Perfect lesson. I hope everyone realizes how good this lesson is, and it's so good because he doesn't try to teach the magical never-seen-before misterious effortless way to play by ear, but the real way. Sit your ass down and study theory and then go practice!
I don’t know, the “magical never-seen-before mysterious effortless way”, unless depicted dishonestly by the person demonstrating their skill is just a refined stage of learning the craft of war training and applying theory. Definitely, gotta sit down and study theory, then practice, but I don’t think many people, or at least I hope not many people, go around with exceptionally rare abilities like perfect pitch demonstrating it for something that it isn’t. With enough training and picking at everything, things become easier as the guy making the video said. Once this becomes like breathing, I truly think that putting together other elements like the melody, and probably alternating bass separate from the rhythm (general fingerpicking style) will eventually come to the musician and really start to look like it’s impossibly effortless, but it really is all just practice. I’m not trying to disagree or talk down to you or anything, just trying to point out that flashy performances that are accurate and seemingly impossible to do are almost always the product of people who honed in their practice and managed to put something together that unfortunately isn’t explained or taught properly, which isn’t the case, thankfully, for this video here.
Lucas, your first statement was exactly what I was going to say. It's almost a head-smacking moment to me personally. And I've been playing piano for over 60 years, but it took someone like Michael who teaches guitar on how to explain this process and make it understandable. I think piano teachers should all learn to play guitar first, instead of the other way around. Thank you Michael, I will watch this many times. GT
Dude this is such a thorough video. From someone striving to be more pro- this is such an underrated skill. Thanks so much for sharing your approach man 🙏🙏
Great lesson! I've been learning the melodies to songs by ear, but have never thought to apply chords to rhythm. Loved the methodical approach to it as well.
I just found this video, and although it seems very simple (when you're showing how it's done) it's not like that when I'm in my living room alone!! Nothing ever sounds "just right" and that is the frustrating part that makes me keep second guessing myself. I love how you figure the chords out, play a few, and then break into blazing runs up and down the fretboard!! If we could all be so smart!!
Awesome video...just starting to learn more theory through your subscription courses and this beautifully pieces together the theory to learning by ear!
I would also say don't get stuck on a song you can't figure out. Go to something a bit easier and work on it. The more you do it the better you get and you can go back to the ones that gave you trouble.
I had to smile as I checked this lesson out, Michael. The song you chose happens to be the same one I named one of my daughters from. I take that as a sign that I have made the correct decision in joining GuitarGate, and should delve deeper into your lessons. 😉🎸🎶🙌
Yeah cool. Kinda know this but at times it’s too easy to reach for tab. This will be my go forward from now on, thank you. This gets me listening. Your lessons are great.
Thank you Michael .... that was very helpful, and I truly appreciate your help. I am a novice and know a little bit of basic theory, and therefore, I understand bits and pieces of your instruction. I have a lot of work to do, but again truly appreciate your guidance . LaMar Kemp
Thanks for explaining the process on how to make an educated guess on what chords to play with song melodies! Based solely on the melodic notes of the song played on the strong beats, I narrow down my educated guesses on the root notes to only three options instead of five. The other day, I realized that the common rule to finding chords to go with a melody (“find the basic chord that carries the melodic notes played in the strong beats” and “play the chords that are in the melody’s key signature”) can be rephrased or reframed into much more immediate and concrete terms as “play the melodic note on the strong beat as note 1, 3, or 5 of the chord”. Or put in another wat “play the root note at 1, 3, or 5 note intervals below the melodic note”. This deceptively simple change in wording can bring so much more clarity! This simple reframing and rephrasing of the rule for finding chords for a song (and the root notes or bass notes) literally enabled me to quite suddenly add chords to and extemporaneously play songs by ear on piano and play songs in any key (and without actually having to identify the key of the song). It was an amazing ah-ha moment for me. :-) Any how, thank you for sharing your thoughts on this topic as it is alway interesting to see how different people explain this process.
Very helpful. Thanks! I'd love to see more videos like this but for classic country music ("Tight Fighting Jeans" by Conway Twitty, "Coca Cola Cowboy" by Mel Tillis, etc.) showing how the licks relate to the chords.
This is such a good lesson Michael, thank you! Good advice too to focus on starting with something that sounds chordal not riff based. Right now I am starting to try and learn "Do the Murray" and although I am able to transcribe bits of it, it is very slow going. I'll take your advice and work on something more chord sounding to build more ear. Inside guitar gate are there other lessons/vids the expand on this idea, or other similar examples?
thanks dude. yoy helped guide me so I can confidently practice and know im following a correct method. im 24, i spent 15 years using tabs and now im like... uhh.. i wish i practiced doing it by ear..
Took me a hot minute to wrap my noggin around the idea of regarding the 7th degree note as the 3rd of the V Chord, but it sure does work… 😮 Thank you for this lesson Michael! I’ll try tackling a few Tom Petty songs and see how well I can figure them out by ear using these methods 🙏
Michael talked about the 7th chord in the c minor scale was diminished but according to what I was taught the diminished in a minor scale is on the second chord. For example: Minor diatonic chords- i, ii(diminished), III, iv, v, VI, VII Major diatonic chords: I, ii, iii, IV, V, vi, vii(diminished) I am relatively new to music theory, so if I got confused let me know.
He was relating everything to a major scale. Rather than using the minor scale, use Cmin as the relative minor and call it the vi of the major scale. So then vii is diminished. Whether you use the major or minor scale, Dmin is diminished in this case.
Ok Michael I watched you be amazed with Robin Trower and trip out on Robin’s playing like it was your first time. You might want to try to listen to Jeff Beck and Frank Marino and Mahogany Rush. Also try Funkadelic Maggot Brain. If you love guitar these are a must.
I've always done this, mostly just because it works, but never seen/heard it laid out like you did so I always assumed I was just taking shortcuts and not really learning anything from using it for improvisational fun. For whatever reason this made me think the process was "unprofessional", but framing it as you did made me realize that unconventional/experimental doesn't necessarily equate to incorrect, especially when it clearly works. So thank you for illuminating this and making me realize its usefulness in learning not only guitar, but the underlying music theory that makes it all fall into place
If it works, it works. This is the main reason to learn basic music theory: If you have a framework to start with, you get better at filling in the blanks. Your ear picks up on this process too, because it has a frame of reference. There is no right or wrong way - just what works for you!
@@Guitargate Like the previous poster I have worked stuff out this way without knowing it was an accepted method. I've always likened it to filling in a crossword puzzle, where you have to get a couple of answers first, and build on what that gives you to work with. Of course, it fails miserably with tracks that don't follow the rules...
Hey! I love guitargate! I have a quick question though, what is the benefit to thinking of Cminor (in this particular case) as a relative minor / mode 5?
I believe it's because is easier to think harmony taking the major scale as reference. In the major harmonic field the 2nd, 3rd and 6th notes are always minors, so when he found the C minor, he knew he was either playing the 2nd, the 3rd or the 6th of the major scale. Since it's unusual to have the 2nd and 3rd as roots because that would imply modal harmony that rarely occurs on pop music, he already assumed the C minor was the 6th, which is very common. C minor is the 6th to Eb major, so he was actually considering the chords of the Eb major harmonic field. Once you crack this little theory it only takes a few guesses to get the whole song.
you need to add this lesson to GG and maybe pick out a song or two for students to try. We can post videos of our attempts for the other students to share our struggles.
My trick for learning by ear, is too just figure out the first root note, apply major or minor (or 7th 9th, or whatever). Then the roots of each chord. I learned all my chords out of the Beatles bibles(with the chord diagrams, I don't read music anymore and can't read tabs).
Something that has always confounded me is, when is it (or is it ever?) appropriate to think of the root chord of a minor key as the "i" (one chord) as opposed to the "vi" (six chord)? If I'm in C Minor, do I ALWAYS want to think of this as the E♭ Major key signature and my root chord as the vi? Or are there exceptions?
Great, I usually use vocal note to guess the chord, your method is find the Bass note and convert to chord. Let's i try, why don't you use vocal or rythem for find the chord, any good or bad on this way? Thanks.
Nice lesson, this and some others as well, thanks! You are a very accomplished guitarist and this PRS guitar and your pedals produce a very sweet (better than on the PRS Sliver Sky 😉). Please share your pedal set up if you can. Just a technical doubt on this video. If the song is in the key of Cm then you should perhaps refer to the chord progression as i-III-VII-VI (see eg, www.piano-keyboard-guide.com/key-of-c-minor.html ) and not vi-I-V-IV, isn't it?
Thank you! So you're correct - it is common to to refer to the key center as the I chord. BUT - I chose not to in this video because I wanted to have everything refer back to the major scale to avoid confusion. That's why I emphasized a BASIC knowledge of music theory: If you know basic major harmony, you can use it to learn songs even if they aren't in a major key. Make sense? Just trying to make it easy for people
Thanks for your reply. Yes, it does makes sense. I get your point about keeping it basic and appreciate your efforts. I just have basic knowledge of music theory and therefore wanted to double check that my understanding is not incorrect.
This looks like a great course! I lost you a bit when you started giving numbers, because I am looking at a c minor scale, and the notes dont seem to match up.I may need to start with some basic music theory.
Are you saying to usually replace the vii diminished chord with a minor chord that is the 3rd of the V chord? So you'll end up with three major chords and four minor chords in your key? Even if the key is major instead of minor, as this example was?
So as a complete noob, (not to music. Been playing drums for 45 years-different kind of music theory) the bottom line is to at least get the basics of theory u see your belt to make this happen. I can do it somewhat without it, but I definitely see the benefits. Especially when another musician starts playing a jam and you can just jump in and pick it up. Now all I have to do is learn all the scales and modes and I’ll be all set! 😂.
It's a good video, does rely on knowing scales, which I don't that well apart from minor pentatonic position 1.. I noticed he uses caged chords. Would have been easier to use e or a shape
I think he means they are playing the V chord with the third in the bass rather than playing a diminished chord with root in bass. In C major the V chord is G major. The notes are G, B, and D. The vii chord is B diminished. The notes are B, D, and F. If you hear a B note in the bass in a country song it's more likely that they are playing a V chord with the third in the bass than an actual diminished chord. It's an educated guess based on theory and what he knows of the genre. I think that's what he meant.
I mean, when we're talking modal harmony, yes, listen for root motion and you'll get somewhere quickly. But when you want something to be modal you want those notes that makes it into that mode, say dorian, it's almost the same as a regular minor (aeolian), but it has it has a #6. So one of the chords most likely has that #6 somewhere within it. So in D dorian to make an easy example. We have a regular Dm as a root but perhaps the next chord will be a Em or a Fmaj7(#11) or a Bm. These chords that don't appear in other scales indicating that we have a dorian scale. Still writing when you write in modes you probably know some stuff before that. Secondary dominants and all that jazz. So it'll probably be a bit harder.
But the 7 chord is major in a minor key not dem? Confused by the 3rd of the 5 chord? If Gm is the 5 of Cm key and the 3rd of Gm is Bb major. Bb major is also the 7 chord in the key of Cm. Or am I thinking about this wrong?
Well, a "Minor" key just means that you're starting on the relative minor (the 6 chord). Meaning - the key of A minor contains the same chords as C major. Does that make sense?
7 is diminished? I am so lost brother, but absolutely LOVE your channel. Being able to play by ear has always been a dream of mine. But I can only play basic chords. How far back do your lessons go on Guitargate? Would it be good for beginners?
which chord does he mean by the the 3rd of the 5 chord, when he talks about the 7th chord? where can I learn more about the standard chords if a key is in minor? I only know them in major? I really would like to learn the theory
@@mendelhoexter980 Ah, thank you for answering! I think I get it now!! But it`s Eflat which is the major key he refers to, where Cminor is the 6th chord of that Eflat major key. And by the 3rd of the 5th chord, he means the 5chord of the Eflat major key, which is Bflat, and he moves the root note (of that chord) up a major 3rd (4 half steps), the other notes stay the same as in the 5chord (Bflat). Which apparently is the most commonly used form, of the 7th chord. I was just wondering because I never saw this chord shape before ? But I just saw that in the original they use capo 4 fret and play G or B/G What is this chord called actually, and are there other forms of how to play it? AAhh, I just saw that in some tabs they use capo on 3fret and use G or B/G instead, but if you look at the chord he plays, its actually the same as the G chord (capo3rd) (exept the high and low E strings) :D ... I think I have to sign up for his course now! Is there such a thing as A table or so of the most commonly used variations of the usually diminished 7th chord in any key? :D
Thanks as always. I enjoy your channel and take a lot away from your videos. I may need to watch this one a fair few times. I am confused as I thought the relative minor (6th) of the C key was A minor but you keep saying C # minor is the relative minor. I'm obviously getting something mixed up along the way.
You are thinking differently than I have been for 20+ years. For this example, I've been calling the Cm the (i) chord, which makes the Eb the b3rd chord, the Bb the b7 chord. If your I chord is the I of the relative major (Eb), then your progression is vi-I-V where I've called this kind of thing i-b3-b7. I can see the strength in using the numbers from the major (I-ii-iii-IV-V-vi-vii) and slotting in the progression of a minor key's song this way. But I've played in bands and brought charts I've done my way (i-b3-b7 in this case) and been understood without anybody mentioning it this way. Have my bandmates been polite? Unenlightened? Is it just a different way of looking at it or what? I guess I'm asking for a pro/con to the two ways of looking at it.
It's one of those cases where you can be technically correct, especially if you are in a classical or academic setting, but in every situation I've been in outside of a classroom, people refer to minor chord progressions the way Michael does. Ex. the common vi ii V I, no one would call as a minor i iv VII III at a jam or session (and tbh, I had to work that out on paper, because I've never bothered to learn progressions that way). At the other end of things, It gets a little confusing to me in a bluegrass jam when progressions based around the dominant V chord are called as though it is the major I just because it's the first chord in the song. When in Rome.
Hi Michael I'm loving your channel, thank you so much for putting in so much work on it. This lesson was great. I'm also loving your analysis of some of my favourite players. I wonder if you'd take look at Patto's "Give It All Away" featuring the late great Ollie Halsall. It's a blistering piece of guitarring penned back in 1971 by one of the most criminally unknown (not to his fans) guitarists who was so far ahead of his time. I hope you like it. ruclips.net/video/AswzlhxbzPg/видео.html
Wait......so if a song is in C minor the 7th is a D. You're saying it's unlikely a diminished chord but it's the "3rd of the 5 chord". Is this just another way of saying D major? Let's see.....the 5 chord would be a B major. The third of that chord would D#........see I'm confused since that doesn't make sense as D#/Eb major would be the 1.
Видеоклипы
Perfect lesson. I hope everyone realizes how good this lesson is, and it's so good because he doesn't try to teach the magical never-seen-before misterious effortless way to play by ear, but the real way. Sit your ass down and study theory and then go practice!
Thanks Lucas!
I don’t know, the “magical never-seen-before mysterious effortless way”, unless depicted dishonestly by the person demonstrating their skill is just a refined stage of learning the craft of war training and applying theory. Definitely, gotta sit down and study theory, then practice, but I don’t think many people, or at least I hope not many people, go around with exceptionally rare abilities like perfect pitch demonstrating it for something that it isn’t.
With enough training and picking at everything, things become easier as the guy making the video said. Once this becomes like breathing, I truly think that putting together other elements like the melody, and probably alternating bass separate from the rhythm (general fingerpicking style) will eventually come to the musician and really start to look like it’s impossibly effortless, but it really is all just practice.
I’m not trying to disagree or talk down to you or anything, just trying to point out that flashy performances that are accurate and seemingly impossible to do are almost always the product of people who honed in their practice and managed to put something together that unfortunately isn’t explained or taught properly, which isn’t the case, thankfully, for this video here.
|e¹ 11 wA aww a ass Zzz
Lucas, your first statement was exactly what I was going to say. It's almost a head-smacking moment to me personally. And I've been playing piano for over 60 years, but it took someone like Michael who teaches guitar on how to explain this process and make it understandable. I think piano teachers should all learn to play guitar first, instead of the other way around. Thank you Michael, I will watch this many times. GT
good lord, I am so jealous that kids today can pull THIS GUY^ up on RUclips and learn from him. what an incredible guitarist AND teacher
RUclips please do its thing. This deserves so much more love.
Dude this is such a thorough video. From someone striving to be more pro- this is such an underrated skill. Thanks so much for sharing your approach man 🙏🙏
Awesome video and channel Michael! I've yet to find another teacher who explains things so concisely!
Great lesson! I've been learning the melodies to songs by ear, but have never thought to apply chords to rhythm. Loved the methodical approach to it as well.
Very helpful. I never heard of the third of the five chord but I will keep this in mind when trying to play by ear. Thanks for sharing this lesson
This is one of the best lessons any guitar player can learn! Glad you made a video about this!
I just found this video, and although it seems very simple (when you're showing how it's done) it's not like that when I'm in my living room alone!! Nothing ever sounds "just right" and that is the frustrating part that makes me keep second guessing myself. I love how you figure the chords out, play a few, and then break into blazing runs up and down the fretboard!! If we could all be so smart!!
Awesome video...just starting to learn more theory through your subscription courses and this beautifully pieces together the theory to learning by ear!
Thanks! Glad I can help!
Dude I’ve been doing ear training and your method really made sense to me. I’ve subscribed
This is the best tutorial of any topic on the entire RUclips!!! Thank you so much
Very Concise to the point and easy to understand.. Great lesson! Thanks! glad I found it. Much better than I expected
I would also say don't get stuck on a song you can't figure out. Go to something a bit easier and work on it. The more you do it the better you get and you can go back to the ones that gave you trouble.
What ever keeps ur attention to that guitar''..🤪😄
You are right.
That was the best ear training lesson I found on RUclips...Great job..👍👍
Michael, GREAT job explaining a system for developing your ear while learning songs.
One of the best tutorials ever!!!💯 God bless you
I came here after seeing you on Beato's channel. Fantastic walk-through. Subscribed! And thank you!
You made me pick up guitar again and im having a blast, thanks man!
Saw a lotta videos. This made the most sense.
This is awesome! Great lesson. Found you through Jamplay. Can't wait to take some of your courses on there.
Your channel is great! Keep this up 💯
Those fills are wonderful to listen to
Thanks dude that made so much sense!!
I had to smile as I checked this lesson out, Michael. The song you chose happens to be the same one I named one of my daughters from. I take that as a sign that I have made the correct decision in joining GuitarGate, and should delve deeper into your lessons. 😉🎸🎶🙌
Great lesson, Michael
Yeah cool. Kinda know this but at times it’s too easy to reach for tab. This will be my go forward from now on, thank you. This gets me listening. Your lessons are great.
Thanks! That's it - keep the ears open :)
Love the lesson, it's helped me so much
We love you Mike you’re the man
Thanx! This is a really great lesson!
You're such a cool guy man I appreciate your videos I want to master the guitar just like you and all the virtuosos I look up to!
This was awesome! Thank you!
best lesson I had on guitar thank you I will continue on guitargate
Such an underrated channel, great lesson!
Thanks so much!
Thank you Michael .... that was very helpful, and I truly appreciate your help. I am a novice and know a little bit of basic theory, and therefore, I understand bits and pieces of your instruction. I have a lot of work to do, but again truly appreciate your guidance . LaMar Kemp
Thanks for explaining the process on how to make an educated guess on what chords to play with song melodies!
Based solely on the melodic notes of the song played on the strong beats, I narrow down my educated guesses on the root notes to only three options instead of five.
The other day, I realized that the common rule to finding chords to go with a melody (“find the basic chord that carries the melodic notes played in the strong beats” and “play the chords that are in the melody’s key signature”) can be rephrased or reframed into much more immediate and concrete terms as “play the melodic note on the strong beat as note 1, 3, or 5 of the chord”. Or put in another wat “play the root note at 1, 3, or 5 note intervals below the melodic note”.
This deceptively simple change in wording can bring so much more clarity! This simple reframing and rephrasing of the rule for finding chords for a song (and the root notes or bass notes) literally enabled me to quite suddenly add chords to and extemporaneously play songs by ear on piano and play songs in any key (and without actually having to identify the key of the song). It was an amazing ah-ha moment for me. :-)
Any how, thank you for sharing your thoughts on this topic as it is alway interesting to see how different people explain this process.
Your idea I get.
I wish the video had landed us in a song in the key of C major so I could have followed along.
Excelent lesson sir michael
great lesson man thanks
Very helpful. Thanks! I'd love to see more videos like this but for classic country music ("Tight Fighting Jeans" by Conway Twitty, "Coca Cola Cowboy" by Mel Tillis, etc.) showing how the licks relate to the chords.
Michael, thank you for clearing this up. Rare to get this info on videos!
This is such a good lesson Michael, thank you! Good advice too to focus on starting with something that sounds chordal not riff based. Right now I am starting to try and learn "Do the Murray" and although I am able to transcribe bits of it, it is very slow going. I'll take your advice and work on something more chord sounding to build more ear. Inside guitar gate are there other lessons/vids the expand on this idea, or other similar examples?
Best lesson ive ever seen
thanks dude. yoy helped guide me so I can confidently practice and know im following a correct method. im 24, i spent 15 years using tabs and now im like... uhh.. i wish i practiced doing it by ear..
EXCELLENT!
Maybe the best guitar lesson I have ever seen. Michael, would you consider doing a Course on this?!!!
I'm working on it!
Guitargate that would be great. I'm sure tons of people would love that. I know id watch them all lol
7th in the scale is 3rd of the five chord. Thank you!
Took me a hot minute to wrap my noggin around the idea of regarding the 7th degree note as the 3rd of the V Chord, but it sure does work… 😮
Thank you for this lesson Michael! I’ll try tackling a few Tom Petty songs and see how well I can figure them out by ear using these methods 🙏
Michael talked about the 7th chord in the c minor scale was diminished but according to what I was taught the diminished in a minor scale is on the second chord. For example:
Minor diatonic chords-
i, ii(diminished), III, iv, v, VI, VII
Major diatonic chords:
I, ii, iii, IV, V, vi, vii(diminished)
I am relatively new to music theory, so if I got confused let me know.
He was relating everything to a major scale. Rather than using the minor scale, use Cmin as the relative minor and call it the vi of the major scale. So then vii is diminished. Whether you use the major or minor scale, Dmin is diminished in this case.
I wish I had seen this when it came out. Amazing stuff.
Thx!!
Great, just i got lost at 'Bass notes'. i will keep studying the video because i know how important a good ear is. Subscribed Thanks!
I'm super impressed! Not that my opinion matters, but dang you are slick!!
Ok Michael I watched you be amazed with Robin Trower and trip out on Robin’s playing like it was your first time. You might want to try to listen to Jeff Beck and Frank Marino and Mahogany Rush. Also try Funkadelic Maggot Brain. If you love guitar these are a must.
please do a course on this, I will buy it , really need it
Sage advice.
Thank you sir this video earned my subscription
Thank you!!
thank you michael
This is great, but how did you figure out the strumming patterns/picking patterns? And the smaller notes
Gosh dang that prs is gorgeous
Love the Miley backyard sessions!
You are awesome!!!
Honest question though: The 6th… talking about D#major as the reference.. since in c minor.. C Minor would the 1/root ?!
Cheers 🥃
I've always done this, mostly just because it works, but never seen/heard it laid out like you did so I always assumed I was just taking shortcuts and not really learning anything from using it for improvisational fun. For whatever reason this made me think the process was "unprofessional", but framing it as you did made me realize that unconventional/experimental doesn't necessarily equate to incorrect, especially when it clearly works. So thank you for illuminating this and making me realize its usefulness in learning not only guitar, but the underlying music theory that makes it all fall into place
If it works, it works. This is the main reason to learn basic music theory: If you have a framework to start with, you get better at filling in the blanks. Your ear picks up on this process too, because it has a frame of reference. There is no right or wrong way - just what works for you!
@@Guitargate Like the previous poster I have worked stuff out this way without knowing it was an accepted method. I've always likened it to filling in a crossword puzzle, where you have to get a couple of answers first, and build on what that gives you to work with. Of course, it fails miserably with tracks that don't follow the rules...
Hi..could you explain the lead in the lesson. The theory behind it...was impressed by this lesson
Yes - Let me circle around on this.
I understand basic music theory. But I'm going to have to watch this a few tines.
Real-world advice, very good. Key word is basic.
by the way, Michael's Udemy course is outstanding, of of the most complete and clear guitar courses I have ever come across.
man you played it "simple" but amazing
Hey! I love guitargate! I have a quick question though, what is the benefit to thinking of Cminor (in this particular case) as a relative minor / mode 5?
I believe it's because is easier to think harmony taking the major scale as reference. In the major harmonic field the 2nd, 3rd and 6th notes are always minors, so when he found the C minor, he knew he was either playing the 2nd, the 3rd or the 6th of the major scale. Since it's unusual to have the 2nd and 3rd as roots because that would imply modal harmony that rarely occurs on pop music, he already assumed the C minor was the 6th, which is very common. C minor is the 6th to Eb major, so he was actually considering the chords of the Eb major harmonic field. Once you crack this little theory it only takes a few guesses to get the whole song.
you need to add this lesson to GG and maybe pick out a song or two for students to try. We can post videos of our attempts for the other students to share our struggles.
Can someone explain the diminished substitution? What does he mean by it’s usually the 3rd of the 5 chord?
This has changed my playing. I can play any song brilliant video
My trick for learning by ear, is too just figure out the first root note, apply major or minor (or 7th 9th, or whatever). Then the roots of each chord. I learned all my chords out of the Beatles bibles(with the chord diagrams, I don't read music anymore and can't read tabs).
Very cool* Thx* :)
Something that has always confounded me is, when is it (or is it ever?) appropriate to think of the root chord of a minor key as the "i" (one chord) as opposed to the "vi" (six chord)? If I'm in C Minor, do I ALWAYS want to think of this as the E♭ Major key signature and my root chord as the vi? Or are there exceptions?
Awesome Lesson
Thanks!!
Great, I usually use vocal note to guess the chord, your method is find the Bass note and convert to chord. Let's i try, why don't you use vocal or rythem for find the chord, any good or bad on this way? Thanks.
Just falling asleep to some ear training and mike pops up...whats up brother
Super video! I applauded for $5.00 👏👏
Nice lesson, this and some others as well, thanks! You are a very accomplished guitarist and this PRS guitar and your pedals produce a very sweet (better than on the PRS Sliver Sky 😉). Please share your pedal set up if you can. Just a technical doubt on this video. If the song is in the key of Cm then you should perhaps refer to the chord progression as i-III-VII-VI (see eg, www.piano-keyboard-guide.com/key-of-c-minor.html ) and not vi-I-V-IV, isn't it?
Thank you! So you're correct - it is common to to refer to the key center as the I chord. BUT - I chose not to in this video because I wanted to have everything refer back to the major scale to avoid confusion. That's why I emphasized a BASIC knowledge of music theory: If you know basic major harmony, you can use it to learn songs even if they aren't in a major key. Make sense? Just trying to make it easy for people
Thanks for your reply. Yes, it does makes sense. I get your point about keeping it basic and appreciate your efforts. I just have basic knowledge of music theory and therefore wanted to double check that my understanding is not incorrect.
This looks like a great course! I lost you a bit when you started giving numbers, because I am looking at a c minor scale, and the notes dont seem to match up.I may need to start with some basic music theory.
C minor has the same notes and chords as e flat major. Look at that scale and it makes sense, identical.
Is the root note always the base note?
Are you saying to usually replace the vii diminished chord with a minor chord that is the 3rd of the V chord? So you'll end up with three major chords and four minor chords in your key? Even if the key is major instead of minor, as this example was?
Michael is the bomb 😎
What about modal interchange
So as a complete noob, (not to music. Been playing drums for 45 years-different kind of music theory) the bottom line is to at least get the basics of theory u see your belt to make this happen. I can do it somewhat without it, but I definitely see the benefits. Especially when another musician starts playing a jam and you can just jump in and pick it up. Now all I have to do is learn all the scales and modes and I’ll be all set! 😂.
It's a good video, does rely on knowing scales, which I don't that well apart from minor pentatonic position 1.. I noticed he uses caged chords. Would have been easier to use e or a shape
Big question...
If you establish Cmin, why does that automatically mean Cm is the 6th? Couldn't it be the root (1)
Very well explained! What do you mean by 'third of the 5 chord' in place of a dim7? Thanks!
I would also love to have an answer 🙂 great video anyways!
I think he means they are playing the V chord with the third in the bass rather than playing a diminished chord with root in bass.
In C major the V chord is G major. The notes are G, B, and D. The vii chord is B diminished. The notes are B, D, and F. If you hear a B note in the bass in a country song it's more likely that they are playing a V chord with the third in the bass than an actual diminished chord. It's an educated guess based on theory and what he knows of the genre. I think that's what he meant.
@@JD-vj4go Ok cool, thanks!
How about songs that start in other modes as mentioned in 4:10? Is the approach the same actually?
I mean, when we're talking modal harmony, yes, listen for root motion and you'll get somewhere quickly.
But when you want something to be modal you want those notes that makes it into that mode, say dorian, it's almost the same as a regular minor (aeolian), but it has it has a #6. So one of the chords most likely has that #6 somewhere within it.
So in D dorian to make an easy example. We have a regular Dm as a root but perhaps the next chord will be a Em or a Fmaj7(#11) or a Bm. These chords that don't appear in other scales indicating that we have a dorian scale.
Still writing when you write in modes you probably know some stuff before that. Secondary dominants and all that jazz. So it'll probably be a bit harder.
But the 7 chord is major in a minor key not dem? Confused by the 3rd of the 5 chord? If Gm is the 5 of Cm key and the 3rd of Gm is Bb major. Bb major is also the 7 chord in the key of Cm. Or am I thinking about this wrong?
Godlike
So the chords are C minor , D #, B minor, E major?
I have a question. If the key is minor are the 2,3, and 6 still minor? The same as it would be, if you were playing in a major key
Well, a "Minor" key just means that you're starting on the relative minor (the 6 chord). Meaning - the key of A minor contains the same chords as C major. Does that make sense?
7 is diminished? I am so lost brother, but absolutely LOVE your channel. Being able to play by ear has always been a dream of mine. But I can only play basic chords.
How far back do your lessons go on Guitargate? Would it be good for beginners?
The very beginning!!!
@@Guitargate
Awesome! Thanks so much! Looking forward to learning from you Teach!🤘😁
which chord does he mean by the the 3rd of the 5 chord, when he talks about the 7th chord? where can I learn more about the standard chords if a key is in minor? I only know them in major? I really would like to learn the theory
@@mendelhoexter980 Ah, thank you for answering! I think I get it now!! But it`s Eflat which is the major key he refers to, where Cminor is the 6th chord of that Eflat major key. And by the 3rd of the 5th chord, he means the 5chord of the Eflat major key, which is Bflat, and he moves the root note (of that chord) up a major 3rd (4 half steps), the other notes stay the same as in the 5chord (Bflat). Which apparently is the most commonly used form, of the 7th chord.
I was just wondering because I never saw this chord shape before ? But I just saw that in the original they use capo 4 fret and play G or B/G What is this chord called actually, and are there other forms of how to play it?
AAhh, I just saw that in some tabs they use capo on 3fret and use G or B/G instead, but if you look at the chord he plays, its actually the same as the G chord (capo3rd) (exept the high and low E strings) :D ...
I think I have to sign up for his course now!
Is there such a thing as A table or so of the most commonly used variations of the usually diminished 7th chord in any key? :D
@@mendelhoexter980 Ah, Thanks a Lot!! :) I will check it out!
The doo with no mask
Thanks as always. I enjoy your channel and take a lot away from your videos.
I may need to watch this one a fair few times. I am confused as I thought the relative minor (6th) of the C key was A minor but you keep saying C # minor is the relative minor. I'm obviously getting something mixed up along the way.
Do you do in person lessons as well? Or only online?
No only online these days :)
That's understandable. Oh and beautiful PRS. I have a 1993 PRS EG 3. Best guitar I have put my hands on.
OMG!
You are thinking differently than I have been for 20+ years. For this example, I've been calling the Cm the (i) chord, which makes the Eb the b3rd chord, the Bb the b7 chord. If your I chord is the I of the relative major (Eb), then your progression is vi-I-V where I've called this kind of thing i-b3-b7. I can see the strength in using the numbers from the major (I-ii-iii-IV-V-vi-vii) and slotting in the progression of a minor key's song this way. But I've played in bands and brought charts I've done my way (i-b3-b7 in this case) and been understood without anybody mentioning it this way. Have my bandmates been polite? Unenlightened? Is it just a different way of looking at it or what? I guess I'm asking for a pro/con to the two ways of looking at it.
It's one of those cases where you can be technically correct, especially if you are in a classical or academic setting, but in every situation I've been in outside of a classroom, people refer to minor chord progressions the way Michael does. Ex. the common vi ii V I, no one would call as a minor i iv VII III at a jam or session (and tbh, I had to work that out on paper, because I've never bothered to learn progressions that way). At the other end of things, It gets a little confusing to me in a bluegrass jam when progressions based around the dominant V chord are called as though it is the major I just because it's the first chord in the song. When in Rome.
Hi Michael
I'm loving your channel, thank you so much for putting in so much work on it. This lesson was great. I'm also loving your analysis of some of my favourite players. I wonder if you'd take look at Patto's "Give It All Away" featuring the late great Ollie Halsall. It's a blistering piece of guitarring penned back in 1971 by one of the most criminally unknown (not to his fans) guitarists who was so far ahead of his time. I hope you like it. ruclips.net/video/AswzlhxbzPg/видео.html
Wait......so if a song is in C minor the 7th is a D. You're saying it's unlikely a diminished chord but it's the "3rd of the 5 chord". Is this just another way of saying D major? Let's see.....the 5 chord would be a B major. The third of that chord would D#........see I'm confused since that doesn't make sense as D#/Eb major would be the 1.
And here I am wondering how to learn a Polyphia song just by ear ;-;