Our last chord exercise involved the forward roll...we will now learn three main roll patterns that can assist you in gaining more facility with your right-hand picking.
1. Forward Roll
2. Forward/Reverse Roll
3. Reverse Roll
Practice the above exercises until you are completely comfortable with sliding and picking simultaneously without hesitating between beats. Remember, these exercises are considered accomplished only if you're keeping an even tempo without losing a beat.
Know Your Music Theory #1
I am a beginner on my new Benoit Resonator Square neck guitar and I am enjoying it immensely….I will try to understand your answer about the minors…I printed your response from the on-line question…I am not a student of music theory so I am not sure I understand but will try..what about 7th??? How do I make those?
God Bless .......
Greetings,
To make a seventh chord on a squareneck dobro:
1. You'll first want to determine where the 7th tone of the chord falls...and, of course, you'll want to be able to find the note on the dobro itself...so, you'll want to be well-versed where all of the notes fall on a dobro...
Practice Notes: Try counting the string intervals up to the fifth fret...for instance, starting with the D Bass string, count it as open D, first fret: D# or Eb, second fret: E, third fret: F, fourth fret: F# or Gb, and fifth fret: G....now do this with every string...of course, to do this, you'll need to know the intervals within the 12 tones of the Western Scale...so, you might want to crack open some music theory books.
Here are the 12-tones with intervals starting with the A note:
A • A# or Bb • C • C# or Db • D • D# or Eb • E • F • F# or Gb • G • G# or Ab • A
Now, if you know the names of all of your open strings on your dobro, you can count up using the above denoted intervals...
After doing this, try to memorize the note placements on your dobro up to the fifth fret...you should be able to find an F# on your D string without counting...once you've properly memorized the intervals on the open D bass string...or the open D high string...both F#'s fall on the fourth fret...keeping in mind that an F# is also a Gb....
2. You'll want to know how to build a 7th chord off the cuff...so that you'll be better able to adapt to any playing situation quickly...
This requires that you learn how to build chords...for instance, to build a G major chord, you'll need to memorize the 1 3 5 intervals of the G major scale: 1 would be G (or the tonic note of the scale), 3 would be B (or the third note of the scale) and 5 would be D (the fifth note of the scale)...now to build a G7 chord, you only need to add the flatted seventh tone of the scale...remember this applies to all seventh chords...the 7th tone of a G major scale is F#...flatting the note, means to take a half-step back on the scale...making the note an F natural...now we know that the G7 consists of the 1 3 and 5 intervals along with the flatted 7...here's our G7 chord in its entirety: G B D F
With this in mind, and with our notes memorized up to the fifth fret, you can now build your first chord:
All of the open strings, in the open G tuning of a squareneck dobro, consist of G B D G B D...which of course makes it a G Major chord built in...to add our F note, to complete the G7 chord, we only need to count up on the high D string 3 frets...this would be an F...if you tilt the bar, so that it's not touching other strings, you can strum the entire chord with the F being fretted at the third fret...and end up with a G7 chord complete...
Many times, especially when playing further up the neck with closed position bar chords, you'll be using partial chords...in other words, it's not necessary to used all four tones to recreate a 7th chord...you can use only two or three of the tones and still have the chord coloring working for you...this applies to both minor and 7th chords...
Where do 7th chords apply within the context of a song?
A 7th chord usually falls on the dominant chord within a chord progression...for instance, a G chord progression usually consists of G (tonic), C (subdominant) and D (dominant)....therefore, when playing a G chord progression, when adding the 7th to the D chord, it can add color to the progression...and sound logical...
In blues chord progressions...the 7th can occur on all three chords and still sound logical: G7 C7 and D7...
You'll want to experiment with this to see what sounds right to you...
Music Theory:
This is an extensive study unto itself and should be pursued throughout your musical lifetime...I only tried to lay down the basic principles...my first suggestion is to start studying music theory for it truly does apply to all instruments and all styles of music...
Hope this helps...Mickey
Date: Wed, 18 Dec 2002 14:50:38 -0400
how do you play minor chords on a dobro (in open G tunign), thanks bob
Greetings Bob,
Unless you find a specialized bar (with a recess for bringing down the B string 1/2 step), it's next to impossible to achieve minor chords on a Squareneck...
Here's what I do:
1. I will bend strings to pitch to create some chords...while holding down the bar, I'll bend one or two strings (leaving the others stationary) to create a chord...
2. I will play two-note chords based on the minor triad...for instance:
A Cm is built on the 1 3b 5 triad...which is C Eb and G...now, on the fifth fret, with the bar flat, I have a major C Chord...by slanting the bar, I can cover the Eb and G notes simultaneously...by a reverse slant, I can cover the C (on the G string) and the Eb (on the B string)...
3. Another technique that I use quite extensively is omit the flatted 3rd...to do this, I simply play all the notes out of the major chord position, and omit the 3rd note (usually the B string)...for instance:
On the 10th fret, with the bar flat across all strings, if I avoid the B strings I essentially will have a harmonious Dm Chord.
http://www.resohangout.com/lessons/browse.asp?m=bytopic&id=28
