Why “Chromatic Mediants” sound so good! Noel Johnston 2024-10-23 | Why “Chromatic Mediants” sound so good!
Bach Air (on a Tele) Noel Johnston 2024-02-12 | A chord-melody arrangement of the ever-so-popular "Air" by Johann Sebastian Bach.(Air Bach's 3rd Orchestral Suites or Overture No. 3 in D major, BWV 1068)Here's a chart if you'd like: dropbox.com/scl/fi/qzgflin8hfm3tlkset3yi/Bach-Air-in-D.pdf?rlkey=swd51g7lluopsv0pi0xxxdxx7&dl=0
Blues lick exists in Melodic Minor?! Noel Johnston 2024-02-05 | I know it's nerdy, but hear me out...
Modal scale shapes (harmonic minor) Noel Johnston 2024-02-04 | Harmonic minor modes from the same root.
Drop voicings 101 Noel Johnston 2024-01-29 | Wanna know what "Drop 2" and "Drop 3" meant but were too afraid to ask? Did you know that this concept can be applied to weird chords? Not just 1-3-5-7!My book "The 4-Note Universe" shows all 165 4-note chord types. (43 types, if you don't count inversions). You don't have to learn all of them, but learning some will help!Pdf of Major 7 voicings (closed, Drop-2 & Drop-3): dropbox.com/scl/fi/yc0g3a6vombdtk6od0zr6/Drop-voicings-101-Major-7-chords.pdf?rlkey=gsuk8usfxey0g79d5iawln7as&dl=0
Ab Gm F Etude Noel Johnston 2024-01-20 | More on the "Creative Fundamentals" thing. Getting my students to write their own etudes to force them to REALLY learn these shapes. Moving on from only major triads, here's an itty bitty progression I've always found compelling in a blues: bIII ii I (b3, 2m, 1). Here is this progression with a variety of inversions closed and open (spread) triads. Ab Gm F
Closed and open major triads 101 Noel Johnston 2024-01-20 | Major Triads! It's what all the cool kids know.Closed triad shapes pdf: dropbox.com/scl/fi/azsruycl5prr4k0fntwx5/1.-Triads-major.pdf?rlkey=y3jsrv5hm9og4z83dkmza9ffh&dl=0Triad arpeggios pdf: dropbox.com/scl/fi/5sla9h7zr1klsyg9nbyyg/1.-Triads-major-arps.pdf?rlkey=wbh5kf93dm818qmp3f3d60h1x&dl=0Open Triad shapes: dropbox.com/scl/fi/qy73zl3hxjmoy16wo6c3v/1.-Open-triads-Major.pdf?rlkey=kor95brqrknpw5fw1j0m6eyb8&dl=0
Modal chord shapes Noel Johnston 2024-01-20 | Scale shapes by themselves are not necessarily "modes." The 7 scale shapes, however, CAN sound the 7 modes if you provide some proper chordal context. Try these chord examples and you'll hear it!For more, check out the book "Voicing Modes"noeljohnston.com/merch.html
B Eb G major triad etude Noel Johnston 2024-01-12 | Creative FundamentalsLet’s face it. Learning (and listening) to fundamentals can be boring. And it doesn’t make for good social media content. But mastering your tone, time, finesse and fingerboard knowledge is what most defines YOU as a player. It’s what defines your style and it’s what people most notice about you as a musician.Famous basketball coach, Phil Jackson said the mastery and practice of fundamentals (dribbling, shooting, passing) - not trick shots - is what wins games.If you want to be a master of guitar, you have to master how your hands connect with the instrument. Using your ears, of course, as the ultimate judge of success, but also using your mind so that you can have additional access to the sounds that you want and also some sounds that you may never have heard before.When it comes to raw technique exercises such as athletic finger patterns and picking patterns, some of it can seem stark and un-useful. When it comes to standard scale and arpeggio practice, similarly, it may seem like a useless chore because you don’t want to “just sound like you're running scales” when you improvise.That’s where the idea of “creative fundamentals” can be helpful. Compose something interesting that by working it up to performance level, it forces you to master a very specific fundamental technique.I have a couple spots left for some serious guitarists who want to improve their creativity in 2024. If you’re interested, DM me with your email and I’ll get back to you.Creative Guitar Fundamentals Class is happening!
LIVE Playing the KEYS method of improv. Noel Johnston 2023-12-20 | Charlie Parker spoke about how important it was to learn how to play in all 12 keys... so there might be something useful in this method. It's not all I think about, of course, but you CAN get a lot of mileage out of this method if you really know your scales all over the neck.
J.S. Bach. Bourree Double from Partita no. 1 Noel Johnston 2023-10-11 | BWV 1002.electric guitar arrangements available here:soundslice.com/store/js-bach-b-minor-corrente-double-presto-noels-arrangement
J.S. Bach. Bourree from Partita no. 1 Noel Johnston 2023-10-11 | BWV 1002.Partita no. 1 for electric guitar. Arrangements available here:soundslice.com/store/js-bach-b-minor-corrente-double-presto-noels-arrangement
J.S. Bach Sarabande Noel Johnston 2023-10-04 | J.S. Bach Sarabande (from Partita no. 1 in B minor. BWV 1002)
J.S. Bach B minor Corrente Double (Presto) Noel Johnston 2023-09-30 | From the Violin Partita no. 1 in B minor. The Corrente Double featuring "waterfall scales" (or "Cascade scales") on the telecaster. Classical guitarists refer to this technique of notes ringing over (typically on open strings) as "Campanella" meaning "little bells."Arrangement (including tabs) available via Soundslice:soundslice.com/store/js-bach-b-minor-corrente-double-presto-noels-arrangement
J.S. Bach: Corrente from the Violin Partita no. 1 in B minor Noel Johnston 2023-09-26 | This is the 3rd movement of the violin Partita No. 1 in B minor.Arranged for guitar by Noel Johnston.These arrangements are available here: soundslice.com/store/js-bach-b-minor-corrente-double-presto-noels-arrangement
Bach Allemanda Double Noel Johnston 2023-09-23 | From the Violin Partita No. 1 in B minor.Arranged for electric guitar by me.Arrangements available here: soundslice.com/store/js-bach-b-minor-corrente-double-presto-noels-arrangement
Allemanda (J.S. Bach) on a Tele. Noel Johnston 2023-09-21 | Allemanda from the violin Partita no.1 in B minor. BWV 1002. Arrangement available via Soundslice: soundslice.com/store/js-bach-b-minor-corrente-double-presto-noels-arrangement
J.S. Bach Sarabande Double from Partita No.1 in B minor. Noel Johnston 2023-07-28 | J.S. Bach died on this day (July 28th) in 1750.Here’s the Sarabande Double from Partita No.1 in B minor.I have posted this before but I had to attempt another take of this piece - it takes a fair amount of mental and physical stamina to get through a Bach piece without mistakes. I can only imagine the amount of stamina Bach had to write so much amazing music and also have 20 kids.
JS Bach Corrente Double (Presto) for violin arrangement for guitar. (Sample) #Bach Noel Johnston 2023-06-28 | ...
open triad practice part 1 Noel Johnston 2023-06-17 | Melody as a root, 3rd or 5th (on the G, B and high E string)
Musician Stats Clinic by Noel Johnston Noel Johnston 2023-03-01 | Some practical steps on how to JUDGE & IMPROVE these 4 aspects of musicianship:Technique, Ear-hand coordination, Eye-hand coordination, Mind-hand coordination.Clinic given at the University of North Texas (Jazz guitar departmental) January 27th, 2023
Exploring Quartal sets Noel Johnston 2022-08-05 | Update: the book “The 4-Note Universe” now available. noeljohnston.com/merch.htmlThank you!From the soon-to-be-released book that explores all 165 4-note chords possible, "Exploring the Universe of 4-Note Chords." The 4th chapter deals with sets which are labeled Quartal (1-3-4-7).There are 165 4-note chord qualities possible, 43 ascending sets if you don't count inversions. The book goes into more depth explaining this stuff, but here are the compositions featured in that chapter.Here are duets 27 through 34 (of 43)noeljohnston.com#165fournotechordsnoeljohnston.com
Exploring seventh chords Noel Johnston 2022-07-20 | Update: the book “The 4-Note Universe” now available. noeljohnston.com/merch.htmlThank you!From the soon-to-be-released book that explores all 165 4-note chords possible, "Exploring the Universe of 4-Note Chords." The 5th and final chapter deals with sets which are labeled "Seventh." (1-3-5-7) which happen to be the most common type of 4-note chord.There are 165 4-note chord qualities possible, 43 ascending sets if you don't count inversions. The book goes into more depth explaining this stuff, but here are the compositions/duets featured in that chapter. Some are more creative than others, while the ones that seem like drills hopefully offer a more creative way to practice and use them.Here are duets 35 through 43 (of 43)noeljohnston.com#165fournotechordsnoeljohnston.com
Exploring Triads w/2 and Triads w/4. Noel Johnston 2022-07-05 | Update: the book “The 4-Note Universe” now available. noeljohnston.com/merch.htmlThank you!From the soon-to-be-released book that explores all 165 4-note chords possible, "Exploring the Universe of 4-Note Chords." The 3rd chapter deals with sets which are labeled Triads w/2 (1-2-3-5), or Triads w/4 (1-3-4-5)There are 165 4-note chord qualities possible, 43 ascending sets if you don't count inversions. The book goes into more depth explaining this stuff, but here are the compositions featured in that chapter.Here are duets 16 through 26 (of 43)noeljohnston.com#165fournotechordsnoeljohnston.com
Exploring Tetrachords / Tonal Clusters Noel Johnston 2022-06-20 | Update: the book “The 4-Note Universe” now available. noeljohnston.com/merch.htmlThank you!From the soon-to-be-released book that explores all 165 4-note chords possible, "Exploring the Universe of 4-Note Chords." Here are the compositions from the "Tonal Clusters/Tetrachords" (chords labeled 1-2-3-4) chapter. There are 165 4-note chord qualities possible, 43 ascending sets if you don't count inversions. The book goes into more depth explaining this stuff, but here are the compositions featured in that chapter.Here are duets 9 through 15 (of 43)noeljohnston.com#165fournotechords
Bach inspired contrary motion practice (How To!) Noel Johnston 2021-09-20 | I love Bach so much.Here's a way to practice some voice leading oriented chords using contrary motion between the bass and melody.Soundslice version: soundslice.com/slices/S9pDc
Clinic: Bach interpretations for Jazz Guitar Noel Johnston 2021-09-19 | UNT Jazz Guitar departmental Sep 10th, 2021
Exploring Hyper Dissonant Clusters Noel Johnston 2021-06-25 | Update: the book “The 4-Note Universe” now available. noeljohnston.com/merch.htmlThank you!I'm working on a book that explores all 165 4-note chords possible. Tentative working title, "Exploring the Universe of 4-Note Chords." (what do you think of that title?). Anyway, here are the compositions from the "Hyper Dissonant" chapter. Out of the 165 4-note chord qualities possible, there are 32 that contain 2 or more adjacent half-steps; Hyper-Dissonant clusters. 8 sets if you don't count inversions. The book goes into more depth explaining this stuff, but here are the compositions featured in that chapter - One introduction and 8 duets, each featuring at least one set of the 8 hyper dissonant sets.
Lesson and Improv options on the A minor tetrachord Noel Johnston 2021-06-23 | Behold! A piece composed with only 4 notes: the A Minor Tetrachord (ABCD). Here are inversions (if spelled individually in root position): According to A: 1-2- b3-4 According to B: 1- b2- b3-b7 According to C: 1-2-6-7 According to D: 1-5-6- b7 As a vehicle for improvisation, it's pretty flexible. I demonstrate 8 different tonalities from which to borrow that all contain those 4 notes.Feel free to use the opening part as a backing track to practice your own version.
Dominant Voicings: Part Two Noel Johnston 2021-06-22 | Not ALL dominant chords have to have the 1,3,b7 BUT if this is assumed, you get a plethora a different dominant options. Master the shapes in part 1 first (which are organized melodically), and we'll dive into how to apply these voicings to other dominant sounds here in part 2. These shapes are in the "Voicing Modes" book. Voicing Modes web app available (free) here: noeljohnston.com/voicingmodeswebapp1.html
Dominant Voicings: Part One Noel Johnston 2021-06-22 | Not ALL dominant chords have to have the 1,3,b7 BUT if this is assumed, you get a plethora a different dominant options. Master these shapes first (which are organized melodically), and we'll dive into how to apply these voicings to other dominant sounds in part 2. These shapes are in the "Voicing Modes" book. Voicing Modes web app available (free) here: noeljohnston.com/voicingmodeswebapp1.html
How Many Chords Are There? Noel Johnston 2021-05-27 | If you wanted to mess with the math to see your options, here's how.It's neat to find the options to see if they sound good, interesting or useful.
Dorian Chord+Lines Lesson Noel Johnston 2021-05-24 | Combine your chords and lines to be Guitar Voltron.This video was edited by my son, Aiden (13). #dorian #voicingmodes
1 3 #4 b7 lesson & etude Noel Johnston 2021-05-15 | 4 note etude 034 with lesson. (Etude starts at 3:20)
Polyrhythm making chords Noel Johnston 2021-03-22 | Inspired by @Adam Neely a 2:3:5 makes a spread/open major triad. How bout that!#polyrhythm #chords
Intonation and stuff Noel Johnston 2021-03-07 | Intonation is a thing. Here are some thoughts on it. Maybe a reason why we like to bend notes and use vibrato.
Soundslice promo for Modal Etudes Course Noel Johnston 2021-03-02 | Direct link: soundslice.com/store/modal-etudes-35-tonalitiesStore homepage: soundslice.com/store
Lesson on a gospel chord progression Noel Johnston 2021-02-15 | A deep dive on the classic chromatic gospel'y walk up & down thing...
UNT clinic: 4-note concepts Noel Johnston 2021-01-28 | UNT Jazz guitar departmental. Clinic via Zoom (Jan 22nd, 2021)4-note sets: 165 4-note chords. A new book in the works. Possibilities for improvisation, comping, arranging, composition.
Great is Thy Faithfulness - 2 takes Noel Johnston 2021-01-12 | Which take do you like better? Two takes with two different sets of strings. Take 1 has Pyramid Nickel Classics 11's, and the 2nd take has #elixirstrings Nanoweb 10's. Same amp settings (my Matchless C-30 profile via Kemper)Great is Thy Faithfulness is a popular Hymn written in 1923 by Thomas O. Chisholm (words) and William Runyan (music) and has been in public domain since 2019. This is my adaptation based on an arrangement by J. Daniel Smith at Bethesda Community Church in Ft Worth, TX.
1b3#45 pivot chord lesson Noel Johnston 2020-12-15 | The weird chord Cmi(add#4) can be used as a neat-o PIVOT CHORD. Stay tuned for a new book. Something about the 165 4-note chords. They have lots of uses. Like in music & stuff.
20 voicings of A harmonic minor Noel Johnston 2020-12-02 | Mathematically, there are 20 possible 4-note chords (sets, containing the root) in a 7-note tonality. Paint as you wish. This was improvised right after my brother's wife died. This is a sad year.
1267 inversions Noel Johnston 2020-10-10 | 1. C6∆7sus2 (no5) 1 2 6 7 C D A B2. D7(add6, no3rd) 1 5 6 ♭7 D A B C 3. Amin (add2/4, no5) 1 2 ♭3 4 A B C D4. Bm7(add ♭2, no 5th) 1 ♭2 ♭3 ♭7 B C D A
