learning chords best way to practise

[leighbeynon]

i basically really want to be able to create my own chord progressions,
kind of neo soul, soulful house style.

ive got some books and it tells me to memorise the position of each major
chord, starting at B and working right through the circle of 5ths, ending Gb

then the same with min, aug, 7ths,
is this a good method? or would i better practising some other way?

im prepared for this to take a few years, but just want to be looking at a good concise method of practise.

[Acid Mitch]

Do what the books say.
If you dont memorize what the chords are you haven't actually learned them.
And if you learn chords you can use them in any kind of music, not just house or neo soul.

[geroyannis]

Since you're talking about "creating" chord progressions, and not playing/improvising around them, I would suggest the best thing to do would be analyzing favorite songs in your preferred style. Start "borrowing" ideas, and with time you'll probably find your own voice.

[vanpet]

choose a scale, stick to it, use only the notes in it to do any combinaison of 3 keys. It should sound ok most of the time.

[Bobbotov]

Chances are you will not create a "new" chord progression but merely a variation on what has already been done. Such is the finiteness of western music. But that is not a limiting factor as all (Western music) songs ever written were done within the range of only twelve notes.

I learned chords by transcribing music I liked and additionally playing from fake books. Fake books give you the melody and chords in symbolic form (like Cmaj7b5). Here is an example:

http://www.cornwallmusicservice.com/imp ... -%20Bb.pdf

With a handy chord reference source to look up the symbols after awhile you will learn the chords and also see how they are used in existing songs and how the chord progression develops and resolves. It does take time as learning chords means not only knowing the root position but all inversions and voicings. When I studied jazz, chord voicing was extremely important and what it means is how is the chord "voiced" across the keyboard. For example a simple triad is usually the first, third and fifth. But it can be voiced as the first, fifth and tenth. Not exactly an inversion and in this case a voicing that was used extensively in old time stride piano (check out Teddy Wilson). Voicing can open up a chord. On the other hand compare that to someone like Bill Evans who voiced in something called crush chords (i.e. first, second, third, fourth which would be a C9sus) or chords whose notes are voiced very close together.

If you do not have perfect pitch (I don't) you can train your relative pitch skills. That is why transcribing is also very important. In time you will be able to hear a chord as being major, minor, augmented, diminished, etc. without knowing exactly what notes are in the chord initially.

You can probably pick up the bulk of chord knowledge within a year.

Here are some handy references for chords that I have found useful:

http://www.apassion4jazz.net/keys.html

http://www.theguitarguy.com/songs.htm

http://www.songtrellis.com/composers/Jo ... hangeslist

http://www.outsideshore.com/primer/prim ... r-4-7.html

http://www.cornwallmusicservice.com/imp ... oindex.htm

http://www.answers.com/topic/chord-notation

[wrench45us]

There are a lot of ways to go at learning chords
One of the most important is to understand how to create a given chord type, so that in any key, any root, you know the notes involved.

As those basics get established, there are certain common/standard chord progressions and variants that help with voice leading from chord to chord. It gets kind of old fast to always play block chords -- though that 1 3 5 7 shape is generally what gets 'memorized'. This is where the ii V I progression comes in and all the different ways to voice that as closed or open voicing and inversions and how to move from one chord to another and throw in the variations like backfilling etc. This is where ii V I practice across the circle of fifths comes in.

Then eventually some chromatic passing chords outside the working key get thrown in just for color.

It sounds a bit daunting, but it's not so bad and working things up in the style you like with songs you're familiar with helps to make the transition from practice and theory to application.

[Koo'waan]

i basically really want to be able to create my own chord progressions

This is Composition & Harmony work.
You will have to study these on your own so choose 1 or 2 books (less is more) specifically and stick to them. Right ones if possible.

Recommended for you :
- Handbook of Chord Substitutions ( Andy Laverne )
- Modal Jazz harmony v.1 & 2 ( Ron Miller )

ive got some books and it tells me to memorise the position of each major
chord through the circle of 5ths, then the same with min, aug, 7ths, is this a good method?

Two things here:
First is Voicings work, it is an endless world, you'll probably have to create your own vocabulary on that subject the same way you intend to do with Progressions. Here again choose the right book and study it (make your own charts). Keep in mind that Synthesizer playing requires its own techniques.

Recommended for you :
- Jazz-Rock Voicings for the Contemporary Keyboard Player ( Dan Haerle )

Second is Cycles practice, the good method as you questioned it and the only way to make you FREE. Each Voicing (Progression, Scale) should be practiced along cycles, this is the key to Transposition, re-Harmonization & true Composition. The 5th cycle is the most important as it is based on the most prominent II V I Progression in modern music. But this is just the begining...

Recommended for you :

1/2 (chromatic)
→
C . C# . D . D# . E . F . F# . G . G# . A . A# . B
←
B . Bb . A . Ab . G . Gb . F . E . Eb . D . Db . C

1 (unitonic)
C . D . E . F# . G# . A# . C# . D# . F . G . A . B
B . A . G . F . Eb . Db . Bb . Ab . Gb . E . D . C

-3 (minor thirds)
C . D# . F# . A . C# . E . G . A# . D . F . G# . B
B . AB . F . D . Bb . G . E . Db . A . Gb . Eb . C

3 (major thirds)
C . E . G# . C# . F . A . D . F# . A# . D# . G . B
B . G . Eb . Bb . Gb . D . A . F . Db . Ab . E . C

4 (4ths)
C . F . A# . D# . G# . C# . F# . B . E . A . D . G
G . D . A . E . B . Gb . Db . Ab . Eb . Bb . F . C

-5 (minor 5ths)
C . F# . C# . G . D . G# . D# . A . E . A# . F . B
B . F . Bb . E . A . Eb . Ab . D . G . Db . Gb . C

5 (fifths)
C . G . D . A . E . B . F# . C# . G# . D# . A# . F
F . Bb . Eb . Ab . Db . Gb . B . E . A . D . G . C

-6 (minor sixths)
C . G# . E . C# . A . F . D . A# . F# . E . C . G#
Ab . C . E . Gb . Bb . D . F . A . Db . E . Ab . C

6 (major sixths)
C . A . F# . D# . C# . A# . G . E . D . B . G# . F
F . Ab . B . D . E . G . Bb . Db . Eb . Gb . A . C

7 (major sevenths)
C . A# . G# . F# . E . D . B . A . G . F . D# . C#
Db . Eb . F . G . A . B . D . E . Gb . Ab . Bb . C

Random
C . G# . D . A# . B . D# . A . F# . G . C# . E . F
F . E . Db . G . Gb . A . Eb . B . Bb . D . Ab . C
...

im prepared for this to take a few years

It's better.

but just want to be looking at a good concise method of practise

This is it.

Good Luck

[psenior]

Hi Leigh,

We have discussed this topic numerous times in the past. Let's give it another go, shall we?

I assume at this point, you can play the major scales in all keys and you can play all the triads and seventh chords that occur on each degree of the major scale.

If you want to make "neo-soul, soulful house" style songs, you gotta get inspired! First off, I have been going to grooveshark.com and queuing up every song on there by Incognito. Next, I just start playing along. It's difficult at first, depending on the song, but if you keep at it you will start to gain some knowledge as to how this genre of music works. Then, after a while, I just naturally end up sitting down at the keyboard and making up something that sounds similar but is not at all an exact copy. I don't think about music theory; I just play. Lastly, if I played something I liked, I write down the chords that I played and that chord progression eventually becomes a song.

If you hear melodies or bass lines in your head that you like, determine what the notes are, then harmonize them. If you hear rhythms in your head that you like, play your melodies and harmonies to that rhythm.

I think that, past a certain point, books are no longer helpful. You have to internalize music by listening to songs over and over again. You have to start watching other keyboard players who are doing what you want to do and start stealing from them. There are a lot of videos of good players on the web and I have found many of them very useful for learning licks, chord voicings, etc. Best of all would be having a teacher who can do all this stuff showing you how its done. Have you ever tried to get in touch with someone like Matt Cooper (keyboard player for Incognito)? Both of you guys are in the UK.

[leighbeynon]

Wow loads of info thanks koo'wann

you clearly have alot of theory knowledge
to be honest it is all very interesting

at the moment I'm playing maj and min triads starting at b maj, ending
Gb maj, just trying to play from memory
I realise these are just boring root triads and voicing is where you get much more interesting sounding chords
but I need to start at the basics.

Alot of people tell me to try and play music in the same style but it seems too advanced ?
I don't read music very fast and don't move to chords as quickly as I'd like I guess that's all in the practise also.
Yes your correct psenior we have discussed this, I just decided to try and keen myself as my teacher doesn't think I'm ready for this stuff,

Great advice from everyone this truely is a different forum to the rest on the web.

[psenior]

Advanced is just being able to perform the basics flawlessly, on demand, without any warm up. You have to consistently practice your scales, triads, arpeggios and chords in a musical manner so that you don't get bored.

If you were to pick some songs you'd really like to learn, join a band and start rehearsing, you'd find that you would be forced to start improving rapidly; otherwise your band mates will eventually seek out another keyboard player.

Thinking about this music theory stuff so much is not going to get you where you want to go. Do the work and be a musician.

[leighbeynon]

many thanks indeed, i will keep practising and trying to become a better keyboard player overall, the more hours i put in the more ill get out of this