Another great way to practice is to take some songs from your MP3 player that you already know, find out the key and noodle over the top of it. Also, it’s helpful to play the song several times in a row while you do your noodling so that you can get the feel and tempo of the song. While you’re doing this, notice how each note of the scale sounds. You might notice that one note wants to move to another note. This is called “tension.” Notice how the tonic or root note sounds good at any time. It is the most restful note since it is the key of the song.
Also notice how any other note other than the root played at the end of a phrase makes the phrase sound like a question. That is to say that ending a phrase on the root note sounds like the period at the end of a sentence and any other note makes it sound like there’s more left to be said - as if the note were a question mark or comma.
Once you get the hang of this, another exercise that I love to do is to put the radio on, use my ear to determine the key of a song, and then noodle over the top of it with the appropriate pentatonic scale. When the next song comes on, do the same thing. Some of you won’t be able to do this as your ear hasn’t developed yet, but it will in time. This exercise will develop both your ear and lead playing skills VERY rapidly.
The Pentatonic Diagrams and How to Practice Them
This is always where the rubber meets the road. Reading and doing are 2 different things and I promise you that the “doing” of this will most likely help you to understand this concept better than the reading portion. So, if the last few pages left you shaking your head in confusion, be encouraged because you are going to get ALL of this.
As I say to my students all the time, it’s helpful to look at a particular concept from several different angles. Doing so allows you to understand it at a deeper level. This goes for all subjects in life, not just guitar or music.
Now take a look at the pentatonic diagrams on the following pages. I have separated these into the A minor pentatonic scale and the C major pentatonic scale. Also notice how both these scales share the same exact notes and the same exact patterns, but their tonics or key centers (the red circle notes) are different.
Why is that?
Because C major’s relative minor scale is A minor (that means that they share the same set of notes). So considering everything that I’ve discussed already about how to use what scales over what progressions, all of the A minor forms of the pentatonic scale would work best over an A minor chord progression. To use the C major pentatonic scale, it would sound best over a C major chord progression. Now I can already hear you asking, “But they are the same scale, why can’t I use either?” The answer is you can. They are the same exact scale, however over the C major chord progression, “C” is your tonic or key; over the A minor chord progression, your tonic is “A.”
Form 1 of these diagrams is by far the most important scale pattern in all guitar playing, in all of history, for all genres, Amen!
Let me say it again, form one is an invaluable pattern that you will find in all genres of guitar music. Learn it, memorize it and know it inside and out, backwards and forwards. After you have mastered form one it’s up to you which forms you want to learn. I like to work my way out in either direction of form one.
Memorizing each of these forms may take you several weeks, or an hour of concentrated practicing. Once you have all the forms memorized and don’t have to look at the diagrams any longer, start moving them up the fret board 1 fret at a time. At first you will probably only be comfortable with moving one pattern up the fret board until you reach the end of the neck. Make sure that you work it down the fret board and work it into the open position as well, not just down to the first fret position.
As you get more acquainted with each form across the entire fret board, then start thinking about using all the forms in one particular key before moving it up the fret board. Before you do this, it’s a good practice to name the key that you are in. For instance, say “A minor pentatonic,” before you begin the exercise and play through each form until you do a complete cycle of the guitar neck. I always start at form one and work my way up the neck. When I run out of frets, I start over in the open position and continue on until I’m back where I started. Then I move to the next key, “A# minor pentatonic,” and so on.
Once you do this for all the minor pentatonic scales in all the different keys, do the same routine for all the major pentatonic scales. Yes, I know it’s the same forms, but starting the scale from the new major pentatonic key will help you to see these forms in both the major and minor relationship.
In regards to how to pick these scales, I practice them a few different ways. Depending on your proficiency, beginners should start off picking every note with a down stroke. After you have mastered all the forms and are then able to concentrate a bit more on the picking hand, it’s important to start developing your alternate picking technique. To do this, pick the first note down and the second note up and follow this pattern to the end of the scale. Don’t try to complicate this one. It’s easy if you do it slowly! Just down, up, down, up, down, up, etc. Since this scale is so uniform and only has two notes per guitar string, it is a great exercise for practicing “hammer-ons” and “pull-offs”.
Otherwise, pick the lower note on each string and hammer the note just above it. If you want to practice your pull-offs, pick the higher note on each string and pull off to the note just below it.
There are literally months and possibly years of potential practice that can be gleaned from these exercises. I have used them for years and still do on a weekly basis. Be patient but persistent. These exercises will allow you to master your fret board and develop your left and right-hand techniques.
Pentatonic Scale Diagrams
A minor pentatonic scale - form 1
A minor pentatonic scale - form 2
A minor pentatonic scale - form 3
A minor pentatonic scale - form 4
A minor pentatonic scale - form 5
A minor pentatonic scale - all forms
C Major pentatonic scale - form 1
C Major pentatonic scale - form 2
C Major pentatonic scale - form 3
C Major pentatonic scale - form 4
C Major pentatonic scale - form 5
C Major pentatonic scale - all forms
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Chord Noodling Improvisation
Remember from our study of the major scale that for every key there is a certain set of notes that complement each other, as well as a certain set of chords? Have you ever wanted to know how a guitar player can play notes effortlessly all over the guitar neck and the notes that they choose, always sound good? Have you ever noticed that your favorite guitar players don’t just play “standard” chords, but in fact embellish and even play melodies over chord progressions, while they are holding chords?
I like to call this “chord noodling,” meaning you are “noodling” around with different notes while still playing the chords. It’s a SUPER cool way of making a standard chord progression sound PRO.
THAT is where the following fretboard noodling maps REALLY come in handy! Let’s say you are playing a song in the key of G and the chords are G, C, E- and D. You could use the Chord Noodling Map in the key of G, to show you EXACTLY all the safe notes that you could “noodle” with, while playing that chord progression.
So here is an exercise for you. If you know that a song is in one of the keys represented in the following maps, try to come up with an arrangement using some notes outside of the chord, but still in the key as represented by the map. If you DON’T know the key, use the Number System Chart in this book to identify what key the song is in by matching your chords with the appropriate key. For instance, if your progression is G, C, E- and D, then your song is most likely in the key of G and you would use the G map. If your chord progression is C, A-, F and G, then the song is m
ost likely in the key of C and you would use the C map. Get it? Note: Don’t get distracted by if the song needs a capo or not. If you are using a capo and playing the above chords, you will still use the corresponding map.
Check out these videos, if you still need help:
Guitar Chord Noodling Part 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FflbeCSPAMw
Guitar Chord Noodling Part 2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rZLtv-iN_Us
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Chord Noodling Maps in Open Major Keys
Key of A
Key of C
Key of D
Key of E
Key of G
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Bar Chords
Bar chords, also known as barre chords, are any chord that requires at least one finger to press down multiple strings simultaneously (at the same time). Bar chords allow guitarists to play chords that are not restricted to the open strings. Bar chords are known as movable chords as each form can be moved up and down the neck in a linear fashion. That is, one bar chord formation will allow the guitar player to play a chord in any key by merely moving it up or down the neck.
Bar chords can be used in conjunction with open chords or with other bar chords. Bar chords are sometimes necessary when a song requires a chord to be played that cannot otherwise be played open. Any chord played in the open position can be replicated as a bar chord further up the neck, given of course that the guitarist has built the strength and dexterity to do so.
“So hold on Erich! You are saying that anything I play in the open position can be played further up the neck in bar chord fashion to produce the same chord in every other key?” Yes! That one concept alone will open your playing up quite a bit. That means that many of those open chords that you know already are going to become our patterns or “templates” for the first set of bar chords that you should learn.
As you probably know already from watching my instructional videos on my YouTube channels, many of my lessons are based around open chords and the use of a capo. I try to keep things as simple as possible when teaching. My philosophy is, “there’s no need in complicating something that’s not complicated.” There are plenty of intricate guitar parts that cannot be simplified. In those cases there is no way around it; however, sometimes even the simplest of songs call for bar chords and there’s no way around that, either. The capo can be used to limit bar chords or change the forms of the open chords that you would use, but sometimes you just have to play a bar chord. In those cases wouldn’t it be nice to have that ability?
Some guitar players might skip this section fearing the dreaded bar chords. While others may feel that their playing does not lack without bar chords. But that’s not you! You want to excel as a guitarist and I am going to help you!
That being said, bar chords are challenging for guitarists who have never played them. Remember you and your hands are learning a new concept! Please be patient with yourself during this process and understand that everyone from Jimi Hendrix to Steve Vai had difficulty with bar chords in the beginning.
I have taught hundreds of students over several decades and have never met a student, even my best, who got this concept immediately. So be encouraged, take your time, watch the videos and enjoy the process. There are literally thousands of bar chords, but here we will only be using the ones that you will use the most. The more you practice them, the faster and better you will become.
I like to break the subject of bar chords down into two sections:
Understanding the forms
Playing the chords
Understanding the Forms
Check out the bar chord diagrams that follow the description below. You will notice that I have separated these as 6th string roots and 5th string roots in the bar chord diagrams later in this chapter. That means that the root, or letter name of the chord is located on either the 6th or 5th string. For this first example see the 6th string bar chords page. Now locate the first major chord. Does anything look familiar about that form? That form comes from our open E major or E chord. Now look at the minor chord form that is 2 chord forms to the right. Now play an E minor chord. Do you see the similarity? If not, hang with me! Now go to the bar chords page with the 5th string roots. Look at the 3rd chord. This chord form comes from the A minor(A-) chord. Are you seeing the pattern? If not, check my videos on bar chords at:
YouTube - YGSGuitarLessons - Bar Chords 1
YouTube - YGSGuitarLessons - Bar Chords 2
Notice the red circle that is in each bar chord. That circle represents the root of the chord. The root is essentially the one note that the rest of the chord is built upon. It is also the letter name of the chord. For instance, A major, A minor, A7 and A-7 all have “A” as the root or letter name. The rest of the notes in the chord determine it’s “flavor”, as in: major, minor, 7, -7 etc. So that means every time you move that bar chord the letter name of the chord changes also. Each of the bar chords on the bottom row of the 5th string roots page have the red circle located at the 2nd fret of the 5th string which is a “B”; therefore, every chord in that bottom row has a “B” root. The “flavor” of the chord is located above the form. Therefore, if you moved each one of those chords up a half-step, you would then have a “C” in the root.
Get it? I knew you would!
Now that you understand where the forms come from and how they move about the fret board, let’s talk about how to play them.
Playing the Chords
Understanding how the chords move about the fret board and actually playing the chords are two totally different things. When playing bar chords, lazy or poor technique will quickly limit you. There are a lot of other techniques - like playing single notes - which guitarists can “fudge,” even with poor technique. Not so much with bar chords... so trust me through this process. Watch the associated videos and keep practicing until you get this. No one gets this right off the bat; it is a learned technique that the more you do, the better you become. Now that we have that excuse out of the way, let’s do this thing!
As someone new to playing bar chords, the following points are of utmost importance! If you find yourself having difficulty, make sure you are aware of the following:
The finger that does the barring, MUST either be perfectly straight, or better yet hyper-extended. Here is a great exercise: Lift your fretting hand up and view your index finger from the side. While viewing it from the side, straighten the finger. Now go beyond that and see if you can’t slightly bend the finger backwards. Obviously, our knuckles don’t allow us to bend the finger back too far, but just that little bit is what we call hyper-extended. In this hyper-extended position, your finger is ideally situated for evenly distributing the weight of that finger across all the strings in your bar chord. Even if your finger is perfectly straight, this is a great place to start. I usually tell my students to hyper-extend that finger a little bit because I know the natural tendency is to bend it the other way - which is awesome if you want your bar chords to sound like poo! If the barring finger is flexed or bent in its natural direction - even the slightest bit - during the bar chord, you most likely will have some unwanted muted notes.
In order to have that straight or hyper-extended barring finger, we need to make sure that our thumb is on the back of the neck closer towards the bottom part and not lazily hanging over the top of the neck. That may be fine for lead work and open chords from time to time, but it’s the kiss of death when playing bar chords. So don’t do it!
Keeping your thumb on the back of the neck should allow for some space between the palm of your hand and bottom of the guitar neck. Again, at least in the beginning, you want to make sure that space is there, otherwise you will have difficulty with your bar chords.
For
the fingers that are not barring, but are playing individual notes, make sure that those fingers are playing directly on the fingertips and not on the pads. This is extremely important! Seriously, for my students that are playing sloppy bar chords or claim that they can’t play them at all, they are always breaking one of these rules... or several. “So listen to me now and believe me later.” For those other fingers remember, “FINGERTIPS! FINGERTIPS! FINGERTIPS!”
For now, the trick will be to bar your barring finger properly, while properly playing on the fingertips of all the other fingers. If you don’t give up and practice, YOU WILL GET IT!!
Practice, practice, practice!! You’ve heard me say it and you’ll keep hearing me say it! You are only as good as how long and how well you are practicing! No one is a “natural” at this; anyone who desires this skill must practice it.
This kind of direction is difficult to put into words. You’ve heard it said before that a picture can say 1000 words. Well a video can say about 10,000 words! Please watch the associated videos after reading this as they will clear so much up for you.
6th String Root Bar Chord Forms
5th String Root Bar Chord Forms
For some extra special “chord-construction goodness”, check out the Chords Woodshed on my website, www.yourguitarsage.com!
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Guitar Mastery Simplified: How Anyone Can Quickly Become a Strumming, Chords, and Lead Guitar Ninja Page 6