GSCC Lesson 23
Past Lessons Summary and Links
If you are new to this series, here’s the links to past lessons:
| Lesson | Content |
| Lesson 1 | – Chords: C, Am, Dm, G7 |
| Lesson 2 | – Chords: Em , F |
| Lesson 3 | – Chords: G – Basic Guitar Strumming – 4 beat strum |
| Lesson 4 | – Chords: C7, Fm, D, D7 – Up Down Strum |
| Lesson 5 | – Chords: E, E7, Gm7 ,Gm – Strumming lightly on 1st few strings |
| Lesson 6 | – Chords: A, A7, G, G/B, Gm/Bb – 16 beat strum |
| Lesson 7 | – Key of G Major – Chords: Bm – Campfire Strum |
| Lesson 8 | – CAPO; Other chords in G Major – Chords: B7, B, Cm, Dm7, D/F#, Dm/F – “Chuck” Strum |
| Lesson 9 | – Plucking – Bass note of chords – 8 Beat Pluck #1 |
| Lesson 10 | – Chords: Bm7b5, F#m7b5 – Double String Pluck – Plucking Pattern For 2 Chords Bar |
| Lesson 11 | – What is 4/4 time signature – Intro to 3/4 time signature – 3/4 strumming – 3/4 plucking – Alternate bass |
| Lesson 12 | – 6/8 time signature – 6/8 strumming – 6/8 plucking – Alternate version of 6/8 plucking |
| Lesson 13 | – Create your own strumming / plucking pattern – Searching for chord charts online – Melody notes in key of C – Playing 1st instrumental song on guitar! – Melody notes in key of G – “Happy Birthday” melody in key of G |
| Lesson 14 | – Slap rhythm – Variation of slap rhythm – “Happy Birthday” solo guitar |
| Lesson 15 | – Introduction to Chord Melody Guitar Playing (solo guitar playing) – “Can’t Help Falling In Love” solo guitar |
| Lesson 16 | – Chord Melody Guitar of “月亮代表我的心” – Issues in last 2 songs we learned – Exploring beyond 1st 3 frets – CAGED system – Linking CAGED system to the notes – Fixing octave issues of last 2 songs/ playing melody at correct octave |
| Lesson 17 | – Barring and moving minor and dominant 7th chords; – Why are we learning barred chords? – Faster ways to build chords – “Let It Be” Solo Guitar |
| Lesson 18 | – Chords: Major 7th and Minor 7th – Why 7th chords? – Applying 7th chords to songs – “What A Wonderful World” Solo Guitar |
| Lesson 19 | – Chord Melody Guitar GYM (intense workout) – “Over The Rainbow” Solo Guitar in key of G |
| Lesson 20 | – Arrange chord melody guitar song in an optimal key/ put melody notes on 1st 2/3 strings – “Over the rainbow” Solo Guitar in key of C |
| Lesson 21 | – How to create rhythmic flow for chord melody guitar arrangement – The secret to chord melody guitar mastery |
| Lesson 22 | – Exam time!!! |
We had covered all the family chords and their siblings in key of C and G Major:
Key of C major and G major are common keys used by guitarist to play sing-along guitar.
We also looked at the guitarist best friend – CAPO , and it’s application.
When we use the CAPO in conjunction with chords from C and G keys above , we are able to play almost every pop songs we wanted to play.
We have also looked at some basic strumming patterns:
| 1 | One strum per beat |
| 2 | Up-stroke strumming |
| 3 | Strumming lightly on first few strings |
| 4 | 16 beat strum |
| 5 | Campfire Strum |
| 6 | “Chuck” Strum |
| 7 | 3/4 Strum |
| 8 | 6/8 Strum |
And we had explored some basic pluckings.
| 1 | 8 beat pluck #1 |
| 2 | Double string pluck |
| 3 | 3/4 Pluck |
| 4 | “Alternate Bass” Pluck |
| 5 | 6/8 Pluck |
| 6 | Slap Rhythm |
And of course, we had fun learning all these songs !! They are specially produced “Karaoke for Guitar” videos (only vocal and metronome count) for you to practice your strumming / plucking:
We also learned how to put together and play chord melody guitar (solo guitar) song. Here are the main steps:
Step 1: Play the melody
Step 2: Find out the chords
Step 3: Combine the melody and the chords
Step 4: Add in the accompaniment
Last week, we had an exam on stuff we learned so far. It is a good test on how much you had mastered since lesson #1. Do ty it out:
Click here to ask a question …
Revision before going to more advanced material
If you had gone through the last week exam, you will more or less discovered the areas which you may be weak in.
Let’s go through a quick revision over our past material using the new content table at the beginning of this page, before we embark on an exciting journey of more advance learning.