Dominant 7th Voicings We’ve checked out Major 7th, Minor 7th, now it’s time for some Dominants. These are all based on G dominant 7th. The spelling for the chord is G-B-D-F. Remember, no matter how the letters are organized, it can still be referred to as a G7 chord. Often times on a lead sheet…
Breaking out of the Cage! When we first learn our scales and scale positions, they’re often presented in a one position, “boxed in” pattern. Then, once we master this pattern, we learn another pattern, and so on and so on. These box patterns are also referred to as the Caged system. As a beginner student,…
Practice Better! An approach to learning Jazz Standards Pt. 3 We’ve got two ways to play it? Now, after this is mastered, shoot for FOUR ways. Attached again are two more ways to play the same chords. Because of the nature of the guitar, and how the notes are arranged, we have to be more…
Practice Better! An approach to learning Jazz Standards Pt. 2 In part one we looked at the first step towards mastery of a standard: the chords. As and example, I’m going to post what are most likely the chords the average guitarist will use, especially if they’re just getting started with Jazz. Now over…
Practice Better! An approach to learning Jazz Standards Pt. 1 For these examples, I’ll be using “Fly me to the moon”, written by Bart Howard. If you’ve ever sat and watched a great Jazz guitarist, such as Jimmy Bruno, Pat Metheny, or Pat Martino, you’ll see these guys flying all over the fretboard. Their chord…
Chords for Beginners When the student is ready to dive into chords, G, C, A, and E minor should be the ones you tackle first and foremost. These chords are in so many songs, at this point it can’t even be calculated. There are exercises we do that focus on some of the problems students…
Blue Christmas – Elvis I’m considering transcribing ALOT of Elvis tunes. First of all, they’re great songs. Most of them are fairly easy and accessible, and finding a good transcription of them on the internet is really a tough call. Many transcriptions are off slightly, or totally wrong, this is why it’s important to find…
Should I Stay or Should I go – The Clash Pt. 2 Posted below is the second page of Should I stay or Should I go from The Clash. In part 1, we talked about ways to tackle some the difficulties, namely the F chord, the rhythm, and the one A7 that pops up. Here…
Should I Stay or Should I go – The Clash Pt.1 This is a classic tune that every guitar player should know! Especially after the popularity of Stranger Things! This one may be tough for a 1-2 year student, but there are ways to make it a little easier. You’ll need to know your basic…
Blowin’ in the Wind – Bob Dylan We use this tune quite a bit, in different variations, so I thought I’d share our transcription here. I have it written as a chord chart, but if the student wanted to get deeper into the finger patterns of the song, it’s totally doable. Note to capo the…