Pentatonic Chord Voicings

Pentatonic Chord Voicings

Alan Robinson

Hey everyone! It's time for a new lesson in chord voicing. For this lesson we are going to stay with the focus on pentatonic scales, but rather than seeing them as an actual scale we are going to create chords. Just like major and minor scales yield chords by stacking diatonic 3rds this process will be similar. Traditional harmony uses the following intervals to create triads: M3rd+m3d= Maj triad, m3rd+M3rd = min triad. There are three different formulas for pentatonic chords using the following intervals: M2+P5, m3rd+P5, m3rd+m6th. Note as a stand alone that I didn't identify these "chord formulas" as major or minor. The reason for this is that they are all related to a shared root and actually derived from the pentatonic shape more than the intervals that are yielded. Hopefully, this will make more sense as we move forward.

Let's work with Box #1 of the pentatonic scale. We will use E minor pentatonic for all examples.

Ex.1

THIS DAY IN MUSIC...was a big one!

Some days have a lot of interesting, if un-shocking, events in history. But THIS day in music history was HUGE.

1959 - Brian Setzer and Babyface are both born.

1970 - Paul McCartney announces he is quitting the Beatles, and even though John Lennon had left the band first, he had made no public announcement. This is the day officially cited as the "End of the Beatles".

1976 - "Frampton Comes Alive!" goes to number ONE on the charts, where it stayed for TEN weeks, and became one of the most respected and top-selling live albums in history.

1982 - Iron Maiden's album "Number of the Beast" (the first to feature their then-new singer, Bruce Dickenson) goes to number ONE, and sets the stage for them to become one of the most successful metal acts of all time.

1985 - Madonna launches "The Virgin Tour" and becomes an international superstar after only 2 albums, and goes on to become one of the top-selling female artists ever.

1994 - Kurt Cobain's public memorial is held..and fans say goodbye for the last time.

2005 - The final episode of Ozzy Osbourne's show "The Osbournes" airs.

Poetry Series: My Love Poem And Yours

~My Love Poem And Yours~

Liz Fink Davenport

This is not a love poem,

for a man.

This is a love poem...for me.
And you, sweet girl. Bird. Wild bird. Beautiful broken open heart.

I once spent my waterfall of words on loves that took it and drank it and then turned the shot glass upside down and left the bar. A promise at a taxi. No call. Not in 3 days. Not at all. My milk drunk from the gallon in front of the fridge and put back empty. Fingerprints smudged on my mirrors. Smell of stale cologne in my car. My sheets left untucked. Toothpaste stains in the sink. Key left with the crumbs on the counter. Cigarettes pressed in the ashtray. Ghosts. Shadows.

This is a love poem to my own damn heart. To MY hands. Strong. That have felt slip other fingers through. But still grip. My ribs that opened. And closed. To release and take back in. Over and over. My arms that ached with weight. But still held strong. My mind that searched the whole of desert and dark city and wide wide blue world for him. Still searching. My lips that held tight the last imprint of his. So tight they formed a drawn line. And in that line they stopped breath. They just refused to open again. To not lose that kiss. Breath again!

This is yours. This is your poem too. My darling girl. You are phenomenal. I love you with all the amount of air in this room. And the whole of the earth. I love you with my most treasured gift placed in your keeping. Maybe my grandmother's quilt or a rock I collected when I was 7 that looks like an arrow. I love you in the deep and in the shallows. I love you to the reaches of the sunrise that touch your brow and the closing of the sunset across your lap. I love you with choices. All the choices. Everyday, I choose you. I love you because your laugh is a bicycle bell. I love you because you vibrantly and constantly bewitch me. I love you in your best moments and I love you most at your worst. I love that you fail. Sometimes horribly. And falter. Because that makes you loveABLE. ReachABLE. They are not worthy otherwise. I love your feathery eyelashes that remind me of each tiny thing that brushes your cheek, is blessed to be able to be there. The stars in the black are jealous of those lashes. God, that you had any idea how magnificent you are!

And me. Listen here, me. You are loved too. By me. I'm going to tell me a secret...so I better listen close...I loved me from the moment I was me. You are all I could hope for. You are magic. You are my girl. I think you have done a fan-damn-tastic job of being me. You keep picking yourself up and kissing your own bruised knees and heart and you keep loving. Even when I tell you to stop. You do it again. Boldly. You make me so proud. You are the one I choose. I choose my own heart.

So this isn't a love poem for a man. This is a love poem for me. And you. These are the words I will read and reread to myself in the middle of the night. And sometimes, in the middle of the day. Tuck them in your coat pocket. Bring them out crumpled. Tell yourself you are adored. Treasured.

Because

everyone deserves a love poem.
And this is mine.
And yours.
And the shadows can write their own.

GUITAR GODS: Steve Morse

STEVE MORSE.

Where does one begin in an attempt to encapsulate a career like that of Mr. Morse into a few short introductory paragraphs? Hmmm....

7 Grammy nominations, millions of albums sold, played for several legendary bands (including Dixie Dregs, Kansas, and Rock-n-Roll Hall of Famers Deep Purple), voted "Best Overall Guitarist" by Guitar Player magazine for five years in a row (and one of a VERY short list of players of the GP "Gallery of Greats"), 7 Grammy nominations, played on almost 200 albums (30 as band-leader), has a signature model guitar from MusicMan Guitar Company & signature pickups from DiMarzio, has toured the world numerous times, played thousands of shows, and is cited by players such as John Petrucci & the late Shawn Lane as one of the best players alive.

And that just scratches the surface of his accomplishments.

He is known for his uncanny ability to flow effortlessly from rock to classical to country to jazz to progressive to bluegrass and more, is the longest serving guitarist in Deep Purple (the other guitarists all legends: Tommy Bolin, Ritchie Blackmore, and Joe Satriani), he has seen his work top the charts for albums & singles in a variety of countries (Deep Purple's 2013 release "Now What?" was a Top 10 album in 10 countries, four of those at number one, while Flying Colors' 2011 debut reached #9 on Billboard's Hard Rock Charts), and is about to embark on the next Deep Purple tour which will carry them across Europe & North America for the next 7 months.

And that still leaves a lot out.

GUITAR GODS: Scott Ainslie

I saw Scott Ainsle first a number of years ago when he appeared on Woodsongs Old-time Radio Hour (2009, for show #502) for a celebration of Robert Johnson. There were two guests: Scott and the amazing Rory Block. As she is one of my favorite players ever, I had zero interest in this guy Scott Ainslie...until he began to play. And sing.

Oh....my....

Oh....my....

And then it just got better, and better, and better....because in addition to being a stunningly talented player & singer - and as authentic in the style as anyone you'll ever hear - he is also a walking encyclopedia of the blues...of American culture...of music.

I was immediately a fan.

Music on Your Brain

From Popular Science

by Sophie Bushwick

....At the end of a stressful day, you pop on a pair of headphones, hit “play” on your favorite song—and your mood instantly improves. This emotional response occurs, a new study suggests, because music activates a chemical reward system in your brain: the same system that makes yummy food, vigorous exercise, and opioid drugs feel good.

Humans have had music on the brain for most of our existence—cultures all over the world create, listen to, and experience pleasure from music. To study this phenomenon, researchers have surveyed people’s feelings, scanned the brains of performers and listeners, and even measured hormone production. Their findings thus far suggest that our enjoyment comes from the same two-phase reward process—a dopamine-driven anticipatory phase, followed by a dopamine- and opioid-influenced consummatory phase—that kicks into gear when you eat a tasty treat or experience a rush after an intense workout. This neurological reward system also gives drugs their appeal.....

Read the entire article HERE.

Music & Evolution

From Science Daily:

....A new theory paper, co-authored by Graduate School of Education doctoral student Samuel Mehr and Assistant Professor of Psychology Max Krasnow, proposes that infant-directed song evolved as a way for parents to signal to children that their needs are being met, while still freeing up parents to perform other tasks, like foraging for food, or caring for other offspring. Infant-directed song might later have evolved into the more complex forms of music we hear in our modern world. The theory is described in an open-access paper in the journal Evolution and Human Behavior.

Music is a tricky topic for evolutionary science: it turns up in many cultures around the world in many different contexts, but no one knows why humans are the only musical species.....

Read the entire article HERE.

GUITAR GODS: Jon Finn

There are many amazing players who can play rockin' rhythms and rip out blazing solos, but it takes a whole different breed of guitarist - of musician - to play authentically across stylistic boundaries. It requires knowledge of music AND of the fretboard, but also (within each style of music) the "tendencies", the techniques, the aesthetics, the sound, and more. 

It also takes a special kind of musician to be able to then communicate to others how to do it, too.

And it takes a special kind of player to find, amid all of this, their own unique voice with the instrument (as players and composers).

Jon Finn is just such a guitarist. And just such a musician.

Jon began playing as a child, ultimately attended (and graduated from) Berklee College of Music, and then (in the same year: 1988)  both formed the Jon Finn Group and joined the faculty at Berklee. Since that time, in addition to teaching hundreds of students, he has played with such a diverse array of top-flight performers as the legendary Debbie Reynolds, progressive shredder John Petrucci, the jazz vocal ensemble New York Voices, country star Colin Raye, rock legend Dweezil Zappa, and many more.

Melissa McCracken - Painting Sounds

"Shine On You Crazy Diamond" Pink Floyd

From her web-site:

Melissa McCracken was born in Kansas City, Missouri in 1990. She graduated with a B.A. in Psychology from William Jewell College in 2013, but ultimately pursued a career in the arts post-graduation. As a synesthete, she utilizes her unique ability to see colors in the sounds she hears. Many of her paintings incorporate vibrant colors and lively textures to depict the movement of music.

Implementing the effects of both palette knives and brushwork, Melissa seeks to convey the swirl of colors embedded deep in her mind’s eye. Layered blossoms of color and streaks of white create cosmic-like scenes, evoking new perceptions of melody and rhythm in her audience. Through her work, Melissa strives to unmask the elusive areas of the world we encounter, allowing a refreshing experience of the familiar.

Bach's "Cello Suite #1"

"I paint music....."

Visit her ON-LINE to see her amazing work!

Music from Earth: 40 Years of Voyager 1

This year marks 40 years ago (exact date was September 5, 1977), that the Voyager 1 spacecraft was launched from earth.

On that spacecraft, NASA placed a gold record that includes greetings in 55 languages, a collection of "sounds of Earth" (includes babies crying, various animals sounds, "Per aspera ad astra" in Morse Code, sounds of nature, and the like), Ann Druyan's brainwaves, over 100 images....and music.