Notes in-between chord progressions

[saabfender]

I'm playing along to a backing track, and simply playing roots as 8th notes.

C - Am - Em

You can also anticipate the upcoming chord by using a note from the new chord that isn't in the old one. Like the change from Am-Em you could work in an F#. Those chords are pretty closely related so there aren't many notes of that description. It's a bit of musical sudoku.

 

[Whousedtoplay]

Like the change from Am-Em you could work in an F#.

P.S. The OP has not emphasized the style - standard swing, rock, pop, disco, reggae, R&B, funk, 6/8, etc...
The OP has not said anything about the tempo.
Overall, that purely diatonic chord progression C - Am - Em is SOOOOO pop music.

 

[Robsco]

I thought that would be one thing that would "typically" never sound good, using a note from the "next" chord.

Interesting.

 

[saabfender]

P.S. The OP has not emphasized the style - standard swing, rock, pop, disco, reggae, R&B, funk, 6/8, etc...
The OP has not said anything about the tempo.
Overall, that purely diatonic chord progression C - Am - Em is SOOOOO pop music.

You talking to me?

 

[Whousedtoplay]

You talking to me?

Yes, you have said about chromatic F#.

 

[Whousedtoplay]

I thought that would be one thing that would "typically" never sound good, using a note from the "next" chord.

Interesting.

Dear OP,

What is the style - rock, swing, hard rock, hip-hop, etc.., what is the tempo, what kind of rhythmic pattern, etc...?

 

[Whousedtoplay]

I thought that would be one thing that would "typically" never sound good, using a note from the "next" chord.

WRONG!!!

 

[Robsco]

Pop/rock

 

[Whousedtoplay]

Pop/rock

Now we are talking.
To start(!), in your (your video's) particular case, I would AVOID playing Chromatics.
There are a lot of interesting diatonic note choices, like
C and E open G to A.
Or C, plus D E G to A,
C with B before A is OK but WAY too trivial and overused.
I would try to embellish/hide that pure B by, let's say, sliding on the A string to G (10th fret, then B on D string(9th fret) (maybe even touching C on the 10th fret of D string before playing wide A open.

Or (there are so many other choices before you'd switch to chromatics.)

I would try to add D bass note with the second Em as Emin7/D.

 

[40Hz]

Any note can be considered a passing tone

true!

in the wild: cats will often use a chromatic run up/down, or the fifth (or dom 7th) on the last one or two 8th notes. i think you could use your ears to make those calls.

good luck!

Yep. Sometimes just using your ears allows you to “get it” faster than wrangling with four pages of straight music theory.

Where I find music theory most useful is when you’re analyzing why something worked (or didn’t) after the fact. Or fixing something in a piece you’re composing that sounds wrong, but you’re not completely sure why it does.

Best way (IMO) to see and use theory is as an analytical tool. It’s great at explaining why. It’s not a tool designed to tell you what to play. And it definitely shouldn’t be taken as a rule book.

 

[Whousedtoplay]

Pop/rock

Don't get me wrong, but the video with a "lame" rhythm guitar comping would drive me crazy, but...
As you can hear the guitar strongly emphasizes that Beat 1; therefore, I would prefer playing two 8ths instead of 1 quarter note on the bass on Beat 1.
Next, the guitar does not pay attention to the "empty space on Beat 3 And Beat 4 And.
It means, the bass has some flexibility to add a (very) few notes to make that rhythm more acceptable.

Here is what I like about that video.
It's the DEVELOPING of the arrangement!
The full drum pattern (and the rhythm guitar) is shown around 0:29. And I would try to jam/create a rhythmic bass pattern with the "full" drum pattern and them simplify it.

 

[Robsco]

Thanks, that channel has quite a few backing tracks like that, so just churning through them and seeing what I can do, and started with tight 8th notes.

Even with a few gigs under my belt I still have no clue when it comes to random jamming with a drummer and/or guitar.

 

[Whousedtoplay]

I've got some sketches for the bass pattern for those three chords C - Am - Em - Em.
I was trying to match that "camp guitar" accompaniment mood without knowing anything about the melody/tune from that video.
It's still too many notes for that kind of style/tempo.
I mostly tried to show the chord "diatonicness" (? - ) even the use of F note with those chords.

Ex.1.

Ex.2.

 

[mambo4]

The video clearly displays C major pentatonic.
Just keep playing that, but respect the root motion.
So for example when you hit the A chord keep playing C major pent but use A as your "home" note

After you get a feel for it, just try new ideas and use your ears : wander off the path and back
Unusual musical choices work not in the departure from familiarity, but the return.

The difference between a mistake and music is in the recovery.

 

[Whousedtoplay]

As a (powerful and important) side note (and my big ((-est)) pet-peeve with similar question/s -
let’s start first with identitifying the style of that particular track,
the rhythmic foundation,
the song’s tempo,
the song’s Mood/character,
the song’s musical texture,
the composer’s idea/vision,
the song’s Melody and it’s melodic nuances, etc...
Do you see all those prerequisites, requirements before we even get to that “what notes to play between the chords”.
And that’s my personal (and humble) opinion.

 

[mambo4]

100% agreed with @Whousedtoplay on the primary importance of style.
Beyond roots and 5ths, style is more important than Theory when it comes to Choice over changes.