Guitar Theory Archives » Strings Of Rage™

The Circle of Fifths

Today we’re going to look at the ‘Circle of Fifths’. You may have come across the term before, or the ‘Circle of Fourths’, or just ‘The Circle’.
Check out the diagram below and then we’ll look at what it means and why its useful.

As you can see if we move clockwise in The Circle of Fifths we go up in fifths, e.g. C to G. If we move anti-clockwise we go up in fourths, e.g. C to F. The inner ring shows the relative minor key of each Major key. For example the relative minor to C Maj is Am. The relative minor of G Maj is Em etc.

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Unlucky Seven’s! – Creating Seventh chords (Part 2).

7ths and 9ths, Chord Theory - Joe

Welcome to part 2 of our exploration of seventh chords. In part 1 we looked at the more common types of sevenths, in this part we’re going to look at some which you won’t come across as often. You can get some quite unusual sounds from these.

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Lucky Seven’s! – Creating Seventh chords (Part 1).

7ths and 9ths, Chord Theory - Joe

Today we’re going to look at extending the basic chord triads by adding a 7th. This will give us a whole new set of ‘Seventh Chords’.

If you’re not sure how to form the basic triads check out our post on doing exactly that, here. You may also want to check out our post on intervals if you’re not sure of the difference between a minor 7 and a major 7, however the diagrams below should make things fairly clear.

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Triads! How To Form The Basic Chords By Harmonising The Major Scale

Building Chords, Chord Theory - Joe

In this episode we’re going to learn how to harmonize the major scale to form diatonic chords. ‘Diatonic’ chords are chords which have been created using the notes from the major scale.

If we make a basic chord triad from each degree of the scale, we end up with seven chords. A chord triad is a group of three notes, usually a root, third and fifth. These are are all degrees of the major scale.

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Understanding Musical Intervals To Unleash Fretboard Freedom

Guitar Theory, Intervals - CJ

In this episode we’re going to take a detailed look at intervals, what they are and how to use them effectively in your playing.

Essentially intervals are simply the distance between notes, however with a little understanding you can harness the true power of intervals to achieve any sound you want. We’ll also learn about interval note relationship and how this can help unlock songwriting creativity.

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Roman Numerals

Guitar Theory - Joe

In music Roman Numerals are used to denote the scale degrees and which degree a chord is built from, for example the V chord is the chord built from the fifth note of they key (In C major this would be the note G).

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Major Scale Modes – Ionian

Modal Theory - Joe

In this series of lessons we will look at the modes of the Major Scale. We’ll learn how the modes relate to the major scale and look at when and how to use them.

Modes seem to be a source of confusion for a lot of people, especially the ‘self-taught’ guitarists among us. You’ll also often see modes of the major scale listed in books for reference but with little or no explanation of how to use them.

So what are the modes of the major scale?

A mode is basically the major scale, shifted along so that the ‘root’ note is different, for example in C major the second note is D. The second mode of the major scale is ‘Dorian’ so in C major we get the D Dorian mode. The notes of D Dorian are the same as C major except they run from D to C instead of C to B.

Let’s start by looking at the Major Scale itself:

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Major Scale Modes – Dorian

Modal Theory - Joe

Dorian is the second mode of the major scale so we get it by starting from the second note instead of the first. In the Key of C major the Dorian mode would be D Dorian, the notes would be D-E-F-G-A-B-C-D. The same notes as C major but starting from D instead of C.

The Dorian mode is normally used over a m7 chord, this is because the II chord in a major key is a m7. See our post on building chords from the major scale for more information. So if we have a chord progression which contains a II chord we can use the Dorian mode to solo or write a melody over it. We can also write chord progressions which resolve to Dorians I chord. For example dm7.

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Major Scale Modes – Phrygian

Modal Theory - Joe

Phrygian is the third mode of the major scale and is considered to be a ‘minor’ scale due to the flat 3rd. the interval formula for phrygian is:
H-W-W-W-H-W-W

Since the III chord of the major scale is a m7 chord, phrygian will work well over this. For example in the key of C major the E phrygian mode would work well over Em7. To really bring out the sound of phrygian we need to make good use of the flat 2nd.

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Posts for Guitar Theory Category

The Circle of Fifths

Today we’re going to look at the ‘Circle of Fifths’. You may have come across the term before, or the ‘Circle of Fourths’, or just ‘The Circle’.
Check out the diagram below and then we’ll look at what it means and why its useful.

Like this:

Unlucky Seven’s! – Creating Seventh chords (Part 2).

Like this:

Lucky Seven’s! – Creating Seventh chords (Part 1).

Like this:

Triads! How To Form The Basic Chords By Harmonising The Major Scale

Like this:

Understanding Musical Intervals To Unleash Fretboard Freedom

In this episode we’re going to take a detailed look at intervals, what they are and how to use them effectively in your playing.

Like this:

Roman Numerals

Like this:

Seventh Heaven: Harmonic Minor Modes for 7 String Guitar.

Skip the strings, not the basics! Ep#2

Skip the strings, not the basics!

Shinobi Reverse -‘Hirajōshi’ Pentatonic Scale & It’s Modes – 平調子

Dirty Chords: Splitting high gain across two guitars.

Aggressive Arpeggios: Fusing Arpeggios with Heavy Riffs

Easy Extensions for The Basic Sweep Picked Arpeggio Shapes

Expander! – Three Octave Melodic Minor Modes

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Posts for Guitar Theory Category

Today we’re going to look at the ‘Circle of Fifths’. You may have come across the term before, or the ‘Circle of Fourths’, or just ‘The Circle’.Check out the diagram below and then we’ll look at what it means and why its useful.

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In this episode we’re going to take a detailed look at intervals, what they are and how to use them effectively in your playing.

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In this series of lessons we will look at the modes of the Major Scale. We’ll learn how the modes relate to the major scale and look at when and how to use them.

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Dorian is the second mode of the major scale so we get it by starting from the second note instead of the first. In the Key of C major the Dorian mode would be D Dorian, the notes would be D-E-F-G-A-B-C-D. The same notes as C major but starting from D instead of C.

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Phrygian is the third mode of the major scale and is considered to be a ‘minor’ scale due to the flat 3rd. the interval formula for phrygian is: H-W-W-W-H-W-W

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Lydian is the 4th mode of the major scale. In the key of C major we get F Lydian. The notes of Lydian are the same as its related major scale, however the lydian mode has an augmented 4th, also referred to as a #11.

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Strings of Rage™ Support Independent Luthiers!

Join The SOR Community

Join The SOR Community

About Strings of Rage™

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Recent Comments

Today we’re going to look at the ‘Circle of Fifths’. You may have come across the term before, or the ‘Circle of Fourths’, or just ‘The Circle’.
Check out the diagram below and then we’ll look at what it means and why its useful.

Phrygian is the third mode of the major scale and is considered to be a ‘minor’ scale due to the flat 3rd. the interval formula for phrygian is:
H-W-W-W-H-W-W