Minor Chop Chord Help

[rastamypasta]

Hey everyone,

I am struggling with understanding how to chop with a minor chord. For example in Kentucky Mandolin how do I play the Gm chop? Should I just move my index finger down one fret? It is quite the stretch trying to do that. Any advice would be great!

Thank you.

Edit: I guess i do move my index down. Quite the stretch!

[David Lewis]

Only play three strings... Don't play the g string.

[mandroid]

7556 is another chord voicing DGDBb

[mandolirius]

Hey everyone,

I am struggling with understanding how to chop with a minor chord. For example in Kentucky Mandolin how do I play the Gm chop? Should I just move my index finger down one fret? It is quite the stretch trying to do that. Any advice would be great!

Thank you.

Edit: I guess i do move my index down. Quite the stretch!

For Gm your best bet is to play the open chord: 0013, low to high. For other chords, use the barre shape, which is just this same Gm chord moved up the neck. Because the open strings are no longer open, you have to barre the bottom two strings with your index finger. For example, an Am chord would be 2235, low to high. That shape is moveable, so you can slide it up the neck to get a bunch of minor chords. 3346 is Bbm, 4457 is Bm etc. If you move the whole shape down to the lower three strings, you can get more minor chords. Just play the lower three strings and mute the E string with your third finger.

[SincereCorgi]

For example in Kentucky Mandolin how do I play the Gm chop? Should I just move my index finger down one fret? It is quite the stretch trying to do that.

A lot of people do that big stretched G chop chord with the B shifted down to Bb, as you say. I would probably play it as 355-, but that's just me.

[AlanN]

Having a variety of chord voicings in the trick bag is a good thing. Depending on the tune and what's going on, near-nut, mid-neck and up-the-neck shapes all come in handy. The Big G minor shape has its own sonic thing, nothing beats it, imo. I remember Mike Marshall laid out different voicings for EbM7, Dm, Cm, D9 for the Grisman tune 16-16. He must have speced out 15 shapes alone for EbM7. Great fun.

[Pete Martin]

The notes in a G minor chord are G Bb and D. Make a fingerboard chart and lay out where all these notes lie in the first 15 frets. Then you'll see all the voicings you could play. Thry them and see if a few strike your fancy. Memorize those.

This is a good idea to do for ANY chord!!! :mandosmiley:

[Mike Bunting]

The notes in a G minor chord are G Bb and D. Make a fingerboard chart and lay out where all these notes lie in the first 15 frets. Then you'll see all the voicings you could play. Thry them and see if a few strike your fancy. Memorize those.

This is a good idea to do for ANY chord!!! :mandosmiley:

Yes, yes, yes! And end all this discussion about what "shape" to use. Make up your own, it will serve you better in the long run.

[Scott Rucker]

I've tried to learn to quickly and reliably make the 7-5-1-3 Gm shape for over a decade now. I will let you know when I succeed. One doesn't really need all four courses to sound out for every rhythm chop chord. I usually try to keep the focus on the wound strings when chopping. (I think I got this line of thinking from Scott T, but don't remember well enough say for sure.) I probably use the 7-5-5-6 shape most often when I want to hear all four courses, only because it's low on the fingerboard and easy for me to make quickly. However, when I'm playing Am I use the 2-2-3-5 shape more, again because it's low and easy to make. A lot depends on where on the fingerboard my fingers are already located at the time that I need to change to the minor chord. I'm too lazy to travel too far to make the next chord shape.

[mandolirius]

Yes, yes, yes! And end all this discussion about what "shape" to use. Make up your own, it will serve you better in the long run.

My teaching experience leads me to think there are a few common, handy shapes that are worthwhile for beginners to learn first. It takes some time before a person has enough familiarity with the fingerboard to take matters into their own hands, so to speak.

[Mike Bunting]

My teaching experience leads me to think there are a few common, handy shapes that are worthwhile for beginners to learn first. It takes some time before a person has enough familiarity with the fingerboard to take matters into their own hands, so to speak.

I accept that. Sometimes it seems to me that there is not enough time put into gaining this familiarity with the fretboard. While gaining this familiarity why not just go to this page on this site, I think that it has been here since the 'Cafe's inception, or close to it.
http://www.mandolincafe.com/cgi-bin/chords/ch.pl?chord=Gm

[Phil Goodson]

When you're playing the Bb up the neck anyway, it's just so easy to reach over for the Gm 755x, (3 strings played with 2 fingers), especially if you're just pounding out chops. Gives a nice low minor chop.

Works the same for G#m when you're in B, etc.
Heck, that's the shape I use for F#m or Em most of the time.

[Jon Hall]

A lot of people do that big stretched G chop chord with the B shifted down to Bb, as you say. I would probably play it as 355-, but that's just me.

I too would use 3-5-5-x as the easiest Gm chop chord.

[Phil Goodson]

Guess I should say that the 755x chord I described above is actually a 1-5-1 power chord that doesn't include the 3rd that defines the minor. BUT, IN CONTEXT, it really does sound like a minor and works very well. Has the added benefit of also serving as a nice major chord IN CONTEXT. And is moveable!!

[mandolirius]

I accept that. Sometimes it seems to me that there is not enough time put into gaining this familiarity with the fretboard. While gaining this familiarity why not just go to this page on this site, I think that it has been here since the 'Cafe's inception, or close to it.
http://www.mandolincafe.com/cgi-bin/chords/ch.pl?chord=Gm

One of the things I give to new students is a "to scale" replica of the mandolin fretboard. I have mine laminated so I can draw on it and it is an important teaching tool for me. I do talk about the importance of learning the fretboard but I also recommend it not be taken on as a specific task, due to its rather overwhelming nature. Instead I suggest that they pay attention to what notes they are playing while learning and working on other things. I tell them that, if they do that, they'll learn a lot of the fretboard essentially by default and they'll soon learn to recognize the repeating pattern of the chromatic scale. Then they can fill in the gaps rather easily. There's a bit of salesmanship in there but it's basically true. Or, to employ my new favourite phrase "as true as it needs to be, under the circumstances". :grin:

[Mike Bunting]

What I've been trying to do is to get them singing the sale using sol-fege. I show the low G scale, note by note and then get them to sing it as they play. Then, for fun, when they are on their own time to just plant the first finger anywhere and make it DO and to try to sing the do, re, mi's, etc. On the scale I've shown them, I play the opening line to Joy to the World and enjoy as they play a real melody. When they can play that first scale, I tell them to take a few minutes outside of regular practice and just noodle around in that scale. I'm really trying to get them to hear what they are playing and to have fun with it.

[kymandolin29]

gm chop chord.....first finger 7th fret g string
2nd finger 8th fret d string
3rd or 4th finger 10th fret a string movable up and down the neck move this 3 note chord OVER to d a and e string it goes up and down the neck to... ONE chord shape ALL minor chords

[mandolirius]

gm chop chord.....first finger 7th fret g string
2nd finger 8th fret d string
3rd or 4th finger 10th fret a string movable up and down the neck move this 3 note chord OVER to d a and e string it goes up and down the neck to... ONE chord shape ALL minor chords

You can't actually use this shape for all minor chords. Some of the positions would be fairly high up the neck and difficult to work into progressions that are mainly lower down on the fretboard. For example a D minor would be 14-15-12-10, low to high. That's a pretty tough shape to grab on the fly.

[mandroid]

Chop.. can be dampened with your right hand at the bridge. as well as lifting your left fingers.