C. The Main Scale

III. The Main Scale

Wanna get more exercise? Let’s go! Now we will learn about Major Scale that we can use for building the melodies, harmonically of course.
Do you ever heard do re mi fa sol la si do, that is the solmization that historically maybe came from Arabic culture in the middle ages. The sound of solmization is same as the Major scale. This is the C Major Scale:
E||------------------------------------------------------------------------------------10---12---13--------------||
B||------------------------------------------------------------------10---12---13--------------------------------||
G||--------------------------------------------------9---10---12-------------------------------------------------||
D||----------------------------------9---10---12-----------------------------------------------------------------||
A||------------------8---10---12---------------------------------------------------------------------------------||
E||--8---10---12-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------||

Now we can practice over and over with this scale, we can use metronome for help our speed more accurate and keep in precision. First, we use the slow tempo (maybe 60bpm), than up and up and up tempo step by step. Be patient, dude… We can use guitar pick and try to picking, start with down strokeà up strokeàdown strokeàup strokeà…(called alternate picking).


IV. The Chord Formula

Well, actually this exercise is more “match” if we learn before learning first chord, but maybe you can be bored if we can do like that, so I have put this exercise after you learning some simple chord.
Sometimes we found the one chord, for example: C Major, and than we found the C Major chord again but in the different ways or different frets. Do you know why the C can become the different C in the other frets but still C ? Because the structure of the chord is depend on the chord formula, the chord formula can be applied in many frets, not just in one. The one chord has one formula. You can proving in the song that you play, try different ways of once of the chord, you will find the same feel of the chord even the chord is change to the other inversion, sure.
Now take a look at the C Major scales again:
E||-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------10---12---13-||
B||--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------10---12---13------------------||
G||-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------9---10---12----------------------------------||
D||--------------------------------------------------------9(B)---10(C)---12(D)--------------------------------------------------||
A||-----------------------------8(F)---10(G)---12(A)----------------------------------------------------------------------------||
E||--8(C)---10(D)---12(E)--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------||

In the musical theory there are the notes called the root, the root is the main note or the key in the scales, for example for C Major scale like that, the root is the C note it self that has same meaning in:
- the 8th fret column of the low E string
- the 10th fret column of the D string
- the 13th fret column of the B string
You can see this:
E ||------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------||
B ||------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------||
G ||------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------||
D ||-----------------------------------------------------------------9(7th)---10(root)---12(2nd)--||
A ||----------------------------------8(4th)---10(5th)---12(6th)-----------------------------------||
E ||--8(root)---10(2nd)---12(3rd)-----------------------------------------------------------------||

And then if we will make a chord we must use the chord formula. Chord are derived from scales. The way you can use for learning a chord formula is to learning Triads. Triads are three note chords. Triad formula is important for you to play your chord playin’ or even note per note melody.
In this exercise you will learn the triads formulas for C chords in C Major scales, but you can use this theory in other scales, it’s universal theory.

MAJOR TRIADS
Major chords are derived from Root, 3rd, and 5th. So, if we will make C Major chord we will take the C(as the root), E(as the 3rd ), and G note(as the 5th).

C Major :
E-------
B-------
G-------
D---5(5th)---
A --7(3rd)---
E ---8(root)--

C Major :
E---0(3rd)---
B---1(root)-
G---0(5th)--
D---2(3rd)--
A –3(root)-
E -----------


MINOR TRIADS
The minor triads is built from the Root, flatted third(3brd), and 5th. The flatted third is the “half step back E”, it means Eb or D# (just the same).
C Minor :
E---------------------
B---------------------
G---------------------
D---5(5th)------------
A --6(flatted 3rd)----
E ---8(R)------------


C Minor :
E----3(5th)----------
B---4(flatted 3rd)---
G---5(R)------------
D---------------------
A --------------------
E --------------------

B. Exercise I

I. The Strings and The Notes

Well, if you look upon the guitar you will see six strings with many of frets in the fingerboard. Before you learn to play some chords it can be more better if you understand “Who are the six strings” that can become a lot of notes in the different fret. Okay, let’s check this out:

E----------------( the first and the smallest string, called high E string)
B----------------( the second string, called B string )
G----------------( the third string, called G string )
D----------------( the fourth string, called D string )
A----------------( the fifth string, called A string )
E----------------( the sixth string, the biggest string, called low E string)

(from the top string to the last string can be spelled as EADGBE)

If we put and press our finger upon the fingerboard between the two frets, we’ll get the new notes from once of the strings. For example in the high E string, if we put our finger in the first frets column we get the F note, in the second column we get the F# note, in the third column we get the G note, etc. We can imagine this illustration as a guitar fret board :

E---F----F#---G----G#---A----A#---B----C----C#---etc---
B---C----C#---D----D#---E----F----F#---G----G#---
G---G#---A----A#---B----C----C#---D----D#---E----
D---D#---E----F----F#---G----G#---A----A#---B----
A---A#---B----C----C#---D----D#---E----F----F#----
E---F----F#---G----G#---A----A#---B----C----C#----

For your next day, this exercise maybe useful for you if you learn about read the musical notation for guitar.


II. Let’s get the beat

If you want to sing along with your guitar, first you have to understand the beat, you have to get the beat’s feel or the groove in order that you can strum your guitar with the right tempos. If you’ve got the beat already, you can sing with the tempo on your mind, maybe the sounds like dum dum dururum dum dum dururum dum … or else.
Now we can learn some simple chords for exercise and get the beat, let’s check this out:
This is called tablature, the line is the string on the guitar and the number on the line is the number of the fret, for example if in the high E string there is 2, it means you can press the high E string on the fret column 2 (two). Just simple.

D Major :
E---2----
B---3----
G---2----
D---0----
A---------
E---------

C Major:
E---0----
B---1----
G---0----
D---2----
A---3----
E---------

G Major :
E---3----
B---3----
G---0----
D---0----
A---2----
E---3----

Now we learn D, C, and G chords. If you feel quiet swift and little bit understand, you can try to play the exercise song (can be named as etude), this song is from Guns and Roses album(Appetite for Destruction), Sweet Child O’Mine, but on “simplify” version. Let’s strum!

D-------------------------------------------C
She’s got smile that it seems to me reminds me of childhood memories

---------G-------------------------------------------------D -->just repeat.
Were everything was as fresh as the bright blue sky


Okay… If you can get the beat it means you can learn other song, and don’t give up learning other chord. The best way to remember the new chord is to use it in the song that we play, so the best way exercising chord is with learn the new song.

A. The Gates of Your Guitar Lesson

Do you wanna start to learn guitar, free, with fun? Wanna learn to play good guitar melodies? And after that you can show off your playin’ in front of their face, or impressing someone or people? NOW YOU ON THE RIGHT PLACE, DUDE !!! It’s gonna be your first gates for your early learning!

First exercise, we start our learning about some basic knowledge of guitar, until to learn some popular chords. In this level, I think you can play chord strumming that you can use for slang song or for hang out with your friends. Practice makes perfect (but don’t worry, all we need is just a little patience).

In the next exercise we will learn about “how to play the guitar melodies” with the right theory, so you will never let your finger play the wanton improvisation.

We can share some knowledge about guitar playin’ for our exercise, we can do Q&A, and I hope we can make it fun.
We don’t wanna make some bored, so let’s get it rock and let’s get it right !