Chordal Scales

[Bass Momma]

Hi to all! Quick question on starting chordal scales exercises. Should I run them with the roots on one string - that is, for C, roots going 3rd to 15th fret on the A string, then on round the circle of 5ths, so to G on the E string and so on - or do I break back down the fretboard at some point? Or use inversions to hang around the same area of the fretboard?

I understand I want to do all of that (hey, I want to do all of everything, perfectly - is that such a big ask???) but now I'm just trying to keep my head straight starting off.

Anyone else notice that when you're learning something new you get all worried about some detail... and three weeks down the road you can't even remember what the problem was? Hmm....

Cheers!

 

[MalcolmAmos]

Hi to all! Should I run them with the roots on one string - that is, for C, roots going 3rd to 15th fret on the A string, then on round the circle of 5ths, so to G on the E string and so on - or do I break back down the fretboard at some point? Or use inversions to hang around the same area of the fretboard?
Cheers!

I just posted an answer about chord tones. I also got into scales and how I would have you do them. Check this out. Chord tones.

 

[Lownote38]

Chords are scales, or pieces of them with implied extensions. As a chord, it goes 1,3,5,7,9,11,13. That's all of the scale degrees if you rearrange them as 1,9,3,11,5,13,7.

 

[Mushroo]

Both approaches are valuable to practice. It is good to know all the chord tones in your current hand position. It is also good to practice shifting to other positions. Listen carefully and you will hear differences, for example open D doesn't sound the same as D at the 5th fret of the A string, which doesn't sound the same as D at the 10th fret of the E string. The ultimate goal is to use whichever fingerings sound best in the context of each song, not necessarily the fingerings that are most convenient.

 

[viper4000]

I would learn the scale in a single position (box pattern) before learning the scale using one single string. Vertically versus horizontally. Vertical first, horizontal second. I approached it this way (on guitar) because a chord is played in a single position. Just made more sense to me and could visualize the entire chord/chord-tone set in one place on the board.

Then, read all of @MalcolmAmos posts about the subject. Practice. Then reread them.

Good luck!

 

[mambo4]

"Cord Scales" is simply Carols Kaye's more confusing term for diatonic arpeggios.

Naturally you want to eventually be able to do all variations
But staring out you want to build a practical, useful map of the chord tones
in your ears, mind and muscles

I'd start in 1 position
And do arpeggios going up & downthe scale (example In C: C maj7, D min7, E min7, Fmaj7, G7, A min7, B m7b5)
But: don't play just 1 3 5 7 for each chord
Play the lowest possible note of the chord in that postion to the highest
Saying the note name and chord tone name as you go

Once that is comfortable, switch to moving diatonically around the circle of 5ths
example In C: B m7b5, E min7,A min7,D min7,G7, C maj7, Fmaj7
(my shorthand: 7362514)

what this does is teach you the layout of multiple chord shapes within a key
in the order they most commonly appear in the wild ...
Practical, useful

 

[Loring]

I do modal scales up the neck followed by the corresponding arpeggios. I use a metronome/drum machine and pick up tempo once I can play them perfectly in both directions 3 times...

 

[jchrisk1]

Here's a good starter.

 

[Bass Momma]

Every time I start some new exercise I run round in circles worrying about how to do it "right". After a week or two, it always becomes clear there are multiple ways to do it, all fine, and all giving a slightly different perspective. Seems to be a rite of passage ....
Not to mention that trying something (scales, chord tones, whatever) in a slightly different way can be far more challenging than you expect. Keeps the ego in check, I suppose!

 

[Loring]

I try to change it up. I started doing all 1 octave major scales just moving up the neck but to make it mire interesting i changed it to modes. This way while it is a speed exercise and warmup for me - it forces me to get used to the different patterns.

 

[BassChuck]

Keep the roots on E string... if the day of the month is an even number. Odd numbers, roots all go on the A string. Mix it up... learn the neck. Do them up or down chromatically, or around the circle. Do the chord by scale step ( I, ii, iii, IV, V, vi, vii) or in a progression (I, vii, iii, vi, ii, V, I, IV, I). In other words.... once you've got something under your fingers and in your ears, find another way.

 

[JTE]

If you're referring to Carol Kaye's "chordal scales", it's about understanding the harmonized scale. Take the major scale, stack thirds (up to the 7th) on each note and you get the chords that occur naturally in that key. EG using C major-

C D E F G A B C

Then stack the thirds
E F G A B C D E
C D E F G A B C

And again..
G A B C D E F G
E F G A B C D E
C D E F G A B C

and finally the 7ths
B C D E F G A B
G A B C D E F G
E F G A B C D E ld
C D E F G A B C

Look at the stacks and work out what chord each one is. It's simply not enough to "know" I, and IV are major 7; ii, iii, and vi are minor 7, V is dominant 7, and vii is minor 7b5. You need to see why.

Now to use this you start with working them from the roots. But in the real wor tld you need to know where all the notes of the chord are and "see" them in the context of the scale and of their relationship to the chord before it and after it. So, if you're playing music (not an exercise) that's ii V I you can see that the DFAC has an A note right there next to the root of the next chord (the G7) and the GBDF has that B right next to the root of the I chord. So you really need to practice this stuff from the lowest note available in the chord to the highest one, not limiting yourself to simply starting on the root.

 

[mambo4]

One of the most valuable musical "cycles" I memorized is the cycle of thirds:
CEGBDFA (...CEGBDFA,CEGBDFA...)
It's the order of chord tones when stacking 3rds (look to the key signature for accidentals)
It's the order of lines / spaces on any staff