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| BASIC CHORDS STANDARD PATTERN (1) |
| I | IV | V | I |
Comment .: .Presuming you are playing in C:
I = the tonic = C = you
play C chord
IV = the fourth interval in C tonic = F
= you play F chord
V= the fifth interval in C tonic = G = you play G
chord
...
.=
| C | F | G | C |
(d)
The.basic harmony patterns .for chords are .:
| Harmony
Patterns Tonic = C |
| I | VIm7 | IIm7 | V7 | I | = | C | Am7 | Dm7 | G7 | C | Listen to Harmony Pattern | # 1 | |||||||||
| I | #Idim | """ | "" | " | = | C | C#dim | """ | "" | C | Listen to Harmony Pattern | # 2 | |||||||||
| I | bIIIdim | """ | "" | " | = | C | Ebdim | """ | "" | C | Listen to Harmony Pattern | # 3 | |||||||||
| I | VI7 | """ | "" | " | = | C | A7 | """ | "" | C | Listen to Harmony Pattern | # 4 | |||||||||
| I | II7 | """ | "" | " | = | C | D7 | """ | "" | C | Listen to Harmony Pattern | # 5 | |||||||||
| I | I7 | IV | IVm | I | = | C | C7 | F | Fm | C | Listen to Harmony Pattern | # 6 | |||||||||
 |
Note:
(a) Harmony
pattern #5 includes a "passing by"
chromatic: .Em7
/ Ebm7 / Dm7. See: Phase 2 (dd)
.... . . ((b) (In harmony pattern #4 you can also play these
passing-by chromatic chords...)
. ..... ..(c) You can play (transpose)
these patterns in any key scale.
.........That means that for F
as tonic, the
harmony chords patterns would be:
| Harmony Patterns Tonic = F |
|||||||||
| 1 | F | Dm7 | Gm7 | C7 | F | ||||
| 2 | F | F#dim | """" | """" | " | ||||
| 3 | F | Abdim | """" | """" | " | ||||
| 4 | F | G7 | """" | """" | " | ||||
| 5 | F | F7 | Bb | Bbm | F |
(e) In a .major scale:
............... (We saw that the first
note is the tonic).
............... The second note, the third, the
sixth and the seventh notes are said to be. major notes.
In other words, in C as tonic: D , E ,A , B, are said to be. major notes. .Hiding
behind each note is a major chord, that if played a half-tone
lower ("note played smaller") becomes
a. minor
chord.
While, the fourth and fifth note are said to be .true notes. .In C
tonic:. F , G, are true notes. .Hiding behind each one is a music chord,which
if played a half-tone lower ("note played
smaller") becomes a diminished (Fdim or Gdim); if the chord is played a half tone
higher ("note played bigger"), it
becomes an augmented (+) chord: (F+ or G+).
(Note .: .To learn
about scales go to:. The ABC's Of Music Chords (Chapter 2) )
(f)
1. We call the. dominant 7 .(for the chord to be 7th) .the chord that corresponds to the
tonic with the seventh note.. (minor interval or
one half-tone down): .for C the dominant 7 is C7
and is played with
the notes:. C, E, G + Bb; (the
seventh note of C scale being B, one half-tone down = Bb).
2. The dominant 7
may be substituted by the following: .IIIdim ; IIImin7(b5)
; Vb7.
3. The dominant 7 may be substituted
by another dominant 7:. having the interval of the fifth
note higher diminished: (instead of a C7
we would play a Gb7; instead of a
G7 we would play a
Db7 etc.)
4. A dominant 7 that is followed by
a "fourth true note" higher, can be played with
a 9 minor: that means that in C as tonic, if a C7
is followed by a F,
or a Fm,
or a F7, this C7
can be replaced by
a C7b9 .
Now let's look at
the chords:
| C7 | dominant substituted by: | C | C7 | F | Listen to this progression | |||||||
| f) 2. | IIIdim | " | Edim | " | Listen to this progression | |||||||
| IIImin7b5 | " | Emin(b5) | " | Listen to this progression | ||||||||
| bV7 | " | Gb7 | " | Listen to this progression | ||||||||
| f) 3. | a fifth higher diminished | " | Eb7 | " | Listen to this progression | |||||||
| f) 4. | dominant 7 following a fourth true note... | " | C7(b9) | " | (C,E,G,Bb,Db) sound near of Edim |
(g) Now before going
any further, let's talk about the. diminished chords. There are 3 chords (as
there are only three diminished
scales: Cdim, Ddim and Edim) that can make all 21
diminished chords: Cdim
; Ddim ; and Edim; like this:
....)Note: (Diminished chords are basically done
with three notes (to follow the 1-3-5 "standard
fingering pattern": .see (Part II & III)). Hereinafter the
fourth note that can be played too (and is the dominant =
7), is shown in parenthesis, to make it easier to
understand the playing diminished chords)
| Chord name |
|||||||||||||||||||||
| C dim | = | C | Eb | F# | (A) | = | B# dim | but the name of each note change | |||||||||||||
| Eb dim | = | Eb | F# | A | (C) | = | D# dim | """ """ """ """ """ """ """ """ """ | |||||||||||||
| F# dim | = | F# | A | C | (Eb) | = | Gb dim | """ """ """ """ """ """ """ """ ""' | |||||||||||||
| A dim | = | A | C | Eb | (F#) | ||||||||||||||||
| D dim | = | D | F | Ab | (B) | ||||||||||||||||
| F dim | = | F | Ab | B | (D) | = | E# dim | """ """ """ """ """ """ """ """ """ | |||||||||||||
| Ab dim | = | Ab | B | D | (F) | = | G# dim | """ """ """ """ """ """ """ """ """ | |||||||||||||
| B dim | = | B | D | F | (Ab) | = | Cb dim | """ """ """ """ """ """ """ """ """ | |||||||||||||
| E dim | = | E | G | Bb | (Db) | = | Fb dim | """ """ """ """ """ """ """ """ """ | |||||||||||||
| G dim | = | G | Bb | Db | (E) | ||||||||||||||||
| Bb dim | = | Bb | Db | E | (G) | = | A# dim | """ """ """ """ """ """ """ """ """ | |||||||||||||
| Db dim | = | Db | E | G | (E) | = | C# dim | """ """ """ """ """ """ """ """ """ | |||||||||||||
Note:
You see
that the name of a diminished chord is coming from the
first ("bottom and/or "lower"")
note played...
PHASE
2:
In connection with the previous rules, remember this:
(aa) The IIm7 & V7 can be repeated:
........That means that with a C
as tonic,
you can repeat Dm7/G7/Dm7/G7
....
........Please respect the tempo and measure
while doing so...
(bb) The I (tonic) can be substituted by
its IIIm or VImin.
That means that in a C as tonic, C
can be substituted
by an Em or Am
........................or if a F
is tonic, F
can be substituted
by an Am or Dm
........That means that in the
progression of :
......
| BASIC CHORDS STANDARD
PATTERNS (2) Tonic = C |
| I | IV | V | I |
| C | F | G | C |
.......we can have:
| Am7 | F | G | C |
| Em7 | F | G | C |
.......or inversement:
| C | F | G | Am |
| C | F | G | Em |
.......or
you can replace the C with Am
/ F / G /Am /
or
.Em/ F / G / Em; or if we push that by
taking each chord as being "itself" a tonic, in
this pattern could replace the F by .Am/Dm
and the G by
.Bm/Em... (Try some combinations
yourself....)
Note: .We can also try to add a 7 to the
substitution and instead of a C being substituted by an
Em, we could try Em7 or Am7)
(cc) In sheet music,
whatever the style, the chords progressions (even
in a classical sheet music, the chords are written in all
or in part in the melody) are:
(1) Done
with one of the standard or harmonic chords patterns.
And/Or
(2) Built
in such a way that the chord preceding or behind the one
coming is equal to the fifth interval of the one following,
no matter what type, such as major, minor, sharp, flat,
augmented or diminished. (You have to remember
the rules of substitutions, chromatic "passing-by"
etc.. As in the key of C, instead of C we could have "a behind
substitution of" Em or "a substitution of" G .)
And/Or
(3) Following one of the
rules written here.
.
(dd) Chromatic
"passing-by" chords: .To "modulate" your
playing you can, if appropriate, do a .chromatic note. Plus, you can do the same with
one or more .chromatic chords. that each will be named a
chromatic "passing by" chord.
(ee) Between I and I we can insert "a I passing by" diminished = C
/ Cdim / C; Em / Ebdim / C
..Between I and IIm7 we can insert "a I
passing by"
diminished = C / Cdim / Dm7; C / C#dim
/ Dm7
. ....or also good is a Em/
Edim/ Dm7.
Note: .Em here is a substitution of C.. PPlus, we can reverse these
patterns and play: .F
/ Cdim / C;
F / C#dim / C; F
/ Fdim / C;
F / F#dim / C!
PHASE
3:
Let's put
into practice what has been written here by looking at
one of the favorite chord progressions that can be used
while playing:
Tonic
|
C | Dm7 | G7 | Dm7 | G7 | (C) | |||||||||||
| a substitution | " | " | Em7 | " | " | " | |||||||||||
| a chromatic down | " | " | " | Ebm7 | " | " | " | ||||||||||
| Result: | C | Dm7 | Em7 | Ebm7 | Dm7 | G7 | (C) | ||||||||||
| same with Ddim (a) +(ee) | C | Dm7 | Em7 | Ebm7 | Dm7 | Ddim | (C) |
(ff) Generally, we can move from one
key tone to another by playing a chromatic chord one half-tone
up. But, if this key shift represents more than one half-tone
up, the best chords modulation is to pass from the first
key scale to the other, by using the two following chords,
taking note of the beat and taking for granted that the
next scale chord will be the new tonic: .IImin7 of this new tonic
+ V7.
....Ex: you are playing in C and you want to switch to G, you play Am7 and D7
....Ex: you are playing in F and you want to switch to Bb, you play Cm7 and F7
. ..Ex: you are playing in Dm and you want to switch to Em, you play F#m7 and B7.etc. etc.
PHASE 4:
(a) Practice with sheet music, by
marking with a pencil the pattern of the fifth of the
chord following, or substitution, chromatic "passing-by"
chords, etc. Do it as many times as needed. This will
reveal the basic construction of the music piece and help
you to understand and "insert chords progressions"
while you play, do some nice substitutions or added
chords....
Ex:
you are
playing in Bb "I left my heart in San
Francisco..
...........................................
................ ...Bb
.......................................................(try
Dm)
.................... (add up a in between diminished)........Ddim.
See:.
Phase 2 (ee)
..........................................................................................Cm7
(it is the IIm7 of Bb = I)
..............................................................
...............................beneath
the blue.."
..........................(chord ahead is......................
........................................F7
(it justifies the previous
Cm7); plus, if you have sufficient time you can repeat Cm7
F7 ( see:. Step 1 (e))
Note: .Dm instead of Bb
could also have been
replaced by Gm (the sixth of Bb), but you have to choose
"by ear" what sounds better and taking into
account what chord is coming next. This is true in all
circumstances and everything that is explained on this
page.
(b1) Learn your intervals by heart,
the fifth is always corresponding to the fifth from the
tonic etc...
(c1) Practice patterns, in order to be
able to recognize them in pieces you play.
For instance, in the first "harmony pattern"
you will find some pieces such as:. "Blue Moon", "Perfidia",
"Dream, Dream, Dream", etc.. (Other songs and instrumental
pieces refer to one of the mentioned patterns, plus the
rules written here).. (On the "basic
chords standard pattern" you can play: ."La
Bamba", "Twist And Shout" etc...)
It has been said that even in classical music, chords are
hidden and written in notes. Whether with all the notes
referring to the chord instead of three or four or five
notes. Or, with two notes, like C
and G
(instead of C, E, and G notes, than it could be a G#
coming in "holding"
a C which could hide a substitution
of a C#dim or something else depending on
what is coming after it).
In fact, the notes we are playing are a part of the chord
that is supporting them to make a full harmony. This is
why when we play an improvisation, it is the rule to take
into account the chord under which we are playing. So if
we are improvising while there is a F chord, in passing
on B note, we shall play Bb as, in F major scale the note
B is played Bb (B flat): .(see "Scales"
section of Part II).
Conclusion:
Print
this page and work it out on your favorite instrument.
You can write down some chords and play them. You are
close to making your own compositions. You should have
fun and increase your skills while playing chords from
time to time. If so, let me know! It may motivate me to
add some other page of "Easy-Theory" music
notions; because there is much more to be said that I
think might help you.
