tag:robinmayguitar.com,2005:/blogs/chordsChords2018-07-05T11:48:53ZRobin Mayfalsetag:robinmayguitar.com,2005:Post/33689292014-12-06T21:54:26Z2023-10-16T14:47:35ZHow to create any chordDuring this section I show you how to create eleven different types of chord. I'm believing that once we've covered these 11, you'll then be able to go on to work out how to play any chord you wish.<br><br>There are seven notes with different names in a major scale e.g.<br><br><strong>C, D, E, F, G, A, B</strong><br><br><br>However we usually state that there are eight notes in the major scale, as we tend to start and finish a scale on a root note e.g.<br><br><strong>C, D, E, F, G, A, B, C</strong><br><br>...to give it resolution.<br><br>The second C is the same note, in that it is also a C, however it has a higher pitch than the one we started on, as it is in the next octave - and in that way it is different.<br><br>This explains how C2 and C9 are different chords - yet have the same notes (C, D, E, G and C, E, G, D).<br><br>It's a lot like how 'NUB' and 'BUN' relate to each other in the English language (same components, different order)....and is also why C13 is not a C6.<br><br>So, to summarise, take a major scale - I'll use the example of G major - repeat it and number it as follows:<br> <table align="center" border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="1" style="width: 500px;"><tbody> <tr> <td style="text-align: center;">G</td> <td style="text-align: center;">A</td> <td style="text-align: center;">B</td> <td style="text-align: center;">C</td> <td style="text-align: center;">D</td> <td style="text-align: center;">E</td> <td style="text-align: center;">F#</td> <td style="text-align: center;">G</td> <td style="text-align: center;">A</td> <td style="text-align: center;">B</td> <td style="text-align: center;">C</td> <td style="text-align: center;">D</td> <td style="text-align: center;">E</td> <td style="text-align: center;">F#</td> <td style="text-align: center;">etc</td> </tr> <tr> <td style="text-align: center;">1st</td> <td style="text-align: center;">2nd</td> <td style="text-align: center;">3rd</td> <td style="text-align: center;">4th</td> <td style="text-align: center;">5th</td> <td style="text-align: center;">6th</td> <td style="text-align: center;">7th</td> <td style="text-align: center;">8th</td> <td style="text-align: center;">9th</td> <td style="text-align: center;">10th</td> <td style="text-align: center;">11th</td> <td style="text-align: center;">12th</td> <td style="text-align: center;">13th</td> <td style="text-align: center;">14th</td> <td style="text-align: center;">etc</td> </tr>
</tbody></table><br>Take the 1st, 3rd and 5th notes, and we have a basic major chord:<br>G B D = G major, normally written as G<br><br>If you want a minor chord flatten the 3rd:<br>G Bflat D = G minor, normally written as Gm<br><br>For a 2nd chord, add the 2nd:<br>G A B D = G second, normally written as G2<br>G A Bflat D = G minor second, normally written as Gm2<br><br>For a 4th, add the 4th:<br>G B C D = G major fourth, normally written as G4<br>G Bflat C D = G minor fourth, normally written as Gm4<br><br>If you want to create a sus chord, suspend (take away) the 3rd and add the 2nd or the 4th in it's place:<br>G A D = Gsus2<br>G C D = Gsus4<br><br>NOTE: The lack of a 3rd means that these are neither major nor minor - and in that way they are similar to a power chord (which consists of 1st and 5th only)<br>So there are several chords that are neither major nor minor. This results in a group of chords that are great to use if you want to change what's going on, because they are very 'non-committal'.<br><br>To create a major seventh, add the seventh note to the major chord:<br>G B D F# = G major seventh, normally written as G triangle by hand - or Gmaj7 onscreen<br><br>To create a minor seventh, add the flattened seventh note to the minor chord:<br>G Bflat D F = G minor seventh, normally written as Gm7<br><br>To create a dominant seventh, add the flattened seventh note to the major chord:<br>G B D F = G dominant seventh, normally written as G7<br> <div style="text-align: right;">
<strong><span color="#000000" style="color: #000000;">NOTE: </span></strong><span color="#000000" style="color: #000000;">This page contains excerpts from my 'All You Need To Know About Chords' Ebook.</span><br> <hr>
<div style="text-align: left;">Related Posts: <a contents="Which chords go well together?" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://robinmayguitar.com/chords/blog/which-chords-to-use-part-one">Which chords go well together?</a>
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</div>Robin Maytag:robinmayguitar.com,2005:Post/33687302014-12-06T17:50:43Z2022-01-13T11:37:59ZWhich chords to use? Part TwoIn '<a contents="Which chords go well together? Part One" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://robinmayguitar.com/chords/blog/which-chords-to-use-part-one" target="_blank">Which chords go well together? Part One</a>' I showed you how to take any major scale and easily convert it into seven chords that work well together, whatever order they are played in.<br><br><a contents="" data-link-label="Online tuition" data-link-type="page" href="/online-tuition" target="_blank"><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/156096/971accbff1c3f36751a1401240381c580c8495c9/small/ad-robin1.png?1421856250" class="size_s justify_right border_" /></a>In this tutorial I explain the underlying musical theory.
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<br><iframe class="justify_inline" data-video-type="youtube" data-video-id="pF5sY6Kp9vY" data-video-thumb-url="http://img.youtube.com/vi/pF5sY6Kp9vY/0.jpg" type="text/html" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/pF5sY6Kp9vY?rel=0&wmode=transparent&enablejsapi=1" frameborder="0" height="400" width="640" allowfullscreen="true"></iframe><br><br>By using this system, you can easily work out a set of seven chords for any key that you wish to play in. By familiarising yourself with the resulting pattern, you will improve your ability to work out how to play songs that you hear.<br><br>If you're new to song writing, this could be a good place to start.<br><br>Within my post "<a contents="How to work out scales" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://robinmayguitar.com/scales/blog/how-to-work-out-scales" target="_blank">How to work out scales</a>" I showed you how to establish the major scale for any particular key. I also mentioned that chords can be built up from the notes of a scale - giving a series of chords which relate to a key and sound harmonious when played together. The process through which these chords are derived is called "harmonising".
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<br><span class="font_large">Harmonising the major scale</span>
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<br>Below is the C major scale, written in musical notation. The notes are written on a stave, which has five lines separated by four spaces. Each line/space represents a note-value (indicated on the far right of the diagram). <br><br>To harmonise the scale we take a note (eg C) and add the third note from it (eg E). We then add the third note from that (eg G). This gives us three notes (the minimum required for a chord) which when played together form a chord (eg C major).<br><br>We then repeat this process with each of the notes from the scale. This gives us a group of chords, built on each note of the scale; using only notes from the scale.<br><br>Here is the harmonised C major scale, written in musical notation.<br><br><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/156096/11bbe57ef7f3e0c4bfb011d3324d3c80eaf72206/original/harmonised.gif?1417877298" class="size_l justify_center border_" /><br>This is what the resulting chords sound like:<br><br><iframe frameborder="no" height="95" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/180247843&color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false" width="906px"></iframe><br><br>NOTE: Play any combination of these chords and you can be said to be playing in the key of C major.<br>The resulting chords are (from left to right):<br><br> C major<br> D minor<br> E minor<br> F major<br> G major<br> A minor<br> B diminished (You can try substituting this with a B minor or B7 if you prefer)<br> C major (an octave higher than the first C major)<br><br>If this is all new to you then it may seem a little confusing, however you need only remember this pattern:<br> <div style="text-align: center;"><strong>Major, minor, minor, Major, Major, minor, diminished</strong></div>
<br>So what does that do for you?<br><br>Well, take any major scale and add this pattern and the result is a set of seven chords that compliment each other; whichever order they are played in.<br><br>For example, take the G major scale - G, A, B, C, D, E, F# . Add the pattern above and you have your seven chords:<br><br> G major<br> A minor<br> B minor<br> C major<br> D major<br> E minor<br> F# diminished (Try substituting F# minor or F#7 if you prefer)<br><br>Furthermore, this can help you to work out how to play songs. If a song is in the key of G major, it is likely to have a C major in it (for instance); a D major is also almost guaranteed. The first ( I ), fourth ( IV ), and fifth ( V ) are grouped together and referred to as the primary chords. They can be regarded as the building blocks of modern Western music: The Blues began exclusively as simple progressions consisting of only the I, IV and V. The second ( II ), third ( III ), and sixth ( VI ) are referred to as the secondary chords.<br><br>Want to learn more?<ul> <li>Try harmonising a major scale to four notes for a more jazzy sound</li> <li>Harmonise different types of scales and see which chords result</li> <li>Teach someone how to harmonise the major scale</li> <li>Checkout my '<a contents="Modes - What are they?" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://robinmayguitar.com/modes/blog/modes-what-are-they">Modes - What are they?</a>' and '<a contents="Modes - Where are they" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://robinmayguitar.com/modes/blog/modes-where-are-they">Modes - Where are they</a>?' tutorials</li>
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<hr>< <a contents="Back to all posts" data-link-label="Guitar tuition" data-link-type="page" href="/guitar-tuition">Back to all posts</a><br><br> </div>Robin Maytag:robinmayguitar.com,2005:Post/33682232014-12-06T14:36:32Z2022-02-25T13:08:35ZWhich chords to use? Part OneAt the end of the day, music is a matter of taste. If you like the sound of a particular chord progression then go with it.<br><br>What I show you in this tutorial is <strong><em>not </em></strong>a rule that must be followed and there are uncountable songs that don't follow this system and are great songs.<br><br>In fact, many songs stand out precisely because they don't follow this system!<br><br>What I am giving you here is a simple way to work out <em><strong>a set of chords that particularly compliment each other</strong></em> - Easy to understand music theory for guitarists ~ so grab your guitar and select play on this video:<br><br><br><iframe class="justify_inline" data-video-type="youtube" data-video-id="Pc9mrfU9Wgw" data-video-thumb-url="http://img.youtube.com/vi/Pc9mrfU9Wgw/0.jpg" type="text/html" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Pc9mrfU9Wgw?rel=0&wmode=transparent&enablejsapi=1" frameborder="0" height="400" width="640" allowfullscreen="true"></iframe><br><br>It's a simple, two stage process:<ol> <li>Identify the major scale for the key you want. For example C = C, D, E, F, G, A, B, C</li> <li>Convert each note into a chord using the pattern Major, minor, minor, Major, Major, minor, diminished. Therefore in our example of the key of C our chords are C, Dm, Em, F, G, Am, Bdim</li>
</ol><br>Now play the chords in any order whatsoever ~ simply swap and change between them and notice that they always sound good together, regardless of the order.<br><br>Some folks find it a bit tricky to relate to diminished chords. Try a minor or a dominant seventh chord instead of the diminished.<br> <div style="text-align: right;">NOTE: This post contains excerpts from my 'Understanding Music for Guitarists' eBook.<hr>
<br><b>NEXT---</b><em> <strong><a contents="Which chords to use? Part Two" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://robinmayguitar.com/chords/blog/which-chords-to-use-part-two">Which chords to use? Part Two</a></strong></em>
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<hr>< <a contents="Back to all posts" data-link-label="Guitar tuition" data-link-type="page" href="/guitar-tuition">Back to all posts</a>Robin May