String Theory: The Winding Road, Part 2 — Conclusion of Last Month's Chromatics-Driven Single-Note Etude

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As promised, here is part two, the second half, of the etude I introduced last month, an original single-note solo played over the chord changes to the final 16 bars (bars 17–32) of the old jazz standard “There Will Never Be Another You.” The first 10 bars of this second section (bars 17–26) follow the same chord progression as bars 1–10 from part one. The progression then veers off into new territory and what’s commonly referred to as the second ending of the tune’s “A-A” form, which in this case is the last six bars (27–32), and resolves satisfyingly to the I (one) chord, C6-9.

FIGURE 1 begins where we left off last time, at the E note on the G string’s ninth fret, which is the third of the underlying C6 chord. The melody continues and moves up the neck, hitting higher “pitch peaks” than last time. Climbing into the upper register like this as a line develops is an effective composition/improvisation strategy that helps build a melody to a dramatic climax: “start low, end high.”

Over the past 30 years, Jimmy Brown has built a reputation as one of the world's finest music educators, through his work as a transcriber and Senior Music Editor for Guitar World magazine and Lessons Editor for its sister publication, Guitar Player. In addition to these roles, Jimmy is also a busy working musician, performing regularly in the greater New York City area. Jimmy earned a Bachelor of Music degree in Jazz Studies and Performance and Music Management from William Paterson University in 1989. He is also an experienced private guitar teacher and an accomplished writer.