A LVR C LLCO Le CoanTHE NATIONAL GUITAR WORKSHOP’SABLE OF CONTENTS Stcriow I—Cuonps & Haroxy 6 THE MAJOR SCALE nn wil vTauabs . 7 inde For Sing Ses 9 BUILDING LARGER CHORDS FROM TRIADS co 10 HARMONIZED SCALES 2 | Sectios H—Inpnovisive 36 amersng Hep Sle, ia | THEMAWR scaLe % arworizggs Méoic Mio Sale 2 Hoes he th tring % arwonicngs Harmonie Mio 6 out he th tring. % MOVING CHORDS ACROSS STRINGSETS nig J THEDERIVATIVE APPROACH —MODAL THINKING ..39 MOVING VoIcES m4 ik Rev fhe Nes the ar Sale 9 ALTERED cHoRDS. te | THEPARALLEL ApPROsCH ry ter inptan Deais tp] THEMINOR scates. 2 AUTERED CHORD CONCEPTS 7 “he Nau Min Sale . 2 ‘schon - > The Haron Mine Sle a8 chon 1 The Mlle Mita See—e Mie “ 2 Ct ns wig | Pevtatosic ano muves scares, 4 ‘Aychents te The Maj Pie SAE nn 6 ciate a The Minor Pt Se 6 Ph Cs a 8 The ues Sale ” Abode wp | SCALES Fox atten cnionos. 8 8 cede is The Diminished See a USING SYMMETRICAL CHORD MOVEMENT 20 The Wh Ti een 0 how this Concept 3 Te pera Sele 8 ‘CHORDIMELODY BASICS ca | St#tuc our THe cHances 3 (hd Eben eB Arve 3 Guiles for Aranging 7 evince 38 (rd Sst 28 ghar Tons % Disa Sabsintion * ‘gh Tones Around Chord Shapes. 37 Time Sabin 0 Ate Castes % Aprath Cts eeveneanenne30 PAVING 'OUTSIDE” a oping wih Weingast mae Symi Nes a) ering Up or Down Hal Sep @ Maine Rae Anand Ara She, 2 seeriow tSecnoy III Reapwve [NOTE IDENTIFICATION... 65 READING RHYTHMS : PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER 278 Seco IV—Berrer Tecinour * POSTURE. 78 LEFT HAND swncnnnnn 79 RIGHT HAND sonnei Pick Sie - 7 Fingerstyle scent LEARNING DIFFICULT CHORDS eensnnnnn 8 (CHANGING DIFFICULT CHORDS. ‘0 LEFT HAND EXERCISE en —_) ‘TREMOLO PICKING.. 2 Gia Pking a BUILDING STRENGTH . EXERCISES cence 8 Fingenye Eerie. a3 Left hand Det Ex) hoe Eerie #1 6 Left and Dery Exes #2 — hor Exes #2 a ef Dentery Exe #3 a7 hor see 3 Arrevonos 2 Par inietas PROPER ATITUDE nent — INTTALZNG CONGR 92 Dene eet ST LEAR AND IW ORDER 93 Dexterity Exercise #6 PUES. - ate - Deny T0016 ia EARNING TONES ones Which Songs? 3_Asour THE AUTHOR— Jody Fisher has worked professionally in virtually all styles of music during his career, fom straight ahead and contemporary jazz to rock'n'roll, country and pop. He taughe Guitar and Jazz Studies atthe University f Redlands and Idyllwild School of Music and the Arts (SOMATA). An active performer in the he sill maintains a private teaching practice and is a director of the National Southern California a Guitar Summer Workshop ther instructional products by Jody Fisher Begining Jazz Gute (video) Chord ond Scoe Finder Jozz Guitar Chrismas Jaze Gutor Masterclass (with Joe Diorio, Mark Whit Ron Escheté, Seatt Henderson and Steve Khan) Rhythm Guitar Encylopedio Stand Alone Tack: Smooth Jazz The Complete Jaze Gutor Method Begining Jozz Guto Imermedite ozz Guitar ‘Mastering Jaze Guitar: ChordiMelody Mostering Jaze Guitar: Improvsavon The Guitar Mode Eneyck 30.Day Guitar WorkoutNTRODUCTION This book is based on two one-week seminars | conduct for the Natlonsl Guitar Workshop called "Jazz Stil” Jazz Skis 1" is primarly forthe rock and blues guitarist who is interested in learring some jazz bases. “Jazz Skis 2° is geared toward the jazz plhyer looking for some more advanced concepts and techniques. Both seminars are designed to help the plier gain perspective on theory and the skills required to develop an individual voice a a jazz guitarist Every student is unique and every class moves in is own direction, but there are always four areas of study everybody wants to learn more about. They are: (Chords and Harmony Improvisation Technique Reading Dring week-long seminar:many other topics like practicing, repertoire, ear training atcude and career paths are alo dcussed, In this book, we wil al about the “big four” listed above. “The ideas discussed in this book are based on the most frequently asked questions in these seminars. The “answers” are presented a8 an overview and are intended to inspire you to further investigation on your ‘own. My other books delve into all ofthese concepts in more detail “The Chords and Harmony” section should give you a good perspective on jazz harmony for guitar and tie together whatever “loose ends” you may have in your understanding, Chord/melody ideas are also discussed, along with walking basslines. ‘The emphasis in the “Improvisation” section i on various took the improviser needs including scales, arpeggios, licks, melodic patterns and ways to come up with unique musical ideas over datonie and skered chord changes. In the “Better Technique” section, you will find various exercises that wil help in all areas of gular playing and possibly correcta few bad habits along the way. These exercises come from the “workout” period we have each day of the seminar While this i not really a “reading method!” the “Reading” section is ful of exercises and tps to help promote better skis and attitudes about this importane area of guitar playing No single book. video or teacher wil ten you into a great jazz guitarist. But working through this Book should give you some perspective on the sl that are needed to become a more complete jazz guitarist. Enjoy! ‘SECTION 1) 5ECTIONI CHORDS & HARMONY Ma ‘One ofthe first jaz skills to learn is how to recite the notes in all welve major scales away from _your guitar. Lean them in cle of ths order (C.F ©. A’, DGB, E,A, D.G—each new key is a perfect 4ch, five hal steps away from the last). Think about i cis way: When traveling through the circle, remember that the C scale has no sharps or fats, ‘Alter that each scales number of flats will inerease by one—F = one fiat B= ewo fats, Shree fats and so on unt you get to G. which has sx fats (every note is at excepe F) ‘The magic number is"4” The fourth note up in each major scale tells you te name of the next scale. The fourth note up from there is the newly flatted note. “The scales B through G use sharps. Each scale decreases by one sharp—B = five sharps, {our sharps and 20 on until you reach G, which has only one sharp. Once agin, he ‘magic number is “4” Now the fourth note up in every scale cells you the name of the next scale. The fourth note up from there isthe newiy dropped sharp. “The fourth note up in the G scale is Chats why they callie circle! Below are the notes in all the major scales. Memorize them! You realy need to do this! Remember—no pecking at your guitar? Here are the scales on the staf F e eeyo) ‘This i an area in which most players have some experience, but few have done an extensive ‘study. The material we will cover here will help ou become a better improviser. 2s well 3s give you a way to learn and catalog new chords. But frst, you havea lide more memorizing to do ‘This wil be the last ching you wll be asked to memorize this way. This may sound alte strange bbut you need tobe able to recite all ewelve major triads (in circle of 4ths order) in twelve seconds! Yes. Time yoursel, You nead to be able to think fast you are someday going to use this Information while improvising. Major triads are composed ofthe root, 3rd and Sth tones in any major scale (C-E- G= C Major, F-A-C=F Major). Here they are. On your mark...get set. o>mengemaroaly Here they ae on the stat section 1) 78 SECTION [Now may be a good time to review triads just in case there are any gaps in your knowledge. Besides the major triad, there are three others: the minor, the diminished and che augmented “The chord formulas continue to reference the major scale. In oder words, f che formula cals for a note akered from its normal position in the major scale, sharp or fa will be used to indicate the diference. For example, ifthe formula requires a lowered 3c will be shown 353. “The formula for the minor triad is root, and S C-B-G = Cmin, FAY C = Fri, “The formula forthe diminished wad is root, and 5 C-B-@= Cam FAC The formula for the avgmented triad is root, 3 and C~E-GE= Cup, F-A~Ch= Fug, te INVERTING TRIADS dio = Diminished Aug = Augmented ‘We can invert these triads In other words we can play the notes in each triad in any order we want and i wil sll be the same chord, The inversion ofthe triad is determined by which noce is In the bass (i the lowest poston) [Note in the Bass | Inversion R Root Position 3 1st version 5 2nd Inversionleis ery importan to know where all of these triads lie onthe ngrboard, The folowing chart shows moveable forms forall che major, minor, diminished and augmented triads in all ehree inversions,on four diferent sets of serings.all wth a C root Iti very easy to transpose these 10 any key. Simply find the desired root on the appropriate string and move the form there. Notice thatthe string sets included here are all adjacent strings: 6-54, 5-4-3, 43-2 and 3-2-1. Fret numbers are shown on the left and suggested fingerings are shown across the top. An» indicates not to play that string. Tey these in all keys JADS ON FOUR STRING St STRING SET 65-4 CMa STRING SET 54.3 CIs) apex STRING SET 4.3.2 min STRING SET 3-2-1 section} 9|ORDS FROM TRIADS BurLpinG LARGER “There are many ways to develop 2 huge chord vocabulary and this book will cover several. AS long a we are talking about rads, here is a way to learn new chords based on the trad shapes you have just learned Lets say we wanted to build major 6 chords. The formula fora major & chord is R-3-5-6, We hive welve diferent major triad shapes (thee inversions x four sting sexs = twelve). Lets put this information together and see what we come up with Well build a C6 chord so the notes willbe C-E-G-A (this s one reason you want ro memorize your scales and triads!) Paya root position C ria on the highest string set (3-2-1). We already have the C the E and the G,so now look around for an A to add to it. Wel, what do you know! ‘There's an on the 4th string at the 7th fret. Add ie to the triad and you have a nice C6 chord ‘The following example shows that many C6 chords based on triad shapes are just waiting to be found. The string set for exch C Major triad is indicated, C Major Tad 2nd Inversion 3-2-1 10| secon 1Ise Inversion 54.3 2nd Inversion S-4.3, Ise Inversion 6-5-4 In case you didn’t know this Cé chord has exactly the same notes in itasanA Minor 7 (Amin7), This is whacis known as a chord sony. Most chords are synonyms of others Be sure to try ths with many different types. SECTION 1) 11RMONIZED Harmonizing a seale is another good way to generate more chords. When we harmonize a scale, we general stack 3rds ontop ofeach scale degree, using only notes found in the sale. For that reason, we can think ofthese as the dotonic harmonies ofthe scale. Diatonic means"belonging to the scale oF key" We wil stack three tones above each scale degree in the fallowing examples to produce 7 chords. A7 chord is a fournote chord that includes a trad plus a note a 7h above the root. When we harmonize with four-note chords, we get some interesting chords. The formulas willbe provided as we go. Be sure to transpose the following harmanizations to all welve keys. Inthe following writen examples, all chords are in root postion. For practical reasons, the fingerings shown above the music 2re notin root position. Generally, we generate these chord scales by starting with the frst chord and then moving each voice inthe chord up to the next scale tone on the same sting. ‘HARMONIZING AG MAJOR SCALE Results in major 7 (Mal7: 1-3-5-7), minor 7 (in? 75 (min: 1-73'S-7), 23.5.) dominant 7 (7:|-3-5-'7)and minor oe, ST, tl, |, aS, Hin sin : oH AH pt s sitet] ut 4 net othist Results in minormajor 7 (mini: 1), minor 7, major 75 (Ma: 1-345-7), dominant 7 and minor 75, Coit?) Dminr ee Mais G7, Amiar'S—Bmint's— Cmint7) a See AS a ‘ “Boh ft ow u| She Stet Set wt MEH a aI seenow 1HARMONIZING 4 C HARMONIC MINOR Results in minorimajor 7, minor 7, major 75, minor 7, dominant 7, major 7 and diminished 7 (1355-979, Cmie(7) — Dmia?'s MTG min 3 Ati Oget **= Double fla. Lower the nate one whole stop. ios Movine Crorps Acr ‘Another way to learn new chords is to move chords across the string sets, There are swo ways to think about this, A. Stare with a chord voicing that lies on a high set of strings and find the exact same voicing on ther string sets. In other words, if your orignal vocng (arrangement of pitches) lies on strings |-2-34, ey to find it on strings 2-3-45 and then 3-4-5-6. Here isan example taking the same voicings of GMaj7 and C7 across several sets of strings GMaj7 GMai7 GMai7 xx x12 34x Loa2axx 1" n e 7 c7 Xa rax pia xx sete, —+s@ 5 . » SECTION 11314) secrion 1 Stare with a chord shape on a particular st of strings. Then maintain the shape (form) ofthe chord and move it over to the nex string set. ies posible to move it again. do so. Obviously, the chord tye will change but this may introduce you to some interesting new woicngs using 1 shape you are already used to. Look what happens to CMai7 and Grin? when you move them across the string sets. crai7 mars DAug prenen es porns ‘ : ‘(te > foter : ole olterr i 0 Mov a ‘This is simply a macter of staring with a particular chord voicing and experimenting by moving some ofthe tones around to see what you come up with, DICES Here is a CMai9 chord (1-3-7-9) coai9 ies ix‘By moving some of the voices ofthis CMal9 chord around, you could come up with some other Inceresting sounds. The diagram shows changes that result inthe following chords Chord Ear 31-37. ce 2 i oo Cli___ 1-79-11 (an 1 is just an ocave above the 4) Cie 7813 CMaii3 9 crs pears deszix yxaaix 5 e 5 5 e 6 6 « e 7 7 e 7 @ sole sole oTTe ° ° cl CBBsus mind 5 4 sth 6 ¢ s 4 e 7 6 © 3 ‘ele 7 6b ’ sole 7 @ o ° sole) ‘Another related idea would be to switch any note on the low E string tothe high E string, nd ce ce co peiaax Xa year x ‘SECTION 1 15,VF you are interested in this materia, you should already have a basic understanding of diatonic chord formulas. you dont. take a look a Binning Jaz Gutor (Alfred #14120) to brush up on this information—ith easy and won't tke too long The fllowing won't make much sense to you with- ‘out this background. Ie might aso help to review the scale harmonizations on page 12 ofthis book. Altered chords are usually a source of confusion for beginning jzz players, and even more experienced guitar players sometimes lack 2 good overview of the subject. Before we get to some actual ered chord voicings lets start with some background information A chord is said to be altered when one or more of its tones has been raised or lowered a half step. This adds nen-dlatonic notes to the orignal chord. Major minor and dominant chords can all be akered, but we tend to alter dominant chords the most ‘Only Sths and Sths can really be altered. you try to ater any other note inthe scale it either becomes an altered 5 or 9, becomes 2 redundancy within the chord Watch what happens: Raising he root = 9 Lowering the nd = °9 Rang the 2nd = 19 Lowering he 3rd = Raising the 3rd = 4th or Ith (came thing, not an altered tone) Lowering the 4eh = 3ed (not an akered tone) Raising the tth = |S Lowering the Sth = '5 (obvious) Raising the Sth = 5 (obvious) Lowering the 6th = 15 Ralung the 6th = 17 (essenal tone for dominant chords, not an alered tone) Lowering the 70h = °7 Raising the 7th = root So you see, the only real alterations possible are"s.5,"9 and 9. There are chords witha |. But the II is the same as the S an octave higher. Because of range limitations of the instrument guitarists sometimes think of che "Sand I as interchangeable. ‘So when you think about ic at its most basic level altered dominant chords have these eight possibiles:(OtWER iMpoxtant DETAILS + Aratural 9, 11 and 13 can be added to any chord with an akered 5. + ithe and [the canbe added to chords with an aered 9 + Tha moat common stared major chords are maith (1. 9511) Mais (-3-15-7) aiP5 (135.7) 2 "Tm gont comin caw i nn? (135-7) This acaly& dato chord.t00 min7's (|-34 “Thats pretty much the story. Remember that coming up with cool and unusual voicing is where most ofthe fun is when working with altered chords. The rest of tis section wil show examples ‘of these chords and include some other ideas about them. A ¥: 35 ‘One interesting thing about 75 chords is that, through the marvels of enharmonic respellings, ‘each voicing is actualy two diferent '5 chords whose roots are aS apart. For example, C75 ‘and G7 can be played with the same voicing because, f you respall two of them,all the notes are ideal SO EON, Ri PTS C7 (CECB) = G75 (C-8-D-F) Dr=Cand PoE ‘The two chords are spelled diffrendy but they sound the same, crs crs 7's crs pep ix pxaaix Kaa x xa4uax 201@ see " oe 6 : ° oT ef vlelle 4 0 a s[le 5 ” ul Te ’ 6 2 sl@lTT 0 ‘7. CHORDS (13-547) _ This chord has a very distinctive sound, and itis easy to find new voicings for it. The augmented triad, wich isthe basis fora 75, repeats itself every major 3rd up che fingerboard, Again, thro the wizardry of enharmonic respelings.a aug, Eaug and Ghaug are all the same. Simply adda to an avgmented triad and you have a 75 chord, cis c7s 7s C75 xiai x xxa23t iedaax | xxTzat \ ‘ s T : 2 7 sl lee o[ [lee 3 : i T ” 4 ’ eo n ‘scm )17.ihc FocHoRDS (5-7-9) A79 chord voiced without root (3527-"9) isthe same asa diminished 7 chord (1-'3!587) ‘whose root sa major 3rd higher Since diminished 7 chords repeat themselves very minor 3rd in rch the same way that augmented triads repeat themselves every major 3rd (once again thanls to enharmonic respelings) we can say the same for rootless 79 voicings. Just practice moving your rootless 79 chords around in minor 3rds and watch your vocabulary for this altered chord expand c7'9 c79 c79 C79 zauaix Xana axa ix terais 2 e 3 ‘ele 168 s[elele ° e 79.CHORDS (1-57-49) ‘We all know and love this chord. Ie is no true that Ji Hendrix invented ft cro crs c79 paiaex xaaaix Laiaas 2 Ele 4 2 100 8 site 5 | 2 4 ‘ ole 8 CI : 7 n ee lie ‘ alle 2 TT) osfer 7-$9.cHORDS (1-45-79) A789 chord voiced without a root (5/7-'9-3) s the same as a dominant 7 chord (1-3 ‘whose roots a'S above. For example, rootless C7'S'9 voicing is aso G7 =07 @80-F) crs cro cro c7s'9 xa psa x paix Xanax 2 _lelee «[Te 1 " 3 s «(lett 2 ‘ 6 oe le ale 5 7 wl T «(fete ‘Acfirstall hese rules may seem alittle overwhelming. Buf you study them one ata time, they become de blessings instead of curses!779 HtORDS (1457-1) ‘When using chords with multiple akerations, such as 75°9 and 788, be careful that the altered tones do not conflict with the melody ofthe tune! crs crs crs crs xatass beia3s tate | xan 1 7 7 » 2 ' ' 0 oe [ele ’ ° in 3 ee © 0 6 5 0 nie 4 6 b . T is Psoutsins) This chord has a nice, spicy sound, crs gH crs + crs + crs & Lataex xg fptixx ee 2e8 2 : o-lleee 3 5 > a 5 H : in uf be ‘ ‘ i) ste Teo coRDS (1-57 ‘A rootless 79 voicing isthe same as a min?5 chord a whole step below. For example, a rootless C7IS9 isthe same as Bin, Rootiess C789 (E-GLB-D) = Bimin7’5 (B-0-F-A) P=EandAl= Gt cy cise cs > xraaax | xataies 2 x axtaas 1 1 s oLlete 2 ° el oe) : : fou 3 : | 9 ‘ ‘ 1 SECTION 1|19costs “This is an interesting idea that wil significantly widen your musical choices. It should be explored witha ypes of chords. In symmetrical chard movement. specific chord shape on the fingerboard Is moved ata set interval up the fingerboard. We continue to think of the same root the function remains the same (for example, dominant remains dominant), but the frets, extensions and alterations change. Lets start with 7'5 chords. Dominant 75 chords retain their dominant function when they are ‘moved around the fingerboard in incervals of whole steps, Here is a CPS: Iv you base your thinking on the orginal chords root, you will produce the following chords as ‘you move the form up by whole steps: Hs, crs Costs Hs Xxaea ee ° } oon 3 ani teertiens tH 8 leis interesting that al the chords produced have an akered Sth. Some of them have Shs as well You get the same chords if you stare wth a dominant 9th or a 75: STARTING WITH C9 co cos costs xa 13x xa132x %a133x 1 3 5 2tfe 4 3 —+s eee} + ‘ | 5 3 | 7 criss 7s’ «[ fe ofte —+ + [ei ee| —+ [el ee u T BSTARTING WITH C715 7s 9's cots, x1att x x LLL x x 1a x 1 3 s [le sf te ofle c's 75's cots's x tRL x xz x xn x 7 ote u sie wllTelt] n u T aft 1 1s ‘Another interesting thing is that you can consider ony of the notes in the chord to be the root Here's how that works out crs E945'5 Br9t5'S o7's xe Xen xara xxa4a 2|lelle [Te 2 {fet 2[felle 3: e 3 e 3 et} => ¢ 4 | 4 4 - | 4 You stl get dominant chords with altered Sths, with or without a Sth secrion 1/2112 | SECTION 1 If you can consider ay ofthe notes in the chord to be the root. you can still move them around in whole steps. The same thing happens: you get even more dominant chords with altered Sths. E985'5 Ess ers xxzeis xxzais xxaeia elle 4 ele Ter) —es[ er) E915'5 xxrens —- it —— Bi9ts's Biss e «[fetle ——+s | Tle ‘ I Bi9ts's Bots B75, enn xxrsis xo »[letle ol letle v{tetle —> + [Ter] —>u Ter] —>s( Te uf 1 aft is7's 95's Prretr eage1y ? Ce ibe te SESH — 5 TT * | ors cists sts et Pree rerey, 1A ‘ x * ° 10 e e 2 e e —ss eh] —nt ef} —u e uP B T in HOW To USE THIS CONCEPT Whenever you need an altered chord, you simply need to grab one ofthese shapes making sure that the appropriate roots contained in the chord! Of course, some chords could sound much better than others ina given context. Experimentation is necessary. Here area few i-V7-I progressions to demonstrate this idea: SECTION 1 |23.‘You should know that dominant 74'S chords are also commonly referred to as dominant 7'13 chorde—the § i enharmonicalyrespalled as 13, CChord/melody describes a sry of guar playing where a songs melody splayed with a combination of chords and single notes. Generally the melody willbe the highest note ina chord. Some players ike to harmonize much ofthe melody and others prefer an approach chat 3 Ie ighter—chords are sed more sparing. By the same token, some payers enjoy large and harmonica rich harmonies “ile thers lke t imply harmonies wth smaller chords. It comes down to experience and ate “This section wll touch upon some ofthe importan key areas. Mastering azz Guitar: ChordMelody from The Complete Jz Guitor Methed realy digs dep into this subject and wl help you with the ‘more complex areas of chordimelody arranging, Once you have the basics, being a good chord melody arranger i really a matter of knowing many diffrent arranging techniques. Many ofthe techniques that are used in band and orchestral arrangements work equally well on the gular. “The most basi sil to master Is recognizing chord tones in the melody. In the beginning. you shoulder to harmonize the chord tones in any given melody with chords you already know. It will soon become apparent that you probably need to learn more interesting chords. Learning rrew chords fora chord/melody arrangement is one ofthe best ways to accumulate new volcngs ‘quickly, By practicing the song, you are also practicing the new woicngs. Ive always tried to Incorporate new voicings in every new tune | lear. After you've learned many song, you stare 10 accumulate many voicngs as well ‘24| secrion 1Here is a melody with some chord changes shown above the staff F o7 Gmin co F 2 Here are ewo possible ways to harmonize this melody using these chords: f o7 Gmin 7 F min o F ‘SECTION 125(CHORD ENHANCEMENT ‘When you are ready to go beyond the basic chords given to you In books and sheet music, the ‘ext step is thinking abour chard enhancement. Most chords canbe chought of as being a member ‘of one of three basic chord familes: major, minor or dominant. You enfiance a chord when you add extensions (9,11, 13) or replace ic with another chord from the same family. The root doesnt change—just the favor of the chord, In other words. playing a C6,CMaj7.CMaj9,CMal3 ‘or any other C Msjortype chord could enhance a simple C triad. The same idea carries over 10 minor and dominant chords a5 wel “The following lit should give you a good start entancing your basic chords. Remember that context is everything. Just because it may be theoretically correct doesnt mean that it sounds great. Like everything ls, you need to experiment and gain experience. Here are the chords of the three major chord failes: Major Chords Dominant Chords Major Triad Dom? Doms Domit Domi3 Dom7i6 Dom7/11 Dom7sus Domssus Dom's Dom7s Domr9 126| secnion 1Here are ewo more harmonizations forthe melody ineduced on page 25 using chord enhancement Fetir 7 079 D7 Gm? co cil Fe Fos Fey b7 v9 07 Goin? crs Fs ny F109 1 {ae cic et i Yas ere own el onto fone chord with another chord tha has a different raot. When you enhance a chord, the root remains the same. % (GUIDELINES FOR ARRANGING —_ Generally you wil have to raise the melody an octave if you are learning the song rom a book or sheet music 2. Try arranging the song in a key other than the one it was written in. les often possible to create beaut effec using open string vocings that another key may suggest. 3. Memorize the melody in single notes frst. Be able to ply ical over the fingerboard and in diferent registers. 4, Memorize the chord changes and be able to play them all over the fingerboard. 5. Arrange your song with basic chords frst. After you can do that proficiency try 10 dress up the arrangement with chord enhancements and other arranging techniques we will discuss, uch at subsiutions and passing chords 6 Keep your arrangements loose. Eventually youll want to improvise inthis style ‘Constantly update and apply new skls to your repertoireD SUBSTITUTION ‘This section covers two types of chord substitution diatonic and tritone. A strong understanding of these devices wil make the study of more advanced methods much easier. There are many devices and ways to substitute chords. Many more can be found in Mostering Jazz Gultar: Chord Meso. DIATONIC suasttrurion: DDiatonic substitution occurs when a chord is substituted with another chord from the sime harmonized scale. For example, some ofthe most common substitutions for 7 chords inthe key of F would be WRITTEN CHORD POSSIBLE SUBSTITUTION Denin?, Amin? Mai? Dain? Goin? Emin?’s Fa7 Goin? ‘The reason this works is because every other 7 chord in the diatonic scale share three notes in common, Ofeen,chords that have three or more nates in commen ean substitute for each other. The chart below demonstrates how every chord (oval) shares three tones witha chord one 3rd abowe in the key (rectangle)—in this case, F Major: Maj? Gmin? Amin? B>Maj7_ C7 min? Emin7’s FMaj7_— Gmin7 Fray Gin? Amin? 7 o min? Eminr’s FMT a a ‘asi secnba‘TRITONE SUBSTITUTION ‘When a progression travels from V7 to | itis common to replace the V7 chord with a dominant chord whose root isa trtene (or'S) away-—a distance of three whole steps ("tri” isthe Greek word for "hree"). For example, you can substitute a G7 chord with a D7 (or some other dominant) chord since Disa trtone away from G. Finding voicings that work is the key “This works because when you compare the speling of both chords, 0'7 looks and sounds like G79 without a root. What you are really doing is adding some altered tones to the orginal chord and dropping the root. ‘Besides giving you another harmonic perspective this technique gives you a nice chromatic bass line inthe context ofthe common ii-V7-1 progression: Din? G7 CMa9 t o=Dmin? D9 CHai9 bs Yee another way to think about this is to look at the circle of Sthe—allthe ‘ritone substitutions are directly across the circle {rom each other. secrion 129‘ApPROACH CHORDS _ This isa great way to dress up your harmonies. You can approach any chord with a dominant chord (altered or otherwise) whose root i 2 half stop away. The approach can be from above or below. Experiment and find tasteful ways to do thi Here i an unadorned, basic chord progression: Amn? D9 Gma7 co Fr? Here ics again with approach chords (approach chords are marked with asterisks) Bip* Amn 13° D9 AY min? DIET co GT's FMT ‘Besides being a nice thing co do while comping. you can also include these moves while harmonizing 1 melody, Here is our progression again, without approach chords, with a melody: Emin? ar Dein? or coms Here is the melody and progression again, tis time harmonized with approach chords: Emin? BR AT a a ‘30|SecrioN 1LOINC Ae Bass Lines ‘This section wil get you started with this wonderful comping technique. The idea isto comp (accompany) with chords and play a walking bas line atthe same time. ‘A walking bass line is one that moves mostly by step, using passing tones (tones from the scale of ‘the key oF chord ofthe moment). Sometimes. chromatic passing tones (Cones that do not belong, 10 the scale ofthe key or chord) are included. ‘When executed well the effect of comping with chords and a walking bas line simultaneously is ‘that of two instruments playing at once. To get a more compete picture, be sure to check out ‘Chapter 5 in Mostering Jezz Guitar: Chord! Melody. STEP I: Learn and memorize these four shapes for Cmin7 chords ‘ection 131“The folowing steps wil lead you to a Cin vamp. A vamp i an accompanimene figure or pattern that is repeated. It is often used as an introduction and is repeated unt all the performers are ready to continue, STEP 2: “Think lke a bas player. The bass line needs to move between the tones of ane chord to the ‘tones of the next chord, The simplest way is to move between chord tones scalewise—by step using the notes of the scale of the key. Another way Isto approach the chord tone from a step above ora step below. Sometimes bass lines even skip into a chord tone from attone (5) away. Here isa summary of ways bass players move between chord tones in walking bas ines: 1, Scalewise, 2. From a half step below. 3. From 3 half step above 4. From a whale step above, 5. From a whole step below. 6 From a5 away ‘You must be conscious ofthe key you are in There may be an approach to some chords that wil not fic in the key. I treated with tase, chese approaches can sound great. Experiment. Practice plying in ime and begin with the “half step below’ approach Travel up the fingerboard lke this: Playa chord Play a bass note one half step below the root of the next chord, Py the next chord Play a bass note one half step below the root ofthe next chord, Py the next chord Ee, coin? 32| steno 1 ‘Continue alternating this way between bass note, chord, bass note, chord et:—up and down the ‘entire neck, Practice this way using all of the approaches listed above. Be sure to keep a steady rhythm, For now, just play a steady stream of quarter notes at a tempo that feels comfortable Later, you wil ery 0 think and pay faster.STEP 3: Experiment withthe right hand. You have thre basic options for sounding the bass notes and chords: 1. Striking the chord and bass note simultaneously asin example 12 on page 32. 2. Serking the bass note jst aleve ahead ofthe rest of the chor 2. Striking the chord jst alte ahead ofthe bass nate: (OF course, rel paying situation would include all three approaches ste “Transpose all hese ideasas demonstrated in examples |2~14,t0 all twelve keys so that you have complete flexibly in this vechnique. SECTION 1/33.STEP 5: Learn voicings for dominant and major chords and apply al the previous information to them. Here are some starter vocings DOMINANT 34) secon 1ster ‘Work out lots of i-V7-1 chord patterns using all ofthe cechniques described above. Here are some samples: STEP 7: Practice this technique comping the changes to tunes from the standard jazz repertoire. REALITY CHECK. “This process should tke you months to go through and there wil aways be more to know. Getting started is always the hardest part, but ic really does get easier as you progress. The results are well worth the effort! SECTION 1/35ECTION I -aeeovisma_————_ In this secon, we'l sary learing some sales and arpeggios and EXPLORE ways to make music with ‘them. Ie shouldbe sessed tat simpy knowing his information wil not make you a great inprowser. ‘What you really need co dos itn. Len to lot of improvised music and tr to hear how others ute ths informacion. These ae ust he buléng blocks what you do with them sche real sue Let ook asc ingergs forthe major scale. There are many oer fogeings but prefer these because hey allow you to playin almost ary key—anywhere onthe ngerboard—eash, Here they ae in the ky of ROOTS ON THE 6TH STRING Paccern# Pactorn #2 Pateern #3 ‘36 secon 8“The advantage that these fingerings have is that no matter what postion you are in,you can play In eleven diferenc keys with minimal shiting, (Lets define a position as being a sb-fret are.) “This s very useful when you have to improvise over a chord progression that moves rapidly through many key centers, For example, the folowing diagrams show the roots ofall the keys you can play in using these scale patterns around the 4th and 9th postions Here are al the major keys you can reach easily from the 4th position: Root on éth String Root on Sth Strin "A Use Pattern #1 Use Pattern #4 Use Pattern #1 Use Pattern #4 Use Pattern #2 Use Pattern #5 Use Patcorn #3 Use Pattern i A P B Use Patcorn #2 Use Pattern #5 c 1D’ _Use Pattorn 83 Use Pattern i Here are all the major keys you can reach easly from the 9th poston: Root on éth String Root on Sth String Use Patcern Use Pattorn tt Use Parcern #1 Use Pattern #4 Use Pattern #2 Use Pattern #5 Use Pattern #2 Use Pattern #5 Use Patera #3 Use Pattern 46 Use Pattern #3 Use Pattern #6 SECTION 1/37‘The major scale isa goed starting pone for improvisation because it can be used in so many ways ‘over so many types of chords and chord progressions. ‘There are seven chords that are produced by harmonizing the major scale (see page 12). For ‘example, in the key of G, the datonic chords are: GMaj?, Amin7, Bmin7, CMa, D7, Emin? and Fin, ‘You can use the G Major scale to improvise over any of those chords. Some notes in the scale will sound better than others over a given chord but overall you can play che major scale freely ‘over a progression that consists of datonic chords. Practice improvising over this chord progression using a G Major seal. Eicher play along with ‘the CD thit is avalible for this book, record the chord progression yourself or get a fiend to play the chords Bria? Emin? Amie? o7 cra crag Amin? o7 Fins Emin? o7 cm o7 38] secrion “This concept is a little larger than it seems a fist. Very few jazz chord progressions consist of ‘only diatonic chords, but with alight change in perspective, you can use this information in those situations as well The following information should gee you up and running but this isa huge topic. You should investigate ie further. Check out The Complete jazz Guitar Method or The Guitar ‘Mode EncylopedNee Mii LSince In the derivate opproach, you look ata chord and decide to use a major scale from wich it was produced. When you see Din chord,you think: Drin7 ithe i chord of C,the ili chord of and the vi chord off. This meane that you can ute the C,B' or F Major scales to improvise. They willech produce a unique sound but some choices willbe more appropriate than others depending upon the context. Obviously.the chord tones woul be accented wile improving, you re familar withthe modes ofthe major scaleit is important for you to note that what you are actualy doing in che derivative approach is thinking modally. For example, if you are playing the C Major scale because you are playing over a Dmin7 chord (as described in the paragraph above), and are stressing the chord tones (D. A.C). you are playing the D Dorian mor (QUICK REVIEW OF THE MODES OF THE MAIOR SCALE: you ply a major scale stating and ending on the st degree, you are playing the lonian mode. 2d svn DOAN 3rd Phrygian Bho -bydian| Schon Mixolydian ech ‘Aeolian Teh LOHAN “This chart shows some examples of derivative thinking. And, for those of you who are aboue the modest shows what mode is being generated by thinking this way cma G Major (G Maj? isthe I chord) G lonian D Major (GMa? is the IV chord) G Lydian Fin? Major (Fin is the ii chord) F Dorian 1D’ Major (Fin? isthe ii chord) ——_F Phrygian ‘A’ Major (Fin? isthe vi chord) Aeolian aT Major (AT isthe V7 chord) ‘A Mixolydian Dmin?’s E Major (Omia7 isthe vi chord) —_D Locrian ‘The following examples show a few possibitis. cry Fin? Pay 4 imes C lonian (I chord) — — == + © Saale (ii chord) Gin? co FezIn order to put this concepe to use, you need to know: ‘A. The major scales on the guitar and by recitation. 8. The chords in each major scale and ther positon in the key. ‘Again, this is actually modal thinking, When you are using that C Major scale over the Dmin7 ‘chord you are playing a D Dorian mode (going from D to D, using the notes of the © Major scale) wei Some players prefer learning separate fingerings for each mode. This is called the paral! approach. In other words, when improvising over a D7 chord, some players willusea D Mixolyian rode fingering. Of course this would be the same thing as playing a G Major scale over the D7. lesa matter of preference PARALLEL APPROACH Here are fingerings for exch mode inthe C Major sale (see page 36 for lonan fingerings): 40) secnow 1G Mixolydian SECTION m4There are many types of minor scales. The fllowing isan 0 f scales you need to know. THE NATURAL. MINOR SCALE “The natural minor scale is the basic minor scale. Ie comes from the 6th degree of any major scale Using a C Major scale, we see that the 6th degree is A. The A Natural Minor scale is uit by starting on A and proceeding through the notes ofthe C Major scale until i reached again. The G Natural Minor scale would travel from G to G using the notes ofa B Major seal, ete. Th scales share a common key signature. The key signature for B° Major isthe same as the key signature for G Minor. This is known asthe relative minor relationship. G Minor isthe relacv minor to B’Major; A Minor isthe relative minor ro C Majr.etc. The Aeolian mode (see page 39) is another name forthe natural minor scale Major Seale 6 SS SS A Natural Minor Seale BF Major Seale = a 00 G Natural Minor Seale FINGERINGS FOR A NATURAL MINOR,“THEMARMONIC MINOR SCALE. “Think ofthe harmonic minor scale as a natural minor scale with 2 raised 7th degree. For an in depth study of the scale and its modes, check out the Guitar Mode Encyclopedie. ‘ANatural Minor Seale ‘As with the major sae, creating modes wil ge you even more sounds to work with a an inpro- ‘ser Below i alist of modes generated by the harmanic minor scale and the kinds of chords they ‘work with. As with the modes ofthe major sale you can thinkin terms ofa parallel approach ora derivative approach. The modes inthis diagram areal derived from A Harmanic Minor. 'A Haemonic Minor -Amin or Amint7 Locriants - Bmin7's ———— oo «sso °° leniants - cmai7ts SecTiON 1) 43,‘THE MELODIC MINOR SCALE —JAZzZ MINOR Raise both the 6¢h and 7eh degrees ofa natural minor scale and you have a melee minor scl ‘Traditionally the raised notes occur in the ascending scale only. The descending scale returns co mace : This, however, doesnt do us much good while improvising so we apply the raised notes in both the ascending and descending scale—some players cll his version the jazz minor scle FINGERINGS FORTHE A MELODIC JAZZ) MINOR ‘A Melodic Minor Seale ——— 44) secnow 1‘Again, you can create modes from the melodic minor and of course, hey work well over the corresponding chords with ether a derivative or parallel approach. ‘A Melodie Minor - Amin or Amin? ws SSS 3 F Locriaf? - Finn? SECTION 1/4546| secriow Nid gee tkon So many players use these scales exclusively that ies difficult belive that a jazz skis student would stil need to learn what they are about. Yet it seams like many jaz students do need to beushup on some of this material, ‘THEMAJOR PENTATONIC SCALE. “The major pentatonic scale is realy a major scale without the 4th and 7éh degrees, As such, you can seit in exactly the same way as a major scale. f you have been playing pop music fr any length ‘of time, you probably have a collection of licks and other ideas using pentatonic sales. Go ahead— try them in jazz tunes. They work and wil tend to add a different dimension to your soles. For ‘example, if you are used to playing major sale ideas over ii-V7-I progressions using the major scale of the I chord, try the major pentatonic seale based on the I chord fora switch, ( MAJOR PENTATONIC FINGERINGS fe 'e te so ‘s *° le 3 'e te e te 'e 8 i is {pel ‘° ‘e 'e 'o “THEMINOR PENTATONIC SCALE _ “The minor pentatonic scale is one of the fst scales most people learn. Its used widely in rock, op and country musie—and you can sound pretty ood almost immediately. While the major peneazonic scale wil give you sweet major sounds the minor pentatonic scale wil give you a bluesier edge. Use it over minor and unaltered dominant chords. [Any pentatonic scale fingering can be both major or minor depending on what you perceive the ro0t to be. This relationship works the same way as relative major and minor keys. In other words, C Major Pentatonic = A Minor Pentatonc; F Major Pentatonie = D Minor Pertatonic et. C MINOR PENTATONIC FINGERINGS Notice that these are exactly the same fingerings asthe C Major Pentatonic fingerings above (Only the root has changed.“THE BLUES SCALE “The blues scale is often thought ofa a minor pentatonic seale with the’S added. I familar but ‘beautiful sound. You can add this tone to the major pentatonic scale as well. Ofcourse a major ‘context youve added the "3. Experiment with this over major chord progressions. A BLUES SCALE FINGERINGS “Tey using your familar pentatonic fingerings in ifforont ways: For major chords: Use a major pentatonic sale starting from the root, Sth or 9th of the chord For minor chord xn Use a minor pentatonic sale starting from the 006, 5th oF 9th of the chord For dominant sus4 chords (1-457)... Use a major pentatonic starting on the root or '7 ofthe chord, For aktered dominant 7 chords: Use a major pentatonic seale starting from the 5 lover chords with altered Sths and 9ths. See my Guitar Chord & Scale Finder for more interesting uses for pentatonic scales. STION 11/47u Goin? ete “There are so many scales to use over altered dominant chords that it s easy o be overwhelmed. In tuth, is not how much you know that makes you a good improviser but how you use what you do know. ‘There are three extental scales to use over altered chords, The diminished scales the frst "THE DIMINISHED SCALE ‘The diminished seale isa symmetrical scale, In other words, ts design isa symmetrical pattern of whole stepe and half tepe. The formula Is whole - alf- whole -half-whole - half whole, exc C Diminished Scale = = oo & ope bo fo oo Stare the diminished scale one half step above the root ofthe altered dominant chord you are Improving over In other words, you could use an A’ Diminished scale over an altered G7 chor ‘Almost all possible alterations (see page 16) ae included inthis scale. Below isthe At Diminished scale, Beneath each tone is the note’ relationship wo a G7 chord A Diminished over G7 ‘As you can 300 tht scale would sound fine over any G7 with 5,9 or (or any combination of these). The only altered tone which would noc be reflected in the scale isthe, In the ease ofthe following progression, Gmin?-C7S-F¥s7, you could use the F Major scale ‘over the Gmin7 and the FMa\7. Over the C7, D’ Diminished scale would work very wel crs Fer 48|secrion 1 (NOTE: In dis book as in most jazz contexts ii safe to assume that the eighth notes should be swung, “Swing Sts” are performed by holding the first eighth in ‘each pair longer than its written value. The second eighth splayed late. and shorter. “The swing rhythm sounds ike an eighth-nove triple with the first ewo eighths ted,Because the diminished scale isa symmetrical scale, any fingering forthe diminished scale can be ‘moved up or down minor 3rds and i will ncude the same notes—very convenient! A DIMINISHED SCALE FINGERINGS Some players prefer to think of the diminished seale's formula 35 half-whole-half-whole-half- Whole, etc. In this cate, you would star the sale from the root of the alzered dominant scale instead. All the above considerations would stil hold true‘THEWHOLE TONE SCALE _ “There are rally only two whole tone scales. Because of the arrangement of whole steps, whole tone scales beginning from every other note on the chromatic scale contain identical tones When improvising, star the whole tone scale from the root ofthe dominant chord, This is what we get when we superimpose 2 G Whole Tone scale ver a G7 chord “The whole tone scale works well over dominant chords with raised or lowered Sths. Here is i-V7-1 progression in C using a G Whole Tone scale over G75: min? ors cre ee * a 8) G WHOLE TONE SCALE FINGERINGS '50|SecTION _“This box shape comes in handy when you want fo use whole tone sounds, The notes in this shape, pliyed in ay order and then moved around in whole steps, will give you colorful whole tone sounds, Just start from any chord tone! Here are ewo examples of tis shape in use: Stroh 1210-8 08 secTON m1) 51‘THE SUPER LOCRIAN SCALE “The Super Locrian scale goes by many names. You wil also see this called the otered dominant scle ‘or the diminished whole tone scale. Ie is undoubtedly the mas usable ofthe altered scales because ie contains the’S, 5,9 and 9, leis the 7th mode of the melodic minor scale. Many jazz players ‘create these sounds by plying a melodic minor seale one half step above the root ofthe altered ‘dominant chord, | think itis easier anda litle more practical to think of ca a separate scale Here is the G Super Locrianseale and its relationship to a G7 chord: G Super Locran Seale Here is the Super Locran scale in use over ai-V7-I progression coop m wo tee the = =| 2 - = FS = ‘One way to capture the flavor of any altered chord in your solos isto start your phrase from the highest alered tone in the chord (for example, che * in a'S9 chord). and then proceed to the altered scale of your choice 52) secrion 1RU TABAINCR UU OLEWNS ARPEGGIOS ‘One sure sign of proficiency a an improviser I the abil co spell cut the changes. Your improvised lines should reflect the chord changes as accurately as possible. At the most advanced level, this ‘means echoing no only the chord changes, but the alterations in the chords as wel ‘Aca more basic level, you need to learn to aecent the chord tones within the seales. The study of crpeggae wil give you the ammunition you need in order to do this, This chapter wil ive you great stare, ‘Arpeggios are the notes ina chord played consecutively rather than simultaneously In the system shown here, you will lear all the arpeggios forthe seven diatonic chords within 2 particular major scale fingering. Here isthe major scale fingering that the arpeggios wil be based on ‘THE C MAJOR SCALE Below are the datonic arpeggios within this scale, Chord examples are inchided. Once you have learned the arpeggo shapes, practice them by paying the chord, chen the arpeggio and then the ‘chord one more time. This way, you will learn to associate the arpeggo with the chord isl. Mal xa 42x CMaj7 i$ he. ot 'e 3 0 30 n Dmin7 ease Dmin7 secon 1/53$54] sscTION 1 Amin? ‘e siti Bmin?’s} 3, 7elee te ‘AHH Eventulyyou should try to learn ase of daronic arpeggios for every major scale fingering you know.‘The first step in earning to spall out changes is learning your arpeggios. you have memorized the previous Set. then i s time to move on Many of us begin improvising by randomly ‘up and down the scales that will work over 2 particular chord progression. Now. you should start your improvised lines with chord tones. Start your phrases on roots, 3rd, Sths and 7ehs of the chords and still use the major scale to improvise—ie's just the fist note of each phrase that will bea chord tone. Try to stare with 3rds and Tehs often, because of thelr defining role in all chords (these tones define the quality of the chord—whether they are major, minor or dominant). Ty to start ona chord tone every time the chord changes in the progression “This may soom litle rigid at rst. Ater some ‘experience with this technique. you will know when itis necessary and when tis not. Here are some examples of lines that start on the various chord tones or cry‘NEIGHBOR TONES ‘Once you have a handle on starting your ines from a chord tone, the next stop is learning to use ‘neighbor tones. These are notes that an improviser uses to approach targeted chord tones. There fare many notes tht can be considered neighbor tones but for now well stick to notes that are ‘either aha step or a whole step above or below the chord tone. The chord tone wil all on the first beat ofeach measure, so youl need to “plan ahead” to make sure your neghbor tones fll ‘on either beat 4,0r on the second half of beat 4 ofthe previous measure, Here are some neighbor tone examples: Drin? esse ‘ep utoe OMO? Goin? o FM? ‘5 Fe? anaes: era 56| sect 1NEIGHBOR TONES AROUND CHORD SHAPES ‘Yu can also apply the neighbor tone idea to chord shapes. Hf you are improvising over this chord ‘You wil consider the gray notes your neighbor tones: ‘Amie? SECTION 1 57ALTERED CLUSTERS Altered clusters are smal groupings of notes chat wll help you reflect altered tones in your solos There ae eight differen kinds of altered clusters: clsters will help you learn to recognize these sounds when you hear them, Below, there are five clusters shown ever the fingerboard for each one; Each cluster has a root, 8rd and 7 in addition to whatever altered tone(s) there may be (55,919). The natural Sth is also added to those clusters in which there is no altered Sth. The altered clusters give you places all over the fingerboard to target the essential tones of any altered chord. Practicing these clusters wl help you learn to recognize these sounds when you hear them, 158) SECTION ILcrs9Rs Praying “ouside” means to temporarily play outside ofthe key. This creates tension (dssonance, or lashing sounds) in the solo and adds interest to the overall contour. You ean just decide to Play outside whenever you want—periods of tension must be followed by periods of release (consonance, in harmony). The tasteful use of outside devices takes time to develop. You have to approach them with confidence. Phying outside with a xentave feling only sounds wrong. Strong outside playing should be folowed by a strong resolution back to the key center. The following area few devices that work wall, SyaMMerwucaL Moves One way o get an outside sound is to take a mae (ashore phrase that is repeated) and move itaround the frgerboardin symmetrical intervals—halsteps.minor 3ds.chromatical ete. The lisener’s ear wil “track” the symmetry more than the phrase’ relationship tothe harmony. ‘When you are ready to resolve land ona chord tone In this example, the motive moves up chromaticaly (by half step). Notice how ie fray comes to rest on a chord tone, thus releasing the tension. chord tone 19776108 8 18, 87 (6|secriox wtMOTIVE #2 In this example, the motive moves up and then down in minor 3eds, chord tone gr--- va fa t10-8 Descending This ime, the motive alternates ascending and descending, up a minor 3rd and then down one ha step chord one Feu be Pt ote bebe ot cf per ptetele Shc Te to Rg tag tor(MOVING UP OR DOWN A HALFSTEP “This is fily easy to accomplish. The trick sto pick jst the precise moment to execute the idea. Stay out of key jst long enough to create a surprise—then resolve back tothe orginal key. Like all ofthese devices, use i sparingly. Fray abt > eee EE 2 FF Major. — = —— CC Minor Peneatonic. . 1 Cf Minor Pentatonic— - Minor Pentatonic é fp tp be = wy a oe Ht Goin?‘MELODIC PATTERNS BASED AROUND ARPEGGIO SHAPES ‘Wich this device, playa motive starting from each tone in an arpeggios igering Your motive does ‘not have to suggest any key at all. When you start each phrase from a chord tone, you wil find ‘there ae enough inside sounds (notes from within the ke) being played to “stay in touch” with the ley center: The other notes in the patter wl give you the outside edge you are looking for ‘GMIN7 ARPEGGIO min? CTARPEGGIO SECTION 1/63,(a\ ocr ‘The ar of reading music on guitar sa huge topic. In this book we will concentrate on the areas that students ask about the most. Why do I need to read music? Being able to read is pat ofthe etal package of being a competent musician, Sure, chere have bbeen many great players who couldnt read, but they didn't become great because they couldnt read, Not knowing how to read ike being iterate. I ike being able to speak English but not boeing able to read or write it you cant read youl miss out ona lot ofthe musi that has been ‘writen through the centuries, Mf you read well, youl learn tunes more quickly. Examples in books lke this one will Become easier to learn, too. ‘We're not talking about becoming an ace sight-reader here. Sight-reaing refers to the ability to play something almost perfecy bythe first or second read-through—with all the dynamics (igs inciting the degree of loudness and softness) and phrasing in place, up to tempo and played with feeling. In reali, very few of us need to become that good. For most of us, being able ro read through a plece of music ta moderate tempo accurately and comfortably i good enough. Reading is mechanical sil, and you can become quite good. tis mostly a matter of desire and practice. What is the best system for reading on the guitar? “There probably is no “best” system, People use what works for them and there are many ferent ways to think about reading [At firs, there are cwo main considerations—note identification and reading rhythm. We will cover both of these areas inthe following pages. “This book assumes that you can already readin the fist postion (you understand about the rotes and the staff. me signatures, key signatures, the basc nce values and you know the names ‘of notes on the first ive frets). Ifyou are nat yet a reading musician and you have been relying solely on the tablature and diagrams to use this book, you should pick up a begining reading method and work your way through it. You can continue ro work through the rest of this book as you have cus frNore IpENTIFIC ow | prefer a syscom that uses che six major scale fingerings shown earler inthe book. Ifa piece of, ‘music you are going to read isin the key of F Major, you hae sh fingerings ofan F Major scale to choose from. They cover the entire range of the guitar. As with the improvising aspect of the scales, you can readin eleven keys in any sbc-fret position. The following exercises are examples of how you can practice your nate reading. They contain only {quarter notes. These exercises are in afew diferent keys. There are lat of accidentals in some ceamples, but teat them as departures from the sale of the key indicated in the key signatures. Practice exch exercise in one fingering unl ic becomes eat. Then practice ic agai using one ofthe ther scale fingerings you know and o,on unt you hae read in all the fingerings that are practical for the exerate. Obviously. there area lot of notes that fll on the lower ledger ines, you won't wane 10 use a fingering that stays in the upper range ofthe firgerboard, or vce versa. Its common, however; to shi o a few diferent postions during the same piece ro accommodate pats of songs that travel wo higher or lower octaves. Whenever you read something experiment with the differenc scale irgerngs rst to find the best posivion(). Experimenc with reading the folowing examples. Try to find the most practical fingerings for each. SECTION m |658 (Continued on page 67) elseenonSicTION | 67Reading eythm isa problem area for musicians. It sa lot like reading words. When you first learned ro read, you needed to “sound out” all the letters to come up with the word. After a while, you simply recognized the word every tne you saw it As time went on,you were able to recognize more and more words until you could read just about anything. Learning to read styyths is similar. At fist, you count out every part of a measure. After a while, you start to ‘tice that alot of the same figures are used over and over again. You recognize the figure and you know what it sounds like, You eventually just play the rhythm when you see it. Ths takes a lide eine Use any note for the following exercises. Pay them with a metronome a diferent tempos and ‘with diferent fees. f you have a drum machine to practice with, these studies become a lite more fun. (68) SECTION UteS SS SSS SB Serr fa eee rere ‘SECTION n |69Wisner‘After you have perfected all these exercises, read the rhythms from any piece of music you hhave—a fake book sheet musc..anything. Don't worry about the melody for now. just play the ‘hyehmic figures on a single note sHcTION 71eee a When you have gained some confidence finding the notes and reading rhythmic figures, try putting it altogether. Here are some general tis: ‘+ Always check the key signature and time signature before you begin to read any tune + Look atthe range ofthe tune. Find the highest note andthe lowest. This will suggest an appropriate scale fingering or position. + Study the tune rhythmically Most players mark their music in places they may find dificult ‘Always keep a pencil handy + Find ll repeats, Do Copos, Dal Sepnos,Cods,and so on ahead of time. Know the road map! If these terms are unfamilar to you, get a good reading method andlor music dictionary, Here is quick review: Coda Ending section, Marked @. D.C.alFine (Do Capo al Fine) Go back to beginning and play untlehe Fine (end), D.C.al Coda (De Copa al Code) Go back to beginning and pay to the Coda sign @. Then skp to the end and play the Coda section. D.S.al Coda (Dal Segno a Code) Go back tothe sign & and ply to the Codo sign ‘Then skip to the end and pay the Code section. D.S.alFine (Dol Sepno al Fine) Go back to sign $ and play until the Fine (end. + Find any modulations (changes of key) and time signature changes ahead of time. + Cheek for dynamic markings + Keep your eye moving across the page from left o right. Don't look back to see if youve missed a note. You will miss many more notes coming up if you keep checking previous + Play with confidence and assume youire hitting the right notes. Ty to take in as many notes a8 you can—the same way you look at several words at atime when you read English ‘+ Dont stop if you make a mistake! This becomes a habit and you wil gt lost nthe chart (writen musi), Seare counting time (1-2-34,2.2-3-4,3-2-34,4.2:3-4,etc) the instantyou, ‘make mistake so you will know where to come back in. + Practice reading with a metronome or drum machine. + Ifyou are making lot of mistakes—slow down. Slowing down isthe panacea forall reading problems. Play only as fas as you ean play accurately. + Practice reading every diy. Ie takes patience so take your time and don't expect dramatic resus, k's more ike aking baby steps—ater a wile you see that you have come along way. + Use clariner, violin fute and sax books to supplement your reading practice. 72, secrion mtPucall ofthe suggestions on page 72into practice as you work through the next five pages. Enjoy! secnow 173© Ba (Continued on page 75) ‘al cena eesecnow 1/75These are quarternote triplets. Phy three quarter nate inthe time of two. Here's a way to count it (play on the underlined counts): 1 rip. 2 triplet. Just count two eighth ‘ote triplets and ply on every other count. Als, itis helpful co start thinking in eighth note triples in the last beat of the previous bar. 76\sacnoneamlaian ba teEverybody wants better technique. We all want tobe able to translate our ideas ito an effortless stream of notes and chords. les erly possible for you to develop your sil and talent to your {all potent. The fis ching though, that you must be completely honest with yoursolf about your ables. Ask yourself hese questions “+ What are your main technical weaknesses? + Does your picking sound nice and even, or is it usually choppy? ‘+ Hows your timing? Do your lefthand fingers get to the strings long before your pick is ready to strike? Or vice versa? How are your fingerstyle chops? How is your chord technique? Do your chord changes have a nice legato flow, or do you struggle from chord to chord? Can you ease into physically dificult chord shapes? “These are the usual problems we see ata jazz skils seminar. Usually, we devote an hour to technique before we get on with the rest of the day's work. | suggest you spend at last some ‘ume on technica studies before you begin your other dilly practice routines, (On the following pages, you wil find quite afew exercises that | have found helpful for most students. “They address many ofthe usual problems that guitarists have. You wil ind chat your technique wail improve quickly in some areas and very slow n others. fis something you must work on and maint your entire Me. Your technique is ether “improving” or "getting worse’-—ic will never ‘remain sai, You wil fnd dozens more exercises in my book, 3ADay Guar Workout Before we get tothe actual exercises, we should talk about some other related issues. Some of ‘these may not seem that important by themsalves, but rogether they can make a big difference in your playing. Better posture means better technique. It doesa't matter if you ae playing the guitar or playing baseball, Better form means better performance. Your body is meant to work optimally when your back is straight and you are relaxing any part of your body that doesn't happen to be involved with the tsk at hand, Be sure not to slouch ay the guitar fat on your lp or rest your lefeforearm on your thigh, Sic upright and sight forward—relax and breathe. Try to practice in the same char every dy. Ths wll make your positioning consistent [Always wear a gutar strap. The strap holds the guitar for you while your hands do the playing. ‘Your hands function more freely when you wear a strap. Adjust your strap so thatthe guitar's height relative to your body is exactly the same whether you are standing or sitingie "Most ofthe time the ball of your thumb should remain along the back ofthe neck in*hitchhiking” Position (pointed away from you). Ie fs natural for the thumb to “go where it wants to go" while Paying, but the idea is o try to keep your thumb in back of the neck. This wil allow you to arch ‘your wrist outa litle. giving your fingers better leverage and keeping al ofthe strings right under your fingertips. I your thumb were wrapped around the neck the lower strings wold be harder te reach. Your fingers should go straight dow to any string, Once you get used to this positon, you should notice a greater level of agit. ‘Try to play with your fingertips instead ofthe pads. Your fingers job isto press the string against the fre, so make sure your fingertips are placed firmly ust behind the fret wire, Mf your fingers are placed correct you will ind that much less pressure i required to sound a note. Keep your fingers hovering no more than a quarter inch above the strings. This will help smooth out your laying especially ac faster tempos, “Ty to ply single notes with a legato (smooth owing) sound, Each note should be sustained for it fullest value—unel the next note is sounded. You can develop this technique by practicing scales oF licks very slowly. being careful to leave your finger on a note unt just ater the next note has been struck. In time, this will become natural and you'l beable to pay this way at any tempo. Ifyou thnk your playing sounds alle choppy. spend some time concentrating on legato technique. That should goa long way in solving the problem, PICK STYLE, you are working on che material in this Book, you dont really need to be told how to hold pick. Below are some suggestions on a few related topics. + Generally it is not a good idea to use very large picks. The standard, tlangularstyle or sellers recommended. + Learmall styles of picking. Learn to use alternate, circular (see page 82) and sweep picking (ifany ofchese terms is unfamilar you should pek up a good technique book). Keep your "up" strokes the same volume and tone a8 your down” strokes + Keep your entire right arm relaxed. Most of your"picking action” should come from your thumb and forefinger FINGERSTYLE ep your right arm relaxed from your shoulder all the way down to your fingertips, your wrist slighty out and your thumb and fingers dipping into the strings. Your elbow should rest on the body ofthe guitar. Keep your thumb in front of your other fingers. Sing your fingers back into ‘the palma lle afer every stroke. Most of the finger motion should come from the middle ins SECTION IV |79