Learning to recognize keys makes playing guitar songs much simpler. For instance, G’s key contains all of the chords necessary for most beginner songs.
Identification of keys may not always be straightforward, however. We will explore some basic theory to better comprehend keys.
Scales
Scales are the building blocks of music, and learning to play them will help you understand chords and keys better. To start off, memorize some simple scale patterns and practice playing them up-and-down on your guitar until it becomes easier for you to recall later. Doing this also will familiarize yourself with fretboard relationships between notes and intervals more effectively.
Minor pentatonic scale is one of the easiest scales to learn. Once you understand it well, try playing it over some backing tracks so you can gain a feel for its functioning.
Master the major scale is another essential musical concept to know, with seven notes and an octave note built using half/whole step intervals. The major scale forms an essential foundational concept of music theory and will help expand your musical vocabulary.
The major scale is an excellent way of transitioning smoothly between keys on guitar. Keep in mind that each key contains its own set of chords and scale pattern that correspond with it – when moving between keys, look to its tonic note for guidance in selecting an appropriate scale pattern to play in its key.
Once you have mastered some basic scales, it’s time to tackle chords. Chords in each key are determined by its corresponding scale’s notes and can form a triad when played together; it is therefore essential that you gain an understanding of how all of these chords relate together so you can compose your own songs!
Start off by looking at the chart below and identifying your key on the left column, and finding its respective row to view chords therein. These chords provide a good basis for creating your own chord progressions.
Chords
Chords are composed of multiple notes played simultaneously, and form the core of most songs. Chords can be constructed on the scale of any key and categorized either as major chords or minor chords depending on whether they contain flats or sharps in them. Understanding chord placement within key is vital as this allows you to find appropriate progressions for your music and develop your musical vocabulary.
Major chords consist of the 1st (known as the tonic note) and 5th notes of a scale; minor chords consist of 2nd and 6th notes from that scale; diminished chords include 3rd and 7th notes from that same scale. Roman numerals are used to represent these chord types with Roman numerals being assigned specific names so you can easily identify each. Major chords are numbered 1 through 7, with minor ones A through G for easy identification purposes.
Knowledge of chords is vital because they can be found in songs spanning the spectrum from classics such as “Unchained Melody” and “Leaving on a Jet Plane” to modern Ed Sheeran hits. Most songs use variations on these basic chords for their unique sound.
Learning guitar can be challenging, but chord progressions can make things simpler. These patterns of chords provide you with a solid base to build upon for creating specific musical styles or melodies that work.
One of the most frequently utilized chord progressions is I – IV – V, used across various genres such as rock, country and pop music as well as blues and jazz music. This progression allows musicians to experiment with more complex chords as they progress through it.
A chord key refers to a collection of chords belonging to one musical key that sound good when played together, making up what is called an ensemble or family of chords. These can then be combined in various ways to compose songs; alternatively, their arrangements may also be altered to alter tone and mood of music compositions.
Modes
Modes can help any guitarist break free of their improvisational rut, providing new sounds over any chord that may otherwise seem impossible to play. And their learning process is not as difficult as you may think; modes are built upon Major scales with their own distinct sounds, so understanding how they work with chords you’re playing over can only serve to enhance your improv.
Keep this in mind when learning modes – they all begin from a single note in the major scale, making learning them and applying them easier! Just switch up which starting note you use for each mode – making them accessible and enjoyable to play with!
Practice each mode over a tailored backing track designed specifically for it, to get an understanding of their interactions with chords and how they sound in context. This practice also serves to hone overall improvisational skills while developing your sense of what sounds good.
Dorian features a flattened fifth note that gives it an exotic sound; this key can often be heard in metal and flamenco music. Phrygian has its second, third and sixth notes lowered for jazziness while Mixolydian uses the major scale with its 7th tone lowered; these create a very deep yet soothing tone; finally Aeolian, being relative minor of all keys, has its own melodic quality that stands out.
If you’re having difficulty understanding mode structures, try playing an entire major scale across all positions before changing its starting note for each mode. This will familiarize yourself with each mode’s individual scale shape and sound – then when comfortable try some improvising!
Patterns
Scale patterns are linear sequences of notes that start on one or more tonic notes and end one or more octaves later. Scale patterns can often be moved around to suit any major or minor scale; for instance, these diagrams illustrate a guitar scale pattern based on G major that when moved up one fret to the same position on the neck can become A major due to open strings being replaced with fretted notes when played further up the neck.
Most scale patterns provide fret numbers to indicate where to place your finger for proper playing of the scale pattern, however some do not and require you to rely on your knowledge of fretboard to properly position your finger on each fret. While such patterns may initially prove more challenging to memorize and play back and forth across fretboard, once learned they become much simpler.
Scale patterns you learn may contain additional notes above and below the tonic notes; this is due to how common it is for guitarists improvising guitar solos beyond the tonic notes of any given scale they’re playing in.
These additional notes are meant to create a richer sound when playing the scale in question, particularly with patterns containing flat 5 notes which provide bluesy tones in their music.
Note that while these scale patterns on this page are based on the G major scale, you can easily apply them to any other major or minor scale by shifting their pattern up and down the neck. To do this, locate your pattern’s lowest tonic note – for instance green note on string 6 of G major – then find and play a G note from your fretboard until all tonic notes in that pattern have reached your chosen key.