A LVR C LLCO Le CoanTHE NATIONAL GUITAR WORKSHOP’S UITARISTStcrioy I—Cuoxps & HaRwoxy TRIADS ABLE OF CONTENTS 6 THE MAJOR SCALE 6 9 "Wad om Fo Sing Sts. BUILDING LARGER CHORDS FROM TRIADS na. 10 HARMONIZED SCALES RB among 2G Noor See R among a€ Md Mor Sle 2 among Harmon Mie 6 MOVING CHORDS ACROSS STRING SETS, b MOVING VOICES M ACTERED CHORDS. 6 (ther Important ets mo v ALTERED CHORD CONCEPTS. ” As chords 7 Pschade 0 Archon 6 1 chords. 6 So chonds 8 99 chon 9 ‘i Cons 8 Mvcrons 0 USING SYMMETRICAL CHORD MOVEMENT os 20 Ho to Use this Conc. 2 ‘CHHORD/MELODY Basics, (he Batch en uiinesfor Aranging a hoe Substitution Doe Subiinn “ite Substation, Approth Chand Comping with Waking Ras Lins 3 Secrios H—Iupxovisine THE MAJOR SCALE Raves onthe th Sng Roots othe th Sing THE DERIVATIVE APPROACH—MODAL THINKING Guides he Medes of he Nae See THE PARALLEL APPROACH, THE MINOR SCALES. ‘The Natal Minor Sale The amo ior Sale The Mea Min Sale—Jas Niner. PENTATONIC AND BLUES SCALES. The Mao Feat Se ‘The Mio Perna Sele ‘The ues Sale [SCALES FOR ALTERED CHORDS. ‘The Diminished Sa. The Whale Tone Sel The Sper Loran Se SPELLING OUT THE CHANGES arpeggios Geiger Neghbe Toes Nghe Tones Around Chad Shapes tad Cher PLAYING “OUTSIDE” Moring Up Dan Hal Sep : Mb Ptr se Amare pg Shapes,Secriow III— Reapine NOTE IDENTIFICATION READING RHYTHMS, PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER Seco IV—Berrer Tecentour 78 POSTURE 8 LEFT HAND 7 RIGHT HAND. - 79 Pick Se —— Fogle aT” LEARNING DIFFICULT CHORDS 0 (CHANGING DIFFICULT CHORDS... 0 LEFT HAND EXERCISE cco 81 TREMOLO PICKING. - 82 Cia Picking a2 [BUILDING STRENGTH. 2 EXERCISES, 8 Fagestle Eerie. me ft and Dewy Exe 1 85 hor xece #1 86 Lett hand Dexterity Ene 2 86 hor see #2 7 Leds and Dentesy Exe #3 - Choad Exes #3 Desert Bui 4 hd see Dexry Ene. ha seine Desert Exersi 6 hor see 6 6 « 2 Arrewonps 2 PROPER ATTITUDE 2 INITIALIZING CONCEPTS. 2 WHAT TO LEARN AND IN WHAT ORDER %3 PRACTICE - 9 ‘TUNING Oo LUBARNING TUNES. - 95 Which Snes? ‘secrion 1) 3BOUT THE AUTHOR Jody Fisher has worked professionally in virtually all styles of music during his carer, from straight ahead and contemporary jazz to rocknroll, country and pop. He taught Guitar and Jaze Scudes at the University of Redlands and ldllwild School of Music and the Arts (SOMATA), An active performer in the Southern California area, he sil maintains a private ceaching practice and i a director of the National Guitar Summer Workshop, Other instructional products by Jody Fisher: fegining Jazz Guitar (video) Chord and Scoe Finder Jozz Guitar Christmas Jozz Guitar Mosterclast (with Joe Diorio, Mark Whit Ron Escheté, Seott Henderson and Stove Khan) Rhythm Guitor Encyclopedia Stond Alone Tacks Smooth Jazz The Complete Jazz Gutor Method Begining Jazz Guitar Intermediate Jazz Guitar Mastering Jazz Gutr:Chord!Metady ‘Mastering Jor2 Guitar Improvsavon The Guitar Made Encyclopedia 320.Day Gutar WorkoutNTRODUCTION This book is based on two one-week seminars | conduct for the National Gultar Workshop called “Jazz ‘Skils*“jzz Skills 1 primarily for che rock and blues guitarist whois interested in learning some a22 bases. “Jaz Skis 2" i geared toward the jazz player looking for some more advanced concepts and techniques. Both seminars are designed to help he player gain perspective on theory and the sil required to develop an individual voice a a jazz guitarist Every student is unique and every cats 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 a weeklong seminar many other topics like practicing, repertoire, ear traning attitude and career paths are also discussed. n chis book, we wil alk 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 as an overview and are intended to inspire you to further investigation on your ‘own. My other books deve into all of these concepts in more decal ‘The"Chords and Harmony" section should give you a good perspective on azz harmony for guitar and tie together whatever “loose ends” you may have in your understanding, Chord/melody ideas are also Aiscussed, along with walking basslines. ‘The emphasis in the “Improvisation” section is on various tools the improviser needs including seales, arpestios, licks, melodic patterns and ways to come up with nique musical ideas over diatonic and akered chord changes. In the “Bester Technique” section you will find various exercises that will help in all areas of guitar plying 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 is not really a “reading method.” the “Reading” section is ful of exercises and tps to help promote better skls and arctudes about ths important area of guitar playing No single book, video or teacher wil turn you into a great azz gutarie Bu working through this book. should give you some perspective onthe skills that ae needed to become a more complete jazz guitarist Enjoy! SECTION 1) 5(One ofthe ist jazz skls co learn is how to recite the notes in all welve major scales away from your guitar. Learn them in ccle of hs order (C,.B.E,A'.D", GB, E.A,D, G—each new key Is 1 perfect 4th five half steps away from the lst). Think about i his way. When traveling through the circle, remember that the C scale has no sharps or fats. ‘Aer that, each scales number offs will increase by one—F = one fat B= two Mats. ‘three fats and s0 on, unt you ge to G, which has se flats every note i at excepe F) ‘The magic number is “4” The fourth note upin each major scale tells you the name of the next seale, The fourth note up fom there isthe newly fatted note. ‘The scales B through G use sharp. Each scale decreases by one sharp—B = five sharps, yur sharps and 20 on until you reach G, which has only one sharp. Once again. the ‘magic number is "4" Now the fourth note up in every sale tells you the name of the ‘next scale. The fourth note up from there isthe newly dropped sharp, “The fourth note up inthe G scale is C—thats why they callie circle! Below are the notes in all the major seals. Memorize them! You relly need to do this! Key | Notes Remember—no pecking at your gular! Here are the scales on the staft F 8 & 6 |skcnteme ‘This & an area in which most plyers have some experience, but few have done an extensive study. The material we will cover here will help you become a better improviser as well as ive you a way to learn and catalog new chords. But first, you havea litle more memorizing to do. ‘This wil be the last ching you wll be asked to memorize this way. This may sound alte strange bbucyou need tobe abe to recite all ewelve major triads (in circle of 4ths order) in twelve seconds! Yes. Time yoursel, You need to be able to think fast you are someday going to use this Information while improvising. Major eriads are composed ofthe root, 3rd and Sth tones in any major scale (C -E-G=C Major, F-A-C=FMajonetc). Here they are. On your mark...get set. Here they are on the safe c F a & ab D secriow 1) 78 ‘Secn0W 1 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 the augmented. The chord formulas continue to reference the major scale. In other words, if the formula calls {for a note altered from its normal positon in the major scale, sharp or flat will be used co indicate the difference. For example if the formula requires a lowered 3rd.it willbe shown 353. “The formula for the minor triad is ro0t,3 and 5 c-e- Cmin,F=A*= C= Fin ete dim = Dirsinished “The formula for the diminished triad is root.3 and'S C= BG's Clim, F-A'- C= Fai, “The formula forthe augmented triad is root,3 and. C-E-GE= CAug,F-A~CF= Fug, ete INVERTING TRIADS ‘We can invert these triads In other word, we can pay the notes in exch ela in any order we ‘wane and wil stil be the same chord. The inversion ofthe trad is determined by wich note is In the bass (in the lowest positon) [Note in the Bass | Inversion R Root Position 3 Ise loversion 5 2nd InversionIeis very importante to know where all of these trads lie onthe fgecboard. The following chare shows moveable forms forall the major, minor, diminished and augmented «ria, in all cree inversions on four diferent sets of strings. all wth a C root Iti very easy to transpose these £0 any key Simply nd the desired root on the appropriate string and move the form there, Notice ‘nt he string sets included here are all adjacent strings: 6-5-4, 54.3, 43-2 and 3-2-1. Free numbers are shown on the left and suggested fingarings are shown across the cop. An indicates not to play tha string, Ty these in all keys. TRIADS ON FOUR STRING St STRING SET 6-5-4 Ca) STRING SET 5-4-3 STRING SET 4.3.2 STRING SET 3-2-1 section t| 9.ROM TRIADS ES TUrTaNyNeae One Rees “There are many ways to develop a huge chord vocabulary and this book will cover several. AS long at we are taking about triads, here i 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 fr'a major 6 chord is R-3-5-6, We have twelve diferent major triad shapes (three inversions x four string sets = wel). Lec’ put this information together and see what we come up with, Well build a C& chord so the notes will be C-E-G-A (this s one reason you want to memorize your scales and triad!) Playa root postion C triad on the highest string st (3-2-1), We already have the C, the E and the G,so now look around for an A o add to it. Well, what do you know! ‘There's anA on the 4th tring t the Teh fret. Add it to the trad and you have a nice C8 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 Triad Ist Inversion 32:1 10|secrion 1(C Major Tad 2nd Inversion 4-3-2 Root PositionS-4:3, Ist Inversion 5-4-3, Ise Inversion 6-5-4 oe 2nd Inversion 6-5-4 In cae you deh’ know this. C6 chord has exactly the same notes in itas an Minor 7 (Amin?) This is what i known as a chord synonym. Most chords are synonyms of others. Be sure to try this with many diffrent ypes. SECTION t| 11Ene Harmonizing a scale is another good way to generate more chords. When we harmonize a sale, we generally stack 3rds on top ofeach scale degree. using only notes found inthe seale, For that reason, we can think ofthese asthe donc harmonies ofthe scale, Diatonie means "belonging to the scale or key" We wil stack three tones above each scale degree in the following examples to produce 7 chords. A7 chord i fournote chord that includes triad plut a note a 7th above the root. When we harmonize with four-note chords, we get some intresting chords. The formulas willbe provided as we go. Be sure to transpose the folowing harmoniztions to all weve keys Inthe following writen examples, all chords are in root position. For practical reasons, the fingerings shown above the music are notin roat position. Generally, we generate there chord scales by starting with the frst chord and then moving each voice in the chord up to the next scale tone on the same string. HARMONIZING 4 G MAJOR SCALE Results in major 7 (M7: 1-3-5-7), minor 7 (min7: 123-57), dominant 7 7: 1 75 (win: 13°57), (Sty, Amin?, «Brin? C7, Emin? Fins HH 5 x siiteb witet i igtist) etal HARMONIZING A C MELODIC MINOR SCALE. Results in minorimajor 7 (minvMa: 1-5-7), minor 7, major 745 (Maj!5: 1.3.5.7), dominant 7 and minor 75. Srint?) Din? Magis G7, Amint's —Brint's—Cmint) stat ster Sth 8 iit " oR 12| seenow1HARMONIZING AC HARMONIC MINOR Results in minor/major 7, minor 75, major 75, minor 7, dominant 7, major 7 and diminished 7 Comin) Dmin?’S, EMai7ts: Fmin? ST Ae, 87, Cmint7) Soo Re a ak AA ae nite CHR CH stHei? oohete MELE ie titeay : Qt = Double flat. Lower the note one whole step, Movinc Cuorps Across STRING SE ‘Another way to learn new chords is to move chords across the string sets, There are two ways to think about this A. Stare with a chord voicing that lies on a high st of strings and find the exact same voicing on other string sets. In other words, if your orignal vocng (arrangement of pitches) lies on strings |-2-34, ery to find ie on strings 2-3-45 and then 3-4-5-6. Here isan example aking the same voicings of GMaj7 and C7 across several sets of strings GMaj7 GMaj7 GMaj7 SECTION 1| 13B,_ Stare with a chord shape on a particular set of strings. Then maincin the shape (form) ofthe chord and move it over to the nex string set. its possible to move it again. do so. Obvious, ‘the chord type will change but this may introduce you to some interesting new voicngs using a shape you ae already used to. Look what happens to CMai7 and Grin? when you move them across the string ses CMaj7 GMai7s DAug xen Xaprix 4p xx e 5 e ste ° e ° | ote ar) ole 1 we Gmin7 Dmin(*7) xen Xoaa7 6 6 oe 7 ‘Tre ai ‘This is simply a matter of stating with a particular chord voicing and experimenting by moving some of the tones around to see what you come up with, 9): cmai9 pxazix Tete oTTe 14] secnion 1By moving some ofthe voices ofthis CMa/9 chord around, you could come up with some other inceresting sounds, The diagram shows changes that result inthe following chords Formula 9-13 (a 13 Is just an octave above the 6) 11 (an 11 is just an octave above the 4) 13 Another related idea would be to switch any note on the low E string to the high E string and oe oo Xxaae xeon e SECTION 11516] SECTION 1 Iv you are interested In this material, you should already have a basic understanding of dlatonic chord formulas. Ifyou dont. ake a look at Begining Jazz Guitar (Alfred #14120) to brush up on this information—ies easy and won't tke too ong The fllowing won't make much sense to you with cut this background, Ie might also help to review the sale hirmonizasons on page I2 ofthis book. Altered chords are usualy a source of confusion for beginning jazz players, and even more experienced guitar players sometimes lack a good overview of the subject. Before we get t0 some actual akered chord voicngs, lets start with some background information. A chord is ssid to be altered when one or more ofits cones has been raised or lowered a half step. This adés non-diatonic notes to the orignal chord, Major, minor and dominant chords can all be altered, but we tend to alter dominant chords the most. ‘Only Sths and Sehs can really be aktered. you try to ake any other note inthe scale either becomes an aktered § or 9,or becomes 2 redundancy within the chord, Watch what happens: Possible Alteratons Raising the root Lowering the 2nd Raising the 2nd Lowering the 3rd Raising the 3rd = 4eh or Ith (same thing, not an altered tone) Lowering the 4th = 3ed (not an alered tone) Raising the 4ch = 55 Lowering the Sth = '5 (obvioush) Ralsng che Sch Lowering the 6th Raising the 6th = '7 (essential tone for dominant chords, not an altered tone) Lowering the 7¢h Raising the 7th = root So you see, the only real alterations possible are 55,9 and, There are chords witha. But the I| is the same as the 'S an octave higher. Because of range limitations of the instrument, suitarists sometimes think of che Sand II as interchangeable, ‘So when you think about i¢ at its most basic level, altered dominant chords have these eight possibles(OTHER IMPORTANT DETAILS + A natural 9,11 and 13 can be added to any chord with an altered 5. + Ls and I3ths can be added to chords with an altered 9 + The most common altered major chords are: Mail (1-35-7941) Mais (1-3-5-7) Mais (1-3-'5-7) + The most common altered minor chords are imin?§ (|-2-"S-7) This is actually a datonic chord, 00, mmin?5 (1-345."7) “Thats pretty much the story. Remember that coming up with cool and unusual vocings is where ‘most ofthe fun is when working with altered chords. The rest ofthis section wil show examples ‘of these chords and include some other ideas about chem. (One interesting thing about 7 chords is that, through the marvels of enharmonic respelings, each voicing is actualy ewo diferent 75 chords whose roots are aS apart. For example, C75 and G'7 can be played with the same voicing because, f you respell two of them, all the notes are ideal C75 (C-E-G-B) = G75 (G-8-0-F) Dt= Cand =e ‘The two chords are spelled erent bu they sound the same. crs crs crs crs, Preven eee eee ee See ee ee \ ET : ele ee uf ttee ° >[ Tle 9 n 7 4 © ‘ 5 0 “te ’ * 2 . ” ‘7s cuHORDS (13.547) This chord has a very distinctive sound, and itis easy to find new voicings for it The augmenced triad, which isthe basis fora 75, repeats itself every major 3rd up the fingerboard. Again, through the wizardry of enharmonic respelingsa Chug, Eaug and Gfaug are all the same. Simply add 27 to an augmented triad and you have a 75 chord 7s crs crs cms AH SHEER SEER 4 9 u af ‘SECTION 117iste Fo.CHORDS (1-57-19) A.79 chord voiced without a root (3-5-7.'9) ie the same as a diminished 7 chord (1-!3!5-'7) ‘whose root isa major 3rd higher Since diminished 7 chords repeat themselves every minor 3rd In much the same way chac augmented triads repeat themselves every major 3rd (once again thanks to enharmonic respellng), we can say the same for rootless 79 volcings. ust practice ‘moving your rootless 7'9 chords around in minor 3rds and watch your vocabulary for this akered chord expand. crs crs c79 crs waiaix xan pea ix 1 1 4 2 2 5 soele 3 ¢ = «o«[{te sfco s soley of TT 6 6 > | 2 7. CHORDS (1-57-49) 7 We all know and love this chord. It is not true that Ji Hendrix invented i c79 79 crs c79 aaiaex xox Laiass xagat 1 3 7 » 2 ‘ it) u ee soe l@ ste 3 ofTTe ‘ ¢ 6 w Pere a 5 7 1M © uf to 6 sfle 2 1 slo ‘T9.cHorDs (1-'5°7- A799 chord voiced without a root (547-'9-) is the same as a dominant 7 chord (1-3 ‘whose roct is a'5 above. For example,a rootless C7'S'9 voicing is also G’7, Rootless C7S'9 (G8 -D'-£)= G7 (G-8-.0-F) Pee crs9 crs9 crs9 crs'9 xauais axeraax peraix Xap ax 1 3 SAT vet 2(Te 4 7 e " e stele 5 e 2 4 celle e ole 5 7 w | ul flere 6 T 8 " s ‘Ac fistall hese rules may seem a litle overwhelming, But you study them one ata cime, they become lite blessings instead of curses!7'5#9.CHORDS (1-57-49) ‘When using chords with multiple akerations, such as 78'9 and 7549, be careful chat che alered ‘tones do not conflict with the melody of the une! crs cris crs crs masa cia pois ca [te see see 0 3 5 e) ron 4 ee » i 5 i" ¢ ole 4 7801847.) a This chord has a ice pic sound c7's crs C75 Langex xg ‘ magi 2 2 s 0 3 s[ele 9 vf : 5 nf ul te ‘ ‘ | net she 7999. CHORDS (1-15-7-'9) A rootless 759 voicing isthe stme as a min? chord a whole step below. For example, a rootless C7159 is the same as Brnin75. Rootless C7159 (E.G1.8.0 = Bimin7’s (BOLPAY) Peand =o cris cry crs 9 crs xraaax xaiaia axraix axigat 1 iffete scsi 2{lele ate 6 e oe] [ee 5 3 e 0 I oft e6fTTTT1 8 Section 1}19MOINS pais Cee Cert ‘This i an interesting idea tha wil significanly widen your musical choices. t should be explored with al pes of chords. In symmetrical chord movementa specific chord shape on the fingerboard Is moved ata sec interval up the fingerboard. We continue to think ofthe same root.the funcon remains the same (for example, dominant remains dominant), but the frets, extensions and alkerations change. Lets stare with 7 chords. Dominant 75 chords retain their dominant function when they are ‘moved around the fingerboard in intervals of whole steps Here ie a C7 I you base your thinking on the orginal chords root, you will produce the following chords 28 you move the form up by whole steps: costs oS crs Costs 95 xen xen xxa ste xxa4ie xa 3 ° 3 e 7 e > e hn «(feTTe «[TetlTe s[fetTle offetfe xlferte sftte 7 ° u oye 6 TT ‘ rf b T 4 {eis interesting tha all the chords produced have an altered Sth. Some of them have 9ths as well ‘You get the same chords if you start with a dominant 9th ora 75: STARTING WITH C9 c cos 95's x2 1aax xa132x xa1aax 2 «{{e se lee (fe — 5 7 ° T crs's C755 cots, 7 ° 0 ste 10 n[fe ——>» [elee| —-ife —+nlelee 1» 2 4 u Bs 1 is 1 onieeréetSTARTING WITH C7I5 7s, cos cots, x tnt x x LBL x xtEtt x 1 3 5 ote s[ le ole 5 } ’ [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 E9¢5'5 B'9t5’5 7s eps xen xp Xxaeis 2{TeTle >(leTTo ote e 3 er 3 => e 4 ‘ 4 4 You sil get dominant chords with altered Shs, with or without a 9h, SECTION 1 |21i you can consider any ofthe notes in che chord to be the root. you can stil move chem around In whole steps. The sime thing happens: you get even more dominant chords with altered Sehs 5915'S E945 es 2 ° s[letTo o[tette 3 es — + I TIe S ‘ «fo 5 co s T TTT 9 955, esis e7'5 7 ° CT «(elle w{ fete ole le — > [They] oul Te eollle ——_—_—_—_—— 955 Bist, B's > [Tete s{tette ofetle 3 @ | —+s(T[er] ——+; ef] —— 5 7 ° Bi9s'5 Bist, B's ® elle vl telte ——+> o)) —e [Tle 2 “ u B is 2| SECTION 1‘How To use This concer" Whenever you need an altered chord, you simply need to grab one ofthese shapes raking sure that the spproprate root s contained inthe chord! OF course, some chords could sound much better than others ina given context. Experimentation is necessary, Here area fw ii-V7-I progressions to demonstrate this idea: SBCTION 1) 23.HORD MELopy Basics 24] secon 1 ‘You should know that dominant 785 chords are alzo commonly referred to as dominant 75'13, chorde-—the 5 is enharmonicalyresplled as "13, (Chordimelody describes ase of star playing where a sons melody is payed with a combination of chords and single notes. Generally the melody wil be thehighesenoce ina chord. Some players ike te harmonize much ofthe melody and others prefer an appreach hats aide lighter—chords are used more springy. By the same token, some payers enjoy arg and harmonicaly rich harmonies ‘wile other ile to imply harmonies with smaller chords. le comes down to experience and taste, ‘This section wil couch upon some of the important key areas. Mastering Jozz Gitar: ChordiMelody from The Complete Jazz Guitar Method realy digs deep int this subject and will 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 basic sil to master is recognizing chord canes in the melody. In the beginning you should try 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 new chords fora chordimelody arrangement is one ofthe best ways to accumulate new voicngs ‘uicky. By practicing the song, you are also practicing the new voicngs. Ive abways tried to Incorporate new voicings in every new tune learn. After youve learned many song, you stare to accumulate many voicings as wellHere isa melody with some chord changes shown above che staf F 4, min cr F Here are ewo possible ways to harmonize tis melody using these chords F o7 Gmn o F stcriow 1 |25(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 about chard enhancement. Most chords can be chought ofas being a member fof one of three basic chord families: msjor,minor or dominant. You enfance 2 chord when you add extensions (9, 11, 13) or replace it with another chord from the same fami. The root doesnt changejut the favor of the chord, In other words, playing a C6, Maj7,CMaj9, M3 for any other C Majortype chord could enhance a simple C triad. The same idea carries over to ‘minor and dominant chords as wel “The following Ist should give you a good start enhancing your basic chords. Remember that context is everything. Just because it may be theoretically correct doesn't mean that it sounds reat, Like everything else, you need to experiment and gain experience. Here are the chords of the three major chord families: Major Chords Dominant Chords Major Trad minor erad Dom? Mae rminé Dome sin Dom! mind Dom!3 mint Dom7ié sin Dom7it1 min add Dom7sus min7/11 Domdsus min6!9 Doms Dom? Domr9 Dom79 Dom7isi9 Dom7s9 Dom7ss Dom7s'9 Domi39Here are ewo more harmonizations forthe melody introduced on page 25 using chord eshancernent Mai? D7 079 o7 min? co cil Fe Fos FM b7 07's p7 Gain? crs 6 a ° —— FES <= 1 3 ‘Chord enhancement snot the same thing 25 chord substitution. Chord substitution is replacing ‘one chord with another chord that has a different root. When you enhance a chord the root remains the same. GUIDELINES FOR ARRANGING 1. Generally. you will have to raise the melody an octave if you are learning the song from a book or sheet music. “Try arranging the song ina key other than the one it was writen in. Its offen possible to create beautiful effects using open string voicing that another key may suggest 3. Memorize the melody in single notes frst. Be able to ply ill over the fingerboard and in diferent registers "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 proficient ry to dress up the arrangemene with chord enhancements and other arranging techniques we will discuss, such a5 substitutions and passing chords. 6. Keep your arrangements loose. Eventualy youl want to improvise inthis syle ‘Constantly update and apply new sls to your repertoire. secrion 1 |27LOU ON “This section covers two types of chord substitution, datone and eritan. A strong understanding ofthese devices will make the tidy of more advanced methods mich easier. There are many ‘devices and ways to substitute chords. Many more cn be found in Mastering Jazz Gutor: Chord! Mek ‘DIATONIC SUBSTITUTION: Diatonic substitution occurs when a chord fe substiuced with another chord from the same harmonized sale. Far example, some ofthe most common substitutions for 7 chords inthe key of F would be: “The reason this works is because every other 7 chord in the diatonic scale share three notes in common. Often, chords that have three or more notes in common ean substitute for each other. The chart below demonstrates how every chord (oval) shares three cones with a chord one 3rd above in the key (rectangle}—in this case. F Major: Susy C7 Din? Eminzhs FMA? Grin? THE Ge Fri Gmin?_ Amin? M7 o Dein? Emis?'S MT Oy 7 ¢ 8 e 83 a ‘28| senda‘TRITONE SUBSTITUTION Wan proresion ral from V7 to. tis common to replace the V7 chord witha dominant chord whore roots rtne (or) away ditanc of three whole steps (ithe Greek word for “three, For example, you can substi» G7 chord with» 07 (or some other 60 fe? i Phrygian Dominant - G7 Lydiant2 - FMaj7 = — aa rose 9 0 40-8 = secvion 1 43‘THE MELODIC MINOR SCALE—[AZZ.MINOR Raise both the 6th and 7th degrees of a natural minor scale and you have a melodic minr scale [A Natural Minor Seale A Melodie Minor Seale Traditionally che raised notes occur in the ascending sale ony. The descending scale returns to the natural minor scale goo © ho be 5 # o_o 8 = ° This, however, doesnt do us much good while improvising so we apply the raed notes in both the ascending and descending scale—some players cll this version the jazz minor scale. FINGERINGS FOR THE A MELODIC JAZZ) MINOR ‘An even easier approach isto lower the 3rd ofa major scale: ‘A Major Seale 23 oe 44) secrion 1‘Again, you can create modes from the melodic minor and of course, they work well over the ‘corresponding chords with either a derivative or parallel approach, [A Melodic Minor - Amin or Amin? ‘s eo Oo ©? 8 Dorian'2- Bmin? E Moxolydian'6- &7 F Loran’? -Frmin?s section 1/4546|secriox 0 gE So many players use these scales exclusively that ic dificult to belove that a jazz skis student would stil need to learn what they are about. Yet it seems like many jazz students do need to beushsup on some of this materia, PUKUNit "HE MAJOR PENTATONIC SCALE “The major pentatonic scale is really a major scale without the 4h and 7eh degrees. As such, you can seit in exact the same way as a major scale, you have been playing pop musi for ay length ‘of time, you probably havea collection oflicks and other ideas using pentatonic sales, Go ahead — try them in jazz tunes. They work ané wil tnd to add a diferent dimension to your solos. For ‘example, if you are used to paying major scale ideas over i-V7-| progressions using the major scale of the I chord, try the major pentatonic seal based on the I chord fora switch (C MAJOR PENTATONIC FINGERINGS 29 — te ‘e ois ° 'e ‘° te 'e, ‘° ° ig te. eo oe ° 2S 4s 68 7 4 or 8 9 ‘THE MINOR PENTATONIC “The minor pentotonic scale is one of the fist scales mast people learn. It is used widely in rock, op and country musie—and you can sound pretty good almost immediatly. While the major pentatonic scale wil give you sweet major sounds the minor pentatonic scale will give you @ 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 root tobe. Ths relationship works the same way as relative major and minor keys. In other words, (C Major Peneatonic = A Minor Pentatone: F Major Pentatonie = D Minor Penton, ec. C MINOR PENTATONIC FINGERINGS Notice that these are exactly the same fingerings as the C Major Pentatonic fingerings above (Only the root has changed.‘THE BLUES SCALE “The bues scale is often thought of as a minor pentatonic scale with the'S added. I's afamilar but beautiful sound. You can add this tone tothe major pentatonic scale as well. Ofcourse ina major context, you've added the". Experiment with this over major chord progressions ABLUES SCALE FINGERINGS ‘Try using your familiar pentatonic fingerings in different ways: For major chords... Use a major pentatonic scale starting from the root, Sth oF 9th of che chord For minor chords Use a minor pentatonic scale starting from the 00t,Sth oF 9th of the chord For dominant sus4 chords (1-457). Use a major pentatonic starting on the root or 7 ofthe chord For altered dominant 7 chords Use a major pentatonic scale starting from the 5 cover chords with altered Sths and 9th, ‘See my Guitar Chord & Scoe Finder for more interesting uses for pentatonic sales SecTiON 1/47 {‘There are ro many scales to use over altered dominant chords that it s easy to be overwhelmed In truth, is not how much you know that makes you a good improviser bu how you use what ‘you do know. ‘There are three extent scales to use over altered chords. The diminished scale isthe first ‘THE DIMINISHED SCALE. ‘The diminished scale isa symmevical scale. In other words, its design isa symmetrical pattern of whole steps and half teps. The formula is whole - half- whole - half -whole half whole, et. C Diminished Seale e Star the diminihed scale one half step above the root ofthe altered dominant chord you are improvising over. In other words. you could use an A’ Diminished scale over an altered G7 chord ‘Almost all possible alterations (see page 16) are included inthis scale. Below isthe AY Diminished scale, Beneath each cone is the notes relationship to a G7 chord, AY Diminished over G7 ‘As you can soe, this scale would sound fine over any G7 with a°S,*9 or'9 (or any combination of ‘these). The only altered tone which would not be reflected in the scale isthe, In the case ofthe fllowing progression, Gmin?-C74S-FMj7, you could use the F Major scale ‘over the Gmin? and the FMsi7. Over the C7S,3 D? Diminished seale would work very wel, Grin? crs Fei? NOTE: In this book, as in most jarz contexts, it i safe to assume that the eighth notes should be swung. “Swing Bt” are performed by holding the fst eighth in ‘each paielonger than its written value. The second eighth splayed late. and shorter “The swing rhythm sounds ike an eighth-note triple with che fist two eighths ted, 48|secrionBecause the diminished scale i symmetrical scale, any fingering for the diminished scale can be ‘moved up or down minor rds and it will include the same notes—very convenient! A DIMINISHED SCALE FINGERINGS wX\n 2B Some players prefer to think of the diminished scale’ formula as halF-whole-halt-whole-half— Wiole, ete, In this eae, you would stare the seale from the root of the altered dominant scale Instead, All the above considerations would stl hold true, SECTION 1 | 49‘THEWHOLE TONE SCALE “There are really only two whole tone scales. Because of the arrangement of whole steps, whole tone scales begining from every other note on the chromatic scale contain identical tones ‘When improvising, star the whole tone sale from the root of che dominant chord. This fs what we get when we suparimpote a G Whole Tone scale over a G7 chord “The whole tone scale works wel over dominant chords with raised or lowered Sths. Here isa i-V7- progression in C using a G Whole Tone scale over G7: Dain? crs cri? +50) secriow m1This box shape comes in handy when you want to use whole tone sounds. The notes inthis shape, plyed in any order and then moved around in whole steps, wil give you colorful whole tone sounds, Just start from any chord tone! Here are cwo examples of this shape in use pect Ce oo ea secTiow 51[HE SUPER LOCRIAN SCALE. “The Super Lecrian scale goes by many names. You wil also see this called the atered dominant scale oF the diminished whole tone scl, It is undoubtedly the mast usable ofthe altered seals because ‘ie contains the '5,5,"9 and , Its the 7th mode of the melodic minor scale. Many jazz payers ‘create these sounds by playing a melodic minor scale one haf step above the root ofthe altered ‘dominant chord, | chink iis easier anda litle more practieal to think of i as a separate scale, Here isthe G Super Locrianseale and its relationship to G7 chord {G Super Locrian Seale Here isthe Super Locran scale in use over ai-V7-I progression Dain? 79 crm ‘One way to capture the favor of any altered chard in your solos isto start your phrase from the highest altered tone in the chord (for example, the *9 in 3°59 chord). and then proceed to the altered scale of your choice ‘52| sectionARPEGGIOS ‘One sure sign of proficiency as an improwser i the ably co spell ou the changes. Your improvised lines should reflect the chord changes as accurately as possible. Ar the most advanced level this ‘means echoing not only the chord changes but the alterations inthe chords a well. ‘Aca more basic level you need to learn to accent the chocd tones within the scales. The study ‘of cxpeggcs wil give you the ammunition you need inorder to do ths. Ths chapter wil ive you agreststart, ‘Arpeetios are the notes ina chord played consecutively rather than simultaneously. In he system ‘shown here, you will earn all the arpeggios forthe seven diatonic chords wthn a particular major scale fingering. Here isthe major scale fingering thatthe arpeggios will be based on: ‘THE C MAJOR SCALE Below are the datonic arpeggios within this scale, Chord examples ae included. Once you have learned the arpeggio shapes, practice them by playing the chord then the arpegaio and then the ‘chord one more time. This way. you will learn to associate the arpeggio with the chord itself CMaj7 sictON m 53Evenualyyou should try t learn Set of daronc arpeggios for every major scale fingering you know. 54] SECTION 1(GETTING STARTED ‘The frst step in learning to spell out changes is learning your arpeggios. you have memorized ‘the previous set, then itis time to move on. Many of us begin improvising by randomly running up and down the seales that will work over particular chord progression. Now. you should start your improvised lines with chord tones. Start your phrases on roots, 3rés, Sths and 7ehs of the chords and stil use the major scale co improvise—it's Just the first note of each phrase that wil be a chord tone. Try to start with 3rds and Tehs often, because of their defining role in all chords (these cones define the quality fof the chord—whether they are major, ‘minor or dominant). Try to start ona chord tone every time the chord changes in the progression ‘This may seem alte rigid at rst. After some ‘experience with this technique, you will krow when itis necessary and when is not. Here are some examples of ines that start on the various chord tones: or cag Teh Fein? a SECTION 1] 55NEIGHBOR TONES ‘Once you have a handle on starting your lines from a chord tone, the next step is learning to use neighbor tones. These are notes that an improviser uses to approach targeted chord tones. There fare many notes that can be considered neighbor cones, but for now wall stick to noces that are ‘eiher a half step or a whole step above or below the chord tone. The chord tone will fal on the first beat ofeach measure, s0 youl need to“plan ahead" to make sure your neighbor tones fll ‘on either beat 4,0r on the second half of beat 4 of the provious measure, Here are some neighbor tone examples: Dein? s7 cay Hemtoge 87 ea? 56, SECTION‘NEIGHBOR TONES AROUND CHORD SHAPES ‘You can ako aply the neighbor tone idea to chord shapes. If you are improvising over this chord: ‘You will consider the gray notes your neighbor tones ‘Yu can then come up with ines ke these chord tones are circled the frst ime they appear): ‘Amie? section‘ALTERED CLUSTERS ‘Altered clusters are small groupings of notes that wil help you refiect altered tones in your solos. ‘There are eight diferent kinds of altered clusters: clusters will help you learn to recognize these sounds when you hear them, Below there are five clusters shown over the fingerboard for each one, Each cluster has a root, 3rd and’7 in addition to whatever lkered tane(s) there may be (5,45, 9.49). The natural Sth is also added to thore 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 ‘usters will help you learn to recognize these sounds when you hear them, rs 58| SECTION ILj a oe orsis ——Eva Praying “outside” means to temporarily pliy outside ofthe key. This creates tension (dssonance,or ‘cashing sounds) in the tolo and adds icerest co the overall contour. You ean‘ ust decide to play outside whenever you want—periods of tension must be followed by periods of release (consonance, in harmony). The tasteful use of ouside devices takes time to develop. You have to approach them with confidence. Paying outside with 2 veneatve feeling only sounds wrong. ‘Serong outside playing should be followed by a strong resolution back to the key center. The following area few devices that work wel, Lava SYMMETRICAL MOVES (One way to get an outside sound is to tke a mative (a shore phrase thats repeated) and move iearound the fingerboard in symmetrical incervals—hal steps, minor 3rd, chromaticall etc. The listener's ear wil “rack” the symmetry more than the phrase relationship to the harmony. ‘When you are ready to resolve, land on a chord tone. MOTIVE #1 In this example, the motive moves up chromatcaly (by half step). Notice how it finally comes to reston a chord tone, thus releasing the tension " chord tone soto cin oing cin tay php chp tietee otra M ete re So Ge 7977-000 —e-|e9 974] 2! 0 an 60|secrioxIn this example, the motive moves up and then down in minor 3rds chord tone eee Soe tesa aToH Descending ‘This time, che motive alternates ascending and descending, up a minor 3rd and then down one ee es ne abe : " 8 = [sa ee a 30-13-10 a eet a‘MOVING UP OR DOWN A HALE STEP “This fairy easy to accomplish. The tricks to pik just the precise moment to execute the idea Stay out of key justlong enough to create a surprise—then resolve back co the orginal key. Like all of these devices use i sparing. 2 cma? C Minor Pentatonic. ... CF Minor Penratonic — 1 C Minor Pemtatonic So + 10 1 at Os Gain? 3 e G Minor Pentatonic. 1 GP Minor Pentatonic - - - -» G Minor Penatonic ae —— a 3 cs =a (MELODIC PATTERNS BASED AROUND ARPEGGIO SHAPES ‘With this device. playa motive starting from each tone in an arpeggios fingering Your motive does ‘not have to suggest any key at al. When you start each phrase from 2 chord tone, you will find ‘there are enough inside sounds (notes from within the key) being played rosy in touch" with the ey center. The other notes in te pattern wil give you the outside adge you ae looking for. MOTIVE #1 ‘GMINT ARPEGGIO ® min? CT ARPEGGIO64) secnon ut ‘The art of reading music on guitar isa huge topic. In this book we will concentrate on the areas tha students ask about the most. Why do I need to read musie? Being able to read is part ofthe total package of being a competent musician. Sure, chere have been many great players who couldne read, but they didn't become great because they couldn't read, Not knowing how to read ike being literate, I’ like being able to speak English but not being able to read or writ it. you cant read, youl miss out on alot ofthe music that has been writen through the centuries. If you read wel, youl learn tunes more quiely. Examples in books lke this one will become easier to learn, t00, ‘We're not taking about becoming an ace sight-eader here. Sight-reading refers to the ability to play something almost perfectly by the frst or second read-through—with all the dynamics (signs indicating the degree of loudness and softness) and phrasing in pace, upto tempo and played with, fealing, In realty, very few of us need to become that good, For most of us, being able to read through apiece of music ata moderate tempo accurataly and comfortably is ood enough. Reading isa mechanical sil, and you can become quite good, leis mosty 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 diferent ways to think about reading. [At firs there are twa main consideratons—noce identifation and reading rhythm. We will ‘over Both of there areae inthe following pages ‘This book assumes that you can already readin the fist position (you understand about the notes and the staf.ime signatures key signatures, the basic note values and you know the nares ‘of notes on the fist five frets). you are not yet a reading musician and you have been relying solely on the tablature and diagrams to use this book. you should pick up 2 begining reading method and work your way through it. You can continue to work chrough the rest of this Book as you have thus far,| profer a syst that uses the six major scale fingerings shown earlier in the book. Ifa piece of, ‘music you are going to read i in the key of F Major, you have sx 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 sicfret position “The following exercises are examples of how you can practice your note reading. They conan only quarter notes. These exercises are in afew differen keys. There are 2 lot of accidental in some examples, but treat them as departures from the sale of the key indicated in the key signatures. Practice each exercise in one fingering untl it becomes ear. Then practice i again using one of the ‘other scale fingerings you know and soon unt you have read inal the fingerings that are practical for ‘the exercise. Obvious. cere are alot of notes that fll on the lower ledger Ines, you wortt want 10 use a fingering that stays in the upper range of the fingerboard, or vce versa. Its common, however to shit to a few diferent postions during the same piece to accommodate parts of songs ‘that travel to higher or lower octaves. Whenever you read something, experiment with the diferent ‘scale fingerings first find the best position(s). Experiment with reading te following examples. Try 10 find the most practical fingerings foreach. secTION tt | 65