Wednesday, July 8, 2009

How To Not Suck, Chapter 19: Pardon the Transposition

A quick graph.

           1     2m    3m     4     5     6m     7

C Major : C Dm Em F G Am Bdim
D Major : D Em F#m G A Bm C#dim
E Major : E F#m G#m A B C#m D#dim
F Major : F Gm Am Bb C Dm Edim
G Major : G Am Bm C D Em F#dim
A Major : A Bm C#m D E F#m G#dim
B Major : B C#m D#m E F# G#m A#dim
C# Major : C# D#m E#m F# G# A#m B#dim
Eb Major : Eb Fm Gm Ab Bb Cm Ddim
F# Major : F# G#m A#m B C# D#m E#dim
Ab Major : Ab Bbm Cm Db Eb Fm Gdim
Bb Major : Bb Cm Dm Eb F Gm Adim


Learn it. Know it. Live it.

You cannot capo a voice. Singers move songs higher if they can and lower if they must, and songs you've played for years in one key, you might have to play it in another.

Like I did this evening.

With chord sheets and no pen. Always trying to remember F Bb Dm7 C is now C F Am7 G, next to three other guys with no pens, trying to remember that it's now C F Am7 G too.

2 comments:

Sammy said...

Awesome graph! So simple, yet so perfect.

Joe Walker said...

Nice chart. Now memorize the whole damn thing. Ha.

I prefer to think of the progression as I IV vi V in F. The transposition is easier if I'm just thinking I IV vi V in C instead of trying to figure out each chord.

PS: It's been a while, but I've kept reading.