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Original message:444 days 14 hours 49 minutes ago

Member: jttrussler

28
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This is a cool thing i learned from Jon Damian at Berklee. What you do is take a song (we did stella by starlight). Now you take the "key" of the song and start with the tonic. This is the soprano (highest) voice of the chord. From here you build the rest of the chord downwards using any availible notes within reach. Now you move the soprano voice down to the next note of the scale and repeat. If the song changes key or there is a tension, MAKE THE NECESSARY CHANGES. Do as I say. This technique expands your playing ability, voice leading capabilities, and chord vocabulary.
If you get bored of just going down the scale, then the next step is just writing a voice led arrangement. i.e. instead of using notes in the scale, use the notes of the melody. If you end up with a bar in the voicing then you get to use the rest of your free fingers to embellish and make it pretty like a warm summer rain, or greg pearce. I would include a chart or recording or something but I'm too poor to upload anything like that. Use your noodles.
respek

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Reply:444 days 10 hours 3 minutes ago
Member: Captain Fantastic

1175
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Good trick Truss, that's very hip. What did you do over the 4th scale degree, sus4?

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I enjoy skinny skiing, heckling figure skaters, flamenco guitar, the blue stuff you put your combs in, good drummers, focaccia bread and coffee out of a french press

Reply:441 days 12 minutes ago
Member: jttrussler

+ 1

28
WebCred

Usually once you get to the fourth scale degree you're onto a different chord. See you only go down the scale a few notes per chord change. Example if you were playing ii-V-I-vi, then you would play 3 notes of the key per chord. And if you do run into something like that anyway, the sus4 could work...or why not just give it a #11. Always a good choice.

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Reply:440 days 7 hours 9 minutes ago
Member: johnmarkh

154
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what if i like key changes and tension

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Reply:439 days 18 hours 55 minutes ago
Member: jttrussler

+ 1

28
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You can do pretty much whatever you like with it, but the idea is to expand your chord vocabulary through voice leading.

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