In this lesson, you will learn the real difference between chord progressions for beginners and pros. You will also discover how many notes are in a key, what notes should be major chords, and what notes
should be minor.
Knowing this information lets you create chord progressions that sound great every time. This will also help you when it comes to learning to play your favorite songs on the guitar. You will know what chord progression is most popular in many songs and how to develop your ear to hear them.
Watch the video lesson below
It all starts with the musical alphabet.
When it comes to creating music on the guitar, it starts with the 12 notes of the musical alphabet. All styles of music in the United States use these twelve notes. No matter if it is Jazz, Country, Blues, Rock, etc. All songs in these styles are made up of these 12 notes.
These twelve notes are also known as the chromatic scale. No matter what you call them, they are the foundation of all popular music you hear on the radio. So I recommend you learn them and commit them to memory.
I recommend you take it one step further and learn the notes on all 6 strings on your guitar. Remember, the more you know, the better off you’ll be as a guitar player. That is why it is so important to study and practice daily.
The seven notes
Out of the 12 notes of the chromatic scale, we take 7 notes and create the major and minor scales. For our purpose here, we will stick with the major scale. For instance, let’s use the G major scale. The 7 notes of this scale are:
G A B C D E F# G
What we do now is we turn each of these 7 notes into chords. The 1 4 & 5th notes will be major chords. The 2 3 & 6the notes will be minor chords, and the 7th note will be a diminished chord. With this information, we can now master chord progressions.
Majors & minors in a key
Now that you know the 7 notes in the key of G major, and which are major and minor we can create chord progressions. And not just chord progressions, but ones that will sound great. No matter what order you put them in.
The most common chord progression in any key is the 1 4 5. In the key of G, you can see that the chords you would choose would be the G C & D chords, which all be major.
The relative minor
As you can see, there are three major chords and three minor chords. But the sixth chord is the relative minor chord. This is in any key you choose to play in. The sixth note will be minor and it will be the relative minor.
In the key of G major, it is the E minor.
This is important to know because it will help when creating chord progressions for songs you choose to write, or figuring out songs you want to learn. It is very common to throw in the sixth note into the mix of a chord progression.
You decide to throw that into the chord progression you are creating. Or, if you saw it in a song, it might indicate that the song is in the key of G major. Can you see how knowing this information can help you to become a better guitar player?
Common chord progressions
I mentioned before that the most common chord progression is the 1 4 5. This progression is in hundreds of songs. Once you get familiar with it, you’ll begin to notice it when you hear it.
So, to use this in your music you just need to find the 7 notes in the key you choose to play in and pick the 1 4 5 and you’ll be set. As I said before, adding the minor 6th works too. This is very popular in a lot of songs as well.
Remember, these can be played in any order you choose to play them in. In this example, I’ve chosen to start with the 1, but you can start with the 5 first. Many songs do that.
If you go through these two chord progressions you’ll hear some familiar songs in them. Why? Because there are hundreds of songs that are made up of these chords. You could use them to write your song.
Additional chord theory
If you have found value in this lesson I say congrats. This is information that most guitar players don’t know. If you choose to wrap your head around it, you can become a lot better than most.
If you’d like to learn more about chords and how to create progressions with them I recommend you check out the book I authored and self-published on Amazon Learn Guitar Chord Theory.
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Learn Guitar Chord Theory is a comprehensive course on enjoying the fun of constructing guitar chords. It will lead you on a path to guitar chord mastery. It will teach you how to build and fully understand guitar chords in a simple step-by-step method.
Starting with the triad (three-note chord) and building up and out from there. You will learn the foundation of the guitar chord, how to properly form it, what notes are needed for each key, and what’s necessary to create music with them.
Master Chords that are found in many popular songs.
In addition to all that, you will learn to play guitar chords such as majors, minors, sus2, sus4, augmented, diminished, sixth chords, dominant seventh chords, etc. In addition to all that, you’ll also learn why they are called those names. This will give you a foundation for the basics of music theory.
And that my friend will make you a much better guitar player. So if that is what you are shooting for, I recommend you check out the book. It will unlock the mysteries of the fretboard and create a simple step-by-step path to guitar greatness.
Additional help
In addition to my method books, I also offer private guitar instruction. With over 20 years of teaching experience. Both online and in-person. I specialize in crafting customized lessons that cater to your musical journey. Even if you have no formal training. With your interest and availability, I can tailor our lessons to suit your pace and schedule.
Whether you want to dive into the basics or explore different musical styles, I can guide you every step of the way. To get your first lesson scheduled, contact me today and we can set up a Free Consultation. I look forward to helping you embark on this new and exciting adventure.
Until our next lesson, take care.
Sincerely, Dwayne Jenkins
