Every western instrument is set up with pitch
intervals of half steps. A half step is a distance
between 2 adjacent notes (C to C#). A whole
step is two steps between adjacent notes
(C to D).
Memorize the pattern of the major scale. The
major scale is a pattern of these intervals. We
will use the key of C for example:
Root (C or 1), Whole Step (D or 2), Whole Step
(E or 3), Half Step (F or 4), Whole Step (G or
5), Whole Step (A or 6), Whole Step (B or 7),
Half Step (C or 1)
This pattern of intervals is true of a major scale,
no matter what key you are playing. Once
you understand how the numbers fluidly work
throughout different keys, each key won't
feel so different. Memorize the chord quality
associated with each interval.
Humans can hear anywhere from 20Hz to
20,000Hz. 20Hz would be like the lowest Bass
you can imagine. This is the kind of note that
makes your teeth chatter. 20Hz would be the
left-most part of the chart. That's why we see
things like bass and the bottom end of the
keyboard.
As you probably guessed, as we go to the right,
the sound gets higher in pitch and timbre. Once
you start getting into the 12k and up range, we
are talking about sounds that are more like nails
on a chalkboard. This is actually where lots of
crucial things sit like the shimmer of a cymbal or
the airy quality of a vocal.
As a musician playing in a worship band, we
are usually listening somewhere down the
middle. A convenient example is the differences
between learning a rhythm guitar part versus
a lead guitar part. Often the rhythm guitar is
playing lower in the mid-range around 200-300
Hz while a lead guitar may soar way above that
where a lead vocal would often sit.
You don't have to memorize a bunch of
frequency ranges to get the benefit from this
idea. What's important is that you understand
where things usually sit and have context
for them that can then help you pull parts of
a compressed mixed with more precision.
Getting good at this can take time, but you
might feel some of the benefits immediately just
knowing that basic idea.
LEARNING NUMBERS
Believe it or not, music is math. It's also
relatively simple math. Knowing some of this
math can be a very a transformative thing for
a musician's skill and learning speed. There
are lots of variations of the number system.
In all version of the system, you are identifying
patterns in a scale and associating them
with shapes on your instrument that can be
transposed, so memorizing a song becomes
a lot less information. A large portion of songs
(especially in worship) are written around the
major scale, and learning the number system
serves worship songs very well.
These are the chord patterns associated with
the major scale. Keep in mind, these can be
manipulated and changed to create interesting
musical moments. I would encourage you to
see this pattern as an important foundation for
your flexibility as a musician, not as a rule set
that can't be broken. We will use the Key of C
as an example.
1 Chord is Major (1) / C Major (C,E,G)
2 Chord is minor (2m) / D minor (D,F,A)
3 Chord is minor (3m) / E minor (E,G,B)
4 Chord is Major (4) / F Major (F,A,C)
5 Chord is Major (5) / G Major (G,B,D)
6 Chord is minor (6m) / A minor (A,C,E)
7 Chord is diminished (7dim or 7º) /
B diminished (B,D,F)
Once you figure out how these shapes feel
on your instrument, and you can recall the
seven notes in a key, you will be able to not
only transpose songs quickly, but you will start
seeing patterns in songs in a truly deeper way.
The following page shows the example
“Waymaker” by Leeland Key of E – Preview
provided from ChartBuilder at MultiTracks.com
July 2020
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