Reconstructing Guitar Chords
Utilizing formulas and modes to draw out new sounds.
Chords tend to dominate our thought processes in the world of music. We try to think of chords as sets of notes we can always rely on for a variety of reasons. Some times its as simple as quickly learning a song. Other times the chords tell us what scales to play over them. But chords can also go much deeper by suggesting multiple possibilites.
In this lesson, I want to show you how alter a chord and still get a set of notes that work. This way you can have a few extra tools that you can use to create music the way YOU want to. I’ll use the guitar as the instrument for all examples because it will display the though processes that I’ll use in a more meanful way. Let’s jump into a few basics before we get started.
Two Orders of Modes
Below we have the modes of the Major Scale in two sets. The first shows the modes in the standard way we learn them with the degrees of each mode. Modes provide basic chords, which are shown to the right of each chart. A major chord uses degrees 1, 3, and 5. Minor chords are made of degrees 1, ♭3, and 5. A diminished chord uses degrees 1, ♭3, and ♭5. Notice how the major modes of Ionian, Lydian, and Mixolydian modes all have degrees 1, 3, and 5. Dorian, Phrygian, and Aeolian are all minor modes because they use degrees 1, ♭3, and 5. Locrian is the only modes with a ♭3 and ♭5.
The next chart reorganizes the same modes in “fifths”. Many of my other lessons use modes in fifths in order to change between keys on the cirlce of fifths. I’m not going to dive into that today. Instead, I want you to see how “Modes in Fifths” orders the modes by major, minor, and then diminished. It also creates a useful pattern that we will use for altering chords.
For example, a major chord can be played in Lydian, Ionian, or Mixolydian. But what if we play a sus2 chord instead? This would mean that the 3rd degree is lowered to the 2nd degree, so a sus2 would use degrees 1, 2, and 5. Now look at the Modes in Fifths chart and you’ll see that five of our modes contain degrees 1, 2, and 5. That means if you are playing chords in the C Major Scale, you will have a C Major, F Major, and G Major chords available. It also means that Csus2, Dsus2, Fsus2, Gsus2, and Asus2 are all available as well. The only sus2 chord that don’t work in C Major would be Esus2 and Bsus2 because E Phrygian and B Locrian do not have a 2nd degree. They have a ♭2nd degree.
Thinking in Terms of Formulas
In music, a “formula” is a quick way to describe a sound by numbers. Just like with 1-3-5 being a major chord, 1-♭3-5 is minor, and 1-2-5 is a sus2, we can describe “chordal sounds” by formulas. Dominant chords help us to create strong movements in fifths. When we play a progression in C Major like Am7, Dm7, G7, C we are playing in fifths because A is the fifth of D, D is the fifth of G, and G is the fifth of C. The G7 chord is the dominant chord and helps us arrive at C with a strong resolution (aka a strong movement ending at C).
Being able to slowly add chords by numeric formulas will help you to match them up with whatever mode you are on. So let’s say you are still playing in C Major and you are playing G7 (1-3-5-♭7) to C (1-3-5) and you like how if moves strongly to that C chord. But, before that you play Am7 (1-♭3-5-♭7) to Dm7 (1-♭3-5-♭7) and Am7 doesn’t move as strongly to Dm7. Well the only difference in “formula” from G7 to Am7 is the 3rd degree. Both contain 1, 5, and ♭7. So, Am7’s ♭3rd needs to be changed.
In C Major, G7 comes from the Mixolydian mode. Am7 is part of the Aeolian mode. Aeolian does not have a 3rd degree like Mixolydian, so we can’t access an A7 from the C Major Scale modes. Instead, let’s look for something else that works in both Mixolydian and Aeolian that can replace either “third” degree. Well, if we raise the ♭3rd up to a 4th degree, then we can play an A7sus4 (aka A7sus) in form of 1-4-5-♭7. This works in Aeolian, so it doesn’t change the notes of the scale. It also works in Mixolydian and “hints” at possibly being from Mixolydian to our ears. Now we can play A7sus4 to Dm7 to G7 to C and get two strong movements AND, because we stuck to the chords that match our available modes, all of the notes used come from the C Major Scale.
Play around with Am7 and A7sus4. You’ll hear the tension increase a little in the A7sus4 chord. Now play Am7 to Dm7 followed by A7sus4 to Dm7 to feel how A7sus4 has a stronger push to the Dm7 chord. Its little changes like this that really add up and create interesting musical sounds.
One Major Chord with the Root on the Sixth String
Next up is a chart for a major chord on the guitar where the root note is on the sixth string. Let me explain how this chart works so we are all on the same page. The six verticle lines represent the six strings of the guitar. The rightmost string is the “1st string” with the higherst pitch and the leftmost string is the “6th string” with the lowest pitch. The horizontal spaces are the frets where your finger go to hold each string down. The upper fret rows have lower pitches than the lower from row with higher pitches. In other words, the headstock of the guitar is at the top of the chart and the body of the guitar is at the bottom of the chart. The numbers at the bottom show what fingers to use. Your pointer finger is 1, the middle finger is 2, the ring finger is 3, and your pinky is 4. T is thumb and is isn’t used very often. O means to play the string open without holding it down. X means to mute or deaden the string so that it doesn’t play if it is touched.
The last set of numbers are not normally found on charts like this, but I wish they were. These numbers are the degrees of the chord. This is a major chord because we are only using degrees 1-3-5. I’ve also color coded the numbers as well. I’ll use blue for the root note or 1st degee, red for the 5th, green for any type of third, and purple will be used for any other numbered degree.
On the guitar, this “shape” works at the 1st fret, 3rd fret, and 8th fret to create the F Major, G Major, and C Major chords. But let’s say we want to play something like an “add9” chord. We can do that from this shape. The formula for an add9 is 1-3-5-9 beacuse we take a major chord’s formula and add on the 9th degree. Don’t get this confused with a sus2! A Csus2 is 1-2-5 or C-D-G. A Cadd9 is 1-3-5-9 or C-E-G-D. In the sus2 version, the third degree is replaced by the second degree note of D. In the add9 version, D does note replace E. With E intact as the third degree, D is added on as a higher note and is the 9th degree of the scale.
Yup! Lot’s of technical stuff! Just focus on asking youself, “was the third degree replaced?” If yes, it’s a sus of some type. If no, then you’re adding something.
Next up is an add9 shape, but it’s impossible to play. You have four fingers and they are already used up. How are you supposed to play the 9th degree here? The answer is by dropping a degree that has been doubled.
Below is the solution. By not playing the fifth string we free up fingers 2 through 4 to be able to hold this “shape”. To strum the chord we don’t strum at all. Instead we grab the chord with our stumming hand. On this hand we use the thumb on the sixth string (to the left of the chart) and our four fingers to play strings 1 through 4. This chord can be strummed across strings 1 through 4 and still be an add 9 chord because those four strings still give us degrees 1, 3, 5, and 9. That’s all we need for an add9 chord. We can even play the 1st degree on the sixth string and drone it (which means to let it ring out) and then strum the remaining four strings to play the add9 chord. There’s tons of options that this format creates, so explore Major and add9 chords at your leisure.
Play the Chord Manipulation Game
Now it’s your turn to manipluate chords. You can do this on any instrument. Yes, even a saxophone. Just because an instrument like the sax plays one note at a time doesn’t mean that you can’t play a chord. All you do us play the notes one at a time as an arpeggio, which means “broken chord”.
To help you out I’ve put the modes and their degrees below along with chord formulas that we’ve used and some we have not. Your goal is to start with a chord from the C Major scale like F Major. Use the major shape shown earlier and look at the notes F, A, and C. These are degrees 1, 3, and 5. F is the fourth note of the C Major Scale, so look to the fourth mode of Lydian. Now manipluate that “F” chord based on what is available in the “F Lydian” mode. The sus4 chord isn’t available because Lydian has a ♯4. Bust you can still play sus2, add9, 6, and △ chords.
Keep doing this with all modes. For example, play all of the sus2 chords in C Major. Now play all of the sus4 chords. Now play all of the m6 (minor 6) chords, which there’s only one. Doing this will build up a catalogue of chords in your mind that always work by mode and by formula. By the way, this translates across all keys.
If you really want to use unique degrees like ♯4 in Lydian, then try using it as a higher note as the ♯11 in a chord like “F△ ♯11”. The formula for this is 1-3-5-7-♯11 and is shown below. Notice how the only degree that needs to be first is 1. The remaining degrees can come in any order.
To help you feel the power of manipulating chords, let’s play eight slow tempo bars of the following two progressions. The matching chord shapes are shown below.
Listen to how the manipulated versions of an F major chord add movement help connect to the G chord in a more interesting way. Continue to manipulate chords and you’ll discover a world of sonic textures that are right at your finertips.
