[harles]

I would like to know how to improvise through using chords like Joe Pass, Wes Montgomery, Pat Martino, Lenny Breau, Bireli Lagrene, Django Reinhardt (who i understand was missing two fingers, how many chords can you play with 2 fingers?). Do you just play a load of add9's and minor 6ths? . How do you know which chords to progress through, are there any rules? Chord progressions are the big one i am stuck with, do you just make progressions up or are certain chords within the particular key played?

This video right here helped make some sence. It seems like he is picking more notes around the chord and not just the notes in the chord exclusively, what relationship do these notes have with the chords?

I know i have asked quite a lot but i am interseted you see .

Any help or good resources would be great and appreciated. Thanks.

[randomaire]

Looks to me like he's going G-D-D7-D6-D5(just playing with the last three to get that bluesy feel and then scaling a tad at the high end.

If you're having problems with chords work in the open position till you feel comfortable with em..... Chords like A, Am, E, Em, C, D, Dm, G, etc.

Chords can be a huge step for some people, but to me chords are easier than fingerstyle lol, I think Im backwards to most people in here on that.

[harles]

Thanks for the help randomaire .

I have absolutely no problems (....) when it comes to playing chords physically, its all just mental theory probably. I'm interested in playing this style of music and would like to improvise like them but just don't know what theory to start on and how to study it. I know some theory but it just doesn't seem to link together, like a progression, of chords and the like .

[randomaire]

Well in this forum I've seen it go both ways, some say scales, some say chord based, and some say a combo of both.

I would say know your scales yes, but also know what makes up the chords that you wanna play. Knowing the notes on the chords can be trully invaluable.

This may be wrong, but then again Im not the best at explaining this, but to me I would at playing in a couple of ways... one: I play chords (this includes, open chords, barre chords, power chords, etc.) two: solo's anything outside of chords but can include chords working in some form of a scale.

Ok that was confusing: easier... guitar playing to me is either solo'ing, chording, or fingering. Fingering = solo'ing and chording mixed. Solo'ing = Chording and fingering mixed and Chording = well chording lol used to build solo's and fingering.

Yeah someone else would probably be better at explaining all that. But when I think of style I think of strum type, scale type, and how you make effects on your amp (settings).

[allthumbs]

Jazz players are adding all kinds of chord extentions like, 9ths, 11ths 13ths. Playing lots of chord inversions. Throwing in passing chords, outside chords, changing keys on the fly etc. It is a very deep subject. There are some common jazz progressions that are used as a base. This site seems to have a section on progressions. It might help.
http://www.petethomas.co.uk/jazz-cho...gressions.html

[Kirk Lorange]

Hi harles.

I watched that video and this is basically my approach to soloing ... outlining melody with chord tones and using other notes to link them where needed. The trick is to see chords for what they actually are ... chords are not really little clusters of notes that you can play at once, they are in fact a collection of notes that stretch from one end of the fretboard to the other. Once you can see each chord in the piece of music like that, you can then easily turn those notes into melody, and melody that is always relevant to the moment. Have a look at the Anatomy of a C chord lesson ... it shows you what a C major chord actually looks like on a fretboard ... the whole chord. All chords can be 'seen' like this, no matter what flavor.

My book/DVD PlaneTalk describes and demonstrates a very simple way to keep track of it all. By 'simple' I don't mean that you'll be soloing with confidence within days, it takes a whole lot of playing and practicing and retraining your fingers to get away from linear scales and attack the mattrix of chord tones from a different perspective, but once digested, you will never wonder 'what scale?' again. You'll just be thinking chords and melody ...

BTW, in the video, the player demonstrates the neat trick of imagining a chord that isn't really there, and plays through its tones. There are many such 'tricks' that you can use once you start seeing melody as disassembled chords rather than scales ... those seemingly complex and convoluted sounding lines are a piece of cake once you can see the fretboard in this way ... you're just playing through another chord, and you get to know the various ways of weaving it all together.

BTW2: Even though there are hundreds of chords 'out there', they can all be mentally bagged into just 3 groups: Major, minor, dom7. The rest is mere detail.

[bmurnahan]

Hi harles,

Kirks right on the money here. It can seem like a daunting task to keep track of and play through a bunch of chords and it does take time. I, like Kirk, believe in keeping things as simple as possible. That's exactly what PT does. I don't know your level of playing but it is worth the investment.

As a person that seems to have gotten a reputation as a "scale guy" I will add this.
The study of scales is useful to the extent that you can have an understanding of some of the different flavors that are available for use when picking notes that are not the chord tones. They also help you gain technical skills to help you get around the guitar.

Don't get too caught up in the modes, etc. It makes things more complicated than they need to be. Also, take it in small bits. If you learn something apply it right away. You can make music with just a few notes. You do not have to wait until you feel you have all this knowledge.

How do you know which chords to progress through, are there any rules? Chord progressions are the big one i am stuck with, do you just make progressions up or are certain chords within the particular key played?

There are progressions that occur over and over again in all types of music. The chords in the progression typically will come from the key you are in but chords outside the key can be present as well.

In jazz it's possible to be in a different key every measure. Knowing a 2-5-1 progression is essential to playing jazz standards. It's a progression that happens over and over. This is one of the ways you can make things easier. By recognising patterns like this and having the knowledge of these shapes on the guitar, you have access to tools that can make soloing easier.

Hang in there and it will come together.

[Justapicker]

Learn to play melodies using chords with the upper note in the chord being the melody note. Start with simple melodies that you know by heart (Christmas tunes are good) and simple chords. When you've figured out a simple arrangement find different chords that contain the melody notes. You can make it as complex or simple as you like.

[Kincaid]

Hi Harles,

Have you tried working with Diatonic Chord Scales at all. In other words harmonizing
a scale in chords. For example in the key of A then the 1 to 7 chords are

Amaj7 Bm7 C#m7 Dmaj7 E7 F#m7 G#m7(flat5) and then back to Amaj7 on 8

Playing around with these chords can be interesting, and transposing to the other keys
will get you used to how the sounds are connected.

Also the basic jazz progression of
Gmaj7 Gmaj6 Gmaj7 Gmaj6 Am7 Am6 Am7 D13flat5flat9 then back to Gmaj7

I will find some links that may be useful to you, but i will have to get back to you
on that later.

Keep working and enjoy

[lorispencer]

This link has good lessons and progressions

[lorispencer]

This is also good but may be advanced on some

[lorispencer]

This has some cool progressions as well.

[Kincaid]

Hi Lori,

Thanks for the links. I will check them out. Also it will give Harles something to work
with. I will add some links as soon as i can.
meanwhile happy playing.

[si16]

One of the PT guys posted a linke there a while back which you might find useful -

http://www.ralphpatt.com/VBook.html

It is a site specialising in chord changes for many of the old classics and standards. It does have the chords for 'All of Me' too.

[Das Alt Peruke]

Originally Posted by harles

I would like to know how to improvise through using chords like Joe Pass, Wes Montgomery, Pat Martino, Lenny Breau, Bireli Lagrene, Django Reinhardt (who i understand was missing two fingers, how many chords can you play with 2 fingers?). Do you just play a load of add9's and minor 6ths? . How do you know which chords to progress through, are there any rules? Chord progressions are the big one i am stuck with, do you just make progressions up or are certain chords within the particular key played?

This video right here helped make some sence. It seems like he is picking more notes around the chord and not just the notes in the chord exclusively, what relationship do these notes have with the chords?

I know i have asked quite a lot but i am interseted you see .

Any help or good resources would be great and appreciated. Thanks.

Get a Jazz 6 chord blues, write a counterpoint, harmonize the countpointed melody with chords of the corresponding measure, you will learn lots of new chords and develop your ear also. I myself have developed my ears and they now hang half way down my head.