Chords and Arrangers

[rattley]

Greetings,

Playing chords are at the heart of driving an arranger keyboard. Timing is impeccable!  The correct chords helps also. I'm 64 now but have been playing arrangers since high school. I've always preferred playing full chords as opposed to single finger. The circle of fifths is always displayed in front of me and is a constant resource especially when playing the difficult keys. In all the years I have played one would think I should be a master at chord selection and chord progressions. In my mind there are major, minor, and 7th's and their inversions. I know these all so well, so well that I seldom play any other chord types. I have always been aware of chord types that weren't major, minor, or a 7th. I just discounted them because I wasn't familiar with how to use and play them. They're just for jazz, aren't they?

I'm still having an absolute blast with my Genos2. I'm still in awe by how it sounds. Even the old stuff sounds better than it ever did.  I was playing the Acoustic Rock style using a C  G  C  G  D G progression. Instead of starting with a C chord I accidently played a Gsus 4 chord. Wow!!!  The style took on a whole different mood.  Gsus4  G  Gsus4  G  D  G.    I immediately thought of lots of songs using this progression.  Where the hell have I been all these years??  It's not like I discovered anything new, but it sure felt like I did. Another tool in the toolbox I thought. I played this progression on many different styles and in a few instances Genos2 didn't like it and it sounded "funny".  But most of the styles were fine using it.

Once again my own musical training, or lack of, has stabbed me. My bad habits have only been made worse since proper corrections were never trained.  I studied music theory all thru high school. It was a requirement back then if you were in the band. I'm pretty well versed in the mechanics of music, but the practical playing it sounds lacking. Nobody ever taught me playing skills such as proper fingering.  I feel it only has been in the last few years that my playing style sounds smoother than it did before. It was always to precise and regimented like a bad MIDI file.

This all might sound so silly and basic but for me it is so much more. That "mistake" lit a fire inside of me and I now know I must get better at my chord technique. I was a little reluctant to advertise my musical shortcomings but maybe, just maybe, there are others who have played as long as I have and have acquired the same mental blocks I had. I refuse to believe my music skills have plateaued and can never improve. I'm retired now and have much more time than I used too, but I don't want my music to be just a hobby. I want and need to live it!!   -charley

[Michael Trigoboff]

Cubase has some chord-related features that might be really helpful to you. Look at the Chord Functions and Using Chord Pads sections of the Cubase Pro 13 Operation Manual and check out what's available.

[Ronbo]

Hello Charley

I couldn't agree more . Sometimes what you feel is a miscue turns out to be the door to a whole new way of playing.

Just to add to your contribution I started paying attention to the chords a little closer. Something like a Dm7 for example, is quite easy to play. But if it says Dm7b5 you should make every attempt to play it as written because it will add that nuance to the song that you are looking for. There are many more examples like Dmb7 #5 just to name one more.  Hundreds more.

These chord instructions make the song more complete.

Piano music shows these nuances in the base clef. That's the advantage of reading two lines; I cannot read the base clef so we as arranger keyboardists must rely on the instructions given in the chord symbols.

Hoping this makes sense

regards

Ron

[mikf]

Charley, you are thinking of all this the wrong way. An easy trap to fall into is to use the word 'theory' and let it intimidate you ...you know like 'I know nothing about music theory'.
The first thing is to understand is by and large music theory is just an explanation of what we do or hear all the time. You don't need to think of it as 'theory', it's not nuclear physics.
The second thing is to see chords in a simpler way - because they are simple.
There are really only 3 you need to know - major, minor and diminished. Maybe an 4th but rarer chord called a half diminished.
Practically every other chord is just a modification of one of those, and the mods are really easy because they are spelled out in a simple way. G7b9 can look complicated, but it just means play a G major chord and modify it by adding the 7th and flattened 9th notes of the scale of G. C6 just means add the 6th note of the C scale. You really don't even have to memorize them, it's very simple, obvious logic.
I know that playing and changing chords can seem very difficult, so a tendency many new players have is to try to change as few times as possible, while good players look to change them all the time. Why...because harmony matters. People are conditioned by million years of evolution to react emotionally to harmony changes. Adding a flattened 9th for example is a slightly dissonant note, and creates some anxiety, which can then be relieved by changing to a major chord. This raises music to another level. Good players know that it's not just about getting the notes and chords 'right', it's about creating an emotional response. And bear in mind that sometimes these added harmony notes can be in the rh.
If you want to learn much more about this, watch this utube video which analyses a Cole Porter song and how the sheer genius of the man allows simple love song lyrics, to be overlaid on a bed of unusual harmony which creates anxiety and tells you that all is not right in this love affair, and at the same time uses a rising melody structure to demonstrate hope that it can all work in out in the end. The whole story is way beyond the lyrics.
It will inspire you to learn the power of harmony and melody in human emotion, and show why these legendary geniuses like Cole Porter, Richard Rodgers, Leonard Bernstein are so revered by performers. Their music is not just nice ditties, but completely thought out at a very high level.
Mike
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LcdEsOK8Q5M

[robinez]

mikf is totally right, you can play almost any song with those three chord types, but it's fun to spice it up with alternate chords to get chord variations in your song. Sometimes it can even be as simple as just hitting the 1 and 5th note of a chord (then the variation changes to a general pattern that supports major and minor at the same time.

There are a lot of tricks that are working more or less the same on all keyboards. For the korg pa5x I created such a tutorial where I show the chord recognition possibilities from beginners (1 finger) to advanced (neo soul / jazz type of chords). Although it's for the korg pa5x all concepts shown work the same on the yamaha Genos.

you can find that tutorial over here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E445kn4h7nM

[BogdanH]

Uh.. uh.. Mike, I watched the entire video -it's important that I say that 
To really understand what narrator in this video is talking about, quite some musical knowledge (education) is required. You are a pianist and I assume that you also like this kind of music, so everything said in this video is obvious to you.
I'm not into this kind of music.. but luckily I quite enjoy classical music and so I could at least get the basics (the points) of narrator's analysis of that song.
But yes, those who are into composing their own songs, should definitely be familiar with these things. For the rest of us, we can feel lucky if we can play the music as it was written by composer 

Bogdan

[mikf]

You are right Bogdan, I have a background which means I have a good grasp of all this stuff.
While some really accomplished players buy arrangers, it is overwhelmingly bought by people that have limited previous exposure to keyboard keyboard skills. I think that one of the traps that they can fall into is to see the chords and notes as a bewildering forest of obstacles that have to be individually overcome to play the piece. While in fact most popular music is made up of just a few mathematical harmony patterns (chord progressions) that repeat and interchange. Yes there are departures from the patterns, but once you grasp the underpinning simplicity, it gets easy to identify those departures from pattern.
And the chords themselves can also seem a bewildering array to learn, but again it's just a few fixed patterns. As I say there are only three to bother with, then there are the occasional added notes to this. This was my point. Try to see music this way and it all gets easier. And to understand that every note matters to creating a response to music, a small change can create a wide variety of emotions.
I know, it all sounds like very high mumbo jumbo, but I am actually trying to cut past the to the underlying simplicity.
But probably not succeeding 
Mike

[andyg]

G7b9 can look complicated, but it just means play a G major chord and modify it by adding the 7th and flattened 9th notes of the scale of G.

Minor correction - a 7th chord contains the flattened 7th of the major scale. If you added the actual 7th it would form a Major 7th chord. Adding the flattened 9th would then give you the 7b9. G7b9 is technically G B D F Ab. Too many fingers in use, but see my comment about AI Fingered mode below. If you played the non flattened 7th you'd get Gma7b9 - not sure if that would sound too good, I'll have to go and try it!

For those who may be wondering why this is (as I did when I first came across it many years ago!), consider this:

If you saw the chord symbol Bb7 would you play a B major chord with a flattened 7th or a Bb with a major 7th? There would be no way of knowing, that's why we don't call a 7th a b7th.

A 7th is most often a dominant chord, taking us home to the tonic, or 'home' chord. You can also find what are called 'secondary dominants' which will step back through the Circle of 5ths until we get 'home'. For example: E7 > A7 > D7 > G7 > C.

Chord construction is well worth understanding, but to help out I've put most of the chords you'll need for arranger into an easy to use chart that puts all the chords in inversions that are as close as possible to each other.

Yamaha's AI Fingered mode - which I encourage everyone to use once they've passed the '1 finger chord' stage - will allow all sorts of interesting chords to be played and will make some chords available with less fingers. 7b9 chords only need 4 notes and 13th chords only 3! I'm still finding new things it can do.

Charley, you would almost definitely benefit from a bit of 1 to 1 tuition, live (if you can find a local teacher who teaches keyboard properly - not just a piano teacher who tolerates keyboards!) or on line. I offer on line tuition and I know a few of my friends and colleagues do the same. You'll usually gain a lot more from a couple of lessons than watching Youtube clips etc.

[mikf]

Good spot Andy, I was so keen to keep it simple I got over simple!
I agree it's about the right kind of teacher. As a kid I went to classical piano lessons. The teacher never showed anything about chord structure, or chord progressions...just how to read and play, and lots of exercises. All good stuff, but not useful for playing popular music by ear. So I figured out most of the other stuff myself, but it took a lot of time. When you are 9 or 10 that is not important, but you want to get there quicker if you are 60.
An important part of the learning process is getting stuck on chords on some song, eventually figuring out, looking up or maybe asking to get the solution - but then treat that solution not as something to be remembered for that song, but as a new tool to store in your toolbox of solutions. Try the new chord or progression in other keys, try to find other songs where it works, then it's a tool you have forever. When the toolbox gets big enough you can play almost anything.
Mike

[Toril S]

Exactly!

[rattley]

Hello!

Thanks for the replies. I swear I dreamed all day about sus4 chords. I never dream about anything anymore!  I couldn't wait until Genos2 time to experiment some more. I downloaded a master chord guide for piano. It shows 21 different chords for the key of C. I played them all and most of them aren't musically appealing to me. The main chords I have only been using all along are Major, Minor, and Dominant7th.  I really like the sus2 as much as the sus4 I "discovered".  I can also see using the diminished and augmented variations on occasion. The other variations........flat 5th, major 6th, minor 6th, major 7th, minor 7th, minor/major 7th, diminished 7th, half diminished 7th, augmented 7th, augmented major 7th, 6/9, dominant 9th, major 9th, minor 9th do nothing for me.

I played a bunch of styles using the sus2 and sus4. Since I already play using the full AI fingering I play full 3 or 4 note chords. Playing a G major chord, pressing G B D, one only has to toggle the middle note B up to C for a sus4 chord or toggle down to A for a sus2 chord.  I played the chord progression Gsus4  G  Gsus2  and repeated it for several bars. I then played a C  G  D progression to discover these 2 compliment each other perfectly. I can see using the sus2 and 4 variations as chord substitutes for the major chords.

You will have to forgive my enthusiasm about my discovery and its implications. I still kick myself for not knowing this relationship years ago. Knowing more chords and when to use them is only going to improve my performances. And it is fun too.  So I really don't mind being the last one to board the bus!!   -charley

[SciNote]

This takes me back to 1978, when I was first learning how to play keyboard on a home organ.  I meant to play an F-major chord, but hit a Bb instead of an A for the center note and discovered the Fsus4 chord by accident!  And since then, I have also used sus4 and sus2 chords in a lot of my music, especially original compositions.  You can also experiment with 7sus4.  As you might expect, it is like a regular 7th chord, but based on a sus4 chord instead of a major chord.  So, as an example, whereas a C7 chord is C-E-G-Bb, a C7sus4 is C-F-G-Bb.

As for the more esoteric chords, like 9th, 11th, 13th, and beyond with variations, as has been said, you can experiment with those and learn them at your own pace.  When I started learning organ, my teacher gave me a chart with all of the notes for the basic major, minor, seventh, minor 7th, and possibly diminished chords (It's been over 45 years -- I don't remember all the details).  Over the months and years, I just started getting interested in learning the less common chords.

In reality, it's based on a pretty basic stack of major and minor 3rds.  Since they are essentially based on the 7th chord, which resolves from the fifth to the tonic, you start with the fifth note of the major scale for whatever key you're in.  So, as an example, if you're in the major key of F, then you start with the fifth note of that scale, which is C.  Remembering that the B is flatted in the key of F, you have this progression of thirds:

C - E - G - Bb - D - F - A

Now, yes, we started with the C, which is the 5th note of the F major scale.  But when numbering the chords, it is based on counting notes from the first note of this sequence.  So, the Bb is the 7th note (the 7th note of the F-major scale, but when counting from the C note), the D is the 9th note, and the A is the 13th note.

You already know that C-E-G is a C major chord, and that C-E-G-Bb is a C7.  When you add the D, you get a C9.  Add the F, and get a C11.  And then add the A, and get C13.  I believe in certain circumstances you could even add a high C for C15 and a high E for C17, but some will argue that, since you are repeating some of the notes, that those chords are redundant.  That's a discussion for another time.

But going back to C9, C11, and C13.  Often, just the top 4 notes of those chords are played, as long as the root note (the C, in this case) is being played by bass somehow -- either in an arranger's auto accompaniment, a separate bass player, or, with your left hand (while you play the other notes with your right hand).  So, a C9 is E-G-Bb-D, a C11 is G-Bb-D-C, and a C13 is Bb-D-F-A, again, with the C being played in the bass.  A little twist is that for the 13th chord, the 11th of that chord (the F) is often flatted to the 10th, so a C13th is often played as Bb-D-E-F.  This gives it some dissonance and character.

And, another thing that may help is something you may already have noticed by looking at those chords above: Ignoring the bass note, one chord will often have the same exact notes as another chord in a different key.  As an example, look at the C11: G-Bb-D-F.  That is is the same as a Gm7, except there is a C in the bass with the C11.  So, if you want, you can think of an 11th chord for a particular note as having the same top notes as the minor-7th for the note a fifth above it (as C11 has the same top 4 notes as Gm7, and G is a fifth above C).  Just remember that you want to have the root bass note -- the C, in this case -- played somewhere, to give it the full sound of the 11th chord.

A C6 (which I didn't list but was mentioned in another post) is C-E-G-A, which is just an inversion of an Am7 chord (A-C-E-G) -- the difference being the note in the bass.  For even more fun, put a D on the bass with those notes, and you get a D11!

And finally, like Mike said, other modifications are just spelled out in the chord.  Gm7b5?  Take your Gm7 (G-Bb-D-F) and flat the 5th, which is the D, for a chord that is: G-Bb-Db-F.  C7#9?  Just take your C9 chord (E-G-Bb-D, with C bass), and sharp the 9th: E-G-Bb-D#, with C bass.  In some musical notation, the symbols for plus and minus are used instead of sharp and flat when describing these modified chords, such as C7+9 being the same as C7#9.

This is all quite basic, as there are nearly endless variations of these chords, but just like learning the basic major, minor, seventh, and minor-7th chords, as you practice and get used to these more complex chords, they get easier!

[andyg]

The other variations........flat 5th, major 6th, minor 6th, major 7th, minor 7th, minor/major 7th, diminished 7th, half diminished 7th, augmented 7th, augmented major 7th, 6/9, dominant 9th, major 9th, minor 9th do nothing for me.

Some of those are pretty important, charley. Major 7th, minor 7th (vital!), diminished 7th. Please do learn these as they will make a big difference to some pieces.

The half diminished 7th / minor 6th (same notes but different base note achievable in AI Fingered mode) has a distinct sound, worth exploring.

The others are colourations and alterations, not essential (though the augmented chords can give a real lift to a chord change)

[mikf]

The other variations........flat 5th, major 6th, minor 6th, major 7th, minor 7th, minor/major 7th, diminished 7th, half diminished 7th, augmented 7th, augmented major 7th, 6/9, dominant 9th, major 9th, minor 9th do nothing for me.

Charley, although it's fun to discover the sound of new chords, it's how they fit and add to the piece you're playing that matters. Horses for courses.
Try this...play C chord in a beguine or Latin Rhythm. Now change to playing Cmaj7 and C6 in that same rhythm.  Hear how a couple of altered C chords changes the whole feel.
Every note you add or subtract counts, just do it in the right place.
I know that many here are just happy to be able to get through a piece, playing chords that sound ok, or play what is on the lead sheet. But the next level is about adding color and interest, tension and relief.

Mike

[rattley]

Hello!

Excellent replies everyone!  I really appreciate it.  One thing unearthed that I am particularly interested in is how the styles play differently with these variations I am not familiar with. Some of the background voices really come out more, especially the fill-ins,  sometimes oddly, sometimes a bit to loud, but then the volumes go back to normal when going back to major chords. I've noticed similar behavior in the past when using 7th chords before changing style variations or the songs ending. Not all styles behave this way and until you try these chord substitutions you don't know what you will hear. What I am seeing and learning this week is a good thing. I can't wait to do it some more!!!  My brain cells can't figure out why they tired lately.  LOL!!        -charley

[rattley]

Hello Friends!

"One thing always leads to another."  That is certainly an understatement. When I was trying out the sus4 and sus2 variations my mind was thinking AC/DC Night Prowler. I found the chord tabs and sure enough the intro of the song uses A5  D5  Csus2  D5.  This pattern repeats and repeats (Hey! This IS an AC/DC song! LOL!!) Later the verse uses A5  D5  G  D5, again repeatedly!  My thoughts were confirmed that it did indeed use a sus2 or 4 variation. But, what the heck is a A5 or D5 chord?  I know very little about how guitars are played so I looked it up. What I found said the "5" designation means a power chord. It also said they were only 2 note chords.  A5 is A and E.  D5 is D and A.  So how does one play a power chord in a style on my keyboard? I found a few old posts here about AI and chord types but nothing specific. The same on Genos2's manuals.

My mission later tonight is to explore power chords. Will Genos2 recognize a 2 finger chord as a power chord or would it be better just to sustain a 3 note chord??  As I said........."One thing always leads to another."  It's hard to remain focused when there are so many side roads on this journey.  -charley

[Ronbo]

Charlie,

One thing to remember about these crazy chords with b5ths and #3rds and such is that they are usually meant to be played as transition chords; from a Dm7 say to a Dm7b5 and resolving with a G7 perhaps and continuing to a C.This transition,if you will,is quite often only one beat in the measure and likely will only need one finger to move . Very simple when you think about it for a while.

But the result is a very nicely played piece of music. Makes a huge difference to a listener.

Best regards

Ron

[andyg]

So how does one play a power chord in a style on my keyboard? I found a few old posts here about AI and chord types but nothing specific. The same on Genos2's manuals.

1) Make sure that you are in AI Fingered Mode.
2) Play the two notes you mention. A+E will give you A1+5, for example - that's the power chord. Works better in some styles than others, of course! Incidentally if you just play A, it will give you an A 1+8, and every instrument in the style will play A. Comes in very handy at times.

I've been asked many times to write a definitive guide to AI Fingered Mode and as I'm now semi-retired I just might have time to do so! Jackie Marsden wrote a series of articles in Yamaha Times, and they are worth searching for. But they were written when that mode was relatively new and only goes into the basics. I'd have to get permission from Jackie to incorporate her articles into mine.

Regarding your comment about the style volume changing when you play chords other than major, I've never come across that. Nevertheless, I've just spent a bit of time with my Genos and S970, trying a variety of styles and comparing majors against things like 6th and 7th chords. There is no difference at all in volume level, but the arrangement and instrumentation in the fill-ins does vary, you might get an extra instrument coming in or the instruments will play a slightly different phrase. I think this is what you're hearing and it's is quite appropriate, giving extra variation to the music - a real band or orchestra would do the same sort of things.

[SciNote]

Hello Friends!

"One thing always leads to another."  That is certainly an understatement. When I was trying out the sus4 and sus2 variations my mind was thinking AC/DC Night Prowler. I found the chord tabs and sure enough the intro of the song uses A5  D5  Csus2  D5.  This pattern repeats and repeats (Hey! This IS an AC/DC song! LOL!!) Later the verse uses A5  D5  G  D5, again repeatedly!  My thoughts were confirmed that it did indeed use a sus2 or 4 variation. But, what the heck is a A5 or D5 chord?  I know very little about how guitars are played so I looked it up. What I found said the "5" designation means a power chord. It also said they were only 2 note chords.  A5 is A and E.  D5 is D and A.  So how does one play a power chord in a style on my keyboard? I found a few old posts here about AI and chord types but nothing specific. The same on Genos2's manuals.

My mission later tonight is to explore power chords. Will Genos2 recognize a 2 finger chord as a power chord or would it be better just to sustain a 3 note chord??  As I said........."One thing always leads to another."  It's hard to remain focused when there are so many side roads on this journey.  -charley

Yes, a "5th" chord, such as A5 or D5, is simply a 2 note chord with the root and fifth, so that A5 is A and E, and D5 is D and A.  To make it sound fuller, you can add the root note an octave up, for example playing A5 as A, E, and the A an octave above the first A.

As an addition to those chords I talked about in my previous post, you can think of them as providing a particular mood to a section of music.  I guess different people may have different interpretations of the chords, but this how I hear them...

Major -- happy
Minor -- sad
sus4 -- very bright
sus2 -- sort of makes a statement with a degree of tension, but not as strongly as a sus4
9th -- dark, a little eerie
11th -- bright, like a sunrise
13th -- dissonant, almost confused
6th -- kind of melancholy
7th and minor 7th -- can vary, depending on the song
7sus4 -- as both a 7th and a sus4 want to lead into something else, this chord can create quite a bit of intensity

[mikf]

One of the downsides with arrangers is that, in the typical lh/ split keyboard chord mode used by most, regardless of the fingering mode chosen, it can be very difficult to finger some of these altered and extended chords.
This is not a problem encountered by non- arranger keyboard players, because they will finger chords/melody across both hands. In fact if you want a piano to sound good, that is how you should play it. In fact, one of the reasons many arrangers players think they need better piano voices is because they typically play piano as a monophonic lead.
You can, of course, add the relevant notes in your right hand, even when using a split keyboard, and if your lead instrument is normally polyphonic, that will often work well. Although it may not trigger the difference in accompaniment, you still get the sound of the extra notes completing the harmony. But if your rh lead is a normally monophonic instrument - like a sax or trumpet - that will not sound right.
There is no easy way round this.
Mike

[andyg]

That's where AI mode comes into its own as it lets you omit a note or notes from a chord and juggle the inversions to fit in the usual part of the keyboard. I always get people to set the Style & Left split point to G2 rather than F#2, certainly on a 61 note instrument. That allows the very common G/B chord to be played. If you have a 76 note instrument you can play these chords lower down, of course.

"Memory" from "Cats" has some delightful chords in it, all of which can be played in AI mode, but a couple need the split point moved up to Bb2 for a few bars! And "The Ladies Who Lunch" from "Company" has F6,9 alternating with Cm9/F! Took a bit of thinking to figure out how the AI algorithm would want the notes played, but it does it!

There are some that AI can't play, of course, like Bbm7/Db - you get Db6, of course! But it's a transitory chord and Bb/Db works almost just as well for that brief few beats.

We've probably moved a bit far from Charley's original queries, but hopefully he and other members will find the thread interesting!