Chords Haven

Lesson 5 - The Natural Minor Scales

2011-05-10T15:01:00.000-07:00

This lesson will teach you about the Minor Scale, and its applications on the guitar.

Recall that in the previous lesson, we learned learned that a scale is simply an applied formula of half-steps and whole-steps. By applying the major scale formula to a note, we were able to create a major scale based around that note. In this lesson, we will learn a new scale - the natural minor scale. The Natural Minor scale is also known as the Aeolian mode of the Major scale. While music based around a major scale is usually bright, easygoing, happy, uplifting etc., the minor scale can be used to create music that is sad, forlorn, emotional etc. Because the last lesson already introduced us to scales, and how to use formulas, this lesson will skip the explanations, and simply introduce the new formulas as well as the various keys.

Now, let's look at the formula for the natural minor scale:

Below are all the examples of the Minor Scale Formula. To simplify the learning process, only sharps are used in these examples. Also, notes such as E# and called F here. In reality, E# is usually used.

*Always remember that the natural minor scale is generally meant to be "dark" and "sad". Therefore, when composing music, the minor scale would not be used for a bright/happy song. Instead, a major scale would be used.

As with the major scales, we must also learn how to apply the natural minor scales to our guitar. Like with the major scale, there is also a fretboard pattern that can be applied to form the minor scales. To use this pattern, one must simply start on the root note on the sixth (Low "E") string. For example, if one were playing the A minor scale, one would start the pattern on the fifth fret of the Low "E" string.

Here is the pattern:

*Memorize this pattern well. It is essential for any guitarist to have complete mastery of the major scale.

Now we know what the major scale is, how it is formed, and how it is applied to the guitar. The next stage is practice! Below, in the Supplemental Resources section, I've included links to exercises and lessons that will help you master the major scale.

Supplemental Resources

Minor Scale Exercises - This page contains some exercises, in tab format, that will help you easily move through the minor scale.

Minor Scale Positions - More minor scale positions (fretboard patterns) are explored.

Paid Resources

Guitar Total Scales Techniques and Applications - This book not only teaches the natural minor scale, but also every other scale, as well as their application on the guitar fretboard, how to recognize them, and how to use them to create solos.

There is also a DVD version.

Lesson 4 - The Major Scales

2011-02-27T13:04:00.002-08:00

This lesson will teach you about what a scale is, and how to form the major scale, as well as it's applications on the guitar. Now, let's learn the Major Scales!

In previous lessons, we've learned about the musical alphabet, their location on the fretboard, and how to recognize them in standard notation. Now, we will learn about how these notes combine to create melodies.

The majority of music in the world is tonal, meaning that it is created from scales. These scales are made up of various notes, which are formed by a specific combination of half-steps and whole-steps surrounding a single note. This may seem hard to comprehend at first, but it is really a simple idea:
There are various notes in the musical alphabet.
By applying a specific formula of half-steps and whole-steps around that note, a scale related to that note is formed.
It may seem confusing at first, but you will soon see that it is quite easy.
The most commonly used type of scale in popular music is the Major Scale. The major scale, like any other scale, is made by applying a pattern of steps to a specific note. This pattern never changes!

Now, let's look at the formula for the major scale:

The above image illustrates the pattern of whole steps and half steps that the major scale consists of. The first number is your root note, and so on. We can apply this formula to any root note. As an example, we will apply it to the A root:
A - B - C# - D - E - F# - G# - A

*When applying this formula, it is important to remember that the interval between B-C and E-F is considered a half-step, therefore a whole step away from the note "B" is "C#"

Below are all the examples of the Major Scale Formula. To simplify the learning process, only sharps are used in these examples. Also, notes such as E# and called F here. In reality, E# is usually used.

*The major scale is dominant in "bright", "happy", or "upbeat" songs. It is important to remember these emotional associations when composing your music. Generally, you would not try to compose a sad song that is based around a major key.

Now that we know how to form the major scales, we need to know how to apply them to our guitar. Fortunately, a simple pattern can be applied to form the major scale. To use this pattern, one must simply start on the root note on the sixth (Low "E") string. For example, if one were playing the G major scale, one would start the pattern on the third fret of the Low "E" string.
Here is the pattern:

*Memorize this pattern well. It is essential for any guitarist to have complete mastery of the major scale.

Now we know what the major scale is, how it is formed, and how it is applied to the guitar. The next stage is practice! Below, in the Supplemental Resources section, I've included links to exercises and lessons that will help you master the major scale.

Supplemental Resources

Major Scale Exercises - This page contains some exercises, in tab format, that will help you easily move through the major scale.

Major Scale Soloing - This page is a lesson on soloing with the major scale. This is a must-read.

Paid Resources

Guitar Total Scales Techniques and Applications - This book not only teaches the major scale, but also every other scale, as well as their application on the guitar fretboard, how to recognize them, and how to use them to create solos.
There is also a DVD version.

Lesson 3 - Reading Standard Notation - Recognizing Notes

2011-01-28T20:05:00.001-08:00

Standard Notation vs. Tablature

Most Guitarists are accustomed to "tabs". Tabs are a system of identifying the specific placement of a note (or set of notes for a chord) on the guitar neck. Tab notation expresses no rhythm, nor does it tell the name of the note.

Standard notation is able to express both notes, and rhythm. These notes can be played in many places on the guitar neck, thus the usefulness of a combination of tabs and standard notation.

Why Learn Standard Notation?

Learning to read standard notation can be very difficult, and time consuming. In fact, it is not necessary for playing the instrument, or even for learning the theory that you would actually use. Remember that music has been around long before any form of notation, and thus the ability to read is not required to create effective music. Many professional guitarists have thrived without having ever having read a note of standard notation - guitarists including the likes of Jimmy Page, Carlos Santana, Jimi Hendrix etc.

While it is not necessary in learning actual music theory, learning standard notation is very valuable in composing your own music, and playing the compositions of others. The lessons on this site will have standard notation in them, but those sections can be ignored and the theory still learned. A basic understanding of standard notation can go a long way however.

Please visit this link and read it's contents. It will be very valuable in you making your decision in whether or not to read standard notation. To sum that link up really shortly, you shouldn't be learning songs off of tabs, yet you shouldn't rely on standard notation. You should just "play", and tabs should be used for fingering. Now, Lets get Started!

Reading Standard Notation

Recall the various notes in the musical alphabet. In standard notation, these notes are placed on the staff. The staff consists of five lines and four spaces. See the diagram below:

The Musical Staff

The higher the note is placed on the staff, the higher the note's pitch is.

In order to account for the low vs. high range of pitches (for example the Low E string, and the high E string), a clef sign is used to differentiate pitch.

The treble clef is used for higher-pitched sounds.

The bass clef is used for lower-pitched sounds.

The treble clef is that "swirly symbol" from the diagram above. The bass clef is the symbol in the diagram below:

The Bass Clef

*Don't fret, in standard guitar, the Bass Clef is not (or rarely is) used.

The Notes on the Treble Clef

The Diagram Below shows the notes on the treble clef:

The Notes on the Musical Staff

In order to memorize these notes, sentences can be used. For the Lines:

E - Every

G- Good

B- Boy

D- Deserves

F- Fudge

For the Spaces in between, the notes spell the word "F A C E".

Supplemental Resources

Treble Clef Note Game - A very simple yet effective flash game, displays a note then you must find it on the treble clef. The game will also give hints if you are having trouble locating the note.

Treble Clef Word Warrior - A very interesting approach to learning the treble clef. This game displays a set of notes on the the treble clef, then gives you 3 choices of what word the notes spell. It's recommended you already have a hang of the treble clef before playing this game.

Below is a useful video found on YouTube, describing even more information about reading standard notation:

Paid Resources

Harmony and Theory: A Comprehensive Source for All Musicians - This workbook is the one I used. It is independent of instrument, meaning it doesn't teach guitar or piano, but instead music theory. Therefore it teaches standard notation, and closely links the music theory with it.

Lesson 2 - Memorizing the Fretboard

2011-01-08T13:08:00.000-08:00

Memorizing the Guitar Fretboard can seem like a daunting task. The trick is to take the task in gradual steps. Just a little practice every day, and you can easily memorize the fretboard. Before we get into Training Exercises/Drills, please look at the following Diagram:

Look at the notes on the twelfth fret, they are the same as the open notes. This is because the notes on the twelfth fret are and octave higher than the open notes. The notes on the 24th fret (if your guitar goes that high), would be 2 octaves higher than the open notes.
The 2 E strings are identical. That means the lowest string, and the highest string, have the exact same note placement. If you know one of them, you know both of them!

Seeing patterns will help in memorizing the fretboard. Here :

Placement of A's and E's on the Fretboard

Placement of A's and E's on the Fretboard

Using the placements of A's and E's can help by being a placeholder for finding other notes. And if you memorize the note placements of A's and E's, then you will have 2/8 of the notes you need, already memorized!

Now Some Memorization Tips and Exercises

Click on this link, and print out some sheets. Each set of 6 lines represents a fretboard. Now simply fill out the blank fretboard with different notes. For each fretboard, start a different note, on a different string, at a different fret. Do this atleast once a day, or when you're waiting in line for something. It is an invaluable method in learning the notes.

Close your eyes, and randomly play a note. Open your eyes, and figure out what note you just played. Now, try to find all other placements of that same note, and play it. When doing this, it helps to focus on one note per day. *If the note you land on is a flat or a sharp, simply move up to the nearest real note. Make sure you're doing a different note everyday! This is by far the simplest and best way to remember your notes.

Look at the following image: This is tablature of all of the positions of the note E. This will help in placing the notes. (If you can't read tablature, look at the learning supplements at the end of the lesson) There is no need to work on frets 12-24, because they are identical to 0-12

E Note Placements

F Note Placements

A Note Placements

B Note Placements

C Note Placements

D Note Placements

When playing notes, try saying the notes you are playing out loud. This will greatly aid in memorization.

Now, I have gathered many resources in the lesson supplements section, to aid in memorizing the fretboard.

Please, if this lesson is missing anything, or if you have suggestions to make it better, leave them in the comments and I will work on them.

Supplemental Resources

If you don't know how to read tabs, I found a quick guide for beginners. Click Here to access it.

Resources for this lesson include a webpage, flash games, computer software, and video. Remember, they are great for learning, but can't replace learning the placement of notes on an actual guitar! Note: I own none of these games, softwares, or videos. These are simply links to invaluable resources, created by other hardworking guitarists!

Fretboard Master - This is a great flash game for learning the fretboard, and will really test if you know you stuff. If you think you have your fretboard memorized, use this game to test your knowledge.

Fretboard Warrior - This free software is similar to Fretboard Master, but also includes sound of the notes, which helps in ear training.

Fretboard Game - Another Flash Game like Fretboard Master, except much simpler and easier to use.

Cirqueduguitar video lesson. Below are embed three lessons by Cirqueduguitar, which I find are good, effective, lessons.

Paid Supplemental Resources

If the free resources above are not enough for you, or if you do not have the time to make the most out of them, you can buy these effective resources listed below. The only benefit to the paid resources is that they will save you time that you may not be able to spare learning things yourself.

Guitar Fretboard and Chord Chart Instructional Poster - Simply put, this is a poster of the guitar fretboard and some basic chords. Personally, when starting out, I made something like this myself and stuck it onto a wall, near of where I play guitar. If you aren't good with making posters or don't have the time, buy this.

(Reccomended)

Guitar Theory Poster: 22 inch. x 34 inch.This theory poster is like the above, except you get more value for your dollar. It provides reference to future music theory that you will learn, and will be useful for many years.

Guitar Fretboard Workbook - Navigate the guitar neck better than ever before with this easy-to-use book! Designed from Musicians Institute core curriculum programs, it covers essential concepts for players of every level, acoustic or electric. A hands-on guide to theory, it will help you learn to build any scale or chord on your own and unleash creativity. No music reading is required.

Lesson One - Notes

2011-01-08T12:53:00.000-08:00

Part 1- Know the Notes

The first lesson! Let's begin, with the basis of all songs, the foundation of all melodies- the musical notes!
We'll start by listing them. Don't be intimidated, I will explain everything after.

A- A#/Bb - B - C - C#/Db - D - D#/Eb - E - F - F#/Gb - G - G#/Ab - A

#= "sharp" b= "flat"

Now that we have our notes listed, I will colour code them, because I've found things are easier to understand when they're colour-coded!

A- A#/Bb - B - C - C#/Db - D - D#/Eb - E - F - F#/Gb - G - G#/Ab - A

Let`s look at our red notes. They are red because each pair of red notes represents the same note. A# (A Sharp), is the same as Bb (B flat), C#(C Sharp) is the same as Eb (E flat), etc.

Feel free to call them either way.

Now, lets look at our purple notes. They tend to trick most people. There are no notes between B and C, and between E and F. Remember this!

And the blue notes... they're just regular ol' notes!

Now I shall explain half-steps and whole-steps. If you start at a note, and move 2 notes over from it, you've made a whole-step. 1 note over is a half-step.

Because there are no notes between E/F, and B/C, they are a half-step distance between eachother!

A- A#/Bb - B - C - C#/Db - D - D#/Eb - E - F - F#/Gb - G - G#/Ab - A

Using the "A" note as an example, each red note represents a whole step from it.

Now look:

A- A#/Bb - B - C - C#/Db - D - D#/Eb - E - F - F#/Gb - G - G#/Ab - A

Each Blue note represents a half-step. A half step is simply moving one note over, so all the half-steps would be all the notes!

Now, let's use the "C" note as an example of a whole step.

C - C#/Db - D - D#/Eb - E - F - F#/Gb - G - G#/Ab - A- A#/Bb

The whole steps for C are different than the whole steps for A. This is because there are 11 notes in the musical alphabet.

If you keep playing notes up the scale, you will eventually run into the same note, except this note is called an octave higher. If you keep playing notes down the scale, you will eventually hit the same note, which will be an octave lower. Basically, the note vibrates twice as fast (octave higher), and twice as slow (octave lower).

This may all seem a bit too much at first, but at this point it's just a good idea to reread all of this, think about it, and let it all sink in. The bottom of the page will have resources pertaining to this lesson.

Part 2- Notes Applied to the Guitar

Now that we have the notes down, half-steps, whole-steps, and octaves, let's move onto the note positions on the guitar.

Look at the diagram below:

Notes on the Guitar Fretboard

The diagram above shows all the note placement on the guitar, in standard tuning. Standard Tuning is, starting from the lowest string, the tuning of (EADGBE). An easy way to remember standard tuning is by using an acronym, for example:

Elephants And Dogs Got Big Ears

Now, looking at the note chart, it`s a lot of notes! But, you have to remember them all, so that your brain automatically knows where they are. Sounds hard? It is! But I will give you tips to memorize all these notes. Firstly, when starting, don't worry about the sharps and the flats, once you know the notes well, you can easily place the sharps and flats.

Use this diagram instead:

Notes on the Fretboard, Excluding Sharps and Flats

All these notes must be memorized, and I will introduce techniques into helping you do this. Just remember- don't expect to get all the notes down in one day! Knowing the note placements on the fretboard is best learned as a gradual process, and should be worked on everyday. As long as you are working on it everyday, you can continue onto other lessons without mastering note placement.

I've Decided to make Memorization of the Fretboard it's own lesson, as I have many resources and tips for that.

To go to the next lesson, Memorizing the Fretboard, Click here

Supplemental Resources

Here are various resources related to this lesson, to aid in your learning, such as webpages and games.

The Guitar Notes

Discover the Notes - This webpage shows another way of looking at the musical notes.

Know Your Notes - This page offers a very good explanation of the musical notes, diagrams from this lesson were borrowed from this page

Guitar Notation Introduction - If you also want to learn music notation, this page had a good introduction to it that relates to this lesson.

Music Note Shooter- Great, simple, game that doesn't help memorizing the notes, but instead memorizing the sounds of the notes.