Thursday, August 27, 2009

Memorization and Transposition

HowardJ 10/14/2005 12:21 PM
Hi Don, Do you recommend memorizing and playing everything in all keys? For example: tunes from fake books, recordings, exercises, studies etc... Thank you, Howard

Don Mock 10/16/2005 12:04 AM
Good question Howard. It's always a good idea to play everything in all keys. And in most cases, this should not be a big deal cause the guitar fingerboard can work basically like a slide rule, where chords and patterns are moveable. We really don't have any easy or hard keys, they're all about the same. The only exception of course is dealing with open string chords or melodies. But you should move every line, melody and chord phrase to all keys. Tunes are also a good idea to transpose to other keys. Doing this really helps see the root movements of the progression. You may never be asked to play a standard like "All The Things You Are" in a key like E, but it's great to have the ability to do it. Probably one of the best things to practice in all keys are basic chord progressions such as major and minor II-V-I's or I-VI-II-V's. And working on switching scale and arpeggio patterns from key to key is also a huge benefit.Thanks, -Don Mock

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