Seeing" chords on the steel guitar

Bill Leff · From: Santa Cruz, CA, USA

I've been thinking a lot about how to become more comfortable playing the steel guitar and getting around on the neck. I've been playing regular guitar for a long time, and am fairly proficient on that instrument, am able to easily pick out melodies, improvise etc. I don't have anything close to this proficiency on the steel.

I believe a major advantage I have on regular guitar is that I know a large number of chord forms and can apply these "shapes" in my mind while improvising or picking out a melody. The ability to be able to lay down any number of fingers of the left hand to form a chord shape that can be remembered while playing gives me an easy roadmap from which to improvise etc. On the steel, because I am limited by only having a bar, the chord shapes are much more abstract and difficult to visualize. The strings and fret markings tend to blur in the mind.

For instance, if I were to pick a chord out of the air, say G Maj7, I can see that chord in at least 5 fingerings immediately in my mind on standard guitar. On steel, forget it!

I know, I need to study the steel neck to determine where these shapes lie (if only I could stick to one tuning, but that's another story).

Have others had this same thought, and what approaches did you use to be able to visualize chords up and down the neck (if indeed that's what you do).

Thanks

-Bill

Bobby Lee · From: Cloverdale, California, USA

Make yourself a drawing of the neck up to fret #17 and put all of the notes of the C scale on it. Then get 3 colored pens.

In red, circle all of the C, E and G notes (C chord). Draw lines between the circles in red wherever you see two circles on the same fret or on the adjacent fret (for bar slants).

In green, circle all of the F, A an C notes (F chord). Draw green lines for the stright bar and bar slant positions. Notice that the green patterns are the same as the red patterns, only 5 frets higher.

In blue, circle all of the G, B and D notes (G chord). Draw blue lines connecting the circles . Notice that the blue patterns are the same as the green F chord patterns, only 2 frets higher.

The act of making the chart will get you thinking in patterns. Keep the chart in front of you as a reminder and practice playing 3 chord progressions in C.

------------------

Bobby Lee - email: quasar@b0b.com - gigs - CDs
Sierra Session S-12 (E9), Speedy West D-10 (E9, D6),
Sierra 8 Laptop (D13), Fender Stringmaster D-8 (D13, A6)

Bob Kagy · From: Lafayette, CO USA

Nice post b0b!

Then do the same thing b0b said with all the chords you're interested in - dom7th, aug, dim, min, min6th, min7th, maj7th, etc, etc ad nauseum.

Don't forget the hockey stick slants, reverse slants, non-adjacent string slants, and maybe some open string combos with fretted strings.

And I have the sense that changing tunings can strengthen the general feel for where the chord patterns are and why - don't ask me to explain it, but it becomes true. Uh well, except maybe for going to the Leavitt for the first time.

Ricky Davis · From: Bertram, Texas USA

Hey Bill my friend; What b0b said is very useful and since you've been over to the house; you know that's the way I look at it. Here is an example of a chart I made for my students for one of my tunings. It's for D; but you get the idea. The numbers are the number value of the note in a D major scale; but of course you knew that.



D6/9 chord pockets for 10-string Hawaiian steel





  0|   1   2   3   4   5   6   7   8   9   10   11   12








F# 3|   4       5       6   b7  M7  1        9         3


    |


D  1|       9       3   4       5       6   b7   M7    1


    |


B  6|   b7  M7  1       9       3   4        5         6


    |


A  5|       6   b7  M7  1       9       3    4         5


    |


F# 3|   4       5       6   b7  M7  1        9         3


    |


E  9|       3   4       5       6   b7  M7   1         9


    |


D  1|       9       3   4       5       6   b7   M7    1


    |


C b7|   M7  1       9       3   4       5        6    b7


    |


A  5|       6   b7  M7  1       9       3    4         5


    |


F# 3|   4       5       6   b7  M7  1        9         3

Ricky

[This message was edited by Ricky Davis on 25 October 2000 at 12:39 PM.]

Mikel Nelson · From: San Diego, CA

Hey Bill,

Like I said on the "other" forum...
I find that thinking of chords in terms of the internal inervals really helps me with my steel playing...(and also switching tunings).
It also lets me develop accompanyment lines in a slightly different manner...instead of thinking of leading tones with harmonization, I can sometimes think in terms of moving shapes (like sliding a C9 chord on guitar).

Using your chord: GM7 (GBDF#) is composed of
the intervals: Maj3rd, min3rd, maj3rd, and then min2nd (F#-G). (Of course, these intervals are always true for any Maj7 chord.) If I then know the intervallic relationship of the strings for the tuning I am using, and where the roots occur, I can quickly apply the chord in fragments all over the neck.

This is the way I've been approaching the problem...seems to work for me.

John Kavanagh · From: Kentville, Nova Scotia, Canada * R.I.P.

I'm at the same stage: a relative newbie to steel, and having trouble
staying oriented. I find it's one thing to know where the chords are when
you're serenely practising at home, and quite another when you're watching a
guitar player's left hand (or a pianist's left pinkie) from across the room.
That's when you know whether you've got that tuning really digested or not.

I've done, and continue to do, what b0b suggests with colour-coded fingering
charts.
I even photocopied a bunch of templates so I can keep doing new ones.

Any points of similarity between one tuning and another will help you out,
even if it's only a few strings. Open E, A and G all have three strings in
common with standard tuning, and you can use that to mentally anchor the new
chord shapes. You might also try tuning a fretted guitar to the tuning
you're using, so you can explore new possibilities with more familiar
techniques. I had an old guitar tuned to C6 for several months for that
reason, and played it Spanish-style. I think that experience helped me with
C6.

Right now I'm using G6 (GBdegbd'e') more than C6, partly because I like
having the 5th and 6th as the top two strings, but more because I can stay
oriented fairly easily: strings 1346 are 1234 of standard tuning. Also, the
minor chords are at the "E-position chord" frets, and the major chords at
the "G-position chord" frets. Standard guitar tuning is still the format
I've spent the most years with, so it's a big help to have those points of
reference.

------------------
John Kavanagh
D-8, acoustic 8

HowardR · From: N.Y.C.-Fire Island-Asheville

I've seen posts mentioning Click Tab software. Would this be of any help?

------------------

Bill Leff · From: Santa Cruz, CA, USA

Thanks for all the comments. This is good stuff, and a lot of it I've done before.

It just hasn't stuck as well as I'd hoped it would. Time to go back and "hit the books", maybe concentrate on one tuning, which I find difficult to do, since I want to play just about everything I hear, and then some.

-Bill

Bobby Lee · From: Cloverdale, California, USA

I think that making a chart for your students does them a disservice. The real learning takes place in the creation of the chart. Teach a man to fish, etc.

C Dixon · From: Duluth, GA USA

Bill,

b0b has given you a very good way to learn the patterns on the neck of a given tuning. And it should help you immeasurably.

Another thing that can and does help is to play a tune from start to finish using ONLY single notes. Then do it again only this time adding a harmony note below the melody note.

Now try it yet a 3rd time using 3rd harmony notes that fits the chord in each given instance.

What you will quickly notice is this; using only single notes, you have complete freedom to play the note any where it appears on any string.

But just adding one harmony note quickly forces you to get that "melody" note at a different place. This is important.

And by adding the 3rd harmony note forces you into yet a stricter "pattern" of choices. And this is exactly what you are trying to acheive, possibly without realizing it.

After you have become proficient using this technique, you will start to see "pockets" of chords and intervals and where they are located.

Then try finding the more exotic and power chords with a minimum of 3 notes, but working ever higher to 4 and greater numbers of notes to a given chord.

It is here where your brain begins to see the neck in an entirely new dimension. Now major 7ths and raised 9ths, ad-infinitim, will become real to you. And you will know where they are.

Remember that slanting the bar makes everything change similar to moving one of your fingers while picking a major chord on your regular guitar.

The slant on a non pedal guitar can be awesome. Chords you could not imagine can be obtained with the myriad of slants one can do.

God bless you in your attempts to learn the world's most beautiful instrument.

carl

Steve Matlock · From: Bentonville, AR USA

Dear Bill,

I have developed a computer program that I believe would be of great help to you. It is called the "NoteFinder". It gives a complete visual picture of your guitar neck and is able to display user selected note values in up to three different colors. It is like putting on a magic pair of glasses that let you see all the notes lying on your neck. The notes you select to highlight will visually jump out at you. It will display either letter values (like "C") or number values (like "7b") and all you have to do is click a button to jump back and forth between modes. Number values are displayed relative to a user definable key setting. It is great for studying both chords and scales. I have versions available for pedal steel (D-10, U-12), lap steel, dobro, standard guitar and bass guitar. I can provide customized tunings also. The pedal steel versions have a user definable copedant! Just click to activate pedals/levers and the notes instantly move around just like they do on your guitar. The E9th version also accommodates a couple of common half pedal/lever uses. Each version comes with an extensive listing of chord and scale formulas that you can use to help expand your knowledge base.
The features and uses of the NoteFinder are too involved for me to explain them all in a short post. I sell the program for $20 with a money back guarantee if you are not satisfied. If you are interested, I'll e-mail you several "snapshots" of the screen as you would see it given a particular scenario. Let me know if you want the snapshots.

Sincerely,
Steve Matlock

Ricky Davis · From: Bertram, Texas USA

Hey b0b I agree with you totally. That is a example chart to my 10-string D tuning; that they use as a example to make their own Chart for their own tunings. Nobody uses that tuning; so therefore they can't possibly use that one. I believe in teaching the tools/techniques of the trade and let them catch as many fish as they want too.
Ricky

[This message was edited by Ricky Davis on 25 October 2000 at 11:22 PM.]

Andy Volk · From: Boston, MA

Bill, your description almost exactly describes my experience in learning steel after playing guitar for years. One of the best pieces of advice I've ever gotten came from John Ely (formerly of Asleep at the Wheel, now freelancing in Hawaii). John told me to concentrate on one tuning and really dig in to learning it well.

I've been at this for about 10 years. I had been switching tunings on a regular basis ... C6th, B11th, E13th, A major, diatonic, etc. I was really frustrated because it seemed I was getting nowhere. While there are goood reasons to switch tunings, I decided to concentrate on C6th and even sold my 8-string guitars to narrow things down further to my familiar 6th strings.

I'm a much better player now because of it. The chord forms stick in memory now much better. So in summary, what worked for me is:

1) narrowing things down to a single tuning and really learning it well
2) Arranging tunes for the chosen tuning
3) Learning new melodies ... play actual tunes in their entirety; just practicing chord progressions & licks can be a trap
3) Using Band-in-a-box as an aid for practicing scales for improvising. I like to attempt Jazz lap steel and Mike Ihde's Real Book files are a great resource for doing so.

Good luck!

Bob Kagy · From: Lafayette, CO USA

Howard, re your ClicTab question.

IMO, if you're only working with 1 tuning, it's probably better to go with the pencil & paper approach as in the excellent advice above.

However, if you're playing several tunings, you can ask it to find chords, place scales on a fretboard in your tuning, print them out, analyze other tunings and their associated scale & chord patterns. Obviously it's great for pedal steel because you can "activate" pedals and get how the notes/chords change.

I use it very much to generate fretboard charts of each type of scale or mode I'm interested in, make chord dictionaries of various tunings for reference, etc. This can be done in any key with notes or with scale degrees.

So much worthwhile advice in this thread, so good to see.

Don Sutley · From: Pensacola, FL

I made up some chord charts using Notepad like the one below for C6:



______1___ 2____3 ___4____5____6____7____8____9____10___11___12_


_E__I_F__I_F#_I_G__I_G#_I_A__I_Bb_I_B__I_C__I_C#_I_D__I_Eb_I_E__I


_C__I_C#_I_D__I_Eb_I_E__I_F__I_F#_I_G__I_G#_I_A__I_Bb_I_B__I_C__I


_A__I_Bb_I_B__I_C__I_C#_I_D__I_Eb_I_E__I_F__I_F#_I_G__I_G#_I_A__I


_G__I_G#_I_A__I_Bb_I_B__I_C__I_C#_I_D__I_Eb_I_E__I_F__I_F#_I_G__I


_E__I_F__I_F#_I_G__I_G#_I_A__I_Bb_I_B__I_C__I_C#_I_D__I_Eb_I_E__I


_C__I_C#_I_D__I_Eb_I_E__I_F__I_F#_I_G__I_G#_I_A__I_Bb_I_B__I_C__I

I then copied and pasted it a few times to fill a sheet of paper. I printed it out and wrote chord names along with the notes and chord structure off to the side. For example: C minor; 1 b3 5; C Eb G. I did this for about a dozen or so chords in a couple of keys and then highlighted the notes with a highlight marker.

I realize this is a bit tedious, but it does provide a handy reference and helps to visualize where different chord inversions are. Once you get used to cutting and pasting, it doesn't take very long to make the pages for any tuning. You could even cut and paste the one above. It's the darned highlighting that takes so long.

[This message was edited by Don Sutley on 26 October 2000 at 08:36 PM.]

Bill Leff · From: Santa Cruz, CA, USA

I've started doing a combination of what b0b and Ricky have suggested and it is working very well. Using a sheet of graph paper, I've drawn a fretboard with strings (ala b0b). I've made lots of copies of this template.

Using the template, I've filled in for each string the scale degree (not the name). For instance, in C6 on the first string (E), at fret 3 I wrote "5" (ala Ricky's chart). I think that knowing the scale degree is much more useful than having the note name as it makes transposing these shapes to other keys more understandable.

What I've found in the couple days I've been doing it is that I already knew most of this already, but it was more of a jumble in my head and transposing was difficult. This makes it a lot clearer. So far I've only done major and dominant 7 chords. Besides the I-IV-V progression that b0b suggested, I've worked out some great I-VI7-II-V7 stuff and am working on "playing through" those changes using single-notes in a much more cohesive way than before.

I'm a happy camper

-Bill

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