G Major and E Minor
The G Major scale consists of the notes G A B C D E F#. G is a 5th above C, or one clockwise movement along the circle of fifths above C. It shares all the same notes as C Major, except the F#, which is the leading tone in G Major.
E Minor is the 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.
Contents
PreReqs
G Major
Diatonic Chords
G Major contains the following diatonic chords:
| I | ii | iii | IV | V | vi | vii° |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | Am | Bm | C | D | Em | Fdim |
| G B D | A C E | B D F# | C E G | D F# A | E G B | F# A C |
Notice the 3 chords with the F# are the only ones that aren't also diatonic to C Major. The Bdim in C Major gets a raised 5th to become Bm. The Dm gets a raised 3rd to become D, and the F becomes F#dim. Their inclusion of the F# leading tone gives them a dominant harmonic function.
Open Position Scale
e--------------------------------------0--2--3- b-----------------------------0--1--3---------- g-----------------------0--2------------------- d--------------0--2--4------------------------- a-----0--2--3---------------------------------- e--3------------------------------------------- r o m r o m p o m o i r o m r G A B C D E F# G A B C D E F# G
E Minor
Diatonic Chords
E (Natural) Minor contains the following diatonic chords:
| i | ii° | III | iv | v | VI | VII |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Em | Fdim | G | Am | Bm | C | D |
| E G B | F# A C | G B D | A C E | B D F# | C E G | D F# A |
Again, notice the 3 chords with the F# are the only ones that aren't also diatonic to A minor. The Bdim in A Minor gets a raised 5th to become Bm. The Dm gets a raised 3rd to become D, and the F becomes F#dim.
Open Position Scale
e--------------------------------------------0-- b-----------------------------------0--1--3----- g-----------------------------0--2-------------- d--------------------0--2--4-------------------- a-----------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
Open Position Chord Voicings
| G | Am | Bm | C | D | Em | F#dim |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|-|-|-|p|-| |-|-|-|r|-| |o|-|-|-|-| |o|-|-|-|-| |-|-|i|-|-| |-|-|-|m|-| 0 |
|o|-|-|-|-| |-|i|-|-|-| |-|-|r|-|-| |-|-|m|-|-| |o|-|-|-|-| |-|-|-|-|-| 0 |
|-|-|i|-|-| |-|-|)|m|-| |-|-|)|-|p| |-|-|)|-|r| |-|-|i|-|-| |-|-|-|-|-| 0 |
|o|-|-|-|-| |-|i|-|-|-| |o|-|-|-|-| |-|-|m|-|-| |-|-|-|r|-| |-|-|-|-|-| 0 |
|-|-|m|-|-| |-|-|-|r|-| |-|-|i|-|-| |o|-|-|-|-| |-|-|-|-|-| |-|-|-|-|-| 0 |
|o|-|-|-|-| |o|-|-|-|-| |o|-|-|-|-| |-|-|r|-|-| |-|-|m|-|-| |o|-|-|-|-| 0 |
|-|-|r|-|-| |-|i|-|-|-| |-|-|m|-|-| |-|-|-|-|p| |-|-|-|-|-| |-|-|-|-|-| 0 |
If the F#dim shape is too difficult to reach the F# on the high E string, you can leave it off.
Sample Song in G Major
G C D G I IV V I 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 e----------------|---------------|--------0---2--|3--------------| b-------------0--|1-------0---1--|3--------------|---------------| g-0---0---2------|---------------|---------------|---------------| d----------------|---------------|---------------|---------------| a----------------|---------------|---------------|---------------| 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 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.