Scales, Chords & Arpeggios (oh my)
As I continue to learn or discover new concepts on the mandolin, I always try to relate them to things I've learned in the past. Connecting the mental dots so to speak. This process usually leads to putting the combined subject matter down on paper. I've done this in the past and it really helps me figure things out away from the mando.
I've been a big fan of Ted Eschliman's FFcP scales and his overall "Fingers, Ears, Brain" method for learning. See Ted's site (http://www.jazzmando.com) for detailed explanations. I'm also very appreciative of the Mandolin series of books authored by Greg Horne and Wayne Fugate. I'm currently working through the Intermediate book by Horne. I skipped ahead a bit and was glad to see that the sections on scales are based on the same forms Ted uses. Horne takes it a step further by using these scale forms as a springboard for teaching pentatonics and arpeggios.
I've compiled what I've learned into a set of practice sheets (keys of C,G,D,A). Each key gets two pages: Scale Forms and Chords & Arpeggios.
Scale Forms:
This one is pretty straight forward. There is a first position major scale that uses open strings. After that each movable scale form is then broken down by major, major pentatonic and minor pentatonic. Grouping them together illustrates how the pentatonics are derived from the major scale.
Chords & Arpeggios:
This sheet is organized around the harmonic scale for the given key ( I - ii - iii - IV - V - iv). There are two sets of chords and one set of arpeggios. I've grouped the chord sets to minimize movement on the fretboard. This results in less reliance on standard chop chords. The arpeggios are based on the previously mentioned movable scale forms and they include which fingers to use. You can play the chords or arpeggios in "harmonic" order to reinforce your ear or you can practice them against chord progressions.
As a reference the sheets are far from comprehensive. However, since all the material is "movable" you are free transpose it. I plan on using them primarily as a practice tool to gain dexterity and learn the fretboard. The sheets are all fretboard diagrams, so they should be useful to TAB and notation readers.
Downloads from the site end up with really odd/cryptic names. Once the download is complete you should rename it to something like "scales-chords-arps.pdf"
Download scales-chords-arps.pdf
I've been a big fan of Ted Eschliman's FFcP scales and his overall "Fingers, Ears, Brain" method for learning. See Ted's site (http://www.jazzmando.com) for detailed explanations. I'm also very appreciative of the Mandolin series of books authored by Greg Horne and Wayne Fugate. I'm currently working through the Intermediate book by Horne. I skipped ahead a bit and was glad to see that the sections on scales are based on the same forms Ted uses. Horne takes it a step further by using these scale forms as a springboard for teaching pentatonics and arpeggios.
I've compiled what I've learned into a set of practice sheets (keys of C,G,D,A). Each key gets two pages: Scale Forms and Chords & Arpeggios.
Scale Forms:
This one is pretty straight forward. There is a first position major scale that uses open strings. After that each movable scale form is then broken down by major, major pentatonic and minor pentatonic. Grouping them together illustrates how the pentatonics are derived from the major scale.
Chords & Arpeggios:
This sheet is organized around the harmonic scale for the given key ( I - ii - iii - IV - V - iv). There are two sets of chords and one set of arpeggios. I've grouped the chord sets to minimize movement on the fretboard. This results in less reliance on standard chop chords. The arpeggios are based on the previously mentioned movable scale forms and they include which fingers to use. You can play the chords or arpeggios in "harmonic" order to reinforce your ear or you can practice them against chord progressions.
As a reference the sheets are far from comprehensive. However, since all the material is "movable" you are free transpose it. I plan on using them primarily as a practice tool to gain dexterity and learn the fretboard. The sheets are all fretboard diagrams, so they should be useful to TAB and notation readers.
Downloads from the site end up with really odd/cryptic names. Once the download is complete you should rename it to something like "scales-chords-arps.pdf"
Download scales-chords-arps.pdf
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Comment by Mike Bunting on May 22, 2009 at 12:15am
- I use the Horne books as teaching aids, I find them quite versatile and thorough.
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