Now, what chord comes next..?

[warbles]

...a little help, please?

I have no trouble memorizing song melodies and lyrics, but I do seem to have some difficulty memorizing the accompanying chords of a song. I find that, though I'm ready to perform a song, I'm still tied to the sheet music solely for the guitar chords.

Anyone else have the same challenges? If you have some tips for retaining the chord structure, please offer them. And, thanks!

[paulp1960]

I have more trouble learning lyrics off by heart. But I find once I've played a song a few hundred times it gets comitted to my memory.

Just keep practicing.

[uriah1]

Remember the start verse phrasing ex AEG
and the chorus phrasing ex GEF

or mark up your lyric sheet

imho

[ljguitar]

Originally Posted by warbles

...a little help, please?

I have no trouble memorizing song melodies and lyrics, but I do seem to have some difficulty memorizing the accompanying chords of a song. I find that, though I'm ready to perform a song, I'm still tied to the sheet music solely for the guitar chords.

Anyone else have the same challenges? If you have some tips for retaining the chord structure, please offer them. And, thanks!

Hi w…

Memorizing the chords of a song can be broken into simpler segments.

• Intro chords
• Verse chords
• Chorus chords
• Bridge chords
• Ending chords

Sheer repetition of many songs reveals they only require 4-6 chords for most. And the order becomes quite predictable after a short time. If you can find a local Bluegrass jam, go and sit in (with your guitar). They are usually friendly and involve people of all levels of play, and you'll see very rapidly that the songs have repeatable (and interchangeable) chord patterns.

In addition, learn to assign Roman numeral values to your major scales as well as note names (the Root of the scale is always 'I' then ii-iii-IV-V-vi-vii°).

Note that in a major key I, IV & V are normally major chord and ii, iii, vi are minor (vii° is half diminished, but we often play the V7 in it's place).

Then you can assign the numerals to the progression and to any key. My gigging partner and I talk in numerics all the time. If I say "vi - ii - V - I" he just applies it to the key we are in.

Hope this spurs you on…

[roylor4]

Checked out your site, Warren - wow, you got some pipes on you brother! Great voice.

I won't offer any advice on this subject because most of the songs we play are quite simple 3-6 chord affairs in open position. I'm guessing you need advice from more advanced players than myself.

Just wanted to comment on your singing. I love your confident and relaxed delivery.

[zhunter]

I find it helps me to understand how chords work together and how they sound. So a little bit of theory and ear training means I don't have to memorize changes as much as understand changes and hear them.

In the end though, repetition without the use of sheet music is probably necessary. If you rehearse with the chart, it is harder to perform without it.

hunter

[sam.spoons]

Most, but not all, tunes have a predictable chord sequence. The more you play and hear different tunes the more familiar you'll get with the 'standard' changes and the better you'll become at predicting the chords. To the point where if you know a melody well you'll be able play a chord sequence that will fit without learning it. Jam sessions, open mic nights and collaborations with other players all help this part of your learning.

Now, what's your secret for remembering lyrics?

[Twilo123]

I can't read sheet music so it forces me to memorize. That's my advice
Don't read sheet music!


Guitar Player

[Von Beerhofen]

recognising chords and chordprogressions takes learning a lot of material. The more songs you play the easier it becomes. I've always practised using sheetmusic or written down chords and I soon learned that many popular songs use the same chord progressions or minor variants, even though they're not always in the same key.

At some point you will recognise phrases in a song which you've heard in other songs too and next you'll be constructing your own phrases and start experimenting with melodies on top. Before you know it the standard phrasing will become boring and you'll be trying out chord inversions and figure out how to easily remember that stuff.

Fact is that there's easy logic behind it all and a breakthrough in seeing it will allow you to prgress, that's what it's all about. No progress and you get bored, a breakthrough and a whole new world of possibillaties opens up for you, but it takes time.

Keep at it and success will come easier then you believed possible.

Ludwig

[warbles]

Some fantastic pointers here. Thank you very much!
I imagine the sooner you get off the sheet, the quicker chord retention you achieve. I've got to force myself to put the 'crutches' aside. I'm starting to hear the different chord qualities and progressions, and sometimes can predict where it's going, but it's gonna take a while.

Originally Posted by roylor4

Checked out your site, Warren - wow, you got some pipes on you brother! Great voice.

Thanks, roylor for the kind words.

[Bingoccc]

Another vote, following Larry's recommendation, to start learning the chord progressions as numbers (like the Nashville system). It really helps with seeing the progression and keeping it simple in your head.

[Monk of Funk]

If you learn the roman numerals, and practice that, and learn all the songs you know in roman numerals form, and get to know that well, then you will eventually kind of be able to know what chord you want for where you know the music wants to go, just because you know where that sound ought to be. So, there is less memorization at that point. Some stuff you memorize, but knowing all of those things makes it a bit easier, because lets say you expect a chord to be a V, but it turns out to be a IV, then that's easier to remember because it jumps out at you as unexpected. If you just have to remember that it's a Bb that's a little more tough.

It also makes every song sort of the same song, in a way. So, say one song is I-ii-vi-IV, if you know it only in chord names, then you have to remember 4 chord names. If you then learn another song in another key, it might be easy to remember if it is a I-IV-vi-IV, or idk, because then you see, oh it's like song x, except one chord is different. Whereas if you were learning just the chord names, you'd have 4 new chords to remember. Sometimes one part in one song will be exactly the same progression, and you don't notice, because it's in another key, and you play it in different voicings. Learning the roman numerals, and harmony makes it a lot easier.

[Paleolith54]

Originally Posted by warbles

...a little help, please?

I have no trouble memorizing song melodies and lyrics, but I do seem to have some difficulty memorizing the accompanying chords of a song. I find that, though I'm ready to perform a song, I'm still tied to the sheet music solely for the guitar chords.

Anyone else have the same challenges? If you have some tips for retaining the chord structure, please offer them. And, thanks!

Try reversing the order. Get the guitar part down COLD then add the lyrics.

[psychojohn]

Originally Posted by Paleolith54

Try reversing the order. Get the guitar part down COLD then add the lyrics.

Some song the playing come first then the singing and playing. For some, both came at the same time, but for most its playing. The first song I learned was Three Little Birds and I still can't play it and sing it at the same time. csn do both independently of each other but not together. On the other hand, "Wild Thing" both naturally came at the same time.

On his Website, Justin Sandacore has a multistep formula to learn to play and sing together. Check it out.

John

[Br1ck]

Spend some time figuring out chords on your own, without a road map to guide you. Pick a melody you are familiar with and figure out the structure on your own. Gradually you will get better and better at hearing the common changes used. Start with a simple blues or an old Hank Williams song and progress from there. Once you can instinctively hear the chord in relation to the melody, you won't need to refer so much to a chord sheet.

There are a half dozen very common popular song structures. Geffen/King songs are a great place to start.

Train your ear to hear minors, 7ths,etc. I think that will help. Then you can find the plethora of bad chord charts on the net. There are many.