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Simple Beginner Guitar Lessons – My First Steps To Learning Dominant Ninth Chords On The Guitar
By Mike Hayes | September 30, 2009
The trick with learning guitar chords is understanding how they
function in progressions; you can know how to play fifty chords
and not be able to play one single song, whereas a guitarist who
knows how to link two chords together correctly can play many
songs instantly!
Learning chord shapes from a chord book is a lost cause, you
learn shapes but will never understand how they work in a chord
progression, it’s like learning random words from a dictionary
… you know the visual shape of the words but can’t string them
together to communicate your message clearly.
Once you learn the basic chords on the guitar your ear will
automatically start searching for more complex harmonies; in fact
the whole idea of playing good rhythm guitar is to strike a
balance between tension and release.
Here is the equation for musical motion (write it down … it’s
important!)
tension + release = motion
The basic set of chords beginner guitar players learn are:
major, minor, augmented and diminished chords.
The next type of chords to learn would be the seventh chords:
major seventh, minor seventh, dominant seventh chords; as these
chords will give the guitarist chords that contain added tension.
Of course too much tension and we will have an unsatisfactory
musical result in the same way as too much release will send the
audience to sleep.
We’re wanting to use tension to create elements of surprise and
interest in our musical performance, you may never have thought
about music in these terms, however all your favorite songs have
this neat balance of tension and release that’s why you like
them!
Onwards and upwards, the next set of chords to learn are the
ninth chords: major ninth, minor ninth and dominant ninth.
Today’s project will focus on the dominant ninth chords …
Dominant ninth chord symbol: C9
Dominant ninth chord construction formula : 1-3-5-b7-9
Musical application: most often used as a substitute for a
dominant seventh chord, ninth chords add more tension to the
basic dominant seventh chord family.
Essentially the idea is … the greater the tension in the
harmonic background the greater the impact the release chord has
on the listener.
Step 1. select a major scale
Step 2. using our chord construction formula extract the required
notes.
Step 3. locate the appropriate notes on the guitar fretboard.
Example in C major
C major scale : C-D-E-F-G-A-B-C
chord construction formula : 1-3-5-b7-9
C9 = C-E-G-Bb-D
Example in G major
G major scale : G-A-B-C-D-E-F#-G
chord construction formula : 1-3-5-b7-9
G9 = G-B-D-F-A
Example in D major
D major scale : D-E-F#-G-A-B-C#-D
chord construction formula : 1-3-5-b7-9
D9 = D-F#-A-C-E
Example in F major
F major scale : F-G-A-Bb-C-D-E-F
chord construction formula : 1-3-5-b7-9
F9 = F-A-C-Eb-G
Bonus tip: If you find some of the chord shapes difficult to form
on the fretboard remember you can always omit the fifth note of
the chord without losing the flavor of the ninth chord.
I invite you to use these tips and tools when you play the
guitar.
And now I’d like to invite you to get free access to my “How To
Remember 1,000 Songs” eCourse. You can download the course for
free at: http://www.guitarcoaching.com
From Mike Hayes – The Guitar Coaching Guy & the Express Guitar
System
http://www.GuitarCoaching.com
http://AdvancingGuitaristProgram.com
Topics: Beginner Guitar Lesson, Guitar Chords, Guitar Tips, Learn And Master Guitar | No Comments »
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