HearandPlay.com July 2006  Newsletter
http://www.Hearandplay.com * http://www.HearandPlayZone.com
1-877-856-4187 *** 949-206-9591
Serving 205,000+ Musicians Worldwide!
 
Sponsored by www.ChurchLadyDresses.com  Toll-free (888) 759-0728
 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Contents:
I. Welcome
II. Announcements
III. Online Classroom:
       "How to play smoothly using the power of inversions" Part 1
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
 
Dear Musician,
 
Welcome to my July 2006 newsletter. In this issue, we'll explore how to make your chord progressions and movements more smooth by understanding inversions! I'll start the series in this newsletter with some good fundamental concepts and will follow up with more advanced concepts in the next issue.
 
 
If you're new, you're probably thinking:
 
"Jermaine... what is an inversion?"
 
Simply put, an inversion is a different way to play a chord. In other words, if you had a chord like C major (C + E + G), "inverting" it would be no more than finding another way to play this same chord.
 
Let's face it... C+E+G is not the only way to play a C major chord. It's the "root position," as you'll soon learn, but certainly not the only way. You can actually play the C major triad two other ways:
 
E + G + C (this is known as "first inversion" as you'll learn below)
 
and G + C + E (this is known as "second inversion").
 
 
Now, the emphasis of this newsletter and the next is not only to introduce you to the concept of inversions but to demonstrate to you how to use them in real-life musical situations. So, I'll be showing you the key to inverting chords, how to pick the right inversion, and how to ultimately make your progressions a lot more smooth!
 
 
But before we proceed, here's some more pics of my baby girl Jadyn, born 5 weeks ago (June 8, 2006). You can visit my blog at www.JermaineGriggs.com to see more!
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Enjoy this month's newsletter!
 
 
 
 
"The Secrets to Playing Piano By Ear" 300pg Course - Learn the secrets to playing literally any song on the piano with a few simple, "easy-to-understand" techniques and principles! Join Jermaine Griggs in learning tons of music theory, concepts, and tricks that will help you to learn piano by ear! Thousands of musicians have already taken advantage of this excellent program ... why not you?

"The Secrets to Playing Piano By Ear" is full of easy-to-understand tricks, tips, techniques and secrets to playing piano by ear! For this month only, I've also been able to throw in a few bonus items (3 additional piano software programs). Click here to learn the secrets to playing absolutely any song on the piano in virtually minutes! You won't regret it!
 
 
GospelKeys 101 Learning System

GospelKeys 101 will teach you everything you need to know to get started playing basic hymns and congregational songs by ear.  If you're a beginner and would like your very own gospel piano teacher on dvd, this course is definitely for you! This dvd course moves at a very comfortable pace and leaves no questions unanswered.

You will be shown, step-by-step, how to harmonize every single tone of the major scale --- AND since songs are based on melodies (and melodies are based on major scales), you'll be able to harmonize MOST songs immediately after learning these concepts. In 90 minutes, you'll learn a variety of chords, inversions, melodies, and will be playing over a half-dozen songs by the end!

Note: This course may not be suitable for "ultra" advanced players. This is a basic "101" course on harmonization and creation of simple hymns and congregational songs (and even nursery rhymes and lullabies).

 Click here to learn more or call 1-877-856-4187

Other sites to check out this month:

http://www.JermaineGriggs.com * https://www.hearandplay.com/itunes http://www.ChurchLadyDresses.com * http://www.hearandplayzone.com

 

Newsletter Archive - Click here or visit https://www.hearandplay.com/newsletters.html
 
 
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Online Classroom:
 
 "How to play smoothly using the power of inversions" Part 1
------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
Note: You might want to print this lesson out for easier reading...
 
 
Let's get started!
 
 
First, let's start with the basics.
 
As stated above, an "inversion" is simply another way to play the same chord.
 
...So when someone says "invert" that chord, they are basically saying to apply some changes to the chord so that it's played differently.
 
 
Now the rule behind inverting a chord is this:
"The number of notes in a chord determines how many inversions exists for that chord"
 
In other words, "the number of notes in a chord is equal to how many different ways you can play the chord."
 
So if you are playing a 3-note chord, C major (C+E+G), there would be three total ways to play the chord --- and since you're using one of those ways to play "C E G," that leaves two more to go!
 
 
So let's talk about the different types of inversions:
 
 
Root position: This is when the keynote (name of the chord) is the LOWEST NOTE.
 
Let's analyze this inversion really quickly.
 
In C major, the keynote is C. Remember, the keynote is simply the name of the chord. So a C major chord in root position always has C as it's lowest note:
 
C E G
 
For those who don't know how to form major chords, I invite you to visit https://www.hearandplay.com/course or check out my free online lessons at https://www.hearandplay.com/lessons.
 
 
Recall that you can form ANY major chord by simply taking the [1st], [3rd], and [5th] tones of any major scale.
 
In other words, if you know all twelve major scales, then you know all 12 major chords. In fact, you know all 12 minor chords... dominant chords... major seventh chords, and more (...because all of these chords come from major scales).
 
 
"C E G" is basically the first, third, and fifth tone of the C major scale.
 
C major scale = C  D  E  F  G  A  B  C
 
C is 1
E is 3
G is 5
 
1+3+5 = major chord
 
 
Now that you understand how the numbers work, I can move on to the other two inversions:
 
 
 
First inversion: This is when the third is the LOWEST NOTE.
 
In the C major scale, what is the third tone?
 
Answer: E
 
 
The C major chord is said to be in first inversion when the third tone (or E) is the lowest note:
 
E G C
 
 
Notice that we basically took the keynote from the bottom (C E G) and put it on the top ( E G C). So when someone tells you to invert this chord up, that's would you'd do. Take the C from the bottom (root position) and move it to the top, thus creating the first inversion.
 
 
 
 
Second inversion: This is when the fifth is the LOWEST NOTE.
 
As you already know, the fifth of C major is G.
 
 
C major in second inversion is: G + C + E
 
Notice here, we just took the "E" first inversion ( E + G + C) and moved it to the top (G + C + E). This also leaves the keynote right smack in the middle.
 
 
Recap:
 
Root position: C E G (keynote on bottom)
First inversion: E G C (third on bottom)
Second inversion: G C E (fifth on bottom)
 
 
 
Quick Exercise
 
 
1) F major
 
F major scale: F G A Bb C D E F
 
F major (root position) = _______________
 
F major (first inversion) = _______________
 
F major (second inversion) = _______________
 
 
 
2) Bb major
 
Bb major scale: Bb C D Eb F G A Bb
 
Bb major (root position) = _______________
 
Bb major (first inversion) = _______________
 
Bb major (second inversion) = _______________
 
 
 
3) G major
 
G major scale: G A B C D E F# G
 
G major (root position) = _______________
 
G major (first inversion) = _______________
 
G major (second inversion) = _______________
 
 
 
Answers:
 
1) F major
 
Root: F A C
First: A C F
Second: C F A
 
 
2) Bb major
 
Root: Bb D F
First: D F Bb
Second: F Bb D
 
 
3) G major
 
Root: G B D
First: B D G
Second: D G B
 
 
Moving on...
 
 
Remember my inversion rule from above?
"The number of notes in a chord determines how many inversions exists for that chord"
 
Since we've only been dealing with triads (3-note chords), there have only been three total inversions.
 
However, when you start playing with sevenths (4-note chords), ninths (5-note chords), elevenths (6-note chords), and others, the number of inversions increase accordingly.
 
 
# of notes Type of chord
Three Triad
Four Seventh
Five Ninth
Six Elevenths
Seven Thirteenths
 
If you have the 300pg course, you'll find more information about this on page 50.
 
 
 
Here's a break down of the inversions that exist in larger chords:
 
 
Seventh chords (4-notes):
 
Root position, first inversion, second inversion, third inversion [More info]
 
 
Ninth chords (5-notes):
 
Root position, first inversion, second inversion, third inversion, fourth inversion [More info]
 
 
Eleventh chords (6-notes):
 
Root position, first inversion, second inversion, third inversion, fourth inversion, fifth inversion [More info]
 
 
Thirteenth chords (7-notes):
 
Root position, first inversion, second inversion, third inversion, fourth inversion, fifth inversion, sixth inversion [More info]
 
 
 
Effectively using inversions in chord progressions Part 1
 
Chord progressions are simply the movement of one chord to another.
 
 
Progressions generally move in fourth and fifth intervals. When you really do a study of fourth and fifth intervals, you'll find that they are really inverses of each other. In other words, to go "up" a fourth produces a similar sound as going "down" a fifth (though one is a higher chord than the other).
 
 
Take a look at the C major scale
 
 
C  D  E  F  G  A  B  C
 
Going up a fourth just means going up four notes in the scale.
 
C 1
D 2
E 3
F 4
 
 
So moving from a chord based on "C" up to a chord based on "F" is known as moving up a fourth.
 
 
Let's look at the scale again (but this time, 2 octaves):
 
 
C  D  E  F  G  A  B  C  D  E  F  G  A  B  C
 
 
Going down a fourth just means going down four notes in the scale (starting from middle C).
 
C is 1
B is 2
A is 3
G is 4
 
 
So moving from a chord based on "C" down to a chord based on "G" is known as moving down a fourth.
 
 
You can also reverse the directions of both of these examples:
 
 
Moving up a fifth:
 
C is 1
D is 2
E is 3
F is 4
G is 5
 
A chord based on "C" moving up to a chord based on "G" is known as moving up a fifth.
 
 
Moving down a fifth:
 
C is 1
B is 2
A is 3
G is 4
F is 5
 
...So "C" down to "F" is a fifth.
 
 
That's why I said "fourths" and "fifths" are actually closer than you think, depending on whether you're going up a fourth/fifth interval, or going down.
 
 
Let's analyze the 1st, 4th, and 5th tones of a scale.
 
These are known as PRIMARY CHORDS.
 
Out of all the triads of the major scale, they are the only major chords. When looking at the 2nd, 3rd, 6th, and 7th tones of a major scale, you'll find that they are not associated with major chords but with minor chords (2, 3, and 6 tones) and diminished (7 tone) chords.
 
 
So indeed, there is something special about the 1st, 4th, and 5th tones of a scale. In fact, you'll find that majority of songs move between the 1st, 4th, and 5th tones in one way or another. In fact, I can't think of many songs where I wouldn't play the 1st, 4th, or 5th tone. That's how popular these chord movements are.
 
(...Now I'm not saying you're only going to play 3-note major chords on them --- there are certainly more variations, extensions, and alterations that can be made to the 1st, 4th, and 5th tone. You can find them in my 300-pg course).
 
 
 
Primary chords:
 
C major chord: C E G
 
F major chord: F A C
 
G major chord: G B D
 
 
 
Using inversions, you can actually connect these chords together very smoothly without having to lift your fingers. Instead, you can "slide" into each chord from the last one.
 
 
Note: If you're following the melody, it may be necessary to lift your fingers at times. However, if you are playing the organ, playing in a band, or accompanying a singer, you may find it more helpful to use inversions to connect chords together easier.
 
 
Say you wanted to play this progression:
 
C major -- F major --- G major --- F major --- C major
 
 
How could you connect all these chords together without lifting your fingers?
 
 
Answer: Using the closest inversion from whatever chord you're currently playing.
 
 
Example:
 
If you were playing  C major in root position (C E G) and you wanted to progress up a fourth to F major, the closest inversion wouldn't be (F A C).
 
Look how far you're moving: [ C E G ] all the way up to [ F A C ]
 
 
Solution:
 
Find a closer inversion of F major. Ask yourself this one question: "Are there any COMMON NOTES between the C major and F major chords?
 
 
Answer: YES, the "C"
 
 
Key trick: When moving in fourths and fifths, there will always be a common note between the chords (unless you are leaving out certain notes).
 
 
C major: C E G
F major: F A C
 
In this example, "C" is the common note. The bigger your chords get, the more common notes:
 
C major 7: C E G B
F major 7: F A C E
 
Now the common notes are C and E
 
 
Bigger chord:
 
C major 9: C E G B D
F major 9: F A C E G
 
Now the common notes are C, E and G.
 
 
 
So instead of lifting fingers, keep your common notes in place and find out where you have to move the other notes (usually right next door) to create the next chord in the progression.
 
 
Example:
 
C major to F major
 
Root positions:
C major: C E G
F major: F A C
 
Common note: C
 
1) Keep C in place after playing the C major chord
2) Since C is permanent, what do you do with the G? Move it up to A
3) What do you do with E? Move it up to F.
4) New chord: C F A (F major, second inversion)
 
 
Another Example:
 
Cmaj7 to Fmaj7
 
Root positions:
Cmaj7: C E G B
Fmaj7: F A C E
 
Common notes: C and E
 
1) Keep C and E in place after playing the Cmaj7 chord
2) Since C and E are permanent (common notes), move B down to A.
3) Move G down to F.
4) Now that you've taken care of the non-common notes ("B down to A" and "G down to F"), you have a new chord: F major 7 / second inversion (C E F A).
 
 
 
Here's the key rules (if moving up in fourths, like most songs):
 
 
==> If you're playing in root position (major / minor), you can transition smoothest to the second inversion of the next chord.
 
Example: C E G to C F A   or   C E G B to C E F A
 
 
==> If you're playing in first inversion, you can transition smoothest to the root position of the next chord.
 
Example: E G C to F A C
 
 
==> If you're playing in second inversion, you can transition smoothest to the first inversion of the next chord.
 
Example: G C E to A C F
 
 
Recap:
 
Root  to Second
Second to First
First to Root
 
 
Root >>> Second >>> First >>> Root
 
 
This even works for bigger chord progressions (for my experienced people):
 
 
Bbmin9 (Ab C Db F over  Bb bass)
Ebmin9 (Gb Bb Db F over  Eb bass)
 
What did we do? We moved up a fourth.
 
Common notes? Db, F
 
Did we lift those fingers? No
 
Smooth sound? Yes!
 
 
We'll continue this study of inversions and smooth transitioning in the next issue!
 

Explore these chord types to prepare for future newsletters:

 

Well, I hope you enjoyed this newsletter and I'll be back soon! Take care!

This concludes your Online Classroom Lesson
 
If you were intrigued by the online classroom lesson above,
then you would definitely benefit from my course!
 
 
 
 
Enjoy this edition? Visit our message board and let us know!
https://www.hearandplay.com/board
 
Please Let a friend know about HearandPlay.com! PLEASE FORWARD
THIS NEWSLETTER TO YOUR ENTIRE E-MAIL ADDRESS BOOK.
 
 
Yours Truly,
Jermaine Griggs
www.HearandPlay.com
www.GospelKeys.com
 
 

Further References

"The Secrets to Playing Piano By Ear" 300-pg Course

[5] Chords & Progressions: pgs 65-78, 105-130, 147-165, 182-227.

Do you know what a “2-5-1” or "3-6-2-5-1" progression is? Or perhaps the famous 12-bar blues chord progression? In this piano course, you will not only learn how to play gospel, blues, and jazz progressions, but how to recognize them in songs. In addition, you will learn the simple techniques to playing these progressions, hymns, and songs in all 12 major keys! ... Enjoy learning:

The famous "2-5-1" Chord Progression: pgs 114-120, 153-156, 208, 235-236.

I - IV - I - V - I Chord Progressions: pgs 66-70.

I - IV - V - IV - I Chord Progressions: pgs 77-78.

Techniques behind the famous "5-->1" progression: pgs 68-72.

I --> IV,  I --> V Chord Progressions: pgs 74-75.

"Circle of Fifths" Chord Exercises: pg 78.

Major and Minor Chord Progressions: pgs 105-130.

"6 - 2 - 5 - 1" Chord Progressions: pgs 121-122, 157-159.

"3 - 6 - 2 - 5 - 1" Chord Progressions: pgs 122-123, 160-162.

"7 - 3 - 6 - 2 - 5 - 1" Chord Progressions: pgs 124-125, 190-191.

Gospel Chord Progressions ... ranging from "up-tempo praise" chord Progressions to "worship-oriented" chord progressions: pgs 65-78, 105-130, 147-165, 182-227.

Various Blues Progressions ... 12-bar, seventh chords, diminished chords ... and others: pgs 163-165, 192.

Jazz Chord Progressions ... using dominant ninth, eleventh and thirteenth chords: pgs 193-240

Study the different types of Root Progressions --- closing, opening, circular and other types of progressions: pgs 121-122.

Study how chord tones and scale degrees relate to each other [which chord progressions are most likely to be compatible]: pgs 122-130.

Learn various "turn-around" progressions [used in gospel music]: pg 213-214.

If you don't have the 300-pg Course, click here to read more about it.
 
 
"The Secrets to Playing Piano By Ear" 300pg Course - Learn the secrets to playing literally any song on the piano with a few simple, "easy-to-understand" techniques and principles! Join Jermaine Griggs in learning tons of music theory, concepts, and tricks that will help you to learn piano by ear! Thousands of musicians have already taken advantage of this excellent program ... why not you?

"The Secrets to Playing Piano By Ear" is full of easy-to-understand tricks, tips, techniques and secrets to playing piano by ear! For this month only, I've also been able to throw in a few bonus items (3 additional piano software programs). Click here to learn the secrets to playing absolutely any song on the piano in virtually minutes! You won't regret it!
 
 
Newsletter Archive - Click here or visit https://www.hearandplay.com/newsletters.html