HELP ME WITH CHORDS!!!!!!!!!

[slapnuts]

Can someone show me a good website or type up a list of chords or something where I can get some bass chords? I really want to integrate them, but I don't know them.

[el_Kabong]

Sorry I can't point you directly at what you're asking for. But chords are chords, no such thing as bass chords (tho I'm guessing you were refering to fingering patterns for bass). If you get a list of chord spellings (eg 1 3 b7) from a guitar site, piano site or wherever and you know your intervals on the fretboard you can work out/make up whatever fingerings you like. If you don't know your intervals well enough to do this I'd recommend puting the time in to learn them. It will pay off in the long run, enabling you to voice chords to suit yourself. Simple things like thirds and tenths can sound great.

[dhadleyray]

Whether you are aware of it or not, you're looking for shortcuts. You're going to have to learn theory, because there is no such thing as "bass chords" exclusively, and if you learned them, would you know enough about substitutions and inversions to take full advantage?

[Howard K]

Indeed, chords are chords, you will need to learn some theory to get your head round this properly.

But, basic chords are defined by three or four notes, root, 3rd, 5th and 7th.

root is obviously the lowest note in the chord, the note you ALWAYS play right If you're playing an E minor chord, the root is E, right?

This is where the theory comes in, an E minor chord is derived from the E minor scale:

E F# G A B C D E

So your E minor 7 chord consists of four notes, E G B D.

You'll notice that playing these 4 notes together on bass sounds pretty muddy, so the best thing to do is leave out the 5th, the B (the reason for this is because the 'perfect' (i.e. not major or minor) 5th doesnt define either the minor tonality of the chord, the same goes for major chords).

The easiest way to voice the E minor chord is:

E, 12th fret E string
D, 12th fret D string
G, 12th fret G string

Simple.

Now, take the E major scale:

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

The 3rd and the 7th are sharped, G# and D#, so play E D# and G# up at the octave and bobs you uncle

An E7 chord is E D, G#...

These shapes can be transferred all over the neck... hope this helps get your started. Theory WILL help with this kind of excercise!

[Bryan R. Tyler]

Here are some chord fingering charts I've made. There are many other options for fingerings and voicings other than the ones I've listed; I've just wrote out the fingerings that are easiest for me to finger and the voicings I use most. I excluded some of the inversions if they were too difficult to finger.

Hope this helps. Knowing how and when to use this is the hard part.

Chord fingering charts

[WillBuckingham]

hey cool chart Brian. I love bass chords.

[dlloyd]

Originally Posted by Bryan R. Tyler

Here are some chord fingering charts I've made. There are many other options for fingerings and voicings other than the ones I've listed; I've just wrote out the fingerings that are easiest for me to finger and the voicings I use most. I excluded some of the inversions if they were too difficult to finger.

Hope this helps. Knowing how and when to use this is the hard part.

Chord fingering charts

Good chart. Here's one you might want to add to the m7b5, in this case with an A root...

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

[jadesmar]

Originally Posted by dlloyd

Good chart. Here's one you might want to add to the m7b5, in this case with an A root...

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

In and Am7b5 wouldn't one want to play an assorted collection of .. say .. A, C, Eb, G?

[dlloyd]

Originally Posted by jadesmar

In and Am7b5 wouldn't one want to play an assorted collection of .. say .. A, C, Eb, G?

True... I'll cover up my mistake by pretending it's a bass tuned EADGC...

Okay, okay, it has an E root.

[Bryan R. Tyler]

Originally Posted by dlloyd

Good chart. Here's one you might want to add to the m7b5, in this case with an A root...

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

Not easy enough of a stretch for me, but whatever works for you!

[JDT]

http://www.chordfind.com/4-string/

But it's worth looking up the theory for the chord you want to play and then try finding a place to play it yourself. Leads to a couple of very challenging fingering positions though

[slapnuts]

Originally Posted by JDT

http://www.chordfind.com/4-string/

But it's worth looking up the theory for the chord you want to play and then try finding a place to play it yourself. Leads to a couple of very challenging fingering positions though

That is not a bad site.

[bassjamn]

Originally Posted by Bryan R. Tyler

Here are some chord fingering charts I've made. There are many other options for fingerings and voicings other than the ones I've listed; I've just wrote out the fingerings that are easiest for me to finger and the voicings I use most. I excluded some of the inversions if they were too difficult to finger.

Hope this helps. Knowing how and when to use this is the hard part.

Chord fingering charts

Nice charts bryan, and 5 string too

[JDT]

Can you put that breakdown on here so we can all benefit from it? I'm sure it won't make any sense to me right away but I keep trying

edit: typo's

[Mike Dimin]

http://www.michaeldimin.com/lessons.htm

http://www.michaeldimin.com/books.htm

[emjazz]

http://www.guitar-and-bass.com/sixstringbass/index.html

[Boplicity]

Originally Posted by Bryan R. Tyler

.
Chord fingering charts

Really cool charts. I love the color coding. YOu are right about the eternal question, "How do you use the information?" Nevertheless, your charts are very helpful for beginners.

[Bryan R. Tyler]

Originally Posted by Boplicity

Really cool charts. I love the color coding. YOu are right about the eternal question, "How do you use the information?" Nevertheless, your charts are very helpful for beginners.

Thanks, Bop. I never found ones I was satisfied with, or had the information laid out in the easiest way to read possible (most are in a vertical format which doesn't match how you look down at your fingers when they're on the fretboard, whih is horizontal), and the large print and color coding is a big help to me because of my poor eyesight. I can't read small letters or numbers well, and when they're similarly shaped and right next to each other they are very difficult to read (which is why I'll never be able to read music with any sort of speed). But it's easy to see a bright blue dot and know that that's a 3rd

[Mike Dimin]

There are 2 problems with just chord charts:

1) Often they have all the notes in closed position or as voiced for guitar. These don't always work on bass due to the range of the instrument. Many times you have to leave notes out to keep the clarity.

2) They don't tell you how to utilize the chords, how to voice lead them, how they function within the tune, how you can substitute other chords to get a more interesting harmony

Mike

[Bryan R. Tyler]

Originally Posted by Mike Dimin

There are 2 problems with just chord charts:

1) Often they have all the notes in closed position or as voiced for guitar. These don't always work on bass due to the range of the instrument. Many times you have to leave notes out to keep the clarity.

2) They don't tell you how to utilize the chords, how to voice lead them, how they function within the tune, how you can substitute other chords to get a more interesting harmony

Mike

Yup- one of the reasons I got your Chordal Approach book a while back was to get an idea of which notes are best to leave out and to learn which subsitutions go where.

But chord charts are still helpful in that they are a starting point, like learning the alphabet or learning to count. Knowing the alphabet doesn't tell you how to read or spell or when to use silent letters, but it's something you need to know before you start reading or writing sentences.