Monday, May 10, 2010

Polychords

Another way to view large or complex chords is to break them down into two smaller chords.
This is advantages when in a band situation you can give each a player different part of the chord to play.


First lets go back to the C Major Family of Chords - using four note chords (every other note in a group of four notes)


C major 7th = R, 3rd, 5th, 7th C, E, G, B two chords lie within the C major 7th chord.
C, E, G = C major and E, G, B = E minor.


(So the Bass player could play the C note, the keyboard could play C major chord (C, E, G) and the guitar could play E minor (E, G, B) across the neck or as solo or a melody played arpeggio style).


D minor 7th = R, b3rd, 5th, b7th D, F, A, C
D, F, A = D minor and F, A, C = F major


E minor 7th = R, b3rd, 5th, b7th E, G, B, D
E, G, B = E minor and G, B, D = G major


F major 7th = R, 3rd, 5th, 7th F, A, C, E
F, A, C = F major and A, C, E = A minor.


G dominant 7th = R, 3rd, 5th, b7th G, B, D, F
G, B, D = G major and B, D, F = B diminished.


A minor 7th = R, b3rd, 5th, b7th A, C, E, G
A, C, E = A minor and C, E, G = C major


B minor 7th b5th = R, b3rd, b5th, b7th B, D, F, A
B, D, F = B diminished and D, F, A = D minor




Assignment: Record each of these chords - using quarter note strums for five to ten minutes. Then using quarter then eighth notes on another track or with a friend play the first, then second polytonal chord up and back arpeggio style. Later combine the scale (major) with the arpeggio for more interesting sounds.





All materials copy-write 2010. For personal use only.

Vince Lauria Sun and Earth Music

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