chord progressions

i just learned chord structure but i need a list of basic chord progressions

this could be completely unlistable beacause of the number of combonations

and could be a really stupid question but i need help with the progressions

(I already know the theory behind modes and things of the sort so you don't have to teach me about that_ just progressions)

Well I can give you some, but I don't really know what style your into.

There's tons of variations on the 1-4-5, in the key of C that would be Cmaj., Fmaj., Gmaj. So I'll give you say... a twelve bar blues (but this one isn't bluesy) -
Cmaj. - 4 bars
F maj. - 2 bars
C maj. - 2 bars
G 7 - 1 bar
F maj. - 1 bar
C maj. - 2 bars

Now take that same progression and make all of the chords dom. 7th chords, and you have a 12 bar blues shuffle, or whatever you wanna call it, and that is bluesy.

Now take the last one (with all 7th chords) and make them all minor 7th chords. Now you have a cool minor blues situation.

Here's one you'll most likely come across in Jazz (key of C) -
D min 7th - 1 bar OR 2 beats
G 7 - 1 bar OR 2 beats
C maj.7 - 2 bars OR 1 bar

Heres a cool one for a kind of flamenco-es progression (but it isn't true flamenco) -
A minor - 2 bars
D minor - 2 bars
A minor - 2 bars
E maj.- 2 beats
F maj.- 2 Beats
E maj. - 1 beat
F maj.- 1 beat
G maj. - 1 beat
F maj. - 1 beat
E maj. - 1 bar

Ok that last one may seem confusing, but it is really just open to extreme variation, especially if you are playing in a guitar duet, or going solo. Experiment with it to find timing you like.

That should give you some preogressions to chew on. I'll give some more later, but that should do for a little while.

When it comes to chord progressions, something that is good to keep in mind is the idea of stable chords and instable chords and how to use them.

Stable chords are the chords I, IV, and V regardless of minor or major key. These chords are considered stable because they stablize the tonal key of the music.

All other chords, II, III, VI, and VII are instable chords. When they are played they change the tonal key of the music, even if it's temporary.

What I mean by tonal key can be illustrated by looking at the chord and what chord it makes up within the key. Take C major, I, IV, and V are all major chords. They stablize the tonal key of the music, major. Now look at the instable chord in regards to C major, they are all minor, except VII which is diminished.

When we look at the two types in music. Stable chords are used more often, especially in rock and folk music. ex. (c major) C-F-G (I IV V). How many times have you seen that progression, or one similar? Why? Because these chords have the strongest sense of key, and any simple melody can be harmonized using just these three chords. Try it, Take the first progression Ace wrote, record it. Then solo or sing over it, you can probably come up with a million melodies and they all work.

You can also come up with any sequence using those three chords, and then read the next part to see how to manipulate them.

When it comes to fitting the instable chords into the progression, they are usually only thrown in a few times to mix things up, or as a substitution, or as a transisition to get somewhere else. I'll give an example of each.

Mix things up. Instead of playing I IV V, you could go I VI IV V. A very common chord progression. I IV II V, or anything you could come up with.

Substitution. Each stable chord, in the case of the major key has a minor substitute. These are found by moving up or down a third. Example C major's minor subsititute is A minor. I don't think I need to explain. Also E minor. The others are: IV is II and VI; and V is III and VII.

Certain ones are more common than others, so I'll point that out. A minor is a more common sub for C major, than E major. II is a more common sub for IV, than VI. III is more common than VII, because VII is hardly used. But whenever it is thought to be used, V is subbed instead of VII. You rarely find the VII in music. The exception is in a minor key, VII is quite common. I VII VI V.

Here's an example of a progression with a substitution. II V I instead of IV V I.

Transistion. Using the unstable chords can change the tonal key from major to minor or minor to major. If you understand modes than you should know the sixth note (VI) in the major scale is where the minor mode starts. Take the instable chords within C major and translate them to the minor mode. Suddenly VI becomes I, II = IV, and III = V. Suddenly you have the stable chords for a minor tonal key. So you can start off in a major tonal key with: I IV V VI II III. The first three chords carry a major tonal key, while the the last three carry a minor tonal key. So if your writting a tune that has a major sound and you want to bring in a part where is sounds minor, that's how. Even vice versa, minor to major.

The most common movement from chord to chord is in fifths. I to V, VI to II, and so on. Movements by seconds are the strongest, V to VI, III to IV, and so on. Have fun! :D

Originally Posted by: noticingthemistakeMovements by seconds are the strongest, V to VI, III to IV, and so on. Have fun! :D

What do you mean by strongest? I'm not trying to be a dick, I just want a clarification.

Originally Posted by: LeedoggWhat do you mean by strongest? I'm not trying to be a dick, I just want a clarification.

Well because all three notes of the triad are different. C major contains the notes C E G, while D minor has D F A. So if were to go from C major to D minor in a progression, the change would be stronger. All other movements contain at least one similar note, sometimes more.

unison = 3 similar notes
thirds = 2 similar notes
fifths = 1 similar note
seconds = none

Ahh, I understand. Moving in seconds leaves no common notes, thus it sounds starkly different. Is that the same thing as dissonance? Would it be correct to say that movements by seconds are the most dissonant changes?

No, not dissonant. Dissonance would be going to a chord that is not in the key. Like the tri-tone substitution, ii bII7 I instead of ii V7 I. Even through there are 2 notes (4, 7) in the bII7 and V7 that are the same. 2 notes (b2, b6)are outside the key. Of course this is what makes this sub. so applicable. But it is dissonant.

The change between seconds is just strong. Try it on your guitar (x32010) to (xx0231). C to Dm. That change is strong while (x32010) to (x02210) is weaker. C to Am. If you play it you should see what I mean.

Man how long did it take you guys to know what your talking about!! I totaly dont get all this theory milarky!!

Hello everyone

A lot of intresting reply stuff to read

One of the main chord progressions which is also instresting to hear and
to experiment with is the circle of fourth's and fifths

for instance you can draw a circle and move clockwise around all the modes of guitarscales and chords but how ??????

let us say that you start out with the usual C -CHORD(root) and that we count each time a fourth on the chord higher clockwise
a fourth is found by using the following scale degree
(tone + tone + semi tone or two and a half step higher than the root chord)

ex : If I am playing a C -chord - - - >the next one is F --> next one Bb
and we go on and on...until you reach again the F-chord

let us presume in the following experilent that we raise a fifth from the rootchord and we go in the opposit direction of the clock by using the following scale degree
(tone + tone + tone + semi tone) or three and a halve step higher

ex : If I am playing a C -chord ---> the next one is G ---> next one is D
and you keep on counting until you reach again the G chord

By this way of training the chords you also train the several scales and
modes in music and one thing also.."THIS IS GOOD EAR TRAINING'

Try also the following chord progression IN C

I II III IV V VI VII

C MAJ Dmin Emin FMAJ G7 Amin Bmin7flat5

C MAJ 7 Dmin7 Emin7 FMAJ7 G7/9 Amin7 Bmin7/9flat5

these progression works in every scale..........

to end this reply I want to give you a little bugg....
Let us take a simply four voiced chord inversion

ex : C6 or A MAJOR SIXTH CHORD

1. the basic notes are : c-e-g-a or root form

look at this inversion of the chord

first inversion : e-g-a-c starting with the second voice of the chord

second inversion : g-a-c-e starting with the third voice of the chord

third inversion : a-c-e-g

at the end of the inversion this maj sixth chord has changed into another
form of chord and I will give you the exact name which is Amin7 :eek:
so al chords are related and we can affirm that a maj sixth chord is equal
to a min7 chord if we simply lower down one and a half step from the rooth

so Cmaj6 minus(lower) one and a half step is Amin7 :eek:

this little bug is the same for all the chord progressions and for each chord there is a substitute chord :) ..and this boys and girls...IS MAGIC !!!!!!!!

yours sincerally

Luke - Belgium - Europe (sorry for my misshaps in English)

A Cmaj6 and a Am7 may be the same chord but they resolve differently. 7th's resolve down (usually a step) while 6th's resolve up (again, usually a step). This effects which chord will follow on a basic level. 6th chords will usually resolve to chords a fourth away (C to G) (plagal cadence), and sometimes to a third away (C-E). 7th chords usually resolve to chords a fifth away (A-D)(authentic cadence)., or a second away (A-B).

This introduces common characteristics to these chords as where and how we commonly see them. 6th chords are usually found in chords like ii6 (dorian) which commonly resolve to V and IV6 to I. 7th, well thats easy, V7, which resloves to I, and vii7 resolves to I. V7 can also resolve to VI, a decpetive cadence.

Aside from there close relationship, 6th chords as a part of the harmony are considerable less-common. The applicable and best use (IMHO) is having the "6th" being static. Usually as a pedal. Take a common chord that is seen as a 6th chord, IV6.


Key of C major.
pedal tone: |-(D/?)---|-D-------|-E--------|
chord prog: |-Cmaj ---|-Fmaj----|-(C, Am)-|


here the chord Fmaj can be called Fmaj6 just because the 6th is held long enough to be considered a part of the chord.

* E could imply another possible harmony, Em. I didn't include this one because IV-iii is a relatively weak progression. (IMHO) IV should be considered I in a new key, if you wanted such a movement. The change is from IV to iii, to (IV)I to (V, iii, vii).

Here's another using ii6.


Key of C major.
pedal tone: |-(B/?)---|-B------|-B----|
chord prog: |-Cmaj---|-Dm----|-G7---|


In the second example, the second chord or the third may have a different resolve. B goes to C, so Dm or G7 could resolve back to C maj. Am is another possiblity. Dm could also go to Fmaj. Same with G7, especially if G7 is in first inversion.

This also applies if your looking for 13th chords, although as a much more common practice.

There are chords in the harmony that are 6th chords. Most of the time as a passing chord, on a weak beat within the music. However when you apply them in theory as it is established they are usually better represented as a badly voiced m7 chord, a suspension, or non-harmonic tone.

Originally Posted by: cayotic727i just learned chord structure but i need a list of basic chord progressions ....

Why? What will you do with the information or how will you apply it to your playing? When I know this, I can better answer the question.

Peace,
-Rick

Originally Posted by: audioanimalWhy? What will you do with the information or how will you apply it to your playing? When I know this, I can better answer the question.

Peace,
-Rick

Perhaps he's a very private person and can't come to grips with divulging that kind of information.

Originally Posted by: iamthe_eggmanPerhaps he's a very private person and can't come to grips with divulging that kind of information.

Heh, well there have been some very thorough and verbose answers here, I'm just not sure if they helped him or not. I thought if I could get him to narrow and focus the question a bit, I might be able to offer something else of value.

Peace,
-Rick

Originally Posted by: noticingthemistakeWhen it comes to chord progressions, something that is good to keep in mind is the idea of stable chords and instable chords and how to use them.

Stable chords are the chords I, IV, and V regardless of minor or major key. These chords are considered stable because they stablize the tonal key of the music.

All other chords, II, III, VI, and VII are instable chords. When they are played they change the tonal key of the music, even if it's temporary.

What I mean by tonal key can be illustrated by looking at the chord and what chord it makes up within the key. Take C major, I, IV, and V are all major chords. They stablize the tonal key of the music, major. Now look at the instable chord in regards to C major, they are all minor, except VII which is diminished.

When we look at the two types in music. Stable chords are used more often, especially in rock and folk music. ex. (c major) C-F-G (I IV V). How many times have you seen that progression, or one similar? Why? Because these chords have the strongest sense of key, and any simple melody can be harmonized using just these three chords. Try it, Take the first progression Ace wrote, record it. Then solo or sing over it, you can probably come up with a million melodies and they all work.

You can also come up with any sequence using those three chords, and then read the next part to see how to manipulate them.

When it comes to fitting the instable chords into the progression, they are usually only thrown in a few times to mix things up, or as a substitution, or as a transisition to get somewhere else. I'll give an example of each.

Mix things up. Instead of playing I IV V, you could go I VI IV V. A very common chord progression. I IV II V, or anything you could come up with.

Substitution. Each stable chord, in the case of the major key has a minor substitute. These are found by moving up or down a third. Example C major's minor subsititute is A minor. I don't think I need to explain. Also E minor. The others are: IV is II and VI; and V is III and VII.

Certain ones are more common than others, so I'll point that out. A minor is a more common sub for C major, than E major. II is a more common sub for IV, than VI. III is more common than VII, because VII is hardly used. But whenever it is thought to be used, V is subbed instead of VII. You rarely find the VII in music. The exception is in a minor key, VII is quite common. I VII VI V.

Here's an example of a progression with a substitution. II V I instead of IV V I.

Transistion. Using the unstable chords can change the tonal key from major to minor or minor to major. If you understand modes than you should know the sixth note (VI) in the major scale is where the minor mode starts. Take the instable chords within C major and translate them to the minor mode. Suddenly VI becomes I, II = IV, and III = V. Suddenly you have the stable chords for a minor tonal key. So you can start off in a major tonal key with: I IV V VI II III. The first three chords carry a major tonal key, while the the last three carry a minor tonal key. So if your writting a tune that has a major sound and you want to bring in a part where is sounds minor, that's how. Even vice versa, minor to major.

The most common movement from chord to chord is in fifths. I to V, VI to II, and so on. Movements by seconds are the strongest, V to VI, III to IV, and so on. Have fun! :D

Isn't Em in the C major scale?

:eek: congrats!! You noticed my mistake..heh

Yeah it's E minor not E major.