Escalas Musicales

Scales Modes and Chord construction For the advanced guitarist

Charlie Garcia

Scales Modes and Chord construction For the advanced guitarist

Charlie Garcia

Scales, Modes and Chord construction Is dedicated to:

Austin Alex Nicole Tatiana

Special thanks to: God, mom and dad, my entire family, Mike Major for teaching me how to make records, Robert Manning for his great work ethic, R. Crosby, Stuart Hamm, Emmet Chapman for creating the Chapman stick™ and for having a great deal of patience with me, Aaron Coello and family, R. Booth, Sergio Lorenzana and family, to all my friends for being so forgiving and to every artist that I have ever produced or played with over the last 20 years.

Charlie Garcia

Index Introduction How to use this Book …………………………………………………………………………………………..

Page

  

Grid Protocol……………….………………………………………………………………………………………..

2

   

Standard Music Notation…………………………………………………………………………………….. Reading rhythm……………………….…………………………………………………………………………… Silence as written in music notation ……………………………………………………………………. Note values ………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

6 8 11 14



Key Signatures………………………………………………………………………………………………………

15

       

Scales…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. Major and minor scales..……………………………………………………………………………………….. Major and minor scale patterns………………..………………………………………………………….. Major and minor Scales in 1st and 5th Positions……………………………………………………… Other types of scales…………………………………………………………………………………………….. The harmonic minor scale……………………………………………………………………………………… The jazz minor scale………………………………………………………………………………………………. The melodic minor scale………………………………………………………………………………………..

20 21 22 24 38 39 42 47



The Modes…………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

51

              

Chord Construction……………………………………………………………………………………………… Building a C major triad…………………………………………………………………………………………. The C minor triad……….…………………………………………………………………………………………. Major 7 and minor 7 chords…..…………………………………………………………………………….. Dominant 7 chords……....................................................................................... Chord extensions..……………………………………………………………………………………………….. Chord alterations………………………………………………………………………………………………….. Other types of chords…………………………………………………………………………………………… Diminished chords………..………………………………………………………………………………………. Diminished chord trick….………………………………………………………………………………………. The half diminished or flat 5 chord.……………………………………………………………………… The augmented chord……………………….………………………………………………………………… Augmented chord trick……..…………………………..…………………………………………………….. Suspended chords sus 2 and sus 4…...............….…………………………………………………. The 6 chord…………………………….………………………….…………………………………………………..

106 108 109 110 113 114 121 126 126 131 137 139 142 147 152

    

Chord Substitutions………………………………………………………………………………….………….. Relative Minor principle………………………………………………………………………………………… Tonic substitution principle.………………………………………………………………………………….. Tritone substitution principle……………………………………………………………………………….. Diminished substitution principle………………………………………………………………………….

153 154 157 160 165

1

   

Augmented substitution principle………..……………………………………………………………….. Diatonic substitution principle……...……………………………………………………………………….. Diatonic chord progression reference chart………………………………………………………….. Diatonic chord progressions…………………………………………………………………………………..

168 170 172 186

 

Chord Inversions…………………………………………………………………………………………………... Slash Chords……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

233 236

  

Arpeggios…………………………………………………………………………………………….………………… Major 7 arpeggio chart………..…………………………………………………………………………………. Minor 7 arpeggio chart………….………………………………………………………………………………..

238 243 244



The Extended Arpeggio Concept…………………………………………………………………………..

245

Grid Protocol The graphs used in this book to illustrate chords and scales will be represented in mirror image format. meaning that the left side of the graph will represent the fret closest to the headstock and tuning gears while, the right side of the graph represents the fret closest to the body of the guitar just as if you where standing in front of a mirror. 1st fret

3rd fret

6th fret

Some of the graphs shown throughout the book may start on a different fret such as the 2nd or any other fret depending on the example. Squares will be used to represent the root of a chord or scale while circles will be used for all the other notes within the grid.

2

The low E string is represented by the line at the top of the grid, while the A string is represented by the line below. The D, G, B and high E strings follow below in that same order.

1st fret

3rd fret

6th string low E 5th string

A

4th string

D

3rd string

G

2nd string

B

1st string high E The example above is for a C major 7 chord played on the 3 rd fret of the A string where you would bar on the 3rd fret and use the remaining fingers to play the rest of the chord. You may encounter graphs without fret numbers meaning that the example is not specific to a particular area of the neck.

3

Grid protocol

Natural Notes on the Guitar Neck No Sharp or Flats E

F

G

A

B

C

D

E

F

G

A

F

A

B

C

D

E

D

E

F

G

A

B

C

D

G

A

C

D

E

F

G

G

A

B

C

C 8

D 9 10

E

F

B

B

C

D

E

E

F 1

G 3

A 5

2

4

F

6

B 7

11

12

The Chart above represents the notes on the guitar neck with the 13 exception of the flat or sharp notes. Notice how the notes repeat themselves after the 12th Fret.

4

Next I will show you where the sharp notes are on the neck F#

E

G

A

C

D

# F#

# G

A

# C

# D

# F#

# G #

A

A

# C

# D

D

# D

# F#

# G

G

# G

B

#

C

#

F# #

E 1 13

2

3

D

#

G #

A

4

#

5

A F#

6

7

#

# D

G

A

#

# C

# D

8

#

9

10

#

11

12

Let’s take a look at the Flat notes on the Freeboard

Gb

E

# C

A

Ab

Bb

Db

Eb

Gb

Ab

Bb

A

Bb

Db

Eb

D

Eb

Gb

Ab

Bb

Db

Eb

Db

Eb

Gb

Ab

b G A

Bb

B

Db

Eb

E

Gb

Ab

1

2

3

4

Gb Bb

5

6

7

13

5

8

Ab

Bb

Db

Eb

9

10

11

12

Standard Music Notation Basics It is extremely important to be able to read and write standard music notation for a number of reasons. One of them being that by being able to read and write music notation your chances of becoming a professional musician increase due to the fact that a great number of gigs require at the very least basic reading skills. Another way you may benefit from being able to read and write music is when communicating your musical ideas to other musicians when your instrument is not within reach. The following is not intended to be a complete method for learning to read and write music but rather a basic reference guide that should be enough to get you started and hopefully keep you in the right direction towards learning this essential skill.

The staff Treble clef

C D E F CC

Ledger lines

Staff lines

G

A B

C D

E

F G

A

B C

The fancy looking symbol at the beginning of the staff is called the treble clef. There are many different types of clefs but the most common ones are the Treble and Bass clefs.

6

Standard Music Notation

Bass clef

Bass clef

E

F G

A

B

C D

E F

G A

B C

D E

Measure or bar Time signature 4 4

Bar lines

Common time signatures 4/4 2/4 3/4 6/4 6/8 7/8 etc. 4/4 time is also known as common time and you may see it represented by the letter C in the place where the time signature normally would be. 2/4 time is sometimes referred to as “cut time” and its represented by the letter C with a slash thru the middle C.

7

Reading Rhythm In common time we find that there are four beats or counts per measure and these 4 beats and their subdivisions are represented by a variety of symbols.

The whole note

The whole note = 4 beats

Its duration is that of an entire bar which means that you play the whole note at the beginning of the measure and sustain (hold) the note for 4 beats. There can only be one whole note per measure.

The Half note Stem The Half note = 2 beats

The duration of a half note is only 2 beats which is half the length of a whole note. This means that you can have two half notes per bar. Notice the introduction of the stem which helps to distinguish a whole note from a half note.

8


The Quarter note

The Quarter note = 1 beat

The duration of a Quarter note is only half the duration of a half note, therefore it only lasts for one beat. There can be 4 quarter notes per measure or bar. Notice that the quarter note is just like the half note in the sense that it has a stem but instead of the note being white it is black. The 8th note

The 8th note = ½ of a beat

The eighth note is written almost like a quarter note but with a flag on top of a stem. The duration can be somewhat short depending on the tempo and it only lasts ½ of a beat.

9

The 16th note

The 16th note = ¼ of a beat

The 16th note has 2 flags on top of the stem and its duration is only ¼ of a quarter note or beat.

The 32nd note

The 32nd note = 1/8 of a beat

The 32nd note has 3 flags on the stem and its duration is very short lasting only for 1/8 of a quarter note.

10


Silence as written in music notation Silence plays a very important role in music and is also represented in music notation by symbols called rests. There are different types of rests and they all have their own value or duration.

The whole note rest

The whole note rest = 4 beats

The whole note rest represents silence for an entire measure. (4 beats)

The Half note rest

The Half note rest = 2 beats

The half note rest represents a silence that lasts two beats or half of a measure.

11

The Quarter note rest

The Quarter note rest = 1 beat

The quarter note rest represents silence for 1/4 of a measure the equivalent of 1 beat or quarter note.

The 8th note rest

The 8th note rest = ½ of a beat

The eighth note rests represents a short silence of only 1/2 of a beat.

12


The 16th note rest

The 16th note rest = ¼ of a beat

The sixteenth note rest represents a silence that lasts only 1/8 of a beat.

The 32nd note

The 32nd note rest = 1/8 of a beat

The 32nd rest is a very short silence lasting only 1/16 of a quarter note.

13

Note Values Whole

note

=

4

counts or beats

Half

note

=

2

counts or beats

Quarter note

=

1

counts or beats

8th

note

=

1/2 count or beat

16th

note

32nd

note

= =

1/4 count or beat 1/8 count or beat

Rest Values Whole

rest

=

4

counts or beats

Half

rest

=

2

counts or beats

Quarter rest

=

1

counts or beats

8th

rest

=

1/2 count or beat

16th

rest

=

1/4 count or beat

32nd

rest

=

1/8 count or beat

14


Key signatures And Improvising Learning and memorizing all key signatures is an invaluable tool for the improvising musician that allows him/her to absorb a great deal of information about a piece of music by simply taking a quick glance at the beginning of the sheet music. Most students know that key signatures are used to avoid writing sharp or flat notes repeatedly throughout the chart and by writing them once at the beginning it is understood that every time a particular note appears within the composition , it is to be played as if the accidental was written next to the note. By knowing what key a song is in and by studying some of the concepts and patterns taught in this book a musician can make use of substitutions and the different modes to create a variety of textures during improvisation. In the following pages you will find a very useful chart with major and minor key signatures in both flat and sharp keys that will allow you to easily memorize them by following the circle of fifths for the sharp keys and the circle of fourths for the flat keys.

15

Key Signatures

C major = A minor

Continued on next page papage………..

16

17

Key Signatures

C major = A minor

Continued on next page pagepppage………..

18

19

Key Signatures

Scales In western music scales are the foundation of melodic content within a composition. Major and minor scales are at its core. A scale is a series of notes that ascend and descend in a particular order of intervals. The most basic scale is the chromatic scale which consists of nothing but half step intervals. A C major scale is made of: C, C#, D, D#, E, F, F#, G, G#, A, A#, B and C. from this scale we can create two of the most important scales in western popular music; the major scale and the minor scale.

W= whole tone interval or whole step jump within the chromatic scale C C# D D# E F F# etc……

W Whole tone interval H= half tone interval or half step jump within the chromatic scale C C# D D# E F F# etc……

H Half tone interval Major scale formula = W, W, H, W, W, W, H Minor scale formula = W, H, W, W, H, W, W 20

Major and minor scales Building a C major scale from the chromatic scale using the whole tone, half tone formula.

Major scale formula = W, W, H, W, W, W, H

C

C#

W

D D#

E F F#

W

H

G

W

G# A A#

W

B C

W

H

C Major scale = C, D, E, F, G, A, B and C Building a C minor scale from the chromatic scale using the whole tone, half tone formula.

Minor scale formula = W, H, W, W, H, W, W

C

C#

D D#

W

H

E F F#

W

W

G

G# A A#

B C

H

W

W

C Minor scale = C, D, D#, F, G, G#, A# and C

21

Scales

Major and minor scales patterns There are many ways of playing scales on the guitar but I have found some to be more effective than others. The fingerings you are about to learn will allow you to play any major or minor scale in any key by moving your hand up or down the neck. Although I recommend that you are fully aware of the notes contained in any given scale, the reality is that when you are playing and more importantly when you are improvising over a chord progression it is almost impossible to think of what notes belong to a scale therefore learning a few simple patterns will go a long way in your quest for mastering the guitar. Next we will learn a one octave pattern and a two octave pattern for both the major and minor scales.

C Major scale = C, D, E, F, G, A, B and C

1 octave pattern

2 octave pattern

6th fret C major scale

6th fret C major scale

22

C Minor scale = C, D, D#, F, G, G#, A# and C 1 octave pattern

2 octave pattern

6th fret C minor scale

6th fret C minor scale

Before we move on to the next section I would like to teach you a simple formula used to easily convert any major scale into minor. C Major Scale

C, D, E, F, G, A, B, C 1o 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o In order to turn this C major scale into a C minor all you have to do is flatten the 3rd, 6th and 7th degrees

C minor = C, D, Eb, F, G, Ab, Bb, C 1o 2o b3o 4o 5o b6o b7o 8o Minor conversion formula Flat 3rd, Flat 6th and Flat 7th degrees 23

Scales

Major and Minor scales In 1st and 5th positions The patterns I will show you in the following pages are what make accomplished guitar players have total command of their instruments when improvising solos. These patterns allow you to play any major or minor scale without having to switch positions, therefore maximizing the principle of economy of motion amongst other benefits. I used to be mesmerized when seeing Pat Martino solo over complex chord changes without his hand moving up or down the neck, I could hear the chords changing, but Martino would always play the right notes to all the different chords all while his hand remained in the same position! An important thing to remember is that when improvising solos in most styles of music most musicians do not just play scales up and down the neck; instead we try to create melodies that fit that particular musical language. The melodic advantage these patterns have is that most of them do not start on the root note of the scale, which makes the sound more like “runs”, rather than mere scales. A C major scale can start on A instead of C if played on the 5th position or F if played in 1st position. Before we get started with the patterns I would like to explain what we will be referring to as 1 st and 5th positions throughout this book.

24

Fingering protocol 1st position will be accomplished by placing your index finger on the first fret, second finger on the 2nd fret, third finger on the 3rd fret and the fourth finger placed on the 4th fret. 5th position is a bit different than 1st position due to the fact that the both the index and pinky finger can cover two frets allowing you to cover up to six frets in this position alone.5th position is accomplished by placing your index finger on the 5 th fret, second finger on the 6th fret, third finger on the 7th fret, and finally by placing your pinky on the 8th fret. Keep in mind that the index finger is allowed to shift down to the 4th fret and the pinky is allowed to move up to the 9th fret.

25

Scales

Major Scales in 1st Position 1st Fret

1o 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o

1st Fret

1o 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o

1st Fret

1o 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o

26

Major and Minor Scales


1o 2o 3o 4o 5o 6 o 7o 8o

1st Fret

1o 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o

1st Fret

1o 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o

27


1o 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o

28


Major Scales in 5th Position 5th Fret

1o 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o

5th Fret

1o 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o

5th Fret

1o 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o

29


1o 2o 3o 4o 5o 6 o 7o 8o

5th Fret

1o 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o

5th Fret

1o 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o

30



1o 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o

31

Minor Scales in 1st Position 1st Fret

1o 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o

1st Fret

1o 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o

1st Fret

1o 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o

32



1o 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o

1st Fret

1o 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o

1st Fret

1o 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o

33


1o 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o

34


Minor Scales in 5th Position 5th Fret

1o 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o

5th Fret

1o 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o

5th Fret

1o 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o

35


1o 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o

5th Fret

1o 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o

5th Fret

1o 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o

36



1o 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o

37

Other types of Scales  Harmonic minor  Jazz minor  Melodic minor Although there are many scales in music, the ones shown in this book are the most common and the most versatile.

38

Scales

The Harmonic Minor Scale The Harmonic minor scale is very easy to remember since it just like a minor scale except it has a major 7th as shown in example 1. Although I try not to give any adjectives to any of these scales, I will say that some musicians describe the harmonic minor scale as sounding exotic and some even say it sounds Middle Eastern to them. What is important here is that you internalize the sound and use it as a tool to express yourself in a musical way. The harmonic minor scale works well over a m7 to dominant 7 chord progression. For example if you play Gm7 to D7 we can play G harmonic minor over both chords. Let’s take a look at the notes in the chord progression and see how the scale relates to it.

1 o 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o

39

Harmonic Minor Patterns

40



41

The Jazz Minor Scale The jazz minor scale (sometimes referred to as Jazz melodic minor) is similar to classical music’s melodic minor scale ascending form which is a major scale with a flat 3 rd degree 1o 2o b o 3 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o the difference is that the Jazz minor scale remains the same ascending as well as descending. As the name may suggest this scale is extensively used in Jazz but can and should be used in any style. Scales should never be confined to one single style of music; instead they should be viewed as a series of notes that have a certain sound or “color” when played over chords regardless of style. The main factor that makes a musician sound “true” to a style when improvising is phrasing and not the use of any particular scale. Do not be fooled by the name of this scale and start applying it to your favorite style of music as soon as possible. On the other hand do not make the assumption that you will sound “Jazzy” by incorporating the Jazz minor scale into your vocabulary. I would like to point out the fact that some of these scales can have multiple names, for example the Jazz minor can be viewed as a major scale with a flat third degree or it may also be viewed as a minor scale with natural sixth and seventh degrees! As I have mentioned before, it is more important to learn the sound or “color” of the scale and not get too caught-up in too much theory or giving scales all kinds of different names.

Jazz Minor Scale Formula 1o 2o b3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o

42

Jazz Minor Scale Patterns

43

Jazz Minor

Jazz Minor Scale Formula

44

Jazz Minor Scale Applications There is a simple trick to apply the Jazz minor scale that is easy to remember and sounds very “sophisticated” when played over certain chord progressions. Any time you have a dominant7 b13 chord that resolves to a major7 up a fourth or down a fifth you may play the Jazz minor scale up a half step from the dominant 7 b13. If the dominant 7b13 resolves to any other chord other than a major7 up a fourth or down a fifth you may play the Jazz minor scale starting from the 5th degree of the dominant7b13.This scale can be applied to a G7b13 to Cmajor7 chord progression as shown in the following example in which we choose to play a G# Jazz minor scale based on the notes it shares with G7b13 as well as with the Cmajor7 chord.

G# Jazz minor played over a G7b13 to Cmaj7 chord progression analysis. Ex.1

R G

G7b13 3 5 B D

G# Jazz minor 7 F

b

13 Eb G# A# B

C# D# F

G

Common notes G

B

F

Eb

“Outside notes” G# A# C# *Eb is enharmonic to D#. This means that it’s the same tone but they can have two different names.

45

Jazz Minor

R C

C major7 3 5 7 E G B

G# Jazz minor G#

A# B

C# D# F

G

Common notes G and B

“Outside notes” G# A# C# D# F Keep in mind that the “outside” notes can create a very desirable color. I cannot overemphasize the importance of knowing what notes are in a chord, you must be aware of the chord extensions or chord alterations if there are any. In example 1 we have a G# Jazz minor played over a G7b13 in this chord the altered extension is the b13 (Eb) which coincides with the fifth degree of the scale. If we choose to play G#7/13 (natural 13 degree) we can play the D Jazz minor scale as shown in example 2. Ex2.

R G

G7/13 3 5 7 B D F

D Jazz minor 13 E

D

E

F

G

Common notes G

B

D

F and E

“Outside note” C#

46

A

B

C#

Melodic Minor Scale The melodic minor scale is very different from all the other scales due to the fact that it ascends like a minor scale with a natural 6 th and a natural 7th but it descends like a minor scale with its b3, b6 and b7 degrees. In reality these are two separate scales but for some reason they have been taught to music students in this manner for quite some time. If you were to take the A melodic minor and play it over an Am7 chord you will see that the major 6th and major 7th (which are part of the melodic minor scale) are not found in the Am7 and when played against the chord it adds a certain “color” that you may or may not find useful. However, the rule to this particular scale is that you must play the melodic minor ascending which is 1o, 2o, b3o, 4o, 5o, 6o, 7o, 8o and when descending the natural minor scale is played 1o, 2o, b3o, 4o, 5o, b6o, b7o, 8o so going up there are going to be some “outside notes” but coming back down you should be within scale. To me this looks and sounds like to different scales and I choose to think of the melodic minor scale as little as possible simply because popular music does not function in this way where you would have two different scales played over a single chord. If you are a student or composer in the classical field you may find the classical melodic minor scale useful to analyze certain compositions but I rarely find this to be the case in popular western music.

47

1o 2o

b o

3 4o 5 o 6o 7o 1o 2o

48

b o

3 4o 5 o

b

6o b7o

Melodic Minor Patterns


49


50


The modes There is a great deal of confusion about the modes, especially amongst beginning students although there are countless books, magazines, and lessons on the Internet dealing with this subject. I have taken the time to review a good number of them and found that some are a very poor explanation of the subject. After some time studying the modes I came to the conclusion that mode theory like most concepts in music is very simple, however it is the way that some of these lessons are presented that can create some confusion to the beginning student. For instance I have found that many of these lessons will have an explanation of the Ionian mode followed by the Aeolian mode instead the Dorian mode, this may not make sense to you at this time but trust me this is the kind of thing that gets people confused. At the risk of being criticized I must admit that I do not feel that one must know the name of the modes to be able to accomplish a high level of technical proficiency on the guitar, however I wanted to include them because I felt that not doing so would make this book incomplete. One thing to note is the fact that people get too caught up in the whole “mode thing” but the fact of the matter is that it is almost impossible to be thinking of which mode to play when the chords are flying by so fast. Almost every great improviser that I ever talked to about this subject has given me the same answer; that they are not thinking in modal terms, instead they are focused in creating melodies whether its playing jazz, metal or whatever style it may be. Next I will explain the modes minus the nonsense.

51

What are the Modes? A mode is a scale that starts on any given degree of a major scale other than the root note.

Take a C major scale and instead of starting on the root note, start on the 2nd degree (D) using the notes of the C major scale exclusively and working your way up to the D an octave higher. This will render a mode, which in this case it would be D Dorian.

C Major Scale 1o 2o 3o 4 o 5o 6o 7o 8o C D E F G A B C Start on the second degree and you get D Dorian.

D E

F

G A B C D

52

The Modes

The 7 modes of the Major Scale       

Ionian Dorian Phrygian Lydian Mixolydian Aeolian Locrian

Let’s take the C major scale and use it to build our modes starting with the Ionian mode which is simply the major scale, meaning that we start on C and end on C an octave higher using the formula for the major scale of Whole step /Whole step /Half step /Whole step /Whole step /Whole step /Half step that you should know by now.

C Ionian = *also known as the C major scale. C D E F G A B C 1o 2o 3o 4 o 5o 6o 7o 8o

53

D Dorian D E F G A B C D 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o R 2o I will like to stop at this point and explain something that seems to create a lot of confusion. This Dorian mode that we are playing here is nothing more than the C major scale starting on D instead of C as it has been established, and it is not to be confused with the C Dorian mode which is: C/D/E /F/G/A/B /C. Furthermore you will notice that in the previous example D Dorian starts on the second degree of the scale and not the first. Writing it in this manner is to emphasize that we are dealing with the 2nd degree of the C major scale and not the D major scale. Let’s take a look at the next mode.

E Phrygianrd

Starting on the 3 degree of the C major scale we get:

E F G A B C D E 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o R 2o 3o

F Lydian

Starting on the 4th degree of the C major scale we get:

F G A B C D E F 4o 5o 6o 7o R 2o 3o 4o

54

The Modes

G Mixolydian th


G A B C D E F G 5o 6o 7o R 2o 3o 4o 5o

A Aeolianth


A B C D E F G A 6o 7o R 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o

B Locrian th


B C D E F G A B 7o R 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o Before I show you how these modes are played on guitar, I will teach you a simple formula that will help you memorize them by simply learning if there are any sharp or flat degrees.

55

Formula Ionian mode 1o 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o

Dorian mode 1o 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o

Phrygian mode 1o 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o

Lydian mode 1o 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o

Mixolydian mode 1o 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o

Aeolian mode 1o 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o

Locrian mode 1o 2o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o 56

The Modes

Notice how we are starting on the 1st degree of the scale this time and not on the second degree for the Dorian mode, otherwise it would be a Dorian mode but in a different key. This is where most of the confusion has been generated. So if we take the C major scale:

C D E F G A B C = Ionian mode C Dorian would be:

C D E F G A B C = C Dorian And not! D E F G A B C D That would be D Dorian. Next we will work out all 7 modes in C using the formula we just learned.

57

The 7 Modes in the key of C C Ionian C D E F G A B C 1o

2o

3o

4o

5o

6o

7o

8o

C Dorian C D E F G A B C 1o

2o

3o

4o

5o

6o

7o

8o

C Phrygian C D E F G A B C 1o

2o

3o

4o

5o

6o

7o

8o

C Lydian C D E F G A B C 1o

2o

3o

4o

5o

6o

7o

8o

C Mixolydian C D E F G A B C 1o

2o

3o

4o

5o

6o

7o

8o

A Aeolian C D E F G A B C 1o

2o

3o

4o

5o

6o

7o

8o

C Locrian C D E F G A B C 1o

2o

3o

4o

5o

6o

7o 58

8o The Modes

First we will refer to the pattern we have been using to play the major scale on guitar. 1

2

3

4

5

6

Frets

6 S T R I N G S

5 3o 4 3

1o

2o

4o

5o

6o

7o

8o

2 1

It is important that we remember the pattern for the major scale, as it is our foundation for the major scale and modes as well as for building chords, which will be discussed in a later chapter. The small number next to the black dot on the diagram refers to the degree of the scale. The reason we will be looking at the diagram instead of learning the name of the notes for each one of the modes is due to the fact that I want to make it as easy as possible to learn these modes and very much like we did so when learning the major scale pattern, once you learn the simple formula along the pattern all you have to do is move it up or down the neck and you will be playing all the modes in every possible key by simply memorizing a few simple fingerings.

59

The following examples work just like the pattern for the major scale except that this time you will be learning 7 different patterns instead of just one, the good news is that in doing so, you will have learned all of the modes in all keys by simply moving your hand up or down the neck. 3rd Fret

C Ionian

1o 2 o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o No Sharps or Flats

3rd Fret

C Dorian

1o 2 o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o Flat 3, 7

60

The Modes

3rd Fret

C Phrygian

1o 2 o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o Flat 2, 3, 6

3rd Fret

C Lydian

1o 2 o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o Sharp 4

3rd Fret

C Mixolydian

1o 2 o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o Flat 7

61

3rd Fret

C Aeolian

1o 2 o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o Flat 3, 6, 7 3rd Fret

C Locrian

1o 2 o 3o 4o 5o 6o 7o 8o Flat 2, 3, 5, 6, 7

62

The Modes

Great! We now know all the modes in the key of C and we also know that by moving our hand up or down the neck we get all 7 modes in every key. The previous patterns only covered one octave and are confined to the middle strings. Next we have all 7 modes in the keys of C, D, E, F, G, A and B covering two octaves in 1st and 5th positions. What we will learn next is the key to improvising, not only are these modes great for improvising but also for writing melodies and to make your soloing much more interesting or “outside” sounding. Keep in mind that depending on the style you are playing you will have to use the right phrasing in order to be “true” to the style, Furthermore the purpose of these various patterns we have learned and the ones we are going to learn next is to make music and not to just run scales up and down the neck.

*NOTE:

The following Patterns may also be viewed as fingering exercises to build speed and dexterity.

63

The Modes in 1st Position key of C 1st Fret

1st Fret

1st Fret

64

The Modes

1st Position key of C 1st Fret

1st Fret

1st Fret

65

The 1stModes Position in key 1st Position of C 1st Fret

66

The Modes

1st Position key of D 1st Fret

1st Fret

1st Fret

67


1st Fret

1st Fret

68

The Modes


69

FIRST 1stPOSITION Position key KEY of EOF D 1st Fret

1st Fret

*Alternate Fingering

1st Fret

70

The Modes

1st Position key of E 1st Fret

1st Fret

1st Fret

71

1st Position key of E 1st Fret

1st Fret

72

The Modes

1st Position key of F 1st Fret

1st Fret

1st Fret

73


1st Fret

1st Fret

74

The Modes


75

1st Position key of G 1st Fret

1st Fret

1st Fret

76

The Modes

st Position key 1ST1POSITION KEY ofOF G G

1st Fret

1st Fret

1st Fret

77

1st Position key of G 1st Fret

78

The Modes

1st Position key of A 1st Fret

1st Fret

1st Fret

79


1st Fret

1st Fret

80

The Modes


81

st Position Key 1ST1POSITION KEYofOF B B

1st Fret

1st Fret

1st Fret

82

The Modes

1st Position Key of B 1st Fret

1st Fret

1st Fret

83

1st Position Key of B 1st Fret

84

The Modes

The Modes in 5th Position Key of C 5th Fret

5th Fret

5th Fret

85

5th Position Key of C 5th Fret

5th Fret

5th Fret

86

The Modes

5th Position Key of C 5th Fret

87

5th Position Key of D 5th Fret

5th Fret

5th Fret

88

The Modes


5th Fret

5th Fret

89


90

The Modes

5th Position Key of E 5th Fret

5th Fret

5th Fret

91


5th Fret

5th Fret

92

The Modes


93

5th Position Key of F 5th Fret

5th Fret

5th Fret

94

The Modes


5th Fret

5th Fret

95


96

The Modes

2nd5th POSITION Position Key KEY ofOF G F 5th Fret

5th Fret

5th Fret

97

5th Position Key of G 5th Fret

5th Fret

5th Fret

98

The Modes

5th Position Key of G 5th Fret

99

5th Position Key of A 5th Fret

5th Fret

5th Fret

100

The Modes


5th Fret

5th Fret

101


102

The Modes

5th Position Key of B 5th Fret

5th Fret

5th Fret

103

5th Position Key of B 5th Fret

5th Fret

5th Fret

104

The Modes

th Position Key 2nd5POSITION KEYofOF B B

5th Fret

105

Chord construction The process of chord construction like most concepts in music is very simple; it is so simple that once you have learned the method taught in this book you will be able to build any chord regardless of how complex it may be. Have you ever been faced with a chord such as D7/9/#13? Only to be left wondering how such fancy chord is to be played on piano or guitar. Being a bass player and coming from a rock background I was used to playing some basic folk chords and simple power chords on guitar but I always wondered how Jazz musicians where able to come up with such beautiful and “exotic” sounding chord voicings. Growing up the resources for learning music outside a music school where limited to some VHS instructional videos or from a private instructor. Some of these methods showed how to “grip” or “finger” these fancy jazz chords but would not offer an explanation on why or how the chord was built. During my early days as a musician I tried talking to all kinds of players to learn how these chords where created but soon realized that most of these musicians had different versions of the chords in question and ultimately had no idea what they were talking about and to make matters worse they made an effort to make things more complicated than they really were. I would be at rehearsal and the guitar player would say something like “hey check out this D/#13 chord” when in fact it was a Dm9. I had a feeling that chord construction was simpler than what anyone cared to admit. After a great deal of research and countless hours of trial and error I managed to figure it out! And subsequently developed a very simple method to build any chord without having to memorize hundreds of patterns from chord books that seem to be so popular nowadays but can take years to master. If you have an understanding on how the major scale is played on the guitar and can count to 20 you should have no problem creating your own chords.

106

Chord types  Major triads  Minor triads  Major 7 chords:

maj7 or 7

 Minor 7 chords:

-7 or m7

 Dominant 7 chords: simply notated with a number 7 such as C7  Chord Extensions: 9ths, 11ths and 13ths  Chord Alterations:

Sharp and flat 9, sharp and flat 11,

sharp and flat 13, sharp and flat 5

Other Chord Types  Diminished chords  Half diminished chords

(also known as flat 5)

 Augmented chords  Suspended chords ( sus 2 and sus 4)  6 Chord

107

Chord Construction

Building a C Major triad Let’s begin by building simple major and minor triads (3 note chords) which will be the foundation for most of the chords discussed in this book. Step #1 The first step is to take a scale and use it as a “road map” to construct our triad. To keep things simple we will be using the C major scale which consists of the following notes: C major scale

C D E F G A B C R 2o 3o 4o

5o 6o

7o 8o

A major triad is composed of the 1st (root), 2nd and 3rd degrees of a major scale as shown in the following example: Step #2

C Major triad

C D E F G A B C R 2o

C major triad

3o 4o

5o 6o 7o

8o

Major triad formula R, 3rd and 5th. C Major triad = C, E and G.

108

The C minor triad The first step in building the C minor triad is to take the C major scale as our guide and then convert it to a minor scale by lowering the 3rd, 6th and 7th degrees of the scale. Step #1 C major scale

C D E F G A B C R

2o 3o 4o

5o

6o

7o

8o

Conversion to minor by lowering the 3rd, 6th and 7th degrees. C Minor scale

C D Eb F G Ab Bb C R

2o

b o

3

4o 5 o

b o

6

b o

7

8o

The minor triad is composed of the Root, 3rd and the 5th degrees of the minor scale. Step 2 in the process is to find those chord tones to create our triad. Step #2 C Minor triad


C Minor triad

2o

b o

3

4o

5o

b o

6

b o

7

8o

Minor triad formula R, 3rd and 5th. C Minor triad = C, Eb and G.

109

Chord Construction

Major 7 and Minor 7 chords Let’s continue with the building process and start adding notes to the basic major and minor triads. The next note we will add is the 7 th degree of the major scale which makes the chord sound fuller and much more “sophisticated”.

Building a C Major 7 Step #1 Begin with the major triad C Major triad


5o 6o

7o 8o

Major 7th Step #2 add the 7th degree of the scale C Major 7 or

7


C Major 7

5o 6o

7o 8o

Major 7 formula R, 3rd,5th and 7th C Major 7 = C, E, G and B.

110

The Minor 7 chord The minor 7 chord is constructed by using the major scale as reference then lowering the 3rd, 6th and 7th degrees of the scale in order to convert it to a minor scale; we then find our chord tones as in the previous examples by starting at the Root and skipping every other note. To those students already familiar with minor scales the major to minor scale conversion may seem like an unnecessary step when building minor chords, however this is an invaluable tool for the beginning student providing them with a step by step guide to chord construction and scale conversion

Building a C Minor 7 Cm7 or C-7 Step #1 major to minor scale conversion C major scale

C D E F G A B C 2o 3o 4o

R

5o

6o

7o

8o

Conversion to minor by lowering the 3rd, 6th and 7th degrees. C Minor scale


2o

b o

3

4o

5o

b o

6

b o

7

8o

Continued on next page…… 111

Chord Construction

Building a C Minor 7 Step #2 Next we take the minor scale and locate the chord tones. A C minor 7 chord consists of the Root, 3rd, 5th and 7th.

C Minor scale


C Minor 7

2o

b o

3

4o

5o

b o

6

b o

7

8o

Major 7 formula R, 3rd,5th and 7th of the minor scale C Major 7 = C, E, G and B.

*By now you should have realized that the major and minor scales are the building blocks of every chord. The simplest way to think of chords is to take a minor or major scale and starting at the root skip every other note in order to find the chord tones

112

Dominant 7 chords Dominant 7 chords play a very important role in popular music and are considered to be the harmonic foundation for jazz and blues. These chords are easy to learn and have a very familiar sound due to the fact that they have been ingrained in our musical culture in styles ranging from Bossa to RnB and everything in between.

Dominant 7 chord formula A dominant chord is based on a major scale with a lowered 7th degree. C major scale

C D E F G A Bb C R

2o 3o 4o

5o

6o

b o

7

8o

lowered 7th degree

C7

Dominant 7 formula R, 3rd,5th and flat 7th C 7 = C, E, G and Bb

113

Chord Construction

Chord extensions Most musicians know that if one stands in front of a piano and plays the lowest C note available and continues to play the C major scale thru the full range of the keyboard; the notes keep repeating themselves each time an octave higher. It is this very principle that will be our guide to learning our chord extensions. This topic may seem complicated to some musicians but you will soon see that by investing a small amount of time reviewing the following pages you will be able to add extensions to your voicings making them more harmonically complex. In the next section we will use the two octave scale in order to be able to introduce 9th, 11th and 13th chord extensions.

Two octave C major scale C D E F G A B R

2

o

3

o

4

o

5

o

6

o

7

C D E F G A B

o

8o 9o 10o 11o 12o 13o 14o

1st octave

2nd octave

114

9th’s The first extension we are going to learn is the 9th which appears on the second half of the two octave scale. Chord extensions do not necessarily have to be based on 7th chords, meaning that they can be composed of the root, 3rd, 5th and the 7th degree may or may not be included depending on the information included in the chord symbol.

Adding the 9th Let’s add a 9th to a C major 7 chord by first laying out a two octave scale and finding the chord tones based on the formula.

C 7/9 Formula Root, 3rd, 5th, 7th and 9th

C D E F G A B R

2

o

3

o

4

o

5

o

6

o

7

C D E F G A B

o

8o 9o 10o 11o 12o 13o 14o

C major 7

Chord

extensions Continued on next page…… 115

Chord Construction

C 7/9 C 7/9 = C/E/G/B and D * You may see the symbol add9 in some books and chord charts; all this means is to add the 9th to the chord

d

A C/9 chord unlike the previous example does not include the 7th degree and is comprised of the following notes:

C/9 Formula R

3o

5o

9o

C

E

G

D

C/9

116

11th’s The next extension is the 11th and by now you have realized how easy it is to build chords using this method.

Two octave C major scale

C D E F G A B R

2

o

3

o

4

o

5

o

6

o

7

C D E F G A B

o

8o 9o 10o 11o 12o 13o 14o

C major 7

Chord

extensions

C 7/11 Formula Root, 3rd, 5th, 7th and 11th C 7/11 *in this example the 9th is omitted

117

Chord Construction

13th’s Our next extension is the 13th and by now we have covered every possible note in the two octave major scale.

Two octave C major scale

C D E F G A B R

2

o

3

o

4

o

5

o

6

o

7

C D E F G A B

o

8o 9o 10o 11o 12o 13o 14o

C major 7

Chord

extensions

C 7/13 Formula Root, 3rd, 5th, 7th and 11th C 7/13

118

You may be asking yourself why we did not include 10 th’s or 12th’s in the chord extension section or if we were dealing with a 3 octave scale would you have 18th’s or 20th’s? If you look at the two octave major scale you will notice that the 10th degree is nothing more than a 3rd played an octave higher and it is part of a basic triad and not considered to be an extension.

1st octave

2nd octave

C D E F G A B R 2

o

3

o

4

o

5

o

6

o

7

C D E F G A B

o

8o

9o 10o 11o 12o 13o 14o

The 3rd and the 10th are the same note ( E ) As you can see the 3rd and the 10th are both E. I do want to mention the fact that piano players use the term tenths when describing certain musical ideas about piano playing, but when dealing with guitar the term is almost never used.

119

Chord Construction

Closing words on extensions Extensions are nothing more than the same notes that fall in between the chord tones when dealing with the one octave scale. It is important that we understand that extensions can be added to major, minor, dominant 7 or any chord you can think of. Having said this I would like to recommend that you take the time to add extensions to every chord you know in order to get used to this simple process and to expand your harmonic vocabulary. Chords can be based on any scale or mode, but I find it easier to construct chords from the major and minor scales and any variation from those scales can be analyzed as a chord alteration which we will discuss in the following pages

120

Chord alterations Any chord tone that is modified into becoming either a sharp (♯) or flat ( ) is considered to be a chord alteration which is sometimes notated as alt such as in alt9. Since using this symbol does not give you any information to whether the note is flat or sharp I try not to use it at all. Because I am of the idea that too many different symbols or too many ways of notating a musical idea can lead confusion I prefer to provide as much detailed information as possible about how a chord is to be played. For instance I would notate a C dominant 7 with a flat 9 as such: C7b9 and not as C7alt9 because the alt symbol does not give information to whether the 9th is sharp or flat.

Common chord alterations Sharp or flat 5 Sharp or flat 9 Sharp or flat 11 Sharp or flat 13

121

Chord Construction

Flat 5 The flat five is more commonly found in minor 7 chords especially in jazz harmony but can be added as an alteration to a major 7 chord as shown in the following example.

C maj7b5 or C

7b5

Sharp 5 A sharp five alteration is only applicable to major chords due to the minor 6th being the same note as a #5. The sharp five is also known as the augmented chord which we will look at in greater detail in the following pages.

C maj7#5

122

Flat 9 Flat ninths can be used in both major and minor chords without them overlapping with other chord tones. Illustrated in the next example is the flat 9 applied to a C major 7 chord.

C maj7b9

Sharp 9 To my ears that sharp 9 sounds better when used on dominant 7 chords but it can be used on any chord you like such as Cmaj7#9 shown in the following example.

C maj7#9

123

Chord Construction

Flat 11 In a major chord a flat 11 is the same note as a 10th or major 3rd, therefore the alteration does not add any color to the chord. On the other hand you may have a flat 11 in a minor chord which can give it a major/minor quality.

C maj7b11

Sharp 11 A sharp 11 is really a flat 5 played an octave higher, however there are times when a chord may have a perfect 5th (natural 5) but the 11th degree may be sharp which can create a very peculiar sound or color making it harmonically more interesting. Keep in mind that sometimes guitar players avoid playing the 5th in order to accommodate certain fingerings and having a sharp 11 implies a flat 5 sound (half diminished chord) played an octave higher.

C maj7#11

124

Flat 13 The flat 13th is the same note as a sharp 5 played an octave higher and when the fifth degree is avoided its sound is that of an augmented chord. The following example is a C major 7 chord that includes the fifth degree.

C maj7b13

Sharp 13

The sharp 13 is the same note as a dominant 7th however it is possible to have a major 7 and a sharp 13 within the chord as shown in the following example.

C maj7#13

125

Chord Construction

Other Chord types     

Diminished chords Half diminished chords (also known as flat 5) Augmented chords Suspended chords ( sus 2 and sus 4) 6 chord

There are some chords that seem mysterious to some musicians mainly because of the lack of information on the subject of chord construction and harmony. Now that you have a solid understanding of basic triads and dominant 7 chords we will learn other types of chords that are equally useful but widely misunderstood.

Diminished Chords The first of these chords we will learn is the diminished chord which is represented by the symbol o, for instance a C diminished chord would be notated as Co. Having a full understanding of this chord has several advantages that may not be so obvious to most musicians. One of these advantages is that this chord can be used as a substitution for dominant 7 chords which we will be discussing in the substitution section of this book. Another advantage is that from it can branch out four dominant chords; one dominant 7 and 3 inversions of different seventh chords without having to switch positions. Before we talk more about the advantages of learning this chord, I would like to teach you how to build diminished chords and how to play them on the guitar neck.

126

Diminished Chord Formula Let’s start by building a Co. the C diminished chord is constructed by stacking minor 3rd’s on top of each other. If we start at C the first step is to find its minor third which is Eb or D# (the minor 3rd is located 3 half steps above the root) we do this by using the chromatic scale as a reference as shown in the example below:

Minor 3rd

C C# D D# E F F# G G# A A# B C D# is the same as Eb

1/2 1/2 step

1/2 step

The next step is to find the minor third starting on Eb, we do this by moving up the chromatic scale 3 half steps and landing at F# (Gb).

C C# D D# E F F# G G# A A# B C Minor 3rd Continued on next page…… 127

Chord Construction

The final step is to find the next minor third starting at F# (Gb) and jumping 3 half steps in order to arrive at A and complete our Co chord.

3 half step leaps

C C# D D# E F

F# G G#

A A# B C

Minor 3rd

Co= C, Eb,Gb and A.

C diminished

*In the following pages we will learn how to play this chord on the guitar neck and we will also learn a very useful technique that will help you take full advantage of the fingerings presented in the examples.

128

The Diminished chord as played on the guitar The following patterns are for a C diminished chord played on 3 different areas of the neck. 3rd fret

8th fret

10th fret

129

Chord Construction

In the previous examples we must play Eb an octave higher in order to make it possible to play all four notes of the diminished form on the guitar neck. One peculiarity about this chord is that any note can be the root. If you take a Co chord spelled C, Eb, Gb and A you have a Co as well as an inversion of Eb dim, an inversion Gb dim and an inversion of A diminished. This chord can be either C dim, E flat dim, G flat dim or A dim! This phenomenon occurs when minor thirds are stacked on top of each other. If we take the same Co and invert it by moving the C to the top of the chord making Eb the lowest note followed by Gb, A and C, the intervals remain minor thirds all the way thru. Eb to Gb is a minor 3rd, Gb to A is a minor 3rd and A to C is another minor third.

Co C,

Minor 3rd

Eb,

1st inversion

Gb ,

Minor 3rd

Eb,

A

Minor 3rd

Minor 3rd

2nd inversion

C,

Minor 3rd

Eb,

Gb ,

Minor 3rd

Gb,

A,

Minor 3rd

C

Minor 3rd

3rd inversion

Eb,

A

Minor 3rd

Minor 3rd

130

Gb,

A,

Minor 3rd

C

Minor 3rd

Diminished Chord Trick Next I will teach you a useful “trick” to help you exploit the diminished chord to its fullest potential. As I’ve mentioned in the previous pages there are 4 different dominant 7 chords hidden within the diminished chord that can come in handy during a chord progression or used as substitutions to the original chord. This can easily be accomplished by lowering any of its notes by a half step. Let’s refer to the C o chord one more time and lower the C by a half step in order to get the following notes: B, Eb, Gb and A which make up a B7 chord. C diminished to B7 conversion Step 1

8th fret

Co

Start with any diminished chord. In this case we have C dim.

Co = C, Eb, Gb, A

Continued on next page……

131

Chord Construction

8th fret

Step 2

B7

C is lowered by a half step so that it becomes B.

Co = C, Eb, Gb, A Becomes

B7 = B, Eb, Gb, A

This can be done to any of the notes in the diminished chord regardless of where you play it on the neck. Knowing this trick opens up the possibility of having at least 5 chords within a very small area of the guitar. In the following pages we will continue with this process in order to discover what other chords can be born out of C diminished.

132

C diminished to D7 conversion Step 1

8th fret

Co

8th fret

D7

We first start with the C dim chord and lower the next note which is E flat

Co = C, Eb, Gb, A

Step 2 Eb is lowered by a half step so that it becomes D.

Co = C, Eb, Gb, A Becomes

D7 = C, D, Gb, A *keep in mind that the example illustrates an inversion of a D7

133

Chord Construction

C diminished to F7 conversion Step 1

8th fret

Co

8th fret

F7

We first start with the C dim chord and lower G flat by a half step.

Co = C, Eb, Gb, A

Step 2 Gb is lowered by a half step so that it becomes F.

Co = C, Eb, Gb, A Co Becomes an inversion of F7

F7 = C, Eb, F, A

134

C diminished to G#7 conversion Step 1

8th fret

Co

8th fret

G#7


Co = C, Eb, Gb, A

Step 2 A is lowered by a half step so that it becomes G#.

Co = C, Eb, Gb, A Co Becomes an inversion of G#7

G#7 = C, Eb, Gb , G#

135

Chord Construction

C diminished to C7 conversion Step 1

8th fret

Co

8th fret

G#7


Co = C, Eb, Gb, A

Step 2 A is lowered by a half step so that it becomes G#.

Co = C, Eb, Gb, A Co Becomes an inversion of G#7

G#7 = C, Eb, Gb , G#

136

The half Diminished Chord Or flat 5 chord The half diminished chord (also known as the flat 5 chord) is represented by the symbol O and it’s very similar to the diminished chord with the exception of one note. Rather than stacking minor 3rds to try figuring out which note is supposed to be different I find it easier to think of it as a minor 7 chord with a flatted fifth degree.

Half Diminished Chord Formula

O = R, b3, b5, b7 Co= C, Eb, Gb, Bb Co or Cm7b5 * The flat 5 chord is very important in jazz but can be found in almost every popular style of music.

137

Chord Construction

The Half Diminished chord as played on the guitar These three patterns are for half diminished chords that can be moved to different areas of the neck. Half diminished

Half diminished

Half diminished

138

The Augmented Chord The augmented chord is perhaps the most ambiguous of them all and most beginning music students haven’t even heard the term augmented mainly due to the lack of information about this mysterious chord. Just like the diminished, the augmented has some chords hidden within but unlike the diminished; this chord is only a triad (3 note chord) therefore only three chords can be branched out from it. Represented by the symbol + the augmented chord is built by stacking major thirds on top of each other and any of the notes within can be considered to be the root.

Augmented Chord Formula We will begin building a C augmented chord which is notated by the symbol C+ by first finding its major third. We know that the major 3rd is found 2 whole steps away from the root and to better illustrate this we will use the chromatic scale as reference. Chromatic scale:

C C# D D# E F F# G G# A A# B C

Whole step Whole step #1

Major 3rd

#2


Chord Construction

The first two notes of the C augmented chord are C and E. let’s find the next major 3rd starting from E. From E we jump 2 whole steps using the chromatic scale landing on G#

Chromatic scale:

C C# D D# E F F# G G# A A# B C Major 3rd

Whole step Whole step #3

#4

C + = C, E and G#

C+ Next we C augmented played on 3 different areas of the guitar neck…...

140

The Augmented chord as played on the guitar These three patterns are for augmented chords that can be moved to different areas of the neck. Augmented chord

Augmented chord

Augmented chord

141

Chord Construction

Augmented Chord Trick By simply raising any of the notes in the augmented chord by a half step, the chord instantly becomes a minor triad (3 note chord) or an inversion of a minor triad depending on the note that is raised. Let’s see what minor chords can be found within a C augmented chord.

C + = C, E and G# If we raise C by a half step we get the following notes: C#, E, G# these notes are what a C sharp minor (C#m) chord is made of.

C + = C#m conversion

3rd fret

Step 1

C+

Start with any augmented chord. In this case we have C +. If we raise C to C# we get a C#m chord as shown in step 2

C+ = C, E, G#


Step 2 By eliminating the C and replacing it with C# we get the notes in a C#m triad

3rd fret

C#m

C#m= C#, E, G#

Keep in mind that this process works for any of the augmented chord patterns and it also works just about anywhere on the guitar neck. Next we will learn how to get an F minor chord from a C augmented.

C + = Fm conversion

3rd fret

Step 1

C+

The first step is to take the same C+ chord we have been working with and raise the E by a half step landing on F. (this pattern can also be analyzed as an inversion of E+)

C+ = C, E, G#

143

Chord Construction

………Continued from previous page

3rd fret

Step 2

Fm

By eliminating the E and replacing it with F we get an inversion of F minor with very little effort.

Fm =F, G#, C

Although this is the second inversion of F minor it is an acceptable way of playing an F minor chord and works well as a substitution. Since any of the notes within the chord can be the root there are 6 chords, or to be more specific 2 root chords and 4 inversions that can be derived from any augmented chord. So far we have done two conversions from augmented to minor, let’s work on the last conversion.

144

C + = Am conversion The last note in the C augmented is the G# and in order to extract the last minor chord form C+ we must raise the G# by a half step as shown in the following example.

3rd fret

Step 1

C+ to Am

Starting with C augmented we can raise G# by a half step to A

C+=C, E, G#


Chord Construction

C + = Am conversion

3rd fret

Step 2 By raising the G# we get the first inversion of an Am minor triad also notated as C/Am

Am= C, E, A

146

Am

Suspended chords If you play open chords chances are that you may already be playing some type of suspended chord. There are 2 types of “Sus” chords, Sus 2 and Sus 4. Rather than teaching you a ton of fingerings for both of these chords, I will teach you a chord construction formula so that you may be able to create Sus voicings anywhere on the guitar neck without having to memorize too many chord patterns. The note that determines whether a chord is major or minor is the 3rd, but in the suspended chord the third degree is replaced by either the 2nd or 4th degree creating a more open sound. The Sus chord can still have a major or minor sound by the use of extensions such as the tenth degree which is the same note as a 3rd. In theory this may seem incorrect but in reality because of the way sus chords are played on the guitar they may include a major or minor third played an octave higher. The inclusion of either the 2nd or 4th degree is what gives it its Suspended color. In the following pages we will take a look at the formula used to create suspended 2 and suspended 4 chord forms and we will also learn a few patterns to get you started in exploring this beautiful sound.

147

Chord Construction

Sus 2 Formula In the suspended chord the 3rd degree is omitted and the 2nd degree is played in its place as shown in the example below. Formula

Sus 2 = R, 2o and 5o C Sus 2 = C, D and G

C Sus 2 In the next few pages I will provide you only with the most obvious ways of playing suspended patterns in order to stimulate you to find creative ways of voicing these “Sus” chords. This is where you will appreciate the value of learning chord construction techniques that are so effective in providing you with dozens of chords by learning one simple formula rather than having to memorize a ton of fingerings from a chord book or the so called “chord bibles”. Soon you will discover chord voicing’s that are not shown in this book simply by applying these chord construction formulas.

148

The Sus 2 chord as played on the guitar Sus 2 chord

Sus 2 chord In this example we have a Sus 2

Sus 2 chord

with a major 7

Sus 2 played with the 10 and 13

149

Chord Construction

The Suspended 4 chord In the Sus 4 chord the 3rd degree is omitted and replaced by the 4th degree of the scale creating a very interesting sound. This chord may have a major or minor quality by adding either the major or minor 10 th but can be played without it. It is up to you to venture into the sound possibilities the “Sus” chords have to offer and although I will provide you with some patterns I encourage you to explore other fingering options such as the use of open strings and extensions.

Formula

Sus 4 = R, 4o and 5o The 3rd is omitted and replaced with the 4th

C Sus 4 = C, F and G

C Sus 4

150

The Sus 4 chord as played on the guitar Sus 4 chord

Sus 4 chord

Sus 4 chord Sus 4 played with the 10th

151

Chord Construction

The 6 chord One chord you will often find in some chord charts and fake books is the 6 chord as in C6, E6, Dm6 etc….. This chord is usually composed of the root, the third, the fifth, and the sixth degrees of either the major or minor scales. When played on guitar, the fifth degree is commonly omitted to allow for the chord to be voiced comfortably. Major 6 Formula

Minor 6 Formula

R, 3o, 5o, 6o

R, b3o, 5o, b6o

C6= C, E, G and A

Cm6=C, Eb, G and Ab

The 6 chord as played on the guitar 1st fret

C6

6th fret

152

Cm6

Chord Substitutions There are a number of benefits to using chord substitutions and there is a number of different ways of obtaining them all of which will be discussed thoroughly in this section. Sometimes musicians will favor one method over another based on the style of music they are playing, however there are no rules that indicate that you must use one principle instead of another when paying rock jazz or any style of music. Most musicians do not have enough understanding of music theory to be able to substitute a chord for a completely different one and still make sense and sound musical. Some of the more advanced players may know one or two substitution principles which may be all they need to get by, but this has its limitations. In the following pages we will examine several different chord substitution principles and we will look at how they can be applied.

     

Relative minor substitution principle Tonic substitution principle Tritone substitution principle Diminished substitution principle Augmented Substitution principle Diatonic substitution principle

153

The VI chord in diatonic Harmony is commonly referred to as the Relative minor due to the interval between the root of the VI chord on a diatonic chord progression and its minor third. This is a widely used term and most musicians learn this concept without having a good understanding of diatonic harmony which allows you 6 different options for substitutions instead of just the relative minor or VI chord. This is a good way to get started on “subs”, but once you learn some of the other substitution concepts that are explained in the following pages you will think less in terms of the relative minor and will be able to play more substitute chords at will. For the sake of simplicity we will continue to work with the Cmaj7 chord and find its relative minor substitution. Although by now you should have a good understanding of how the Cmaj7 chord is constructed, we will analyze it and find the chord tones within using the two octave C major scale in order to better demonstrate the process of finding the relative minor ‘Sub’.

Relative minor formula The relative minor substitution is found by taking any major chord and building a minor chord staring on the 6th degree of the scale that corresponds to the original chord


Chord substitutions

Step 1: is to spell the original chord using the 2 octave scale. In this case our chord is Cmaj 7.

C D E F G A B C D E F G A B 1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13 14

Cmaj7= C, E, G, B Step 2: Next we locate the 6th degree of the same two octave scale and build either a triad or a 7th chord from there. We do this by finding the chord tones which is done by choosing a note, in this case A and skipping every other note. 6th degree

C D E F G A B C D E F G A B 1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

Relative minor These 4 notes make an Am7 chord

Am7 = A, C, E and G

155

9

10

11 12 13

14

If you take a quick look at the Cmaj7 chord in the previous page you will see that it has 3 notes in common with the Am7; C, E and G which is why these two chords can be substituted for each other so effectively. This creates a very nice contrast since Cmaj7 can be described as having a “happy” quality as opposed to the more melancholic sound the Am7 produces. The formula in the previous pages should give you enough information for you to be able to work out the relative minor substitution in every key with minimal effort, however a quick reference chart is provided below for convenience.

Relative minor reference chart Original chord

Substitution Relative minor VI Chord

I Chord

Cmaj7 Gmaj7 Dmaj7 Amaj7 Emaj7 Bmaj7 F#maj7

Am7 Em7 Bm7 F#m7 C#m7 G#m7 D#m7

156

Chord substitutions

In western diatonic harmony the chords within a key center are subdivided into three categories; Tonic, subdominant and dominant groups. These subdivisions are based on the notes they have in common and their harmonic function within a composition. Towards the end of this section on substitutions we will explore diatonic harmony in detail, but for now we will focus our attention only on the tonic group. The chords that can be derived from the Root, the 3rd degree and the 6th degree using only the notes in the major scale belong to the tonic group and in the key of C major they would be Cmaj7 (key center), Em7 and Am7.

Tonic substitution formula The Root chord, the III chord and the VI chord Chords that can be constructed starting on the Root, 3rd and 6th degrees of the major scale can be substituted for each other and they all have the same harmonic function.

157

C major diatonic chord progression

T

T

T

Cma7 Dm7 Em7 Fmaj7 G7 Am7 Bm7(-5) 1o

2o

3o

4o

5o

6o

7o

Let’s analyze these tonic chords and find the notes they have in common

I chord Cmaj7

C E

G B

III chord Em7

E G B D

VI chord Am7

A C E G

E G B C E G The common notes between Cmaj7 (tonic) and Em7 (III chord) are the E, G and B making these two chords almost the same and a very effective substitution for each other. Cmaj7 and Am7 (VI chord) also share 3 notes between them; the C, E and G. We know from the previous section that the VI chord in a diatonic chord progression is known as the relative minor and more importantly we have learned that based on the Tonic substitution principle the VI chord belongs to the Tonic group of chords that can have the same harmonic function.

158

Chord substitutions

The following illustration is for the tonic substitution principle through the circle of fifths that will help you in the study of this principle and as a quick reference guide to find the correct substitutions without in-depth analysis of a key center.

Tonic substitution reference chart Key Center I Chord T

Cmaj7 Gmaj7 Dmaj7 Amaj7 Emaj7 Bmaj7 F#maj7

Substitutions III Chord T

Em7 Bm7 F#m7 C#m7 G#m7 D#m7 A#m7

159

VI Chord T

Am7 Em7 Bm7 F#m7 C#m7 G#m7 D#m7

The Tritone substitution principle is almost exclusive to Jazz, but I have used it in other styles of music with very good results. In this section we will learn the II-V-I chord progression in order to better illustrate how the Tritone Sub works and how it can be applied. This particular concept is not diatonic meaning that the substitution is not based on either the major or minor scales, instead it’s based on the chromatic scale and when applied to the II-V-I it creates an “outside sound” within the progression. In order to find this sub all you need to do is take any dominant 7 chord, jump 3 whole steps from the root and build another dominant 7 chord starting from the target note. In the following example we will take a C7 chord and find its tritone substitution. Step 1 Start with a dominant chord; in this case we have C7.

C7 = C, E, G, and Bb Step 2 Using the chromatic scale we jump 3 whole steps starting on the root of the chord (C) in order to arrive at the tritone (F#) that will become the foundation for our tritone substitute chord.

C C# D D# E F F# G G# A A# B C TRITONE Whole step #1

Whole step #2

Whole step #3

160

Chord substitutions

Step 3 From this tritone (F#) we build a dominant 7 chord which will render our tritone substitution (F#7). We learned in the chord construction section of this book that the formula for a dominant 7 chord is the root, major third, fifth and flat 7th of a major scale. In this case it would be the F# major scale. Dominant 7 Formula = R, 3rd, 5th and flat 7 R

2o

3o

4o

5o

6o

b7o

F# G# A# B C# D# E Chord tones

F#7 = F#, A#, C# and E The tritone substitution for a C7 chord is F#7 as shown in the example above. The reason this works is due to the notes they have in common. Let’s analyze these two chords and learn what notes they share.

C7 = C, E, G, and Bb (A#) F#7 = F#, A#, C# and E A# and E are the common tones in both of these chords and although this may not seem enough at this time once you learn to apply it you will hear how functional this substitution can be.

161

Before we can apply the tritone substitution it is important that we learn the II-V-I chord progression that is often found in Jazz as well as other styles of music. I would like to emphasize the importance of learning the diatonic chord progressions in all major and minor keys which will help you better understand this and other musical concepts. If we take a look at the diatonic chord progression in the key of C major shown on page 187 we learn that the II chord is Dm7, we also learn that the VI chord is G7 and that the I chord is Cmaj7 therefore a II-V-I in C major would be Dm7 / G7 / Cmaj7 as shown in the following illustration.

II-V-I 2nd fret

Dm7 I Chord

In C major

2nd fret

2nd fret

G7 II Chord

Cmaj7 V Chord

The example above shows how this progression is often voiced in Jazz.

162

Chord substitutions

We know that the tritone sub works well over dominant 7 chords and when used within a chord progression it creates a strong sense of forward motion. In the case of a II-V-I in C major the V chord (G7) is the dominant that will be substituted by the tritone.

To find the tritone sub for the dominant 7 chord in C major we start at the root of the chord which we know is G7 and jump 3 whole steps using the chromatic scale in order to arrive at C# V Chord

G G# A A# B C C# D D# E F F# G TRITONE Whole step #1

Whole step #2

Whole step #3

From this tritone we build a dominant 7 chord using the C# major scale Dominant 7 Formula = R, 3rd , 5th and flat 7 R

2o

3o

4o

5o

6o

b7o

C# D# F F# G# A# B C#

C#, F, G# and B = C#7 Continued on next page……

163

The tritone substitution for a G7 chord is C#7, let’s find the common notes between them and how the chord progression is played with the sunstitution.

Dominan 7 chord Tritone sub

G7 = G, B, D and F C#7 = C#, F,G# and B

F and B are the common tones Replacing the V chord with the tritone substitution creates a nice chromatic movement from Dm7 to Cmaj7 opening up a new world of harmonic and melodic possibilities.

II-V-I In C major with the tritone substitution 2nd fret

Dm7 I Chord

2nd fret

C#7 Tritone substitution

164

2nd fret

Cmaj7 V Chord

Chord substitutions

The diminished substitution principle is a great way to expand your harmonic vocabulary and it can make a simple chord progression sound more sophisticated. Diminished chords sound as if they need to resolve to another chord making them a great option for creating motion within a chord progression. Any time you have a major 7 chord you may replace it with a diminished chord constructed one half step above. For example a Cmaj7 chord can be replaced by a C# diminished chord based on this principle. Ex.1

Cmaj7 = C, E, G and B C#dim = C#, E, G and Bb Common notes = E and G 2nd fret

2nd fret C# dim “ Sub”

Cmaj7

165

In the section on chord construction we learned that the diminished chord is capable of rendering 4 different dominant 7 chords by simply lowering any of its notes by a half step, making it an obvious substitution for dominant 7 chords as well. Ex.2

Cmaj7 = C, E, G and Bb C#dim = C#, E, G and Bb Common notes = E, G and Bb 2nd fret

2nd fret

C7

C# dim “ Sub”

Although in example 2 there are 3 common notes that are shared by the two chords, I still prefer the sound of the major 7 leading into the diminished chord one half step above as shown in example 1.

166

Chord substitutions

One way the diminished substitution principle is used effectively to create motion is on a major II-V-I chord progression. In the key of C major Dm7 and G7 are usually played for one entire measure each and Cmaj7 is played for two measures

Ex.1 II-V-I in C major

Dm7

G7

Cmaj7

Cmaj7

. By using the diminished substitution principle we can replace the last Cmaj7 with the C# diminished chord creating a much more interesting forward motion within the progression.

II-V-I in C major

Dm7

G7

Cmaj7

167

C#dim

We know that the augmented chord (also known as the sharp 5) is constructed by stacking major 3rds and we also know that there are three different minor triads that can be obtained from the sharp 5 by rising any of its notes by a half step, making it a good substitution for minor chords. The advantage of the augmented chord is that any of its notes can be the root which means that one single augmented chord can be the substitute for three minor triads. A Cm can be replaced by B+ and based on augmented substitution principle; it can also be a substitution for Em and G#m. Let’s analyze these chords and find out why this principle works.

Common notes B+ = B, Eb, G Eb and G Cm = C, Eb, G B+ = B, Eb, G G and B Em = E, G, B B+ = B, Eb, G B and Eb G#m = G#, B, Eb Continued on next page…… 168

Chord substitutions

As you can see from the illustration shown in the previous page, the B+ shares two notes with each of the minor chords which is why this substitution works so well over minor triads. There is more on this chord in the chord construction section of this book.

Augmented substitution formula Any minor triad can be replaced by an augmented chord constructed a half step below.

169

Diatonic substitution principle If you take a C major scale and construct a Chord starting on the root and skip every other note in order to find the chord tones, you would get the notes that correspond to a C major 7 chord. Next build a chord starting on the 2nd degree of the scale (D) and find the chord tones by skipping every other note using only the notes of the C major scale which will render a Dm7 chord. If you build a chord for each of the notes in the scale you get what is known as a diatonic chord progression. I

II

III

IV

V

VI

VII

Cmaj7 Dm7 Em7 Fmaj7 G7 Am7 Bm7(-b) The chords in a diatonic chord progression are subdivided into three categories based on the notes they have in common. The tonic group consists of the I, III and the VI chords, the subdominant group is made of the II and IV chords and finally the dominant group which is made of the V and VII chords.

I

II

III

IV

V

VI

VII

Cmaj7 Dm7 Em7 Fmaj7 G7 Am7 Bm7(-b) T

SD

T

SD

D

T

D

These groups are also called tonal centers and each of them has a certain harmonic function that can create either movement or stability within a song or a larger composition.

170

The tonic group can create a sense of stability within a song and they can be used to substitute each other. The Subdominant group can be used to create moderate forward motion and they can also substitute each other. The chord group that has the strongest forward motion feel is the dominant group.

Harmonic function Tonic Subdominant Dominant

= stability = moderate motion =

Strong forward motion

You may use these guidelines for chord substitutions as a starting point for your own purposes but I encourage you to experiment with replacing a chord for any other chord within the diatonic chord progression regardless of tonal group which will allow you total harmonic freedom. In the following pages you will find a reference chart for some major and minor keys that should give you a better understanding of how diatonic harmony works and will help you find relative chords with little effort. The column on the left shows the chord and its roman numeral that corresponds to the degree in the chord progression while the column on the right shows the spelling of the chord tones for each diatonic chord. Although you should be able to voice these chords anywhere on the neck I have included plenty of examples on how these chord progressions can be played on the guitar.

171

Chord substitutions

Diatonic Chord Progression Reference Chart

172


173

Diatonic chord progressions


174


175



176


177



178


179



180


181



182


183



184


185


Diatonic Chord progressions Next we will learn some common voicings for the major and minor chords that we reviewed in the previous section with some examples illustrating alternate voicings. Learning these diatonic chord progressions will expand your harmonic vocabulary and will also help you further develop your musical ear. An effective way of doing this is to record yourself playing the I chord sustaining it for a few measures and while it plays back you play the rest of the chord progression in order to better hear the sound they create when played against each other. This section will also become an invaluable tool when writing songs in any style of music because now you will not be left wondering what would be a good chord option for your song since you have all chords laid out for you. For the keys that are not listed such as C#, Eb, A# etc some simple transposing will be all you need to find the key you may be looking for. This can be as simple as moving your hand up or down the neck. Not only are these chord progressions harmonically useful but they can also be a great way of improving your fingering technique by practicing shifting from one chord to another.

186

*Key of C Major 2nd Fret

3rd Fret

3rd Fret

187

Diatonic Chord progressions

*Key of C Major 5th Fret

7th Fret

9th Fret

188

*Key of C Major 11th Fret

13th Fret

♭

189


*Key of D Major 4th Fret

5th Fret

1st Fret

190

*Key of D Major 2nd Fret

4th Fret

5th Fret

191


*Key of D Major 7th Fret

♭

3rd Fret

♭

♭

192

*Key of E Major 6th Fret

8th Fret

9th Fret

193



5th Fret

1st Fret

194

*Key of E Major 3rd Fret

5th Fret

♭

195


*Key of F Major 1st Fret

1st Fret

3rd Fret

196

*Key of F Major 5th Fret

♭

7th Fret

9th Fret

197


*Key of F Major 10th Fret

♭

6th Fret

♭

198

*Key of G Major 2nd Fret

4th Fret

1st Fret

199


*Key of G Major 2nd Fret

4th Fret

6th Fret

200

*Key of G Major 8th Fret

♯

♭

1st Fret

♯

♭

3rd Fret

♯

♭

201


*Key of A Major 4th Fret

1st Fret

1st Fret

♯

202


6th Fret

3rd Fret

♯

203



♯

♭

204

*Key of B Major 1st Fret

3rd Fret

♯

5th Fret

♯

205


*Key of B Major 6th Fret

8th Fret

10th Fret

♯

♯

206

12th Fret

♯

*Key of B Major

♭

Next we have the E major diatonic chord progression played on the upper strings In order to get you familiarized with playing these chords on the upper strings I have included the diatonic chord progression in the key of E major played entirely on the upper strings.

207


*Key of E Major 1st Fret

3rd Fret

5th Fret

♯

♯

208


3rd Fret

8th Fret

209



♯

12th Fret

♯

♭

210

*Key of C Minor 2nd Fret

♭

4th Fret

5th Fret

♭

211


*Key of C Minor 7th Fret

9th Fret

7th Fret

♭

212

*Key of C Minor 7th Fret

♭

12th Fret

♭

213


*Key of D Minor 2nd Fret

6th Fret

♭

5st Fret

♭

214

*Key of D Minor 4th Fret

7th Fret

7th Fret

215


*Key of D Minor th

9 Fret

11th Fret

12th Fret

♭

216

*Key of D Minor th

14 Fret

217


*Key of E Minor 4th Fret

1st Fret

♯

♭

2nd Fret

218


5th Fret

7th Fret

219



220

*Key of F Minor 1st Fret

♭

1st Fret

3rd Fret

♭

221


*Key of F Minor 5th Fret

♭

6th Fret

8th Fret

♭

222

st

10 Fret

*Key of F Minor

♭

223


*Key of G Minor 2nd Fret

♭

3rd Fret

5th Fret

♭

224

*Key of G Minor 7th Fret

9th Fret

10st Fret

♭

225


*Key of G Minor

7th Fret

226

*Key of A Minor 4th Fret

1st Fret

♭

2nd Fret

227


*Key of A Minor rd

3 Fret

6th Fret

7th Fret

228

*Key of A Minor th

9 Fret

229


*Key of B Minor 1st Fret

3rd Fret

♯

♭

4th Fret

230

*Key of B Minor th

4 Fret

1st Fret

♯

2nd Fret

231


*Key of B Minor 4th Fret

232

Chord Inversions We know that a triad is a chord composed of 3 notes, the Root or tonic, the 3rd and the 5th degree of a scale. We normally spell the triad in order with the root on the bottom strings, followed by the 3rd above the Root and the 5th above the 3rd degree; R, 3, 5. Eventually you may want to rearrange the order of the notes to create a different voicing so that instead of having the Root in the bass, you may have the 3rd followed by the 5th degree and the Root above that played on the higher strings; 3rd, 5, Root. This process is referred to as an Inversion and can give a simple chord a whole new sound which may be used as simple chord substitutions. There are 3 types of inversions simply called first, second and third Inversions that can be applied to any type of chord. In the following examples we will learn a simple method for creating chord inversions using the C major triad to illustrate the first and second inversions and a Cmajor7 chord to create a third and final inversion. Once you get familiar with inverting chords you will find that there are a great number of possibilities to voice a chord which is the reason I decided not to include any chord examples in order to encourage you to try your own voicings.

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In the following example the 3rd moves to the bass, the 5th to the “middle” of the chord and the Root jumps to the top which is generally played on the upper strings.

In the next example the 5th is in the bass, the root is in the middle and the 3rd is in the upper strings.

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Chord Inversions

Major 7 chord inversion The third inversion occurs any time you have a dominant 7 or a major 7 and you wish to re-voice it the chord. The process is exactly the same except that you are dealing with a four note chord instead of a basic triad.

In the third chord inversion the 7th moves to the bass and the rest of the chord is spelled R, 3rd and 5th as shown in the next example.

Inversion reference chart Major 7 chord 1st Inversion 2nd Inversion 3rd Inversion

= = = =

R 3rd 5th 7th 235

3rd 5th 7th R

5th 7th R 3rd

7th R 3rd 5th

Slash Chords A slash chord is an easy way to represent an inversion in a chord chart or whenever you want to quickly write an inversion without having to spell the entire chord. To some musicians they may seem complicated but, if you have a basic understanding of chord inversions you should have no problem understanding what symbols such as C/G or F/C mean. Now that we know what triads and chord inversion are we can learn a simple method to decipher slash chord symbols. If we take a C major triad and re-voice it to its first inversion we get the notes of the triad rearranged in the following order; E / G / C which is represented by the symbol C/E. You may hear musicians call this C over E. Traditionally this meant to play the triad as an inversion with the E on the bass followed by G and C at the top of the chord, but over time it has become acceptable to play a C/E chord not as a triad, but as a full chord where you would play your regular “folk” C chord with an added E played on the low E string. Illustrated in the next chart is the traditional way of voicing slash chords.

C major triad

Triad 1st Inversion 2nd Inversion

= = =

C E G

E G C

G C E

C/E C/G

If the 7th degree is added the chord will have a third inversion

3rd Inversion

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B

C

E

G

C/B

Chord Inversions

In the following example we will look at the nontraditional way of voicing slash chords that has become so popular amongst guitar players.

C/E

X This is simply a C major “folk” chord played with an open E in the bass. The white circles represent the open stings to be played. The X represents a muted string. Most likely this will be the kind of voicing you will encounter in most modern music and in most instructional books. This method allows for a great number of harmonic possibilities were you can play any chord and add any bass note you wish to add regardless of it being in key or not. There is a simple way of knowing telling which letter represents the bass note and which symbol represents the chord voicing.

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Arpeggios An arpeggio is nothing more than a chord played one note at a time. Most people reading this book will be familiar with arpeggios but I find that most guitar players lack the skills required to execute arpeggios at higher speeds during the improvisation of guitar solos. There are 2 main techniques for playing arpeggios on the guitar. The most popular one of these techniques is when you hold down the chord and pluck the strings one note at a time which is more commonly done when playing ballads. Another way of playing arpeggios is sweep picking which is more suitable for guitar solos played at faster tempos. The easiest way to think of arpeggios is to take any scale, start on the root note and play every other note as shown in the following example.

*Note: Rather than writing dozens of patterns to illustrate the different ways to play arpeggios on the guitar neck I opted to show you just a handful of examples that will serve as the foundation for all the other patterns than can be worked-out, all you have to do change the key is move your hand up or down the neck. 238

Arpeggios

Minor Major Triad Arpeggio Patterns

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Minor MajorTriad 7 Arpeggios Arpeggio Patterns

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Arpeggios

Minor 7 Arpeggios Patterns

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Arpeggios

Major 7 Arpeggio Chart

♯

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Minor Major 7 Arpeggio Chart

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Arpeggios

The extended arpeggio concept The extended arpeggio is more like two different arpeggios for the price of one. Please note that this is not the traditional way of playing them and to some classically trained musicians it may seem like the wrong way. The reason for this is that in the classical method, arpeggios are played using only the chord tones in the scale, which are the root, 3rd, 5th, and when dealing with 7th chords the 7th degree is included. So what about the 2nd, 4th and 6th degrees? These notes are sometimes called scale tones. If we take these scale tones and build an arpeggio, and then combine it with the original by playing it an octave above, we begin to hear that suddenly our arpeggio sounds more colorful and much more interesting. Of course this only works when dealing with 2 octaves or more if played on the guitar neck. The extended arpeggio concept sounds best played at faster tempos and when played on guitar I favor the sweep picking technique.

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Major Triad Arpeggio

3rd Fret

2 octave Arpeggio In this example the notes in the arpeggio are repeated in the 2nd octave which is the traditional way of playing arpeggios on the guitar. In the following examples we will look at how the extended arpeggio concept works and how it can make your solos more interesting.

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Arpeggios

4th Fret

5th Fret

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5th Fret

248

Arpeggios

4th Fret

This indicates to play an octave higher. 8va |

249

4th Fret

8va |

250

Arpeggios

1st Fret

8va |

251

Minor Triad Arpeggio

3rd Fret

3rd Fret

252

Arpeggios

4th Fret

5th Fret

253

7th Fret 8va |

8th Fret 8va |

254

Arpeggios

1st Fret

8va |

255

Advanced Guitar  A step by step guide to chord construction  Advanced chord substitution techniques  Extended arpeggio patterns  Diatonic chord progressions  Advanced concepts for scales and modes  Harmonic, melodic and jazz minor scales  Chord inversions

Improve your song writing skills with the section on diatonic harmony by Improve your technique with dozens of fingering exercises

Escalas Musicales

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