the dominant 13 sus 4 chord

> Hi Barrett
>
> I just came across an interview you did, talking about
> showing paul gilbert
> some 13sus4 chords! cool stuff.
>
> I like to take chords and then learn them all over the
> neck..
>
> what formula should I use? should I drop any notes out?
>
> and mainly how would I use them in context?
>
> Thanks!
>
> Aaron

Hi Aaron,

I should correct you there. I did not "show Paul" 13sus4 chords! He knew how to play them when he came over, but wanted to talk about playing over them and how their compositional uses were explained in theory. Just being clear, he already knows a lot and has a great ear, but is constantly improving himself musically.

An A13sus4 chord may contain any or all of these pitches:

1 4 5 b7 9 13
A D E G B F#

You'd often leave out the 9th or 5th. Or leave out the root and let the bass player cover it.

Guitarists can voice it like this in 5th position with a 1st finger barre:
A E G D F# A

You'd first use this chord in the same place you'd use a dominant 7th chord in a major key, on degree V. In D major that V is A13sus4.

There are many other places dominant chords get used, as I'm sure you know. In the blues, the I, IV, and V are all dominant. All may be suspended and extended if you like the sound.

In any place where the triad of the intended functional target of a dominant chord is major, you can try a 13sus4. So in a D major tonality you can try an E13sus4 (V of V) along with the I and V.

Because the 4th is covering up the 3rd in the chord you can also just think of E13sus4 as Em13 with no 3rd, a substitute for Em7.

If you want to switch modes a little, you can use B13sus4 in the key of D major and switch to D Lydian in your melody when the chord occurs. You will get B Dorian over the B13sus4 chord.

The rule for use of dominants also applies to minor keys, so in the key of B minor you can try E13sus4: V of VII, A13sus4: V of III, and D13sus4: V of VI (though you'll have to switch to B Phrygian in the melody because of the C note here).

In nontraditional composition, 13sus4 chords can be used to create parallel harmony phrases. Think of the top note as a member of a pentatonic scale and slide the whole chord around, creating a simple melodic riff with the top note.

Those are the main applications; there are probably lots more.

Thanks for writing, and with your permission I'd like to send you links to mp3s from my latest record. Feel free to share with friends.

Barrett

CAGED system vs. Pattern Numbering

Kit said...

Hi Barrett, I really appreciate your Fretboard Workbook - great stuff. Would you be able to clarify one thing for me? I've been really helped by memorizing the 5 Major Scale "patterns" but why do the CAGED shapes get numbered differently so CAGED position 1 = E shape = pattern 4? Thanks again for producing a great book.

Kit
*********************
Barrett says:
THANKS KIT!

Hopefully I get what you're asking. I'll try explaining how the CAGED system works from a couple of different perspectives and how it relates to the pattern numbering system used in my books and in all Musicians Institute guitar curricula.

First, as we move a specific fingering shape around the fretboard to different keys, we want it to be identified by the same pattern name --- be it C, A, G, E, or D --- or by a pattern number: 1, 2,3, 4, or 5. That way we know how to put our fingers down.

For example, when we have the index finger on string 2 and the ring finger on string 5 as in the following tab, that's Pattern One in the key of C. These are both C notes. In the CAGED system, this is the C shape.

-----
-1---
-----
-----
-3---
-----

If we move the hand up the neck by two frets, that's still Pattern One, but now it's in the key of D. In the CAGED system, this is called a C shape or form, but these are both D notes.

-----
-3---
-----
-----
-5---
-----

Move it up another two frets and it's still Pattern One, but this time it's in the key of E. These are both E notes. In the CAGED system, an "E root shape of the C form," if you will.

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

Now another perspective. We want consecutive pattern numbers for shapes that connect up the neck. First look at Pattern One of C again. In the CAGED system, this is the C.

-----
-1---
-----
-----
-3---
-----

If we want to play C patterns higher up the neck, we will prepare by placing our index finger in the spot formerly occupied by the ring finger.

-----
-----
-----
-----
-3---
-----

The addition of another C note on the third string gives us Pattern Two of C. Notice this high C is the same pitch as the one we played on the second string.

In the CAGED system, this is called the A shape---because it resembles the roots of the first A chord we learn in open position (and that is the only reason).

-----
-----
-5---
-----
-3---
-----

Next, by placing our index finger on the higher C we prepare to play Pattern Three of C.

-----
-----
-5---
-----
-----
-----

Pattern Three has roots on the 6th, 3rd, and 1st strings. There are three C notes here. (I don't expect a beginner to play all three at once.) In the CAGED system, this is the G shape---because it resembles the roots of a G chord in open position.

-8---
-----
-5---
-----
-----
-8---


By placing our index finger on the place formerly occupied by the pinky, we prepare to play Pattern Four of C. You can barre all the way across the fretboard for this.

-8---
-----
-----
-----
-----
-8---


The addition of the ring finger on fret 10 completes Pattern Four roots in the key of C. In the CAGED system, this is the E shape---because it resembles the roots of the E chord in open position.

-8---
-----
-----
-10--
-----
-8---

A similar process, moving the index finger up to fret 10, gives us the Pattern Five root shape for C. In the CAGED system, this is the D form---because it resembles the roots of the first D chord we learn in open position. That is the only reason for the "D form" name. There is nothing else inherently "D" about it. These are both C notes.

-----
-13--
-----
-10--
-----
-----

Pattern One occurs again next, with the index finger on the 13th fret. These are both C notes.

-----
-13--
-----
-----
-15--
-----

Moving on up, we get another instance of C roots in Pattern Two. Again, the CAGED system refers to this as an "A" form, because it resembles the roots of an A chord when played in open position.

-----
-----
-17--
-----
-15--
-----

Right now it may seem like no big deal to call a chord with these roots a "C Chord of the A Form," but later you'll encounter additional layers of complexity, as when you apply substitute chords on top of each other.

For example, one way to make a C chord sound much jazzier would be to play an E chord instead, just keeping C as the bass note.

First play this:
-----
-5---
-5---
-5---
-3---
-----

then this:
----
-5--
-4--
-6--
-3--
----

Using pattern numbers for reference, the upper part of this chord is a Pattern One E major, that we've superimposed over the Pattern Two C chord.

Using the CAGED System for reference, the upper part of this chord is a C-form E major, that we've superimposed over the A-form C chord.

Either way is correct, but I find the first way of looking at it to be easier. The chord doesn't look much like an open-position A, and I've already got two other chords with letter names to think about: C and E.

Another name for this chord is Cmaj7#5. It is a Pattern Two chord, because its roots are on strings 5 and 3. (Although since the root does not need to be duplicated, the 3rd string is used for another chord tone here.)

I'd also use a Pattern Two scale over the chord. In this case, the scale is C Lydian Sharp 5, Pattern Two.

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

The Pattern Two roots of the scale are, as always, on strings 3 and 5.

-----
-----
-5---
-----
-3---
-----

That last example was meant to show that there are situations that may be better served by using pattern numbers than the CAGED system alone. I'm not expecting you to be familiar with either the chord or scale presented.

It also shows that the pattern numbering system works the same for scales as the chords they are played on top of in the same fretboard position.

Tablature/Notation Book for Throttle Twister

All guitar parts on the entire CD, including guest solos, are transcribed in both tablature and traditional notation for you in an 8.25" by 11" book! At amazon.

New CD is available today, (Jan. 24, 2009)

The title is Throttle Twister. Eleven tracks of rock guitar instrumentals.

Guitar: Barrett Tagliarino
Bass: Alexis Sklarevski
Drums: Jon Rygiewicz
B3 on tracks 5 & 9: Steve Welch
Guest appearances by Paul Gilbert and Scott Henderson.

You can order it straight from the CD duplicator here. Check it out even if you're not buying! The cover is very cool, done by Ari Baron & Plushie the Pinstriper. Click the "Rotate Case" button at the upper left to see the back of the CD box.

You can stream all the songs in their entirety and download one for free at last.fm, and I will rotate free tracks on a monthly basis so you can download them all for free --- if you are willing to take eleven months to collect them! Contact me if you want to be notified of those mp3 releases.

There will also be a complete transcription book of all the guitar parts, expected to be available in a couple of weeks. I wrote it all out myself, so: what appears in the book will be what was really played.

Thanks!

Remembering Solos in Rehearsal

Hi Barrett,

I've been learning some hard rock/heavy metal cover tunes (Priest,
Scorpions, etc.) to play with a drummer. We had an initial rehearsal last night, and it went pretty well until it came time to play the solos (ones transcribed from the record, not improvised). I got lost pretty quickly, even though I had been practicing them along with the records.

My question is: How do you recommend learning/practicing solos from recordings? I know you need to play along with the record initially, but this can become a "crutch" as I learned last night. Is there some way to incorporate priciples from Chord-Tone Soloing to do this (metronome, chord tracks, etc.)?

Thanks
Ed

************************

The same thing happens to me too, and I can't claim any special secret knowledge for preventing it, other than maybe the philosophy that long term memory is assisted by multiple perspectives on the same information: physical, aural, visual, verbal, etc.

Here are some things I do to try to learn a solo well enough that I can pull it off on a gig or rehearsal the first time and every time. I'll do some or all of these things depending on how important the gig is and how much time I have to get ready.

First: everything you said. I practice without the recording as soon as possible and only check back with it if I am totally stuck. I make my own backing sequence to play over, and also play it with a metronome only. I always try to practice the solo and each lick in the proper time, even if I am alone. I do not skip the rests or empty bars to save time. The song structure has to march by in my head like a treadmill.

I try to find the easiest and most obvious fingerings for everything and practice it the same way every time so it becomes muscle memory.

I will put my guitar aside, and slowly visualize the solo being played, one note at a time.

I sing the solo away from the instrument, bit by bit; usually singing scales first for about 5 minutes before I start.

I will intentionally set up situations to test my ability to play the solo while I'm distracted. I'll play it while I'm talking or watching tv at the same time.

Teach the solo to someone else if you get the chance; carefully explaining where to put each finger for each note as you play. Or just teach it to an imaginary student using the verbalization method.

Once I know a solo I practice it frequently, but only once through at a time. Make it similar to the live situation, where you can't back up if you make a mistake. Force yourself to plow on through, just like you'd have to on a gig. The best memorization comes from playing something on the gig several nights a week for months, so emulate that situation. That is a mixture of feeling the pain of blowing it in front of a crowd, and then going back and reviewing it later so that it hopefully it doesn't happen again.

Intentionally screw with yourself by dropping out or improvising a couple bars, then jump back in with the real licks from the original solo. You want to be able to jump back in after a dropout. Practice it starting from all different places, not just from the beginning.

Other things I do: I usually write the solo out by hand when I'm transcribing anyway, but if I learned it from sheet music I'll put that away and write it out again from memory. It takes time, but it helps you really know the ins and outs of each phrase, what beat it starts on, and all its details, because you have to count it all out and write each pitch. Then I read the thing I've written. Then I put it away and go back to it only if I am totally stuck at remembering it.

When (not "if") I forget it, I try to figure it out again without using the paper or the recording. It's usually in my head somewhere as melodic memory, but maybe with no muscle memory attached.

I play it super slow, counting the beats aloud so I really know it.

Also try playing it faster than the original (but still in time with the metronome). This is a good one; it forces you to really get the thing down to reflex.

Transposing the solo to another key can be helpful for getting your ear trained to control your fingers, but you want to be careful that you don't let multiple fingerings get you confused.

After doing all that, I'll still mangle it a few times before I start getting it right in front of an audience with consistency. At that point, I'm almost EXPECTING it to suck, and am about ready to give up. Then it starts coming out perfectly just to spite me.

Arpeggio Fingering Considerations

> Hi Barrett,
>
> I had a question about the Major Triad Arpeggios on p.35 of
> the Chord-Tone Soloing book:
>
> Just wondering why the Pattern 5 arpeggio is different, in
> that it moves outside the position of the corresponding
> Pattern 5 Major scale with its initial stretch to the
> third, unlike all the other major triad arpeggios which
> stay within their respective scale forms.
>
> I know these things aren't carved in stone (though the
> CAGED system seems pretty structured to me), but it's
> almost like the Pattern 5 major triad shape moves into
> Pattern 1 initially then back to Pattern 5 again!
>
> Any thoughts on this?
>
> - Ed

Hi Ed,

Thanks for writing. Here are some quick thoughts on Pattern 5 arpeggios that also apply to the others.

If you start a pattern 5 arpeggio with the 1st finger on the root, then the one shown on page 35 is easiest to play smoothly, although you're right, it does cross over into pattern 1's territory.

If you start with the 2nd finger on the root, then the way you suggest (similar to patterns 2 & 4) starts off looking easier. But it gets a little tricky when you get to the notes played by the 3rd and 4th fingers on the top 3 strings. It is harder to play cleanly because of the independence required between fingers 3 and 4.

In the long run you'll want to know how to do it either way (and more other ways), depending on which finger happens to be closest at the time, and where your melody is going afterward.

That brings up an exercise that I highly recommend. See what happens when you start the arpeggios from every possible finger on each note, while avoiding any moves that might create a gap or a smear in the sound. (For example: playing two consecutive notes on different strings and different frets with the same finger---I try to avoid that.)

Here is how the exercise physically plays out. Start a major triad arp from a root on the sixth string with each of the 4 fingers, and you often get a different fingering for the same notes. Then try every possible starting finger for the arp but starting from the 3rd, then the 5th, then the next root, and so on. Draw fingering diagrams if necessary.

You'll find it often pushes you into a different area of the neck from where you started. But if you know those first 5 basic shapes it'll help you figure out where the next note is when you get shifted up into the next pattern.

It is lots of work. If you practice this, though, your playing will eventually be ultra-smooth. That's always the final deciding factor: whatever ends up producing the most even, stable, and consistently clean sound is what you should use, even if it creates a conceptual problem or messes up a pattern.


Thanks again,
Barrett

melodic structure

Barrett,
Hey, buddy. I've just been working through your Chord-Tone Soloing book again and was wondering if you would indulge me and answer a couple of questions. These both have to do with the whole concept of hitting the closest available chord tone of the next chord. First of all, I have been trying to break out of my pentatonic rut by switching pentatonic scales with each chord. I thought of you because when I just switched scales without much thought as to what tone I "began" on, it sounded pretty rough; however, when I kind of focused on a neighboring note that was a chord tone of the next chord, things sounded much better. Question one is this: What if my phrases are kind of chord based, instead of linear/scalar and aren't really moving in a certain direction? In other words, if I am hitting a D over a D chord, but it's not really part of an ascending or descending line, and I move to an A chord, does it matter if I hit the C# or the E? Secondly, I am a HUGE fan of Neal Schon of Journey--I think his solos are the most beautiful and memorable, by far, out there. It seems to me that he solos entirely out of the tonic/parent diatonic scale, and I have spent the last year painstakingly trying to figure out how to solo with the entire major scale, without much luck. That's what brought me back to your book. I have had it in my head that you only hit the 4 note over the IV chord and can only hit the 7 over the V, etc.--heck, I've experimented with everything. Putting rhythm aside and only focusing on note choice, is there an easy insight you can give me into improvising with the major scale a la Neal Schon? I know that's a pretty wide-open question. Thanks again, Barrett, and keep up the great work.
Travis P.

Hi Travis,

For your first question: "if I am hitting a D over a D chord, but it's not really part of an ascending or descending line, and I move to an A chord, does it matter if I hit the C# or the E?"

Either the C# or the E will work on the A chord even if it is not part of a linear idea, though the linear approach to the chord tone reinforces your ability to hit it at the right time in a way that feels musical.

Beyond hitting the closest available tone of the next chord, you might next need to study melodic structure. Neal Schon's a good exemplifier of it.

Some quick examples are the little guitar melody in "Any Way You Want It" (around 2:00) and the longer one in "Who's Crying Now" (at 3:28).

These melodies are designed (not improvised, really) to fit a phrase of a specific length. A 'phrase' here is defined as a short chord progression, with a discernible beginning and end, that is usually repeated. In "Any Way You Want It" it's a four-bar phrase (G D/F# Em C). In "Who's Crying Now" it's eight bars (Am Am F F Dm G Am Am).

You can clearly hear the resolution point at the end of each phrase in the melody lines. The melody stops naturally in these places.

On "Any Way You Want It" the melody stops on the tonic G, which is the 5th of the IV chord at the time.

On the slow song he stops on the 9th of the Im chord at the end of the 8-bar phrase. There's a little breathing room before the same melody starts again. In the solo that follows, he keeps that phrase length in mind at all times, so he can finish up and return to the signature melody right on time for the fadeout.

Chord Tone Soloing sets you up for the skill by forcing you to count bars. In this case you have to count 4 or 8 bars while you're playing and do your best to finish off your licks at the beginning of bar 4 (or 8). With that in mind, it's ok if it goes past that point by a beat or two, but DO NOT let it hang over the end of bar 4 and into the next phrase. If it does hang over, it may feel like you're doing something really cool, but by about two bars later I can almost guarantee you're going to start feeling lost, and the melody will take on a random meandering quality that you don't want.

For practice you should start looking at chord progressions, writing them down and trying to identify the phrase lengths. If there is a I, IV, or V chord in bar 4 or 8, then it's probably there that you need your melody to resolve to a long chord tone, then take a breath and start it over. It can repeat exactly (and there's nothing wrong with planning it instead of improvising) or it can repeat with some variation.

Exaggerate that long note at the end. It should be longer than you think. A whole note in bar 4 is totally ok. Remember, there's a band playing with you, and they will fill up that space.

With time this kind of phrasing will develop as a reflex when improvising.

I better go now. Good luck and have fun.
Barrett