questions about Bruce Arnold theory workbook

[CarolM]

I've been working in this a little every day and I'm up to minor 7th chords.

This is really what they used to call Harmony, right? Because I don't see any time or phrasing info here.

Anyway, what I don't get is why so many times he will put two notes on one string. Like Dm7 on page 124, he puts the C on the 3rd string when it could just as easily go on the 2nd and make an actual playable chord instead of an arpeggio. He does this all through major 7th too, and it was hard to get it through my head that he'd take an answer that way.

Anyone else notice this?

[brucearnold]

Hi Carol,

You are definitely working on harmony when you work through Music Theory Workbook for Guitar Volume One You are learning how to build simple intervals to highly complex chords. This book is different from most theory books in that you have to write down where the notes would be on a guitar fretboard and also where they would be on a music staff. This really helps to engrain this information so that you can see and use it when you are playing guitar. Unfortunately for us guitar players the same notes can be found in many places on the guitar so making a book like this is difficult because of the multiple correct answers that can be found on the guitar. I actually made a free downloadable PDF in the Member's Area of the Muse-eek website that gives you all the possible answers for the first 10 pages or so of the book. This might help you sort out some of the possibilities. But the good news is you are already starting to see other possible answers so the book is working. You are correct that playing a group of notes as a chord or as a arpeggio will often times be played differently on the guitar. Yet another thing that makes learning the guitar difficult. But keep at it. I've had students that worked through this book and the Music Theory Workbook for Guitar Volume Two which works with Scales and pass out of 3 levels of college music theory when they went to school. So keep at it and you can always post questions on this forum or at my blog.

[CarolM]

Whoa. I wasn't expecting that.

But...to me a chord is a collection of notes that can be played at the same time. Semantics, I guess.

Anyway, thanks.

[bobby d]

I would break it down to intervals first. Two or more intervals played at the same time is harmony or a chord. Intervals played one after another would be melody. Chords and arpeggios can be fingered the same, but since one note is played at a time with arpeggios, there are other better ways (2 or 3 notes per string) to manage them.

[jonasfixe]

Originally Posted by CarolM

Whoa. I wasn't expecting that.

But...to me a chord is a collection of notes that can be played at the same time. Semantics, I guess.

Anyway, thanks.

You can "arppegiate" a chord. You can define a chord with successive notes, or by playing a phrase. Your brain is able to find the harmony (or the chords, if you prefer) that lie behind a melody.

In other words, when you say "Autumn Leaves start with Cm" it doesn't mean you have to play C Eb G simultaneously on the start of the first measure.

Just about words and meanings...