Chord Bible

  1. Mark Gunter
    Mark Gunter
    After over three years of fear & trembling, I finally got the gumption to begin work on a Mandolin Graphic Chord Bible.

    I want to publish a mandolin chord book like no other on the market, one that hopefully will have a little something for everyone. The features would be as follows:

    Each chord diagram will contain ~
    1. Name of chord
    2. Intervals that make the chord (scale degrees)
    3. Note names below the interval numeral
    4. Standard notation for the chord
    5. graphic diagram for fingering
    6. Dots show fingering; colored dots show root notes
    7. Note names being played are indicated on each string
    8. A number to indicate which fret chord fingering starts on
    9. An actual photo of the chord being fingered on a real mandolin

    Following are the images for the first five chord diagrams that begin the C major section of the book.



    I'm posting about this project here in the newbies forum because I'd like to know what you guys think. Feedback and suggestions would be helpful.

    This image is not very good resolution; for a look at the high quality images, check the attachments near the bottom in this post: https://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/s...=1#post1660108
  2. Sherry Cadenhead
    Sherry Cadenhead
    Mark, as one who is attempting to transition from 2 to 3 finger chords, I encourage you to continue your pursuit of this project. I really like your images, combining diagrams with actual photos. Based on my own struggles, I have some suggestions, which you may already have in mind to include.

    I've taken a few lessons from a Cafe member. I don't know that he frequents the Newbies group and if he would object to my mentioning his name, so I won't. He had noticed I wasn't holding my fingers at an angle, so you may want to mention the importance of that. I also struggle with thumb placement and haven't quite figured that out.

    Some interesting things this teacher has pointed out deal with performing, which I suggest be incorporated into your publication. Those of us new to music don't know this stuff! For example, when playing with other mandolinists present, try not to play the same chord forms.

    Got to go, but will send other suggestions as I think of them.
  3. Liadan
    Liadan
    Mark - very cool project! I especially love the photos of your hand placement. As someone who's not been playing very long, I often wonder how exactly to get my hands to do something.
  4. HonketyHank
    HonketyHank
    I like the photos, too. It looks like an ambitious project, especially for your hand model.

    Put me on the waiting list for a first edition.
  5. FredK
    FredK
    Mark, I admire your gumption in tackling the massive project. The diagrams are great. You can never have enough chord charts and your blend of visuals is a plus. Most notably, the music notation in the upper right corner is a winner. Since I read music, seeing the notes helps burn the chord in my brain. I like the actual pic of the chording. It shows hand placement (shape) instead of just finger placement. Are you going for hard-copy or eBook? My preference is hard copy. I'll be waiting for the finished product. It looks good.
  6. Mark Gunter
    Mark Gunter
    I'd publish hard copy and e-book (Kindle) simultaneously, most likely. I could also make a PDF available if desired, eventually. First thing that held me off this so long was fear of tackling the graphics, and I think it was pretty easy once I decided to do it. Second thing is that I'd want it published in some sort of ring binder, but that type of binding is not something my current publishing company can provide -- so now I've decided to look for another means of publishing with ring binders, and if that fails I'll just go ahead and publish it with a normal paperback binding.

    I plan to include about 500 chords, so I expect it would take me at least a year to have something done.

    BTW, re: the standard notation, I owe a big thanks to LouiseNM for that idea, she wrote in a post here one time that she didn't understand why none of the chord books show standard notation. I own The Mandolin Chord Bible by Tobe Richards, and other chord books, but none of them gave everything I want in a book - intervals, actual notes fingered, chart + photo. So by doing one, and including notation as well, I think I'll have a useful resource for some folk.
  7. Sherry Cadenhead
    Sherry Cadenhead
    Thought of a couple more things - that actually came from my regular teacher who plays violin and viola, but not mandolin.

    She's told me I play chords too loudly. This comes from playing with electric guitars at the senior center jams. Recently I played with an acoustic guitarist client. The video his wife took has me strumming loudly. Can't hear him play or me sing.

    I shared with my teacher the struggle I'm having with 3 finger chords. She suggested I play 2 finger chords, adding 3 finger ones one at a time as I become proficient at each.

    Maybe chapters with beginner and performance pointers, as they relate to chords should be considered. Some of us don't even know what questions to ask.
  8. FredK
    FredK
    I like the idea of a ring binder over paperback. This book would get a lot of use and that would save wear and tear on regular book binding. Not a big fan of eBooks for something like this. For me, it's only good for reading material. PDF is a good idea, though.

    The look as you have it now is nice and clean. Arranging it looks like it can be a challenge. Seeing different shapes for the same chord has helped me better grasp the mandolin tuning over guitar. Sherry has some good ideas for tips and suggestions. This will be good for all levels.

    You have some good material on the circle of fifths, too. That might be a good addition. I know you have to draw the line somewhere, though. Either that or the hard copy will weigh a ton.
  9. Sherry Cadenhead
    Sherry Cadenhead
    I've been known to tear pages out of bound books and put them in 3 ring binders.
  10. Mark Gunter
    Mark Gunter
    Fred, I'm with you on all that, not having a convenient way to publish with ring binding was one of the things that kept me off this project for three years. I finally decided to carry on with it, and hopefully I'll be able to get ring binding.

    I agree, Sherry's suggestions are great. I had in mind a chord compilation, but maybe I should add material on rhythm & chord playing, COF, etc.

    Getting the chord diagrams done will take awhile. I did five versions of C6 today.
  11. Sherry Cadenhead
    Sherry Cadenhead
    An ambitious undertaking, Mark!
  12. Ellsdemon
    Ellsdemon
    Mark, this is amazing and please put me on the waiting list. As far as feed back, my only suggestion beyond the great positioning photos would be to add a different angle photo as well. So you'd have to photos. One with the shot you have and then a photo of what it would look like from the players perspective. This may be just a weird thing that bothered me though, it always felt like I was just looking at someones knuckles instead of where the fingers should be placed and how it'd look.

    Just a great job and awesome idea Mark.
  13. Louise NM
    Louise NM
    Mark, I'm the brat who always wants to know why. Would it be feasible to add information about which C major chord to use when, or why you might choose one over another? The Layout looks great. Notation, tab, photo, no matter how a person learns, it's there. Ambitious undertaking!

    Sherry, you don't have to tear the books apart! When I bought Marilynn Mair's book—over 200 pages—I took it to the local Kinko's. They neatly sliced off the glued binding, then put in a spiral binding. Neat as could be, no damage, cost me under $4.
  14. Mark Gunter
    Mark Gunter
    Now that I've checked the printing/publishing issues once again, I have to say that cost would be prohibitive to start with a ring binder version. Doing so would not be within my budget at all. To attempt it on a small scale, I'd have to drastically reduce the chord count, and add no supplemental material.

    On the other hand, if I publish this using the "perfect binding" method (regular paperback glued binding) I'd have no such restrictions. Suggestions so far have been for supplemental materials, which would be possible. I'd still have to compromise on some things, perhaps, to keep cost to the consumer down, due to printing a full color book, but I can afford to publish and distribute the book if I go with the perfect binding.

    So at present, my thinking is to produce a book using the layout I've started on, and adding some supplement material based on suggestions from you guys.

    I don't think I can do the multiple photo suggestion. Regarding photos, I gave a lot of thought these past years to finding a model, but in the end I've decided that taking shots of my own gnarly fingers will have to suffice. The advantages to this are in the economics. The disadvantages: No multiple angles, and not the best hand positioning. Without a separate, professional photographer, I have to contort a bit to get the shot. My method is to play the chord, get it to ring clearly, then hold it as best I can while I act as both model and photographer. The hand position is a good reference, but adjustments have to be made by the end user. Everyone doesn't (and can't) make the chords exactly the same anyway.

    So I'll continue on with this, doing the very best I can, and taking to heart your suggestions along the way.
  15. Sherry Cadenhead
    Sherry Cadenhead
    I'm with Fred, preferring paper over e-books. And thanks to Louise for the Kinko's (now FedEx, I think) suggestion. I have a couple of songbooks I need to take.

    Jon Hall gave his permission to give you his name and to share suggestions he's given me. He's in Nacogdoches, TX and well worth the trip to travel there for a lesson or two - not to mention the gorgeous pine trees in the area.

    I'm at church camp this week, without access to a decent computer keyboard, but do have additional thoughts for you, Mark. My husband says I would drive a rock crazy, so if at any point you'd like me to cease and desist, just PM me.

    The one opinion I'd like to share now is that for me the chord forms are secondary. I can find chords all day long online at no cost. The greater value to me of a chord "Bible" would be the supplemental material. That's not to say your chord diagrams and photos aren't amazing, because they are! But for those of us who struggle without benefit of a regular quality mandolin teacher and/or playing with accomplished musicians, we're desperate for information that goes beyond chord forms. Jon and I are attempting this by email.
  16. Sherry Cadenhead
    Sherry Cadenhead
    I intended to offer my services as proofreader, Mark. I'd be happy to do it for you.
  17. Mark Gunter
    Mark Gunter
    Thanks for the suggestions and the generous offer, Sherry.
  18. bbcee
    bbcee
    Mark, this is going to be a great addition to the world. Congratulations on thinking big.

    One small suggestion: I see every chord variation has "1-3-5 C-E-G", when in fact the notes are different depending on the inversion, and is depicted accurately on the end of the fingerboard. Would it be less confusing to have the it follow what's already on the fretboard diagram, and have the "1-3-5 C-E-G" as a single entry at the beginning of the C major section ?
  19. Mark Gunter
    Mark Gunter
    Bruce, that's a good point, but I do have a reason for doing it that way. The "CHORDS" section of this book, the main section, will be a chord reference only, like any other chord book. So you will look up a chord in the chart, and regardless which chord you look at the "chord building scheme" - i.e., the intervals that make it such-and-such a chord, will always be right there regardless of the inversion.

    What I am putting at the head of the section is notes about some of the chords in that section. For instance, here is the actual text as it presently stands from the heading of the C MAJOR chord section:

    "The major chord is built by stacking the 1st, 3rd, and 5th notes from the major scale; those three notes are called the major triad.

    "1 The “two finger” C chord, commonly one of the first chords a beginner will learn. 2 This common three finger chord puts the root in the bass position. This fingering omits the fifth. 3 This beautiful voicing doubles the fifth as the lowest two notes. 4, 5 Both these movable shapes are useful in voicing chords up the neck. 4 Root note on the 4th string, and 5 root note on the 3rd string, with third interval as the bass."

    Here's a peek at the format:



    This is the layout for the chord section throughout the book. Each section will contain 5 chords, but all five chords will not have the same intervals. What I mean is that the C7 section, for instance, may have five C7 (Cdom7) chords on one section, but in the next C7 section it may have two C7#5, and three C7sus4. The chord numbers would be 1 - 2 for C7#5, and 1 - 3 for C7sus4, making 5 chords total to that section's layout.

    All this may sound a bit confusing, but I've thought it through pretty well, and I think it will make sense graphically.

    When there is only one chord type shown, no number will appear at all -- but still a total of five chords will appear in each two page layout, and all five will relate to the heading (e.g., C MAJOR, C MINOR, C7)

    The user should be able to look up any chord she needs fairly easily. Many will have several voicings from which to choose -- though never more than five voicings for any one chord, and often only one voicing for lesser used chords. There will be chords she may never use, depending what genre one plays. The layout and construction of the book is being done with an eye toward understanding chord theory -- not necessary to use the book, but the book should be a big help to anyone working on that.
  20. Sherry Cadenhead
    Sherry Cadenhead
    So, Mark, I presume you'll explain which chord(s) are suitable for which genre(s), when applicable.

    No need to respond, explain, or justify anytime I post in this string. I figure you need input from us beginners, though, if you're attempting a publication that spans beginner to advanced.
  21. Mark Gunter
    Mark Gunter
    Hi Sherry! I don't mind clarifying things.

    This volume will primarily be a chord reference book. I know you've written above that you don't need another source for chord forms - but that's what this book is about. In my thinking, it will be unique as compared to what's available, because of the info given for each chord, and hopefully it will fill a need for some people.

    The question about genre is understandable. The way that works is that students or musicians pick a piece of music they like from any genre, and whatever chords are called for in the piece, they can find between 1 - 5 variations of it in this manual. So depending what genre a person plays, there will be many chords listed they may never use. Major six chords are rarely used in bluegrass, for example.

    I am indeed keen to add chapters on using chords, since this type of material has been requested already here.
  22. Mark Gunter
    Mark Gunter
    Choosing which voicing of a chord to use:
    When choosing which form to use for a chord, one must mitigate several factors.
    1. First is, the color or the character of voice. How does the chord sound in this particular piece? You want the voice that complements the best what you wish to say with the music.
    2. The second is, what chords come before or after this chord? You want to be able to flow from one form into another as easily and smoothly as possible. Also, you may want the bass note in the chord to proceed upward or downward from the previous chord for musical effect. Or the top note, etc. to do the same. So, context.
    3. Third, and least important overall, is how much difficulty do you have in fingering the chord to get a clean sound? Now this must of course be considered, and unfortunately, in the beginning it can be the #1 criterion for a student. But it should not be a long abiding criterion in any musician's career as a whole. It is well to remember that no chord at all is ever comfortable for a student to learn and use smoothly and cleanly. For that reason, it is always wise to learn variations -- new ways of playing chords -- and practice them in songs until they become second nature. In that way, the first two, more important musical criteria, can guide the musician in their choices.

    The importance of understanding chord theory:
    I'll give just one example, using my C MAJOR form #5 above. Knowing a teeny bit about chord theory, I am able to instantly see by looking at that chart another easy C chord form (and by the same token, I can see it on my fretboard while playing) -- not because I'm smart nor a great musician, but just because of some small knowledge of chord building theory.

    When looking at that chord, I see that the third is in the bass note, 4th string. If I rearrange my fingers and play the fourth string at the 12th fret instead of the 9th, leaving all other notes the same, I'll be playing C major with the 5th (G) in the bass. That shape is movable all over the neck, just like its cousin there in diagram 5! There are dozens of ways to play a C besides the five I've shown. All you need to know is the root note, and the shape, to move these chords around.

    Likewise, look at any of the C chords above, and find where the E notes are voiced in those chords. The E notes are the major thirds that make the C major chord. Dropping those 1/2 step makes them minor thirds, and gives you a C minor chord. Just move the dot for any E note down one fret and you have changed the chord to C minor. On mandolin, move your finger for one of those E notes down one fret, and you'll be playing C minor.

    I apologize if I'm giving too much info in this post; I'm writing this for info only, and not in answer to any particular question. Learning this kind of stuff helps me to be a better musician, and maybe can help others.

    I intend to make some video lessons on this sort of stuff for the woodshed group soon, but the current book I'm writing is mostly a reference book of chords.
  23. FredK
    FredK
    Mark, I can already envision you creating a workbook to go along with a video series. You explain concepts well. Keep on!
  24. emmadragon
    emmadragon
    This looks amazing! As a complete newbie to any kind of stringed instrument, and being in the UK, this would be unbelievably helpful. I'm a quick learner, and used to be able to read 'real' music, but I struggle with knowing how to put my fingers into the chord positions. I can't find any teachers anywhere near me, so the photographs, and the ability to pick different versions of chords to suit whatever I'm playing along with, would be great. Please keep me posted if you do manage to get this complete
  25. Mark Gunter
    Mark Gunter
    Will do, Emma, I am working on this book now.
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