notes

“In The End” by Linkin Park

Riff Rundown Difficulty: Easy Composer – Linkin Park Where to find this song – Hybrid Theory track # 8 Release Date – October 2000 The… Read More »“In The End” by Linkin Park

Open D Major 7th Chord

This chord is very easy to play. Just place your 1st finger across the 2nd frets of the G, B, and high E strings. To… Read More »Open D Major 7th Chord

What does a compressor do? Compression is probably the most misused effect that is used by guitarists. This misuse is probably a result of the fact that many players do not understand what compression is or what it does. When a new guitar player gets a hold of a new effects unit they expect that it is going to alter the sound of the guitar in a very noticeable way. A compressor is not this kind of effect. Think of it as a ghost in the shadow of the effects chain. If you weren’t looking very hard for it you would not even notice that it was there.Read More »How To Use A Compressor

How To Use A Capo

You can use a capo to easily change the key of a song. A lot of people do this so that they can sing the song in a range that is comfortable. Regardless of where you place a capo, the idea is that you create a ‘floating nut’. Read More »How To Use A Capo

What are chord extensions?

Extensions are simply Major, minor, or Dominant 7th chords with one or more scale steps added to the formulas.Read More »What are chord extensions?

“Time In A Bottle” by Jim Croce

Difficulty: Intermediate

Add That “Swing” With The Common Shuffle Rhythm

Triplets are used in many styles of music including blues, rock and country. The basic shuffle rhythm is created by leaving out (resting) the middle note of each three-note triplet group. This “triplet” idea allows performers to include triplets in the melody without clashing with any rhythm patterns.

Many shuffle rhythm songs are in 12/8 time (sometimes called “swing time”) which is just like 4/4 time except with a “swing”. Here we’ll take a look at a common blues shuffle rhythm in the key of A using power chord shapes.

Common Variations of 12 Bar Blues Chord Progressions

The 12-bar blues is one of the most popular chord progressions in popular music, including the blues. The blues progression has a distinctive form in chord structure and duration. It is, at its most basic, based on the I-IV-V chords of a key.

The 12 bar blues progression is the foundation of the blues. The whole blues genre is very minimalistic. Basically all you need to get started is to learn the 12 bar blues progression and The Most Commonly Used Lead Pattern.Read More »Common Variations of 12 Bar Blues Chord Progressions

Creating Licks With The “C” Scale Pattern

There are 5 basic “shapes” of the pentatonic major scale on the guitar. They are C, A, G, E, and D. The shapes appear in… Read More »Creating Licks With The “C” Scale Pattern

Slash Chords

Let’s pretend that you’ve got an audition coming up in a couple of days for a hip new band looking for a guitar player. The band gives you some sheet music with the band’s songs on it so you can get a little practice in before the big day.

Time comes for practice and you’re all set. With guitar in hand you set out to learn the songs only to find, to your horror, weird chords with slashes. It’s unlike anything you’ve ever seen. It must be some of that music theory stuff you keep hearing about. You curse yourself for not paying closer attention in music class…Read More »Slash Chords