This lesson is for intermediate to advanced skill levels.
Chord-Melody is a style of guitar playing in which
the melody and the underlying harmony (chords) are played
together, simultaneously, to create a complete
orchestration. It is usually done in a solo guitar context,
although it can also be appropriate in a group setting.
Fingerstyle playing is recommended, although plectrum
(pick) style playing is also perfectly acceptable, and the
concepts outlined in this lesson are also valid in that
context.
This lesson will attempt to expand on concepts which were explored in the first installment of this series, Chord-Melody 101:Part 1:Getting a Grip. If you have not worked thru that lesson, I strongly suggest that you check it out before attempting this installment. During this lesson I will be using concepts outlined in Part 1, but I will not be providing detailed explanations of them as I did in that previous lesson. If you are unfamiliar with any of these following concepts, please learn about them in Part 1 of Chord-Melody 101.
A brief summary of harmonic concepts outlined in Chord-Melody 101:Part 1:Getting a Grip:
- The Harmonized Major Scale - Chords
constructed on each of the seven degrees of the major
scale.
- Modal Usage of the Harmonized Major Scale -
Any of the chords derived from the major scale can be
utilized for any of the seven modes
- Voicings - the order of the notes (voices) within
a chord
- Voice Leading - voicing chords within a
progression so each note moves smoothly (preferrably
stepwise) between them and creates independent, melodic
lines
- Secondary Dominant - an altered diatonic chord having a dominant or leading tone relationship to a chord in the key other than the tonic.
- Modal Interchange - the practice of "borrowing"
chords from a parallel mode to the parent key
- Passing Chords - Chords whose primary
purpose is to link two chords via chromatic movement
- Slash Chords - Chords over bass notes.
Specific bass notes for the voicing are indicated by a /, i.e.
C/G is C major with G in the bass
- Dominant Approach - On rhythms of a
quarter-note or less in duration, any chord can be preceded
by it's related V7 chord. Any V7 chord can also be preceded
with it's related ii-7 chord.
- b5 Substitution - any dominant 7th chord can be
substituted with another dominant 7th chord whose root lies
a b5 away. This generates a dom7(b5,b9) sound
- Diminished Substitution - you can substitute a
dom7 chord with a diminished 7th chord whose root lies a
half-step above. This generates a dom7b9 sound.
- Relative Major Substitution - you can substitute
a minor 7th chord with a major 7th chord whose root lies a
b3 above it to generate a min9th sound.
Over the course of this lesson, we will explore some additional arranging and performance techniques, including:
- embellishment of the melody
- Rhythmic and Melodic Devices for performance, such as
chord arpeggiation
- Symmetric Harmony
- Quartal Harmony
- use of single-note lines or licks
Okay...on to the lesson!!
