Q Home About Blog 9 Bach Chord Progressions To Use In Your Music S. Bach is one of the greatest composers of all time, so it stands to reason that you are on solid ground using his music for inspiration. Specifically, in this article, | want to show you how his chord Progressions can help you write new and interesting music. Many musicians get writers block, and it can be useful to have some prompts that will take you out of your comfort zone. Here are 9 prompts from Bach's chorale music. To jump to each progression, click the links below. Chord Progressions 1. BWV 26 2. BWV 262 3. BWV 104 4, BWV 12: 5. BWV 274 6. BWV 43 7. BWV 330 8. BWV 245 9. BWV 307 I want this to be user friendly, so I'm not going to be doing a detailed analysis of each progression but rather simply giving the key and the chords. I'm including how to playeach chord on guitar and piano. I'm also including a recording of playing these chords on piano so you can hear and get a sense of what they sound like. The way | use this is to play around with these chords and improvise within the major and minor chord progressions. If | find a chord progression | like, | will record it so | can improvise over it. When using these chord progressions, it's useful to keep in mind that Bach wrote primarily using counterpoint (to learn more about counterpoint check out this article: What is Cantus Firmus?). This means his chord progressions sometimes veer off into interesting places - which is probably what you want anyway! He followed voice leading rather than “chord progressions" to write his music, meaning he took a “horizontal first” approach rather than vertical. Most pop and rock music are put together by finding a melody and a chord progression to support that melody. Counterpoint is a way to construct music in melodic layers. Either way is not better than the other, but both should be understood and part of your music writing tool set. Bach chord progressions 1 - Bach chord progression from BWV 26 Here are the chords as played on a guitar needed for this piece:Am E/G: 6 c XxX x ay ae Hae 3) et Bach BWV 26 Guitar Chords Here is the chord progression laid out in phrases. am - E/G# - am am-G-C C ~ am ~ D/F# - am—dm7 -£7-A A- AIC#- dm - Bb- gm-A-G-D G-G/B-C-am-dmjF-G-C F —dm/A - E-am-B7-E7-A PAR enry> love this because it sets up the listener and kind of tricks them. The first phrase is a clear i-V-i progression in a minor which sets up the listener to for a piece in a minor. The next phrase changes and has a V-I cadence in C major (the relative major key to a minor). Just in these first two phrases, the listener is engaged, unsure where this music may go ~ is it a minor or C major?Then the third phrase ends solidly in A major (the parallel major to a minor) The fourth phrase flirts with dm and ends in D major (a closely related key to A major). The fifth phrase ends back in C major (the relative major key). Finally, the last phrase brings us back to A major, but we never return to a minor. 2 - Bach chord progressions from BWV 262 This piece is in the key of D major. Here are the progressions laid out phrase by phrase. 1.D-bm - D/F#-G-A-A7-D 2.D-D-em - D/F#-em7-A7-D 3. A-A-D - f#m7 - bm7 - E7- A 4, em - em - A7 - bm - bm - fm - F#7 -B 5.D-D-G-A-bm7-E7-A 6. G-D-em - D/F#-em7 -A7-D Ireally like the way this one flows. If you look at just the last chords of each phrase you get: 1.D 2.D 3.A 4.B 5.A 6.D I think of it as phrases 1 and 2 are the A section. Phrases 3, 4, and 5 are the B section and phrase 6 brings it back to the home key of D major. Phrase 4 might be the most fun because it takes us to the V/V in the key of A major. From a “B section” point of view, phrase 4 ends on a half cadence. From a global point of view phrases 3 and 5 also ending on half cadences, which | think helps with the overall flow of the music — it keeps some element of anticipation.3 - Bach chord progressions from BWV 104 This piece is in A major. Here are the chord progressions laid out phrase by phrase. 1. A-A-D/F#-E-bm -A/C#-E-A 2. A~ Fit- bm - bm— E7/G# — A/C# - E7- A 3. A- E ~ a#fdim — bm - F#7 - em - F#7 - bm 4, E/G# — A — D/Fi# - E — D/F# - A - Eitdim7 - f#m 5. ffm — bm/D - A/C# - bm - E7/D - A/C#-E-A I really like the use of the diminished chords in this one. Phrases 3 and 4 are interesting because they don’t go to the relative minor right away. For more info on diminished chords check out this article: What are Diminished Chords? 4 - Bach chord progressions from BWV 121 This piece is in the key of e minor. Here are the chord progressions laid out phrase by phrase. em - Fit — bm/D - bm — Fi#f7/A# - bm - Fit? - bm B/D# — em — bm/F# — G — difdim/F# - em - am -B-em em - em/B - am/C - am - em - D/F#-G G — em — ditdim/F# — E7/G# - F#7 - B-F#7-B em-D-G-G/B-D-em-B7-C G - B7/D# - em - C - FH7/A# - B7 -E Par erens Remember these are supposed to be used as creative musical prompts, so listen to some of the chord combinations and if something works grab it. If there are chords in it that don’t appeal to you, feel free to throw them out! 5 - Bach chord progressions from BWV 274This piece is in the key of g minor. Remember that the letter after the “/" is the note that is in the bass. This means the chord is in an inversion. If you are just beginning or just want to hear the chords, you can ignore this and just play the chord. For example, just play the gm chord with the normal G in the bass instead of the gm with the Bb in the bass. It will sound pretty much the same Chords 1. gm/B» - gm — gm/Bb — dm — gm/Bb - fi#dim/A — gm — fé#dim7/C - D7 - gm 2. gm — gm/B» — Bb/D — Bb7/F - gm7/F - edim — F 3. F - FIA - A/C - cm/Eb - D/F#- gm- am-D7- gm 4. D - gm — gm/Bb — dm — gm/Bb — f#dim/A — gm — am/C - D7 - G 6 - Bach chord progressions from BWV 43 This piece is in G major. In this one | labeled a few suspension (suspended) chords. | have an entire article on suspension chords but briefly here is what the notation means. ‘Asus4 - "A" = the root of the chord. "sus4” = play the pitch that is the interval of a perfect 4th above the root. In this case a perfect fourth above A is D. So, the notes in this chord are A-D-E instead of A-C#-E. Typically in a sus4 chord, the suspended note in the suspension chord will resolve down to the 3rd in the normal major or minor chord. Asus4 to ABWV 43 chords 1.G—em-—D-em7 - am7 - G/B- G- Asus4- A-D. 2.G-C-G-D-em-D-G 3. D - D - G#dim/B - am - am/C - E- am. 4.E-E-E-am-am/C-am-B-B-em 5.D-G-G-C-G-D 6. G/B - C-D- C/E -G - Dsus4 -G 7 — Bach chord progressions from BWV 330 Key chords to highlight: E7sus4 E7sus4 Staff Notation ‘7SUS. E7sus4 on GuitarBWV 330 Chords 1. am — am/C - E - D/F# - E/G# - am — Esus4 - am - am E/G# - am - dm-E-am —dm/F -E 2.am- G~-em?—F -dm7 -C/E-G-C 3. G—em7 ~ E7/C - am/C - dm7/A — E7/G# — am — bdim/D ~ E7sus4 — A 8 - Bach chord progressions from BWV 245 Key chord to highlight: Asus2 Asus2 BWV 245 Chords 1.E-E-A-—E m7 - C#7 - D#7/F# -E-B 2. B - FH/A# — D#/F# — E/G# — B - c#m/E - F#-B 3. E- cifm - gitm - Asus2 - gi#m/B - A/C# -E-B 4. gitdim/B - am/C - C#7 - D - ditdim7 -E-B-E 9 - Bach chord progressions from BWV 307 As a reminder about the “7” notation using chord symbols like this:“7" = a minor 7th interval above the root. 4 Different 7th Chords C7 Cm7 CM7 CmM7 C major triai CtoBb=m7 7th chord notation BWV 307 Chords 1, Bb — Bb — Bb — F7 - gm — cm - Fsus4 — Be 2. Bb — Bb — Eb/G — F7/A — Bb - cm7/Eb — F7 — Bb 3. Bb — Bb — F7 — gm — F#/A — gm - Bb/D -F 4, D7/F# — gm — D - gm - Bb — gm - cm/E> -D 5. gm - gm — Eb — Bb/D - Bb - cm7/Eb - F7 - BP chords by Brandon Alsup Tags: Bach, chord progressions, chords, composition CommentsLeave a Reply Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked * Comment * Name * Email * Website © Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time | comment. Post Comment