G Major and E Minor - Revision history

Meambobbo: /* Open Position Scale */

2015-06-14T18:22:41Z

‎Open Position Scale

Meambobbo at 01:40, 12 June 2015

2015-06-12T01:40:03Z

Meambobbo at 18:27, 20 March 2015

2015-03-20T18:27:46Z

Meambobbo: /* Why Use Different Keys? */

2015-03-19T21:38:12Z

‎Why Use Different Keys?

Meambobbo: /* Why Use Different Keys? */

2015-03-19T21:37:42Z

‎Why Use Different Keys?

Meambobbo at 21:37, 19 March 2015

2015-03-19T21:37:17Z

Meambobbo: /* Open Position Scale */

2015-03-04T23:23:49Z

‎Open Position Scale

Meambobbo at 23:23, 4 March 2015

2015-03-04T23:23:35Z

Meambobbo: /* Sample Song in G Major */

2015-03-04T18:55:20Z

‎Sample Song in G Major

Meambobbo: /* Open Position Chord Voicings */

2015-03-04T18:54:17Z

‎Open Position Chord Voicings

@@ Line 77: / Line 77: @@
 === Open Position Scale ===
-  e--------------------------------------------0--
+  E--------------------------------------------0--
-  b-----------------------------------0--1--3-----
+  B-----------------------------------0--1--3-----
-  g-----------------------------0--2--------------
+  G-----------------------------0--2--------------
-  d--------------------0--2--4--------------------
+  D--------------------0--2--4--------------------
-  a-----------0--2--3-----------------------------
+  A-----------0--2--3-----------------------------
-  e--0--2--3--------------------------------------
+  E--0--2--3--------------------------------------
      o  m  r  o  m  r  o  m  p  o  m  o  i  r  o
      E  F# G  A  B  C  D  E  F# G  A  B  C  D  E

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 {{Top-Level Crumbs|1}}
+{{Lesson Crumbs|2}}
 {{Intermediate Lesson Crumbs|9}}

@@ Line 2: / Line 2: @@
 {{Intermediate Lesson Crumbs|9}}
 The '''key of G Major''' consists of the notes G A B C D E F{{s}}.  G is a 5th above C, or one clockwise movement along the [[Circle of Fifths|circle of fifths]] above C.  It shares all the same notes as [[C Major in Open Position and Alternate Picking|C Major]], except the F{{s}}, which is the leading tone in G Major.
@@ Line 225: / Line 227: @@
 == Homework ==
 == Q & A ==
 == Related Lessons ==

@@ Line 218: / Line 218: @@
 While many songs have sections devoted to a modulation, it doesn't need to be so obvious.  We may want to modulate out of the key for just a measure to play a certain melody we think will sound good over the current chord.
-Even if a song does not modulate to another key, it may require being written in a certain key so that it fits the range of a certain instrument.  For instance, consider a piece written for clarinet, whose range is E3 to G6.  The piece features an ascending 3 octave arpeggio run of the tonic chord, ending on the root note 3 octaves above the original note.  There are only a few possible notes that this will work for without exceeding the clarinet's range: E, F, F{{s}} and G.  If C Major is the key, the clarinet will not be able to play the piece.  So the piece is written in a different key, such as E Major.
+Even if a song does not modulate to another key, it may require being written in a certain key so that it fits the '''range''' of a certain instrument.  For instance, consider a piece written for clarinet, whose range is E3 to G6.  The piece features an ascending 3 octave arpeggio run of the tonic chord, ending on the root note 3 octaves above the original note.  There are only a few possible notes that this will work for without exceeding the clarinet's range: E, F, F{{s}} and G.  If C Major is the key, the clarinet will not be able to play the piece.  So the piece is written in a different key, such as E Major.
-Even if an instrument's range is not the concern, timbre might be.  For instance, many songs written for guitar are written in E Minor.  Even though the guitar could play the song in any minor key, the composer chose E Minor because the low E is the lowest note of the guitar.  He had conceptualized hitting that low E in mind when he wrote the piece, which is deeper and more impactful than hitting the A or E{{f}} above low E.
+Even if an instrument's range is not the concern, '''timbre''' might be.  For instance, many songs written for guitar are written in E Minor.  Even though the guitar could play the song in any minor key, the composer chose E Minor because the low E is the lowest note of the guitar.  He had conceptualized hitting that low E in mind when he wrote the piece, which is deeper and more impactful than hitting the A or E{{f}} above low E.
 If a song is written in one key for a certain instrument, but we want to play it with a different instrument, we may consider '''transposing''' the song to a different key.  This simply means moving all the pitches/notes uniformly higher or lower.  All the relative pitches between notes remain intact.  However, now the piece may fit the instrument's range or desired timbre.  For guitar, the easiest way to do this is to use a capo.  All the chord fingerings will be identical.

@@ Line 214: / Line 214: @@
 So if everything is relative and any major key is going to be roughly the same as any other major key, what's the point of using different keys?  Why not write everything in C Major?
-We have not yet gotten to the topic of [[Modulation|modulation]], which involves changing keys inside a song.  This can have a profound effect on the piece as a whole.  It requires we know the different keys used, which must be at least 2.  We won't always modulate to the current key's 5th, either.  While one song may modulate from C Major to G Major, another song may modulate from C Major to E Major.
+We have not yet gotten to the topic of [[Modulation|'''modulation''']], which involves changing keys inside a song.  This can have a profound effect on the piece as a whole.  It requires we know the different keys used, which must be at least 2.  We won't always modulate to the current key's 5th, either.  While one song may modulate from C Major to G Major, another song may modulate from C Major to E Major.
 While many songs have sections devoted to a modulation, it doesn't need to be so obvious.  We may want to modulate out of the key for just a measure to play a certain melody we think will sound good over the current chord.

@@ Line 3: / Line 3: @@
 {{Intermediate Lesson Crumbs|9}}
-The G Major scale consists of the notes G A B C D E F{{s}}.  G is a 5th above C, or one clockwise movement along the [[Circle of Fifths|circle of fifths]] above C.  It shares all the same notes as [[C Major in Open Position and Alternate Picking|C Major]], except the F{{s}}, which is the leading tone in G Major.
+The '''key of G Major''' consists of the notes G A B C D E F{{s}}.  G is a 5th above C, or one clockwise movement along the [[Circle of Fifths|circle of fifths]] above C.  It shares all the same notes as [[C Major in Open Position and Alternate Picking|C Major]], except the F{{s}}, which is the leading tone in G Major.
-E Minor is the [[Music Theory - Minor Keys|relative minor]] of G Major, sharing all the same notes.  E is the 5th of A, and A Minor is the relative minor of C Major.  Just as we traverse the circle of fifths clockwise to go from C to G, we can do the same for A to E.  ''E Minor is a rather popular key for guitar, having a tonic note as the lowest note of the standard-tuned 6-string guitar.''
+'''E Minor''' is the [[Music Theory - Minor Keys|relative minor]] of G Major, sharing all the same notes.  E is the 5th of A, and A Minor is the relative minor of C Major.  Just as we traverse the circle of fifths clockwise to go from C to G, we can do the same for A to E.  ''E Minor is a rather popular key for guitar, having a tonic note as the lowest note of the standard-tuned 6-string guitar.''
 == PreReqs ==
@@ Line 26: / Line 26: @@
 === Diatonic Chords ===
 G Major contains the following diatonic chords:
 {|class="wikitable"
 |+ G Major Diatonic Chords
@@ Line 94: / Line 95: @@
 }}
-Here are open position chord voicings for G Major and E Minor.  Notice that 4 of these are already well-known from C Major.  D is already known from the [[Other Open String Chords#D Major|other open string chords]] lesson.  The only new ones are Bm and F{{s}}{{dim}}.  Bm is difficult to make use of open strings, so it uses the [[Barre Chords#5 String - A Shapes|common 5-string barre shape]].  Really only F{{s}}{{dim}} is new, and unfortunately diminished triads can have some nasty shapes.  The [[7th Chords#Half Diminished|7th chord varieties]] actually make more sense, but we haven't gotten that far quite yet.
+Here are open position chord voicings for G Major and E Minor.  Notice that 4 of these are already well-known from C Major.  D is already known from the [[Other Open String Chords#D Major|other open string chords]] lesson.  The only new ones are Bm and F{{s}}{{dim}}.  Bm is difficult to make use of open strings (unlike its [[7th Chords|7th chord]]), so it uses the [[Barre Chords#5 String - A Shapes|common 5-string barre shape]].  Really only F{{s}}{{dim}} is new, and unfortunately diminished triads can have some nasty shapes.  The [[7th Chords#Half Diminished|7th chord varieties]] actually make more sense, but we haven't gotten that far quite yet.
 {|
@@ Line 155: / Line 156: @@
+|
 <pre>
 ||-|r|-|-|
-||i|-|-|-|
+||-|-|-|-|
 ||-|m|-|-|
 </pre>
 |}
-If the F{{s}}{{dim}} shape is too difficult to reach the F{{s}} on the high E string, you can leave it off.
+For F{{s}}{{dim}}, use the ring finger to mute the open D on the D string.  If the shape is too difficult, you can leave off the F{{s}} on the high E string, using the pinky in place of the ring finger on the 2nd fret of the G string, and using the ring finger solely to mute the open D string.
 {{top}}
@@ Line 189: / Line 199: @@
   E----------------|---------------|---------------|---------------|
-Notice there's nothing special about the different keys.  Notes may change and chords may need to be voiced a little differently, but ultimately what matters is the pattern.  A I - IV - V - I progression will sound the same in G Major as it does in C Major.  The ascending G Major scale melody above uses the following notes from the scale: 1 2 3 4 3 4 5 6 7 8.  Using the same relationship of notes in C Major would produce an identical effect.
+Notice there's nothing special about the different keys.  Notes may change and chords may need to be voiced a little differently, but ultimately what matters is the pattern.  A I-IV-V-I progression will feel the same in G Major as it does in C Major.  The ascending G Major scale melody above uses the following notes from the scale: 1 2 3 4 3 4 5 6 7 8.  Using the same relationship of notes in C Major would produce an identical effect.
 {{top}}
@@ Line 204: / Line 214: @@
 So if everything is relative and any major key is going to be roughly the same as any other major key, what's the point of using different keys?  Why not write everything in C Major?
-We have not yet gotten to the topic of [[Modulation|modulation]], which involves changing keys inside a song.  This can have a profound effect on the piece as a whole.  It requires we know all the keys used, which is at least 2.  Modulating isn't always going to be to the current key's 5th, either.  While one song may modulate from C Major to G Major, another song may modulate from C Major to E Major.
+We have not yet gotten to the topic of [[Modulation|modulation]], which involves changing keys inside a song.  This can have a profound effect on the piece as a whole.  It requires we know the different keys used, which must be at least 2.  We won't always modulate to the current key's 5th, either.  While one song may modulate from C Major to G Major, another song may modulate from C Major to E Major.
 While many songs have sections devoted to a modulation, it doesn't need to be so obvious.  We may want to modulate out of the key for just a measure to play a certain melody we think will sound good over the current chord.
@@ Line 210: / Line 220: @@
 Even if a song does not modulate to another key, it may require being written in a certain key so that it fits the range of a certain instrument.  For instance, consider a piece written for clarinet, whose range is E3 to G6.  The piece features an ascending 3 octave arpeggio run of the tonic chord, ending on the root note 3 octaves above the original note.  There are only a few possible notes that this will work for without exceeding the clarinet's range: E, F, F{{s}} and G.  If C Major is the key, the clarinet will not be able to play the piece.  So the piece is written in a different key, such as E Major.
-Even if an instrument's range is not the concern, timbre might be.  For instance, many songs written for guitar are written in E Minor.  Even though the guitar could play the song in any minor key, the composer chose E Minor because the low E is the lowest note of the guitar.  He had hitting that low E in mind when he wrote the piece, which is deeper and more impactful than hitting the A or E{{f}} above low E.
+Even if an instrument's range is not the concern, timbre might be.  For instance, many songs written for guitar are written in E Minor.  Even though the guitar could play the song in any minor key, the composer chose E Minor because the low E is the lowest note of the guitar.  He had conceptualized hitting that low E in mind when he wrote the piece, which is deeper and more impactful than hitting the A or E{{f}} above low E.
-If a song is written in one key for a certain instrument, but we want to play it with a different instrument, we may consider ''transposing'' the song to a different key.  This simply means moving all the pitches/notes uniformly higher or lower.  All the relative pitches between notes remain intact.  However, now the piece may fit the instrument's range or desired timbre.  For guitar, the easiest way to do this is to use a capo.  All the chord fingerings will be identical.
+If a song is written in one key for a certain instrument, but we want to play it with a different instrument, we may consider '''transposing''' the song to a different key.  This simply means moving all the pitches/notes uniformly higher or lower.  All the relative pitches between notes remain intact.  However, now the piece may fit the instrument's range or desired timbre.  For guitar, the easiest way to do this is to use a capo.  All the chord fingerings will be identical.
 == Homework ==

@@ Line 16: / Line 16: @@
 == G Major ==
 === Diatonic Chords ===
 G Major contains the following diatonic chords:
@@ Line 43: / Line 51: @@
 == E Minor ==
 === Diatonic Chords ===
 E (Natural) Minor contains the following diatonic chords:
@@ Line 68: / Line 84: @@
 == Open Position Chord Voicings ==
 Here are open position chord voicings for G Major and E Minor.  Notice that 4 of these are already well-known from C Major.  D is already known from the [[Other Open String Chords#D Major|other open string chords]] lesson.  The only new ones are Bm and F{{s}}{{dim}}.  Bm is difficult to make use of open strings, so it uses the [[Barre Chords#5 String - A Shapes|common 5-string barre shape]].  Really only F{{s}}{{dim}} is new, and unfortunately diminished triads can have some nasty shapes.  The [[7th Chords#Half Diminished|7th chord varieties]] actually make more sense, but we haven't gotten that far quite yet.
@@ Line 143: / Line 167: @@
 == Sample Song in G Major ==
 Here is a very simple song using a I - IV - V - I progression in G Major.  The chord progression is written above the tab.  You can apply rhythm to it however you like, as discussed [[Applying Rhythm to Chords|in a prior lesson]].  The melody written in the tab basically just ascends the G Major scale, playing the root of the chord in the harmony on the downbeat of each measure.
@@ Line 160: / Line 192: @@
 == Why Use Different Keys? ==
 So if everything is relative and any major key is going to be roughly the same as any other major key, what's the point of using different keys?  Why not write everything in C Major?
@@ Line 179: / Line 219: @@
 * [[Circle of Fifths]]
-<div class="item-wrap">
+{{top}}
-<div class="trail blue">
-<span class="text">[[B Diminished|B dim]]</span>
+{{Intermediate Lesson Crumbs|9}}
 [[Category:Guitar]]

@@ Line 143: / Line 143: @@
 == Sample Song in G Major ==
     G               C               D               G
     I               IV              V               I
    2   3   4   1   2   3   4   1   2   3   4   1   2   3   4
-  e----------------|---------------|--------0---2--|3--------------|
+  E----------------|---------------|--------0---2--|3--------------|
-  b-------------0--|1-------0---1--|3--------------|---------------|
+  B-------------0--|1-------0---1--|3--------------|---------------|
-  g-0-------2------|---------------|---------------|---------------|
+  G-0-------2------|---------------|---------------|---------------|
-  d----------------|---------------|---------------|---------------|
+  D----------------|---------------|---------------|---------------|
-  a----------------|---------------|---------------|---------------|
+  A----------------|---------------|---------------|---------------|
-  e----------------|---------------|---------------|---------------|
+  E----------------|---------------|---------------|---------------|
-Here is a very simple song using a I - IV - V - I progression in G Major.  The chord progression is written above the tab.  You can apply rhythm to it however you like, as discussed [[Applying Rhythm to Chords|in a prior lesson]].  The melody written in the tab basically just ascends the G Major scale, playing the root of the chord in the harmony on the downbeat of each measure.
+Notice there's nothing special about the different keys.  Notes may change and chords may need to be voiced a little differently, but ultimately what matters is the pattern.  A I - IV - V - I progression will sound the same in G Major as it does in C Major.  The ascending G Major scale melody above uses the following notes from the scale: 1 2 3 4 3 4 5 6 7 8.  Using the same relationship of notes in C Major would produce an identical effect.
-Notice there's nothing special about the different keys.  Notes may change and chords may need to be voiced a little differently, but ultimately what matters is the pattern.  A I - IV - V - I progression will sound the same in G Major as it does in C Major.  The ascending G Major scale melody above uses the following notes from the scale: 1 2 3 4 3 4 5 6 7 8.  Using the same relationship of notes in C Major would produce an identical effect.
+{{top}}
 == Why Use Different Keys? ==