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Playing in E minor..Follow up question..

Panther

Panther

Dec 9, 2004
937
1,036
52
Nova Scotia
#1
I am wondering how to approach doing any solo type riffs/breaks in the key of E minor.

That said, my theory is weak, so maybe you guys can help me out a bit.

From what I've read-the key of e minor has only one sharp: F#

The key of E has 4 sharps: C#, D#, G# & F#

I found a chart online that shows the Major keys and their corresponding relative minor keys.

The major key for E minor is G major.

Does this mean that I can focus on the key of G for my riffs?

What is the actual difference between G major, and E minor, if all of the notes are the same? Or is there still a different note in there?

I really appreciate your help!
 
#4
You can't just play in E Minor or any key - you have to play the chord sequence and say something about that, or it's going to sound pretty random!! :hmm:

You can't just say - well I can pick any note from this key - it has to make sense in the context of the music !!
 
#5
I was just trying to determine what scales, notes and positions that would be available to me based on the break - I still have to know what can be played and what can't/shouldn't be played.

The break just stays on the 'E'-which I suspect is an E minor chord, like in the actual song where Gilmour is soloing. There is no chord progression.

From what I've researched, Gilmour based that solo off of the D pentatonic minor scale.
 
#12
A bass line has to outline the chord progression or it is not really a bass line - it is just random noodling!! :hmm:

If you want to play melodies - these are almost always based on chord tones - in both cases it is about finding a smooth way through the chord changes!

OK, so you can associate certain chords with certain modes/scales in context, based on their function in the sequence - but the best way to get anything meaningful going, is to listen to the chord sequence and get that sound in your head.

You can't just choose random notes from a key - there are thousands of different possible combinations of chords which all sound different - hence the variety of music - not just 12 different keys!! :hmm:
 
#14
Bruce,

What would you do then, based on the fact that it is open space, over an e minor chord?

I was also suggested to me that E pentatonic minor was an excellent fit.....

I just wanted to know what modes would work so I could SEE the spots on the fretboard that were available to me, and then go from there.
 
#15
the difference between g maj and e minor is in the sequence of half and whole steps.

in a major scale the half steps occur between 3and 4 and 7and 8. in a pure minor scale the half steps occur between 2 and 3 and 5 and 6.

your options for soloing are playing in e minor and also going to the relative major key as well as the parallel major key.
 
#16
Panther said:
Bruce,

What would you do then, based on the fact that it is open space, over an e minor chord?
Click to expand...

Well generally in Rock/Pop , Jazz Blues etc. there is always a chord sequence going on - which gives the tune its "sound".

If we're still talking about a Brick in the Wall - then there are hundreds of guitar sites on the web which will tell you that the basic sequence is around C, Dm, F, G - but Rick Wright does add extra chords on keyboards in the guitar solo....:hmm:
 
#18
Jazzin' said:
Where's the nonsense?
min7 chords are based on the Dorian mode.
Click to expand...
To begin with, the 6th of Em Dorian is not D#. A D# would generally sound chromatic/atonal against an Em7 ..

Secondly, an Em7 chord consists of E-G-B-D or 1 - b3 - 5 - b7. Any mode containing those intervals would sound ok, some choices are better than others. If the chord progression modulates to G - C and D, a C# may (i.e. would likely) sound out of place.

If there was an A major chord in the progression, I could possibly support your choice of an E dorian mode.

The following modes would work over Emin7
E-dorian
E-phrygian
E-aeolian

In this case, the E-aeolian is pretty much where I would want to be.

I do appreciate that you answered your own question however.
 
#19
jadesmar said:
To begin with, the 6th of Em Dorian is not D#. A D# would generally sound chromatic/atonal against an Em7 ..

Secondly, an Em7 chord consists of E-G-B-D or 1 - b3 - 5 - b7. Any mode containing those intervals would sound ok, some choices are better than others. If the chord progression modulates to G - C and D, a C# may (i.e. would likely) sound out of place.

If there was an A major chord in the progression, I could possibly support your choice of an E dorian mode.

The following modes would work over Emin7
E-dorian
E-phrygian
E-aeolian

In this case, the E-aeolian is pretty much where I would want to be.

I do appreciate that you answered your own question however.
Click to expand...
My bad, I mean't C#. which is the major 6th. I don't know how I even thought it was D#. Although there is no real rule on whether the 6th is major or minor in a Xmin7 chord since it's not actually in the chord, the min7 chord is suposed to be a maj7 chord with a lowed 3rd and 7th. So when lowering the 3rd and 5th on the ionian mode, you get dorian. And in most songs, a dorian scale would be played over a Xmin7 chord. But there's no actual rule, since it's a chord which only contains a R, 3rd, 5th, and 7th.
 
#20
For an Emin7 chord on it's own. I would agree with you, but there is more to the song.

I believe the chorusy bits of the song in question modulate to G major. If that is the case, I would stick with C natural and help to define the E-aeolian/G-ionian sound, or just stick with E-minor pentatonic.. which we would both probably be happy with.
 

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