We’ve already been over dominant chords.  If you missed that make sure you get up to speed here. Today we will be taking the next step and look at some secondary dominants.

Review

First lets recall some things about dominant seventh chords:

• A dominant seventh is made up of a major triad with a minor 7th added.

• In a major scale the fifth tone of the scale can become the root of a diatonic dominant seventh chord for that key.

• In minor keys we sometimes will raise the seventh of the key by one half step (harmonic minor) so the the seventh chord build on the fifth of the scale is in fact a dominant seventh (if not it would be a minor seventh).

• The diatonic dominant seventh contains the key defining tritone, the third and seventh of the chord  (seven and four tones of the key respectively)

An Analysis of Brahms’ Lullaby

The easiest way I can explain what exactly secondary dominants are are to give an example.  So we’ll start with an analysis of a piece you have all heard: Brahms’ Lullaby.  It’s in A major, so lets quickly break down all the diatonic chords in A major:

A Major Diatonic Chords

Now lets start the analysis:

Measures 1-7

It starts out simply enough.  The first to measure establish the tonic as A Maj (A C# E).  In the fifth  measure  it moves onto the vi chord, F# min (F# A C#). Then in the 7th measure it starts to get a little weird.  The first chord is a iii chord, C# min,  but the the chord on the third beat of the measure is a mystery (its not that big of a mystery if you read the previous paragraphs).

Lets break down that chord a little.  It contains four notes: [G# B# D# and F#, hint- remember the key signature].  That would make the chord a G# dominant 7 chord.  But the dominant 7th of A maj is E dom7, so how can that G#dom7 be in there?  Look at the next measure for the answer:

Measures 7 and 8

The next chord is also a iii chord.  So we have a C# min chord, then a G#dom7  chord, then a C#  min chord again.  If we think about the C# harmonic minor scale [ C# D# E F# G# A B# C#],  we see that the dominant 7th in this key is G#dom7.  So the mystery chord is in fact the dominant 7th chord of C#min.  We would write this as V7/iii or V7 of iii ( said “five seven of three”).  In the piece it is as though for a moment C# becomes the tonic for. The chord is called a secondary dominant chord because it is a dominant chord that is borrowed from one of the notes of the A major scale.  In this case Brahms’ barrows the dominant of C#, the three of A maj.

Measures 8 – 15

In measure 9 we move back to the tonic, A maj, with a simple V7- I progression.  Then comes another mystery chord [A C# E  G].  At first glance this chord may look like a I7 chord.  But if it was an Amaj7 chord  it would have a G# not a G natural.  It is instead an Adom7, the V7 of DMaj.  If we look at the next chord it is in fact a D major chord which is a IV chord in A maj.  So mystery chord “A” is V7/IV.  It is the dominant of the fourth tone in the A maj scale, which makes D a “mini-tonic” for a few measures.  Next comes mystery chord B, [B D# F# A].  At first glance it may look like a ii chord in A maj.  But it contains a D# so it is not.  It is instead a Bdom7, which is the dom7 of E Maj, the V of A maj.  So mystery chord B is V7/V.  I’ve posted a complete analysis of the first 15 measure below (click to enlarge).

If you want to listen to the piece you can do that here

NOTE: the analysis is on a later variation than the audio

Things to Know about Secondary Dominants

• They are make from the dominants of of the notes in the “home key”
• They are normally followed by the chord they are the dominant of
• They always contain some kind of accidental
• They are written as V7/(the chord in the home key they are dominant of)
• They briefly tonicize a note other than the tonic.

If you have any questions or comments or are confused about anything email then to me at mdguitarteacher@gmail.com

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What’s Economy Picking?

Economy Picking is a style of picking where you take the shortest pickstroke to the next note.  It can be a very effective way to pick and is very useful in certain situations.  Once you get it down you will be able to do it naturally, but here are some rules to get you started.

The Rules for Economy Picking

1) If you are picking a note that is one the same string as the last note you played, play it as if you were alternate picking (if you just used an upstroke, use a downstroke and vice versa).

2) If you are picking a note that is on a higher (in pitch) string than the last note you played, use a downstroke.  ex. If you just played a note on the D string and you are moving to the B string, use an downstroke.

3)  If you are picking a note that is on a lower (in pitch) string than the last note you played, use a upstroke.  ex. If you just played a note on the D string and you are moving to the A string, use an upstroke.

Some Examples

In the examples I’ve given how you would play it with alternate picking and then how to play it with economy picking.  Learn the rules here.

Example 1

Example 2

This one starts on a downstroke.

(Click for Full Size)

If you have any questions on economy picking, email them to me at mdguitarteacher@gmail.com.  While your at it, let me have all your music theory questions and I’ll write a lesson on them soon.

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Over 30% of you said that picking exercises are your highest priority.  He’s a unique exercise that is based on  a major arpeggio. You can also expand this out minor arpeggios if you want some variety.  Use alternate picking and make sure you do the string skips carefully.  You can continue the exercise all the way up the fretboard ( I have only shown 2 arps, but you can go as far up the fretboard as you’d like).

(Click for Full Size Image)

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Need some more help with your alternate picking?  Here’s 3 more licks to help you out.

1)  Trilogy Suite

2) Allegro

3) Arpeggios from Hell

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I got at recent request to write a lesson on how to play Kashmir by Led Zeppelin.  The first thing you need to know about this songs is that it is not in standard tuning.  It it is in a modal tuning called  Open Dsus4 tuning, or commonly refer to as “dad gad.”  Obviously it is called “dadgad” tuning because the letters spell out the individual strings.  Below is a chart on how to tune to dadgad from standard tuning:

Ok, now that we have the tuning, lets get to the riffs.  Even though the song is fairly long, there are four riffs that make up the entire thing.

Riff #1

This first riff is the first and most famous riff in the song.

***Hint*** if you’re having trouble playing the riff, you can omit the 5th fret on the A string that you have to play through out.  You already are playing a D so omitting the second D will make have a little less full sound but it will be much easier if you’re having trouble.

Riff #2

This next riff follows a simple pattern all the way down the fretboard.  Pretty easy.

Riff #3

Another basic riff.

Riff #4

This one shows you how to play some super-sized power chords in dadgad tuning.  I call them power chords because each though they use all 6 strings, they contain only a root and a 5th in various octaves.

There you go.  Before I end here is the actual song.

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The Question:

i really want to learn rock music i am a fan of metal and rock. Where do I start I get very confused because i don’t know how to read note symbols and the various scales.I can read basic guitar tabs but dont know about power chords etc.Can u plz point me in the right direction  so that i can start playing some rock.

My Response:

If you want to play rock music you must learn two things: power chords and the pentatonic scale.  I have some lessons on power chords if you would like to use them.

http://guitarteacher.wordpress.com/2007/11/25/an-intro-to-power-chords/
http://guitarteacher.wordpress.com/2007/11/26/12-bar-blues-and-power-chord-review/

As for the pentatonic scale, I have some lessons on it, but no beginner lessons.  So I’ll explain it now.  The minor pentatonic scale is a 5 note scale.  I have attached to this email the basis pentatonic “box” that most people start out learning. Take a look at it. You said you could read a tab but if you’re not sure how to read it let me know. The blue dot are root notes.  You can play it anywhere on the neck you choose.  Try learning it and email me back any questions.

Also do you have some rock songs that you want to learn.  If you send me a couple, I’ll get some lessons up for you.  Questions are always welcome so feel free to write back.  Good luck.

I recently received a question on how to start out making your own chord progressions.  Well there are two courses of action to start out.  First you could try throwing some chords together and see what sounds good.  Secondly you might try using a little theory.   Today we’ll look into the 2nd method a little. NOTE: this lesson is not on rules for making chord progressions. It is simply a lesson on ideas that can by uses to write if you’re in a composing rut.

I give you my chain method:

A major or minor scale has seven tones in it and on each tone a triad can be built.  An example in C major is shown below:

As we discussed in this lessons

Each of these seven triads can be divided into a couple of groups, each with a different job.

TONIC

The first group is the tonic group.  This group states the key of the progression.  It is made up of the I chord.

ex. in C: CEG

DOMINANT

This second group is the dominant group. The job of the chords in this group is to lead to the tonic chord.  Chords in this group include the V chord and the vii chord. Both of these chords contain the all important leading tone.

ex. in C) GBD, BDF

SUBDOMINANT

The third group is the subdominant group. The job of the chords in this group is to lead to the dominant group chords.  Chords with subdominant functions include the ii chord and the IV chord.

ex in C) DFA, FAC

OTHER

All other chords fall into this group.  They include the iii chord and the vi chord.

ex. in C) EGB, ACE

The trick to using this method is to think of a progression as linear:

OTHER–> SUBDOMINANT–> DOMINANT–> TONIC

When writing try not to go backwards in the chain; always move forward.  When you use a chord in a progression the next chord should either be from the same group and not move ahead in the chain, be from the next group, or skip ahead and be from a group thats further ahead.  But don’t choose a chord from a previous group.

For an example lets look at the famous jazz progression of ii-V-I.  The ii chord is in the subdominant group, the V in the dominant, and the I in the tonic.  Therefore the progression follows the chain (SUBDOMINANT–> DOMINANT–> TONIC).

Now for more examples:

Chain Method:

OTHER–> DOMINANT–> TONIC

it is ok to skip ahead in the chain

SUBDOMINANT–> SUBDOMINANT–> DOMINANT–> TONIC

it is ok to not move aheadand stay in the same group

Non chain method:

DOMINANT–> SUBDOMINANT–> TONIC

it is not the chain method if you go backwards in the chain.

Have fun with this interesting way other writing.

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Before you move to more complex music theory concepts your must first learn some terminology.  This lesson will make you familiar with the scale degree names so we can progress further later.A major or minor scale has seven degrees or notes.  Each degree has a name (see chart below).

Now you might be asking yourself why they are named that.  Well I have the answers here for you with a diagram to help:

TONIC is the tone where every thing else is derived

DOMINANT is a fifth above tonic; most important pitch after tonic

SUBDOMINANT is as far below the tonic as dominant is above tonic

MEDIANT is in the middle of the tonic and dominant

SUBMEDIANT is in the middle of the tonic and subdominant

SUPERTONIC is whole step above the tonic

LEADING TONE is half step below the tonic

Note that when I say “higher” or “in the middle” I am refering to the chart below and not the notes in the scale itself.

Also note that a leading tone is found in the major and harmonic minor scales. In the natural minor scale, where the seventh degree is a whole step below the tonic, it is refered to as a subtonic.  A leading tone must be a half-step below.

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The email for the week of Dec. 28, 2008:

I have been practicing alternate picking for a month now and could play really well at a slow pace but easily lose control when trying to increase speed. How do I go about solving this problem?

My Response:

You have got a pretty common problem.  The easiest way to fix this is to make sure you can hit every note at a slow speed.  Only once you have thoroughly mastered a lick/exercise at a slow speed should you move to a higher tempo.  I do have a couple of suggstions to ease the process.

First of all, take a look at how you hold the pick and how you are picking the string.  Make sure you are doing it the most economical way possible. For a few things to look at, read my article on how to hold a pick. You want to make sure your pickstroke it perfect now, so you don’t have to learn it all over later.

Secondly, I suggest you play a couple of different types of alternate picking exercises and see what part of the picking process is limiting you.  Take a look at this lesson on alternate picking if you haven’t already.  Go to the part of the lesson where I discuss inside the string picking and outside the string picking.  Do both exercises and see which is more difficult (make sure you start with a downstroke on both). For most people, inside the string picking is much more difficult.  Practice the one you have trouble with a little more.  Most licks have a little of both kinds of alternate picking so if one or the other is weaker for you, you have to strengthen it.

My last tip is to relax, literally.  Tension in the arm is usually a by-product of going faster than you should.  Always make sure the muscles in your arm and shoulder are relaxed. If they’re not, slow down and relax your arm.  You’ll be more accurate later, if you have learned not to play with tension.

Thats it for now.  If you have any questions later, drop me another email.

MD

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If any one has any guitar/music sites they would suggested, send a recommendation to mdguitarteacher@gmail.com.

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