the space inbetween chords

[truth4life]

I have been taking lessons for a year now and I know all my basic chords and how to add 2nds and 7ths, but does anyone have any fillers you can do in the dead space in between chords...I know you can do scales but they just don't seem to sound right?  Anyone have any suggestions of what I can do with my chords or notes to fill in the extra space?  Thank you all for helping me in advanced!

[playhear]

Here's an easy one to get you started: practice arpeggios with the chord itself. Arpeggiate in different inversions and with both hands. Experiment. It's hard at first but, like all things, becomes easier with practice.

[T-Block]

Give us some examples of what u play, then tell us where you need some fillers for the dead space.

[playhear]

T-Block, maybe you can explain generally what you do between chords. One time, you gave me some useful passing chords for between a 1 and a 4 chord. You used Amazing Grace as an example. I'm interested to know some more tricks.

[truth4life]

ok can you explain arpeggios? or I can look on some other posts later... when I get home maybe I can look through my song book and see what is the most common things I play.  Thanks for trying to help me!  

[playhear]

An arpeggio is when you break up the chord and play the notes individually. Done with rhythm, an arpeggio can sound like you're doing more than you really are.

[truth4life]

Oh ok, well I know I do alot of that, lol.  Anyway, I found a song..but it's an older song.. but I wanted a kinda faster song,  and a song with alot of the same chord through the song... I'm not sure what to do in all the empty space in "Goin' up to the High places" because it has alot of the same chord through the whole song.  The music I have to this are just plain chords as well I know I need to spruce them up .  Let me post the Chords I have so maybe you all can help give some examples...
( ) = SINGLE NOTES
CHORUS
Fm...goin up to the high places..
Csus... goin
C....up to the
Fm...high places
Fm...goin up to the high
Daug9...places
..we're gonna..
  (C   C   Bb Ab Bb Ab F    F)  all single notes...
Tear the devils kingdom down...

VERSE
Fm...we've been decieved by the devil too long...
(  F      Ab Bb     C    C    Bb Ab   Bb Ab F      F )  single notes
We're  gonna   tear  the  devils   kingdom   down
Fm...what he though was his was mine all along...
(  F      Ab Bb     C    C    Bb Ab   Bb Ab F      F )  single notes
We're  gonna   tear  the  devils   kingdom   down

so anyway...thank you all for trying to help me with my songs!  If you don't know the song just do something easy lol like playhear said use amazing grace.  

[T-Block]

When you arpeggiate a chord, you just take the chord and play each note separate. I'm sure most of you probably already know that. Here is a technique u can try to get u used to arpeggiating a chord up and down the keyboard:

1. Play any chord. Let's use a C major chord, C-E-G

2. Play each note separate: C, E, G

3. Take your entire hand and move it up an octave to the next C then repeat step 2. Keep going until you reach the top of the keyboard then go back down.

4. Once you reach the top, go back down playing the notes like this: G, E, C.

5. Take your entire hand and move it down an octave to the next G then repeat step 4 until u back where you started in step 2.

6. Use a sustain pedal to hold out the sound of each note as you play.

7. Start slow then increase speed.

That is how I started out. You can do this process for any chord.

[T-Block]

There are lots of things you can do to fill the space in between chords.  You can play other chords, arpeggios, and scales or parts of scales.  Here is a little exercise you can do to get you used to filling in spaces.  No particular song here, just a little somethin somethin:

Key Eb  LH/RH
4/4 time count in [ ]

[1, 2] Eb / F-G-Bb-Eb
[3] / F
[an] / G
[4] / Bb
[an] / Eb
[1, 2] D / F-Bb-D
[3] G / B-Eb-F-Bb
[an] / Ab
[4] / G
[an] / F
[1] C / Bb-D-F
[2] / Eb
[an] / F
[3, 4] F / A-C-Eb-G
[1, 2] Bb / Ab-Db-F
[an] / C-F-Ab
[3] Eb / Bb-Eb-Gb
[4] / Eb (octave higher)
[an] / D
[1] Ab / G-C-Eb
[2] / Ab
[an] / G
[3] / F
[an] / Eb
[4] / D
[an] / C
[1, 2] G / D-F-Bb
[an] / Bb-D-F (octave higher)
[3, 4] G-Bb-Eb
[1, 2] Db / Ab-Db-F (octave lower)
[3, 4] Cb / Eb-A-Db-F
[1, 2] Bb / Ab-Bb-Eb-F
[3] Ab / D-F-Bb
[4] / Bb
[an] / C
[1] G / F-Bb-Db
[2] / Db
[an] / C
[3] / Bb
[an] / Ab
[4] / G
[an] / F
[1, 2] C / G-Bb-Db-E
[3] D / Ab-B-D-F
[4] E / Bb-Db-E-G
[1] F / Ab
[an] / C
[2] / F
[an] / Ab
[3] Eb / G
[an] / Bb
[4] / Eb
[an] / G
[1, 2] Db / Ab-B-Eb-F
[3, 4] F / B-Eb-F-Ab
[1, 2] Bb / Bb-Eb-G
[3] / Bb
[an] / Eb
[4] / F
[an] / G
[1, 2] Bb / Ab-Bb-Eb-F
[3, 4] / D (slide Eb to D, hold everthing else)
[a] / Eb
[1] / Eb
[2] Ab / G-C-Eb
[3] G / F-Bb-D
[4] F / Eb-Ab-C
[1, 2] Eb / Eb-F-G-Bb
[3, 4] Bb / Ab-Bb-C-Eb
(repeat)

That's all.  If yall want me to break it up and show you where I used other chords, arpeggios, and scales to fill in the spaces, just let me know and I will, lthough maybe some of you can probably figure it out. I wish I could make a midi of it, but i don't have the stuff to do it right now.

[T-Block]

Sorry, if you want a good speed to play it at, try 60 bpm just to learn it, then increase speed up until you can play it at around 80 bpm.  It's supposed to be slow.

[truth4life]

Thanks!  When I get home and get a chance to sit at my keyboard I'll try to play these and figure it out.  thanks for the help!

[truth4life]

OH, I do have one question, hopefully it's not too hard to answer, when you are playing a song, and you are playing a chord, and you want to fill in with another chord, how do you know what chords to fill it in with and make it sound right...is there a formula or do you just go by sound??  For example, you are in the key of C, and you are going from a C chord to an F or something like that, how would you go from this C to an F without messing up the sound of the song?

[T-Block]

I don't know if there is really a set formula for how to do that, but i just listen to CDs and try to copy how other musicians do it.  Here are a few things you could do to go from C to F:

C / G-C-E
D / F-Bb-D
E / G-C-E
F / A-C-F

OR

C / G-C-E
C / F-Bb-D
C / E-Bb-D
F / C-F-A

OR

C / G-C-E
F# / E-Ab-Bb-C
F / F-A-C

[oversabby]

Hi T block!
Thanks for that stuff:passing chords
ie going from C to F
I have a question:Do one just use this when going in 4th upward.I mean like a walk up?
What can i do if it is not a movement in fouth eg from "C" to "E" apart from going to E from half step from right or left or apart from coming from a "B"
Thanks in Advance.

[T-Block]

oversabby wrote:

Hi T block!
Thanks for that stuff:passing chords
ie going from C to F
I have a question:Do one just use this when going in 4th upward.I mean like a walk up?

I guess you can look at it like that.  In the first one, the bass is walking up from 1 to 4, but the chords can be played anywhere using any inversion.  I like for my LH to move opposite of my RH cuz it sounds good.

What can i do if it is not a movement in fouth eg from "C" to "E" apart from going to E from half step from right or left or apart from coming from a "B"
Thanks in Advance.

Can u please reword this cuz I am having trouble understanding exactly what u what you are trying to ask me here.

Like I explained before, I don't know if there is a set parttern of how to fill in spaces.  I just gave truth4life some things that I use to get from 1 to 4.

[oversabby]

So what i mean is that:If i want to go from the 1 Chord(C for example) to the 3 chord(EMinor for example).
apart from first going to the 7 chord(B) or moving half step to Eminor ie E flat or F and then Eminor .Which other ways can i get there.
I donīt  know if it is clear.
Thanks!

[T-Block]

oversabby wrote:

So what i mean is that:If i want to go from the 1 Chord(C for example) to the 3 chord(EMinor for example).
apart from first going to the 7 chord(B) or moving half step to Eminor ie E flat or F and then Eminor .Which other ways can i get there.

First, why would you want to do that, go from C major chord (1) to an E minor chord (3)?  That don't really sound too good to me.  Second, it all depends on what chord you playing next.  If your next chord is a 6, then just go straight to 3 from 1 then to 6.  If your next chord is a 4, then that minor chord won't really work.

So, in that situation I would just go to 3 w/out doing anything.  But, if i was playing, I would never go from a C major chord (1) to an E minor chord (3), i would go to the 3 but keep the C major chord and call it a C major chord in 1st inversion or play a min7 3 or a major type 3 chord and go to 6.  Here is what I mean:

1st way (with variations)

C / G-C-E (1)
E / G-C-E (3) *C major chord with E in bass, also called 1st inversion
F / A-C-F (4)

C / G-C-E (1)
D, D# /
E / G-C-E (3) *C major chord with E in bass, also called 1st inversion
F / A-C-F (4)

C / G-C-E (1)
D / F-A-C (2)
D# / F#-A-C-D# (#2)
E / G-C-E (3) *C major chord with E in bass, also called 1st inversion
F / A-C-F (4)

2nd way (with variations)

C / G-C-E (1)
E / G-B-D (3) *Em7 chord
A / G-C-E (6)

C / G-C-E (1)
E / G#-C-D-G (3) *E7#5(#9) chord
A / A-C-E (6)

C / G-C-E (1)
E / G#-C-D-G (3) *E7#5(#9) chord
A / G-C-E (6)

Try those out and see how they work for you.

[oversabby]

wow, wow, wow!
I have not tried them yet with the keyboard but from what i could see ther goes to show me that you have very strong thoery background .
Thanks very very very much.

Should i ask :what is your secret? :?:

[T-Block]

I took 4 years of music in high school and 4 semesters of college theory.  But, the main thing I had to do was practice what they taught me.  So, my secret is hours and hours of PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE.  Make sure you got that music theory in your head first, then tranlate it to the keyboard.  Your mind does all the real work, your fingers just carry it out.

[oversabby]

Thanks!!!!!