Five Chord Forms of the CAGED System & C Form w/Arpeggio Over C

Vamp
Mastering the fingerboard is an enormous task that takes years of study.
The biggest problem is that unlike the piano there are multiple locations
for the same pitch. The "CAGED" system is an efficient way to break a 12
fret (one octave) span of the fingerboard into five areas each of which
have their own major chord form, arpeggio and major pentatonic scale
form. We will cover each of the five positions of the CAGED system. You'll
also get to apply this information to static chord vamps and progressions to
enhance your skills not only as a rhythm guitarist but also a soloist.
NOTE: We'll use eight jam tracks across the ten lessons on this DVD.
Sometimes several jams will be used as a reference in a particular lesson.
** Check the text for the key or progression of the jam featured in each
lesson. You can and should transpose all of the forms and scales into all
keys, thus each jam can be used across all forms and keys.
C Form w/Arpeggio Over E & G Vamp & C Form w/Arpeggio and Major
Pentatonic
Lesson one covered the C form major chord. In this lesson you will learn
the major pentatonic scale form which "lays on top of" this chord form. We
will also transpose to some different keys. By building on the major
arpeggio, you are assured of always knowing your "strong tones".
Understanding and seeing the various scales and strong tones within each
of the CAGED forms, opens up endless possibilities for rhythm and lead
work. Better yet, this "forces" you to abandon your memorized patterns
and produce new colors and textures in your playing.
A Form w/Arpeggio and Major Pentatonic & A Form w/Arpeggio and Major
Pentatonic
This lesson continues with the A form out of the CAGED system. All three
components are correlated; major chord form, major arpeggio, and the
major pentatonic scale. On the charts provided with the PDF elements,
you'll find both fingering and scale degrees. Naturally, knowing the "root"
note makes it easy to move the form around the neck. But knowing the
various scale degrees, strong and color tones, multiplies your options
tenfold when it comes to rhythmic fills, melody or soloing inside (or
outside) the form and key.

G Form w/Arpeggio and Major Pentatonic & E and D Form w/Arpeggio and
Major Pentatonic
The next letter in our CAGED system is G, so the G form chord, arpeggio
and associated Maj pentatonic scale form are presented in this lesson. We
then will link all three of the forms we have covered up to this point thus
enabling us to "see" more fingerboard. you'll also get to workout in
different keys. After you get a handle on this information, we'll finish the
CAGED system by presenting the E and D forms. Once you've got a grip on
all forms, and their respective arpeggios, pentatonics and scale degrees a
whole new perspective of the fretboard will start to take shape as will a
new set of colors on your sound palette.
Soloing Through Two Different Chords Pt.1 & Soloing Through Two
Different Chords Pt.2
Up to this point we have played over static chord vamps, so the next
logical step would be to apply the caged system to progressions. We will
take an E to D progression and explore all five areas of the neck that will
allow you to play through the changes without having to move out of
position. At this point, you should understand how the CAGED system
expands your resources for playing in position over a single chord. Now
you'll get to put CAGED to work in any tune or progression.
Soloing Through Three Different Chords Pt.1 & Soloing Through Three
Different Chords Pt.2
Up to this point we have played over static chord vamps, so the next
logical step would be to apply the caged system to progressions. We will
take an E to D progression and explore all five areas of the neck that will
allow you to play through the changes without having to move out of
position. At this point, you should understand how the CAGED system
expands your resources for playing in position over a single chord. Now
you'll get to put CAGED to work in any tune or progression.
Major & Minor Pentatonic Connections & Bm, A, D Vamp w/ All Pentatonic
Forms Pt.1
Need some serious rut-busting ideas? Dig in and spend a week or two just
on the approaches discussed in this lesson. The first part of this lesson
explains situations where the pentatonic scale "flips" from minor to major.
This is related to a second system that we'll refer to as the "EDCAG"
system for minor forms. The EDCAG system of minor forms connects very

naturally to the major forms that comprise the CAGED system. We'll use a
Bmin/A/D progression to illustrate how to connect the dots between the
two systems and construct rhythmic and melodic ideas in position.
Bm, A, D Vamp w/ All Pentatonic Forms Pt.2 & Rhythm Guiar Approach
Now let's look at moving the forms around a bit. Try taking any
progression and playing it in any of the various positions available to you.
Repeat same with arpeggios and fills. Note how the same "notes" generate
different textures when you transport them to different positions. Add that
feature to your selection criteria. When comping using the CAGED system,
you'll find that moving up and down the neck, as opposed to staying in
position, will produce an endless variety of ideas for fills and rhythmic
variations.
Diatonic Triads w/ Pentatonics & A, D, E Vamp
OK, straight up ... this lesson gets a bit advanced. Meaning only that you
really should have all of the previous lessons under your belt before taking
this one on. You'll find that things will fall in place quicker that way.
However, and as always, we suggest that you first review all of the lessons
in the series and get a feel for where the series is going - then go back
and start at the top. So ... let's talk diatonic triad/pentatonic connection.
Em, C, D Vamp Pt.1 & Em, C, D Vamp Pt.2
For the final lesson we'll take a standard Em C D progression and apply
what we've learned. Let's take on a new progession for this last lesson an E minor/C/D progression, a 6-4-5 in the key of G. Let's apply
everything we've learned about the CAGED and EDCAG system to work
here. Develop solid rhythm guitar parts as well as melodic fills using the
overlaying scales and arpeggios. Then create melodies and solos from the
same resources. If we've done our job correctly, and you've put the shed
time in, you should notice significant advances in your overall knowledge
of the fretboard and your playing.