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Thread: help with leading notes

  1. #1
    small instrument, big fun Dan in NH's Avatar
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    Default help with leading notes

    Does anyone know of any web resources to help me with leading notes in chord progressions?

    Say for example I'm playing a simple I-IV-V chord progression in G. I'm playing alternating bass, so it's G-chop-D-chop-G-chop-D-chop. Then on to C-chop-G-chop-C-chop-G-chop, et cetera.

    Now let's say I want to drop that 4th chop from my G chord progression and replace it for a leading note into the C chord. What note do I play?

    What are the guidelines that I can use to figure out the leading note for any chord I'm about to play?
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  2. #2
    Registered User John Kelly's Avatar
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    Default Re: help with leading notes

    You might try walking up from the G to A to B and so into the C chord with a C bass note.
    I'm playing all the right notes, but not necessarily in the right order. - Eric Morecambe

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  3. #3

    Default Re: help with leading notes

    Search for material on using bass runs in backup, probably find alot geared toward guitar and bass but you can apply it to mando as well.
    Northfield F5M #268, AT02 #7

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    Registered User mingusb1's Avatar
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    Default Re: help with leading notes

    "Now let's say I want to drop that 4th chop from my G chord progression and replace it for a leading note into the C chord. What note do I play?"

    Well, a G7 chord or double stop usually sounds good as a pass/lead to the IV chord there I think. Or walk the G note down a full step to the F to get in to the G7.

    Cheers,
    Z
    Member since 2003!

  5. #5

    Default Re: help with leading notes

    I frequently (probably too frequently) walk down from from the root to the flat 7 when going to the IV chord. And also from the V back to the I. I think it is lots of fun and sounds good, but definitely should be used tastefully and sparingly especially in hardcore bluegrass as it’s a little too much flash rhythmically for some of those songs.

  6. #6
    small instrument, big fun Dan in NH's Avatar
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    Default Re: help with leading notes

    What I have read is if you are going to a major chord then the leading note is the 7th degree of that same major scale.

    So if you're going to a C major chord then the leading note would be B. If you are going to a G major chord then the leading note would be an F#.
    Eastman MD-514 (F body, Sitka & maple, oval hole)
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    And still saving my nickels & dimes & bottle caps & breakfast cereal box tops for my lifetime mandolin.

  7. #7
    small instrument, big fun Dan in NH's Avatar
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    Default Re: help with leading notes

    So a I-IV would look something like:


    | G-chop-D-chop-G-chop-D-B | C-chop-G-chop-C-chop-G-F# | G-chop-D-chop... et cetera
    Eastman MD-514 (F body, Sitka & maple, oval hole)
    Klos Carbon Fiber (on order)

    And still saving my nickels & dimes & bottle caps & breakfast cereal box tops for my lifetime mandolin.

  8. #8

    Default Re: help with leading notes

    You can play a V7 arpeggio, or part of a V7 arpeggio.
    You can move stepwise either chromatically or diatonically (or both) towards a target note in the C chord - your target note can be any of the notes in the chord.
    You can play an enclosure around your target note: that is play a note or two below it and a note or two above it before hitting it (you can even travel through your target note on the way).
    You can steal a riff that resolves to the I chord from a song you like.

  9. #9
    Registered User Pete Martin's Avatar
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    Default Re: help with leading notes

    Voice leading is usually notes that are 1 fret (1/2 step) apart when another. The most common example is V7 back to I, the most common clash resolve sound in music. Here are the notes in the chords;

    G = G B D
    D7= D F# A C

    When you go from the D7 to G chords, the F# note in D7 moves up a half step to the G note in the G chord. The C note in the D7 chord moves down a half step to the B note in the G chord. Try this: play the third fret A string (note C) and the 4th fret D string (F#). Play those notes individually and together. Then play the second fret A string (B) and the fifth fret on the D string (G). Go back and forth between these pairs several times playing one note at a time, then two notes at a time. Hear how this moves.

    When you move from D to G, you are descending a fifth, meaning there are 5 notes in the scale as the distance between the D and G descending.

    The same descending movement (same distance or interval) happens between the G chord and the C chord. Write out the notes of each chord and look at where the half step movements are. By the way, video #8 in my free YouTube music theory series covers this. You can see it on the videos page at my web site listed below. All the PDF music files that go with these videos are there too.
    -----------
    Pete Martin
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  10. #10
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    Default Re: help with leading notes

    And I would say the key thing is to arrive at the right time. So if you are doing the pattern above, make sure you get the "C" boom right at the start of the switch to the C chord. You can add more notes into the walk, but then you have to start earlier to get there in time. Late and early both sound bad. It's probably a good idea to write out a few, and then try them out. You can walk up to or down to the new bass note, too.

    I would try something like | G-chop-D-chop-G-chop-A-B | C-chop...But no reason to not walk down, either. Try | G-chop-D-chop-G-chop-E-D | C-chop...and see what you like. I find it nice if the walking notes are low notes. I don't actually use chop chords, so I may be off base here.

  11. #11
    Registered User Tim C.'s Avatar
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    Default Re: help with leading notes

    First, learn the scale of the key the song is in, then it's a piece of cake.

    Here is my G major scale exercise, the key you mentioned. Once you know which notes are in the song's key, you simply walk up the notes between G and C.

    Click image for larger version. 

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    Tim Connell
    Portland, Oregon
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