Newbie question - matching chords with a riff

TommyVercetti

Part of my practice routine is putting chord progressions into a looper then improvising on top - and it's great fun.

I'm struggling a bit with doing it the other way round though - working out chords for a riff.


I love THAT Johan riff here:  

http://www.thefretboard.co.uk/discussion/120161/

I can play it no problem and i think it's in the Amaj scale B, C#, D, & E.

In rank beginners terms - how do you identify what chords work with that scale?

Cheers

Phil_aka_Pip

Depends on what you mean by "work with". Some avant-garde jazz bloke might decide that the tune has to be "out" of any scale implied by the chords, but you probably don't mean that.

Those notes are the first 5 in the Amaj scale but they are also 5,6,7,R,2 of the Dmaj scale.

To harmonise a scale you build triads on each note of the scale; for each note, you add on top of it every other note until you have a stack of 3, eg

A C# E
B D F#
C# E G#
D F# A

etc.

Play each & listen. Those built on the 1st, 4th, 5th of the scale are major, those built on the 2nd, 3rd, 6th are minor, and the one on the 7th is diminished.

If you want to choose chords one for each note of the riff then the most obvious thing to do is find a triad that has that note in it. You might add interest if you can identify a triad that contains two consecutive notes of the riff (so you don't have to change triad so often), or if you play the same note twice in succession you could find 2 different triads that contain it.

There's loads more to it than that but I reckon you could have fun getting started with this.

Enjoy

TommyVercetti

OK i think i get that - going to have a go tonight. Cheers!!!

TommyVercetti

a-ha!

Google is my saviour. I know it's cheating but still...

http://www.guitar-chords.org.uk/chords-key-a.html

http://www.guitar-chords.org.uk/chords-key-d.html

Phil_aka_Pip

IMO there's nothing wrong with googling stuff to look it up

BUT there's nothing like working it out from first principles for yourself. The information sticks better than learning it by rote.

TommyVercetti

Yeah I get that totally, thanks a lot. I’m going to try the proper way - using those guides as a reference to see if I’m getting it right!

stratman3142

Doing it by ear, I'll often work up from the bass notes without really worrying about the theory as try to hear what works for me.

Then you can fill in whether it's a block chord, major, minor or whatever.

For example, what I hear for the first bit  of that Johan riff is

E     E     B     A  D

E    E  A-A#-B   G

 I hear it in E but the trouble is it's a rock riff, so there are chords like D and G that aren't strictly in E major.

Phil_aka_Pip

@stratman3142 raises a good point. The 'rules' of rock aren't the same as those of what we might call 'classical' theory. Both are equally valid, within their own terms of reference. To expand:

• Sometimes we have a "power chord" that is constructed of root & fifth (eg A&E). Sounds great But as it has no 3rd it doesn't state major or minor, so you can play what you like and it won't conflict. You could use C# in one phrase and c natural in another.
• Chords like D & G used in a riff that has a "tonic" note of E may be used to harmonise notes out of the Em pentatonic scale.
• Even using a minor pentatonic scale over a major chord can have its uses. The b3 and the b7 create tension instead of discord, when used in the right context.

Modellista

It's a blues in E, simple as that, with the addition of a D and G turnaround in places. 

You could maybe try E E D A over the first couple of bars but there's little choice when he moves to the B and the A. 

That riff is so good that IMHO it doesn't need any rhythm guitar over it. Maybe start with a weaker riff that needs enhancing!