Chord Progression

When one begins to compose and doesn't know much of music theory, try to play some chords as a mad, some of them sound well, with movement and strong but others sound awful.

As I said in Major Scales and Minor Scales there are some recommended chords for every key because they share notes. Let's take a look at this charts.

There are many famous progressions, for example, see the following from the link Chord progression:

• I - IV - V - V. (The basis of Ritchie Valens' "La Bamba", this progression also provides the refrain of Bob Dylan's "Like a Rolling Stone", The Isley Brothers' "Twist and Shout", and The Beatles's "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds".)
• I - I - IV - V. (Millie Small's "My Boy Lollipop" (usually credited to Robert Spencer, Morris Levy, and Johnny Roberts), "Heartbeat" (written by Bob Montgomery and Norman Petty for Buddy Holly), The Rolling Stones' "Get Off Of My Cloud" (refrain), Paul Simon's "Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes", Van Morrison's "Madame George", The Ramones' "Blitzkrieg Bop")
• I - IV - I - V. (Common in Elizabethan music (Scholes 1977), this also underpins the American college song "Goodnight Ladies", is used the exclusive progression used in Kwela,^[12] and Solomon Linda's "Mbube"/"Wimoweh"/"The Lion Sleeps Tonight" among many others.)
• I - IV - V - IV. (Chip Taylor's/The Troggs' "Wild Thing", "Louie Louie", etc.)

 If you want experience some others progressions see GuitarChorder 1.1. It includes a program to build your own progression and hear it in some styles.



Sorry for my English. Any correction would be welcome!

Minor Scales

Minor scales sound different from major scales because they are based on a different pattern of intervals. Since comes from the scale A, B, C, D, E, F, G and A its pattern in semitones (or frets) is 2, 1, 2, 2, 1, 2, 2. As we saw in Major Scales to build, for example, the E minor scale we follow that pattern, that is: E, F#, G, A, B, C, D, E.

Let's see this on a symbolic guitar fretboard. The red frets correspond to the root note, E. And if you avoid the green frets you are playing in E Pentatonic scale. Isn't it easy?

Another example in key B.

Finally, I want to add the minor scale for every key. The first column is the name of the scale degrees. The second column the scale chord triad.
Later on I will introduce (and learn at the same time) some concepts about chord progression. Keep practicing and have fun.

 

Try my new program GuitarChorder 1.1 that helps to build chord progressions and displays major and minor scales.

Still learning English!

Major Scales

This time I want to put some light in all that mess about scales. In most of the pages I have visited they recommend to memorize the different positions on the fretboard. I have found easier to memorize the inner pattern of the scale.

The major scale ( or Ionian Scale) comes from the scale C, D, E, F, G, A, B, C and that means that follows the pattern 1 tone, 1 tone, ½ tone, 1 tone, 1 tone, 1 tone, ½ tone. In the guitar fretboard ½ tone is one fret and obviously one tone = two frets. If you want to play in G Major Scale you only need to step on that pattern beginning in G, that is G, A, B, C, D, M, F#, G.

Let's see this on a symbolic guitar fretboard. The red frets correspond to the root note, G. And if you avoid the green frets you are playing in G Pentatonic scale. Isn't it easy?

For any other key, let's say D, we need to move the pattern to the root.

Finally, I want to add the major scale for every key. The first column is the name of the scale degrees. The second column the scale chord triad.
Later on I will introduce (and learn at the same time) some concepts about chord progression. Keep practicing and have fun.

Try my new program GuitarChorder 1.1 that helps to build chord progressions and displays major and minor scales.


Sorry for my bad English.

Still learning!