Practicing Harmonized 3rds and 6ths Within Patterns

Hey Barrett,

I am incorporating the Guitar Fretboard Workbook and Chord-Tone Soloing into my newly dedicated practice regime. Well done!

I have a question. I am starting off my sessions with playing 2 of the 5 scale shapes in one key doing the descending 2,3,4, and five note patterns demonstrated on pg 30 of CTS then in melodic 3rds and 4ths. Tough but great. I want to move on to the Diatonic 3rds and 6ths but I am confused.

On pg. 34 it shows the C going up in thirds with the C scale on the G string and then in 6ths with it on the B. I think how I can see how to practice them on adjacent strings but I don't know how to practice them within each of the five patterns.

Am I missing something or is there somewhere you can point me to get an idea of how to practice them?

I have been a guitar maker for years, acoustic and electric, so if you need anything or have a question please feel free to ask. I also make and repair pickups if you ever have one crap out on you.

Thanks again and continued success,

Andrew
****************************
Hi Andrew,

Thanks for buying and using my books. I applaud your addition of diatonic 4ths to your practice regime, because it shows initiative. Those are not explicitly demonstrated in the book.

You need to shift between at least two adjacent scale patterns in order to play harmonized 3rds throughout a key, because it's not possible for a string to produce two fundamental pitches at once. With 6ths, this problem does not occur, so we'll be able to play them entirely within a single fingering pattern.

You did not say which two of the five patterns you have learned, so they might not be adjacent ones.

Starting from square one then, here is one octave's worth of Pattern One in D major. Play the first note with your little finger. Memorize the scale.

D major, Pattern One
------------------
-------------2-3--
---------2-4------
---2-4-5----------
-5----------------
------------------

Now learn this ten-note chunk of Pattern Two in D major. This one should start with the middle finger.

D major, Pattern Two
---------------------
-----------------5-7-
-----------4-6-7-----
-----4-5-7-----------
-5-7-----------------
---------------------

The pitches of the scale are named with letters, like this:
D E F# G A B C# D

or with scale degree numbers like this:
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Notice these numbers are SCALE DEGREES, not fret numbers.

To start harmonized 3rds, we play scale degrees 1 and 3 (D and F#) together. We can think of these as part of Pattern One or of Pattern Two of the scale, because they are common to both.

---
---
---
-4-
-5-
---

Next we'll play scale degrees 2 and 4 (E and G) together. These notes cannot be played simultaneously in Pattern One because they'd be on the same string, so we move up into Pattern Two.

---
---
---
-5-
-7-
---

To get the next two-note chord (also called a double stop), we'll shift back into Pattern One. The two notes can't be played together as a chord in Pattern Two. The notes are F# and A, scale degrees 3 and 5.

---
---
-2-
-4-
---
---

The next 3rd-interval double stop is from scale degrees 4 to 6, G to B. These are common to Pattern One and Pattern Two.

---
---
-4-
-5-
---
---

Now we are up to degrees 5 and 7 of the scale: A and C#. We are in Pattern Two again.

---
---
-6-
-7-
---
---

Next, degrees 6 to 8. These are back in Pattern One.

---
-3-
-4-
---
---
---

We're going to learn at least one octave's worth of harmonized 3rds here, so we need to keep going. This is 7 to 2 in the scale, C# to E.

---
-5-
-6-
---
---
---

Now here's 1 to 3 again, but an octave higher than where we started.

---
-7-
-7-
---
---
---

After some practice of the above steps, we get this: a D major scale harmonized in 3rds with minimal shifting.

------------------------------------
-----------3-5-7---7-5-3------------
-----2-4-6-4-6-7---7-6-4-6-4-2------
-4-5-4-5-7---------------7-5-4-5-4--
-5-7---------------------------7-5--
------------------------------------

For harmonized 6ths, shifting out of one position is not required because the notes are far enough apart to never risk being on the same string.

-------------5-7---7-5--------------
-------5-7-8-----------8-7-5--------
-4-6-7-----4-6-7---7-6-4-----7-6-4--
-----4-5-7---------------7-5-4------
-5-7---------------------------7-5--
------------------------------------

Of course, shifting out of position will be required if we want to continue the pattern into higher or lower registers of music, so don't stop with just the examples I showed you. Learn it all over the place, and move it to all the other keys!

Thanks for your question, it is a good one.

With your permission I'd like to send you free mp3s from my new CD, with hopes that if you like it enough, someday you might pick it up.

Here's the title track:
http://monsterguitars.com/cd01/Barrett_Tagliarino-02-Throttle_Twister.mp3

Feel free to share it with as many friends as possible.

Thanks again,

Barrett
http://monsterguitars.com