play With Fire is a curated video series of music education documentaries that examine today’s most influential artists and their unique contributions to our musical heritage. In this 9-Hour Masterclass edition of Play With Fire, Robben Ford maps the evolution of his extraordinary musicality, across 90 highly insightful video lessons.

Organized by the three main stages of his career, Ground, Path and Fruition covers everything from Robben’s key influences, rhythm and comping techniques, chord voicings, soloing approaches, songwriting, and 19 full-length performance studies.

”Although the concept of Ground, Path and Fruition can be applied to all things in nature, I find it is also very fitting way to describe how I’ve personally learned and developed as an artist.

It’s not really about a beginning, a middle, and an end because nothing really ever ends. Once you reach “fruition” stage, the cycle starts all over again.”

Robben will explain, demonstrate and break down all of the key concepts and approaches in play. You’ll get standard notation and tabs for all of the performance studies.

Plus, you’ll be able to use TrueFire’s learning tools to sync the tab and notation to the video lesson. You can also loop or slow down the videos so that you can work with the lessons at your own pace.

Grab your guitar and let’s dig in with Robben Ford!

What you'll learn

  • Learn how to incorporate altered chord extensions into blues progressions
  • Understand the structure of a 16-bar blues progression
  • Understand how non-standard blues forms create additional soloing opportunities
  • Understand how to expand beyond traditional 12-bar blues forms
  • Learning how professional musicians navigate genre transitions
Release date: 01/27/2022 • 8h 59m runtime
intermediatelate intermediateadvancedguitarelectric guitarrhythmsoloing
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Sample lessons
GROUND | Circa 1961 - 1970
GROUND | Circa 1961 - 1970
Overview
Playing in a Band
Playing in a Band
GROUND | Influences
Bloomfield's 9th Chord
Bloomfield's 9th Chord
GROUND | Lesson
Rumba Style
Rumba Style
Performance

What's included

91 lessons • 40 charts • 13 Jam Tracks

Play With Fire: Ground, Path, Fruition
Hey, I'm Robben Ford. Welcome to Play With Fire: Ground, Path, Fruition!

Everything in nature has it's own ground, path, and fruition that it must experience. I find this to be a very fitting way to describe how I've learned and developed as an artist.

In this course we're going to dive deep into my personal and professional journey. "Ground" represents my childhood days, from playing saxophone along with The Beach Boys songs, to living through the British Invasion, to discovering Lightnin' Hopkins and B.B. King for the first time. "Path" begins with the physical journey of moving out of my childhood home, to becoming a better guitar player, and eventually joining the L.A. Express and touring with Joni Mitchell. And finally, "Fruition" represents my time spent playing with Miles Davis, finally becoming comfortable as an accomplished guitar player, and finding the joy in teaching and producing.

Thanks for joining me as I dig deep into my past experiences and demonstrate the techniques and best practices I've learned throughout my life.

Grab your guitar and let's get started!
GROUND | Circa 1961 - 1970
In the first section of our course, I'll discuss the "Ground" level of my career. At this point in time, I was listening to as much music as I could get my hands on. I was absorbing as much information as possible - and as a child of the 60s, there was a lot to take in!
Musical Childhood
I was fortunate to grow up around a lot of musical talent. In this video I'll discuss some of my family's musical background and the various ways I was influenced when I was a child. Enjoy!
Playing Saxophone
In this video I'll discuss the beginnings of my musical endeavors, and my first musical instrument, the saxophone! Check it out.
Surf Music Influences
Prior to the 60s, my only musical influences were basically whatever my parents were listening to. The Ventures were the first surf music band I can remember dicovering on my own - and then came The Beach Boys. Check out the video for more details. Enjoy!
The British Invasion
In this segment I'll discuss the first British band to cross the pond in the 60s - The Beatles, and the effect they had on music at the time. There were some others that really got my attention at the time, such as Eric Burden and The Animals, The Angels, and The Shirelles to name a few. Enjoy!
Playing in a Band
Not too long after convincing my dad to show me some chords on his guitar, some friends of mine asked me if I wanted to start a band. I'll discuss some of my early band experiences and the importance of playing music with other people.

+ 84 more lessons

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Reviews

9 results

asavard

Verified buyer

05/29/24

So inspiring!

Every musician, professional and hobbyist alike, is on a learning path. Robben Ford shares what has been his own journey with such generosity, it gives me motivation and inspiration to go forward - and a good idea of what might be ahead, so I can steer left of right with more confidence. Robben Ford is one of those musician you can not dislike, it's a pleasure and a privilege to spent time (be it virtual) with him.

rempelrt

Verified buyer

10/29/22

All of Robbin Ford course are great! they are very insightful.

Dave58

Verified buyer

10/29/22

knows what he's talking about.

Robben Ford is a fantastic teacher and a lifelong virtuoso guitarist. Very interesting if you are interested in techniques and the background of his idols he met and how he could learn that from the greats at the time. I also like his stories. As always important videos and examples. His courses develop your guitar playing faster.

Pag4ever

03/26/22

Very enjoyable

Great mix of stories, performance and teaching. Thanks.

gregdeB

Verified buyer

02/20/22

Play With Fire: Ground, Path, Fruition,

Robben Does a great job as always teaching, but as always I wanted to hear a bit more about his fusion Ideas. I'm not complaining about his blues stuff, he does a great job, but for a guy who has spent so many years doing so many different things, I would have liked to have seen a few different things.

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