The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
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  1. #1

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    Just curious, how many people here play Latin guitar or listen to Latin music? I am part Puerto-Rican so I was curious to see if anybody enjoys this music.

    And does anybody here know how to play the music they play in Mexican Resturants? I also wondered what chords they used. Im assuming alot of diminished and augmented.
    Last edited by aPAULo; 06-19-2007 at 10:16 AM.

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    The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
     
  3. #2

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    i'm no expert on the music of spain, but, traditional mexican musics were a big part of the neighborhood i grew up in. we'd hear everything from jarochos, which were up tempo, make you want to yell out loud romps, often with great little improvisations on the requinto (small little A tuned guitar) to rancheras, which had a lot in common with country and western, and a little polka thrown in! a kicked up version of this was played by the local "wind bands" (basically mexican big bands, with some fantastic tuba players taking the bassline!) and pop groups-- the poppier version was called "tejano." i spent many a night at the aztec pyramid on archer avenue listening to my buddy ernie's band (banda azteca-- they were a big band) and dancing the night away like an a-- ...ah memories...

    but to get to the question--chord wise, there's just the usual major and minors, with occasional diminished chords used as a passing tone. some guys would jazz it up a bit, playing sevenths. the rhythms were most important.

    there's a marvelous little album that was given to this gringo back in high school by a latino friend as an introduction to these different styles-- he figured i'd like it since it was played by a "rock" band-- the album: los lobos' "la pistola y el corazon." it's ridiculously brilliant, and probably available for under five bucks on the amazon marketplace on any given day.

    as for musica puertoriqueno, i'm not so familiar, but there's a bunch of great music that came from your carribean neighbor, cuba. a search for afro cuban jazz will bring a lot of results. a great safe way to get into that are the albums by ry cooder's pet project (after the buena vista social club) the afro cuban all stars. great stuff. this influence carried over into some great great jazz albums-- diz really got into cuban music, but kenny dorham's "afro cuban" stands as one of the best to me. man oh man...there's sooooooooooooo much good stuff out there.

  4. #3

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    Yea I rephrased it a bit. I meant Latin guitar just in case it was gonna confuse anybody in the future.

    My mom is a fan of Carlos Santana and really likes his stuff. She wanted me to learn some of his songs(which I did), and I started liking him. Eventually my guitar teacher got me into blues and blues rock, and then I transitioned to jazz. So I guess I can thank Santana.

  5. #4

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    hi ......latin music can mean quite a large genre.....from brazilian...which has many different rhythmic structures.....samba...bossa nova.....which have more types of jazz style chords.....among other rhythms.....including venezuelan.....colombian.....chilean.....argentini an......lots of different things........santana.......has his own style.......which if you like it you can learn it......crossing over the oceans is flamenco quite a totally different execution of guitar playing......now modern flamenco encompasses many altered chords.......and strict rules on the rhythms some of the styles.....like the guajira......rhumba (flamenco one) and probably others have been adapted from latin smoother style......buena vista is of course cuban and then again very strict rhythmic rules apply.....to the different
    pieces they play.......so i guess choose something you like and then get some books......dvd's......lessons whatever you need... but each country seemingly takes a great deal of pride and care about their different rhythmic and melodic aspects of the music that belongs to their culture...it's all a question of to what degree you want to pick up those aspects.........carole

  6. #5

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    I love latin music, BossaNova,Choro,Samba,Frevo,Baiao but you mustnt confuse with spanish music.
    Spanish music is Flamenco , granadinas ,fandango etc...
    However iI prefer to listen and to play Latin music

  7. #6

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    a quote from my thread.....
    "crossing over the oceans is flamenco quite a totally different execution of guitar playing......now modern flamenco encompasses many altered chords.......and strict rules on the rhythms some of the styles.....like the guajira......rhumba (flamenco one) and probably others have been adapted from latin smoother style......buena vista is of course cuban and then again very strict rhythmic rules apply.....to the different
    extract from my previous thread......i thought i made it clear the differences..............carole

  8. #7

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    I'll reinstate this, as Paul is still posting regularly. Yes, I like Latin (south american) music and also flamenco. I play it regularly. In fact, playing Latin music is what got me into looking at jazz seriously. Much of the harmony is similar, and many of the jazz standards seem to draw frequently from latin rhythms. I do a lot of original stuff in Latin, mostly rocking the aeolian mode. I bought a wonderful book several months ago called:

    LATIN STYLES FOR GUITAR BK/CD (Book & CD) (Paperback)
    by Brian Chambouleyron (Author)

    This a a great collection of original south american pieces, many of which really work the jazz chords. I got a LOT of ideas from this for my own compositions.

    I also have some limited experience with flamenco, although this is a very challenging and uniquely technical type of music. But I can play some things. The heavy use of phrygian sounds is a bit dark for me. I prefer the lighter, more groove-oriented sounds of the latin stuff.

    What I thought was interesting about flamenco is how much rock, especially from the 70s was based on it. Go take a look at some Heart songs, like Crazy on You. Pure flamenco, baby. That is one of the few song's I've ever spent time mastering. I just love the intro to it. I played it continuously until I could play it at the original tempo. Now I use it as a warmup. I never get tired of it. It's an all time masterpiece as intros go.

  9. #8

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    yea im half puertorican so i know some latin music. i enjoy santana, and others. also, my friend who lives in brazil plays bossa nova style and kinda got my fingerpicking better. yea i agree that jazz and latin music often intermix. i like them both

  10. #9

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    Santana plays a great fusion of rock and latin styles. I have some backing tracks for a few of his tune. Black Magic Woman was the first song I ever got up to performance quality after I started playing electric guitar. I had to simplify the solos in a few places, but overall it sounded pretty authentic. Europa is a fun one to do as well, especially since it's all instrumental. You can really jam over Santana tunes. These days, I'm in jazz hell and haven't been bending the old strings much. Sometimes I'll do a little blues so I can make "it cry and sing," but then it's back to the woodshed. Aw, just kidding. But, I have to admit that when I string together some lovely chord melody runs, it strikes something in me even more than those screaming bends.

  11. #10

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    Hi, I've been playing for over 50 years and play a lot of Latin. My favorite from Puerto Rico are the songs of Rafael Hernandez...I play most of them along with Mexican (my wife is Mexican), Cuban, and altiplano music from the Andes. Latin music is very rich with multiple rhythmns. Jazz and Latin were made for each other e.g. Dizzy Gillespie and Manteca.

  12. #11

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    I dig latin music. everything from Astor Pizz to Shakira. I have a cd with Tito Puente and La India doing jazz standards. They do a smokin version of Love for Sale.

    Lately I've been working on music by Antonio Lauro and Villa Lobos. Lovely stuff but if your not that good with fingerpicking, ......... It's given me a few cramps in my right hand.

  13. #12

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    a fusion of latin percussion and or the cajon and flamenco style picado with jazz type scales....and combo arrangement.....great....like chano lobato with the piano flamenco jazz is really fab....using the seguiriya rhythm and others...carole

  14. #13

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    I LOVE Latin music, especially Brazilian (which is not just bossa nova BTW). I gave up playing other styles about a decade ago to concentrate on playing Brazilian - I figured I was unlikely to ever come up with better versions than the many transcriptions that exist, so I concentrated on them & play them solo (on an acoustic nylon guitar, obviously) .

    I also love salsa & son, & African takes on it (check out the late great Franco, or Orchestra Baobab), & have had a lot of fun with Carlos Campos "Son Montunos for Guitar". Great to jam over, as you can get even non players playing percussion!

    Now I'm back to jazz guitar, having tooled around the edges for decades, as I've been drafted in by two horn player friends as their guitarist for a jazz project. I'm excited & daunted in equal measure about giving jazz another go! Some great material on this site!

  15. #14

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    John,
    If playing Lauro and Villa Lobos cramps your right hand, you're maybe working too hard, or trying to force it. Work the right hand with the same mentality that you that you work the left — that is, S-L-O-W-L-Y and totally relaxed. Give your brain the time to learn the muscle memory. Write me if you'd like to talk about it some more. Hope you don't mind my jumping in. I've played a lot in that style.

    Herby

  16. #15

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    Herby, thanks for the advice.

    When I first started working more seriouisly on Etude #1 my third finger (A) gave me a bit of trouble. Still has a mind of it's own. But I've been working at it so it's getting better. I first bought the Viila Lobos book to use with a pick but since then I've been gravitating to more fingerstlye stuff, even in my jazz repertoir.

    I should probably pick up that book "pumping nylon" and work on my right hand a bit more

    Thnaks

  17. #16

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    Pumping Nylon is good and also the Mauro Guiliani 120 studies for the right hand (which may be included in Pumping Nylon, can't remember). Playing the Segovia scales is also great exercise for working the A finger. Keep it simple at first, and never push the tempo. S-L-O-W-L-Y. Hope this helps.

    Herb

  18. #17

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    Hey John,

    Proper right hand technique is really a hard thing to accomplish without the eyes of a legit classical guitar teacher (many may teach classical without really understanding the proper technique). If there's a university near by with a classical guitar department, try to take a few lessons with the head of that department and tell him you want to just work on right hand technique. Or, look for a concert performer - Pepe Romero was the 1st person I contacted but he didn't have any openings, I ended up with a concert performer who studied and performed with him.

    Classical guitar players really take a microscopic view of right hand technique.
    Things they do...
    posture and the exact positioning of your arm, hand, and fingers;
    the angle of attack and the way the string slides across your nail when plucking;
    placement, preparation, and sequencing of the fingers;
    rest vs. free strokes
    etc.

    It has been difficult for me to change my technique as I had muscle memory of the way I had developed my technique with the help of classical instruction books. Try signing your name with your wrong hand; that's what it felt like to change my technique. But my tone has improved and I've been told eventually my speed will improve also.

    My experience was no matter how carefully I tried, I couldn't get the proper technique from books alone.
    Last edited by fep; 08-11-2008 at 03:32 PM.

  19. #18

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    That's an idea. Maybe I can find some classical guy who is interested in learning jazz and we can "swap" lessons Thanks for the advice.

  20. #19

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    Don't forget the latin composers Heitor Villa-Lobos and the mexican modern composer Manuel Ponce. Some of the most beautiful guitar music that exists. Very hard to read but relatively easy to play after you memorize the fingerings. Lots of rubato and feeling. Serious harmonies too.

    Francisco Tarrega is reffered to as the "awakener of the modern guitar", worth checking out his methods and pieces.

    Sailor

  21. #20

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    Hi

    I am fighting a lot of old habits that get in the way too. Took lessons as a young man and really came to rely on the thumb rest stroke. Couldn't do a thing until I became comfortable with it. Thought I was doing pretty good for a long time. Ended up giving up the guitar in frustration.

    Now that I am back into it, I am finding that I never really learned the rest stroke with the I-M fingers. That is really hard to pick up after years of neglect. Like FEP says -try signing your name with the wrong hand.

    It's worth learning these small things. Can save you a lot of trouble down the road. I learn everthing the hard way.

    Len

  22. #21

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    Does anyone here play El Cumbanchero? It's Puerto Rican. I have it close by ear, but if anyone has charts that would be cool.

    I notice Mexican music uses waltz time a lot.

  23. #22

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    Attached, please find a relatively easy version.

  24. #23

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    i used to listen to latin music but i guess it was mainly my ex's influence, i don't listen to it now cause it reminds me of her

  25. #24

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    if you have "band in a box" prog...you could down load a midi file of
    el cumbanchero....by typing the title on google or some other web ferret or the likes ...and bring in the file into "band in the box" which will give you the chords and the notation....sometimes or most times there is so much
    notation that you need to pick out the melody notes only for putting it onto the guitar......
    or going again to the browser like google or web ferret or explorer and just type in 'el cumbanchero'......and either state.....lyrics....midi....or music file or something general like that.....

    or buy a bona fide music score for guitar......

    i play it myself.......my own rendition using the key of Em....easy key on the guitar......

    carole

  26. #25

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    g'day aPaulo I play Classical generically bt have a few Latin pieces and I certainly love listening to Latin music, Bonfa would be my favorite I think.