Chromatic Runs

[Stub Mandrel]

Why do four-note chromatic runs work so well (at least in some genres - blues and rock especially)?

And why do they tend work best in certain parts of the scale (e.g.up to the fifth or the root of a major scale)?

[dodge_bass]

Can you give some more specific examples? 

[Stub Mandrel]

1 hour ago, dodge_bass said:

Can you give some more specific examples? 

Heroes.

Stay with Me

Sunny Afternoon (actually descending, they are usually ascending...)

Fool for Your Lovin'

The Real Me

Can't Get Enough

And most famously, Hey Joe

 

Is that enough for a start?

Very often, but not always, as a part of a walking link. Also often in pairs going up a fifth or down a fourth.

 

[Ricky 4000]

Did you know, Wilton Felder managed to get six in a row, in the verse of 'I Want You Back' (The Jackson 5). 🙂

[Skinnyman]

4 hours ago, Stub Mandrel said:

Why do four-note chromatic runs work so well (at least in some genres - blues and rock especially)?

And why do they tend work best in certain parts of the scale (e.g.up to the fifth or the root of a major scale)?

As I understand it (and I could well be talking out of my fundament)...

If you’re going up to the fifth you’ll be playing the major 3rd, 4th, flat 5th (the “blue note”) and 5th which will work nicely in a rock blues setting so long as the flat fifth is just a passing tone.

If you’re going to the root you’re playing the 6th, flat 7, major 7 and root. Again, that flat 7/major 7 in a rock/blues context works nicely as passing tones before resolving to the root.

In both cases, you’re introducing a note that clashes slightly before resolving it on the fifth or the root.

Theres probably a better explanation but that’s how I’ve explained it to myself....

Edited January 4, 2021 by Skinnyman