Definition

Noun: * A flattened third or seventh: In music, particularly in blues and jazz, a "blue note" is a note that is played or sung at a slightly lower pitch (flattened) than the standard major scale. This creates a characteristic expressive, melancholic, or "bluesy" sound. The most common blue notes are the flattened third, fifth, and seventh degrees of the scale.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • The saxophonist's solo was full of expressive blue notes.
  • The singer's ability to bend into a blue note gave the song its emotional depth.
  • That blue note on the guitar perfectly captured the feeling of the blues.

Advanced Usage

• Microtonal Inflection: A blue note is often not a fixed pitch but a microtonal slide or bend between the standard pitch and the flattened pitch. It is more about the expressive gesture than hitting a specific note on the piano.
• Harmonic Context: While the flattened third and seventh are most iconic, the flattened fifth (or "tritone") is also considered a blue note and contributes to the distinctive harmonic tension in blues music.

Variants and Related Words

• Blues Scale (n): A musical scale that incorporates blue notes, often consisting of the root, minor third, fourth, diminished fifth, fifth, and minor seventh.
• Bend (v/n): The technique of pushing a guitar string or altering vocal pitch to create a blue note.

Synonyms

• Bent note
• Worried note (archaic/idiomatic)

Related Idioms/Phrases

• To play/sing it blue: To perform with the characteristic inflection and emotion of blues music, which inherently involves the use of blue notes.
  • She doesn't just sing the melody; she really knows how to sing it blue.

Noun

1. a flattened third or seventh