The Elements of Music:

You are embarking on an adventure through musical time, and

this journey will be more pleasurable if you first become
familiar with some basic musical concepts. Keep in mind that
most new experiences require some initial adjustment and
insight. The process is similar to visiting a distant country for the
first time: You are instantly immersed in a different culture and
surrounded by people who speak an unusual language or
follow unfamiliar customs. This new experience could be either
very exciting—or quite unbearable— depending on your
perspective. If you were not prepared for this journey, your
naive responses and actions might bring you embarrassment or
instil the anger of others. Worst of all, you would get very little
from a potentially rewarding experience.

RHYTHM:
Rhythm is the element of "TIME" in music. When you tap your
foot to the music, you are "keeping the beat" or following the
structural rhythmic pulse of the music. The most important
aspect of Rhythm is playing to a ‘Tempo’. Tempo is the speed at
which a passage of music is or should be played. It is measured
in Beats per Minute or BPM.

MELODY:
Melody is the LINEAR/HORIZONTAL presentation of pitch (the
word used to describe the highness or lowness of a musical
sound). Many famous musical compositions have a memorable
melody or theme.
HARMONY:
Harmony is the VERTICALIZATION of pitch. Often, harmony is
thought of as the art of combining pitches into chords (several
 notes played simultaneously as a "block"). These chords are
usually arranged into sentence-like patterns called chord
progressions.

TONE COLOR (or TIMBRE -pronounced "TAM-BER"):

If you play a "C" on the piano and then sing that "C", you and
the piano have obviously produced the same pitch; however,
your voice has a different sound quality than the piano.
Composers use timbre much like painters use colours to evoke
certain effects on a canvas. For example, the upper register
(portion of the range or compass) of a clarinet produces tones
that are brilliant and piercing, while its lower register gives a
rich and dark timbre. A variety of timbres can also be created
by combining instruments and/or voices.

DYNAMICS:
All musical aspects relating to the relative loudness (or
quietness) of music fall under the general element of dynamics.

TEXTURE:
Texture refers to the number of individual musical lines
(melodies) and the relationship these lines have to one
another.
 Understanding Notes in Music:

The pitches in music are completely divided into 12 notes

universally. These pitches or frequencies are denoted by the
letters of the English alphabet starting from A to G (7
alphabets). The scale repeats after reaching the G note and
restarts from A.

What is a sharp note?

To denote a pitch that is slightly higher the previous pitch but
slightly lower than the next pitch we use the concept of
Sharps. Sharps are denoted by ‘#’ symbol in combination
with the pitch in reference. Say for example: C-sharp will be
written as ‘C#’

Every Note has a sharp note corresponding to it except for the E

and B notes.

What is a Flat note?

To denote a pitch that is slightly lower than the following pitch
and slightly higher than the preceding pitch, we use the concept
of flats. Flats are denoted by the ‘b’ symbol in combination with
the pitch in reference. Say for example: D-flat will be written ‘Db’
 The layout of notes on a guitar fretboard

Taking a closer look at the fretboard of the guitar, we can find all the
notes on the fretboard using the open strings and counting up the
notes of the chromatic scale from there. For example: If you wanted
to find out what is the note on the 3rd fret of the A string you would
start by counting the notes from the A string and move up the
chromatic scale.
 The string is tuned to the A note. If we move up by one fret, we
must find the next note of the chromatic scale that follows A
(which is A#). So, the note on the first fret of the A string will be
A#.

Moving up to the second fret, we must count one note above

A# on the chromatic scale (which is B). So, the note on the
second fret will be B.

Finally we must count one note above B to reach the third fret.
So, the note on the 3rd fret of the A string will be .
(Remember, B note does not have a sharp after it)

Test your knowledge:

1. Find the 5th note on the A string.
2. Find the 2nd note on the D string.
3. Find the 3rd note on the E string.
 Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

Lesson 2: Knowing the Instrument

A guitar has many parts. Do you know what functions they perform?

In this section we shall look at all the important parts of the guitar in
detail and also understand their specific functions.

1
 Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

1. The Headstock:

 The headstock contains the tuning keys

 It is tilted back to maintain tension on strings
 The headstock has the brand logo

Note: The joint between the neck and the head is one of the weakest
points on the guitar and can break easily in case of a fall.

2. The Nut:

The nut is made of brittle materials and performs the following

functions:
 The nut suspends the strings in mid air
 It has ridges for strings to maintain string spacing
 It also transfers the sound into the body of the guitar.

2
 Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

3. The Neck:

The neck is where we do most of the playing of the guitar.

The Upper portion of the neck is called the fingerboard and its function
is to provide a smooth playing surface that is comfortable to touch and
does not catch onto the guitar’s strings

4. The Frets:

The frets are used to divide the string in various lengths and help in
producing notes on the guitar. The frets make it easier to play the guitar
as the guitar player does not have to worry about putting their fingers
exactly on the point at which the note is to be produced. There are 18 to
24 frets on a guitar depending on its make.
Fret markers on the neck make it easier to count them.
3
 Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

5. The Bridge:

 The bridge is the part that transfers the vibrations of the guitar into
its body.
 The bridge is made up of a hard wood to provide minimum loss of
vibrations in its transmission to the body.
 The bridge has bridge pins that hold the other end of the strings in
place
 The bridge also has a saddle which performs similar functions to
the nut.

6. The Pick-guard:

The pick guard prevents the scratching of the guitar body while playing
the guitar with a pick.

4
 Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

7. The Body:

 The body is the part of the guitar that amplifies its sound.
 The body has 3 portions namely the top, the sides and the back.
Out of these the top of the body is most important in providing the
guitar its tonal character.
 The top is typically made of spruce or mahogany typically and the
backs and sides are generally constructed with mahogany or
rosewood. Although, many other woods are also used

Note: Guitar bodies can be made of solid wood or laminate wood.

Solid wood provides a better tone to the guitar but it is more expensive.
Beginner guitars are usually made of laminate wood.

8. Miscellaneous Parts:

The Truss Rod: The Electronics:

Provides for adjustment of neck if bent Allow for connection to amplifier

5
Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

Lesson 3: Holding and Tuning the

Guitar

The 6 Strings on the guitar starting from the top towards the
bottom go as follows: E A D G B E

This can be remembered easily following this acronym:

“Every Amateur Does Get Better Eventually”

A Guitar can be tuned by ear or by using an electronic tuner

app on your phone. Some recommendations for guitar tuning
apps: Da Tuner, Guitar Tuna.

Ear Tuning method

6
Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

Guide to Using a Digital Tuner:

Case 1:
The String is Flat (tuned lower than it should
be.) In such case the tuner will indicate a line
towards the left of the central line. To tune up
to the right frequency in this case we must
tighten the string. This can be achieved by
turning the tuning key anti-clockwise or
backwards in the case of the top three thicker
strings and forward in case of the bottom
three strings.

Case 2:
The String is Sharp (tuned Higher than it should
be.) In such case the tuner will indicate a line
towards the right of the central line. To tune up
to the right frequency in this case we must
loosen the string.
This can be achieved by turning the tuning key
clockwise or forward in the case of the top
three thicker strings and backward in case of
the bottom three strings.

Case 3:
The String is tuned right
In such case the tuner will indicate a line over the
central line. This means the string is on the desired
frequency and should not be tuned higher or lower.

Note: In Indian classical music people often use the

term Tivr to denote sharp notes and Komal to
denote flat notes.
7
Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

Positioning the Guitar:

Sitting: Sit comfortably in a chair that allows
both feet to rest flat on the floor. (Depending on
your size and the size of the chair, you may
want to elevate your right leg, by using a
footstool or stack of books). The guitar should
sit on your right leg with your right arm resting
on top of the body of the guitar keeping the
neck tilted slightly upwards. Do not support the
neck with your left hand, rather keep the guitar
in position with your right arm.
Your left hand needs to be free to move about the
fretboard. The bottom side of the guitar should rest flat on your
leg; not at an angle. Your right forearm should be loose and
free, ready to strum.

Fretting: To effectively play a note on a

string, press your fingertip directly behind
the fret, perpendicular to the fretboard.
Placing your finger on top of the fret will
result in a “muted” sound, placing it too
far behind will cause “buzzing”. Touching
adjacent strings can result in either. It is
essential, especially
when chording, to keep your fingers from touching adjacent
strings.
Practice playing individual notes before trying whole chords.
For fretting a note, the force must be derived primarily from
the thumb and not from the palm. One must also keep in mind
that the palm does not mute the bottom few strings.
.
8
 Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

Lesson 4: Holding the pick and

fretting technique

Holding a Guitar Pick:

A guitar is usually played with a pick
(a.k.a plectrum) to produce a more
vibrant and clear sound.

A pick has a grip side on which the

brand name of the pick is printed. That
end of the pick is gripped between the
thumb and the index finger.

Step 1: Thumbs Up!

Bring your fingers together in the form of a

thumbs up. Make sure to clench your fingers
in tightly.

Step 2: Placing the pick:

Place the grip of the pick on the

first knuckle of your index finger

9
 Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

The Right strumming technique involves moving the pick in a

slightly bent manner as seen in the image above. If the pick is held
completely flat, the sound produced is more noisy and the pick does not
glide well between the strings either.

Fretting Technique:
In order to play the guitar with ease one needs to focus on their
technique. To fret (or play) a note on the guitar the following points
need to be taken care of:

1. Thumb Placement:

Thumb should be placed above half way of the neck.

It should not extend the whole neck. Also, the strings
need to be pressed between the thumb and the
fingers not between the palm and the fingers.

2. Hand Curvature:

The hand should be curved in a natural C shape

comfortably. This allows for the bottom strings to ring
freely.

10
 Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

3. Fingers close to the Fret:

The finger should be as close to the fret as

possible but not on top of it. A buzzing sound will
be produced if the finger rests far away from the
frets or even on top of the fret.

4. Fingers perpendicular to the fretboard:

Always use the finger tips to play the guitar. Do

not use the flat ends of the fingers while
fretting. Also, the finger should touch down at a
right angle (90 degrees) to the fretboard.

5. No collapsing knuckles:

While playing the guitar the knuckles should not

collapse as seen in the picture. They should
always be pointing outwards.

11
Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

A Look at few Guitars

12
 Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

Bring in the chords

What is a chord?
For most beginners, the idea which comes into their mind when
they first imagine about learning to play guitar is being able to
strum down lush sounding chords and sing popular songs while
doing so.

Let us start by looking at what a chord actually is:

Chord = collection of notes played at once

There is a tendency in music which leads to some notes

sounding good when played together and also making the
listener experience a certain emotion. We will be analysing this
musical behaviour of notes in further classes. But for a basic
understanding you can think of chords as playing more than
one notes at once.

There are two main types of chords:

Chords

Major Minor
13
 Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

The Happy Chords:

Major chords are happy sounding chords and make the listener
feel a sense of joy, enthusiasiasm and delight. A major chord can
take different pitches using all the notes on the chromatic scale.
They are generally represented by writing the note in the capital
letters or by adding the ‘maj’ suffix to the note. For example: An
E Major chord
will be denoted by the captial letter ‘E’ or by writing ‘Emaj

The Sad Chords:

There also exist a set of chords called the minor chords which
are sad sounding. These chords have a tendency to make the
listener feel a sense of remorse, depression and longingness for
something.
Similar to the major chord, the minor chord can also take
various pitches of the chromatic scale. They are generally
represented by lower case letters of the alphabet or by adding
the suffix ‘min or m’. For example: An E minor chord will be
denoted by the small letter ‘e’ or be written as ‘Emin’ or ‘Em’.

The ‘Root’ Note:

The root note refers to the note around which the chord is centred. We
have so far only learnt two types of chords; a major and a minor chord.
Both of these chords can be built around all the musical alphabets for
example: Taking the root note as A we can have an A Major chord and
an A minor chord. Similarly if we shift the root note to A# we can have
an A# major and an A# minor chord. This is possible for
A,A#,B,C,C#...G,G#.
Ultimately chords are relationships between notes and these
relationships are centered around certain root notes.

14
Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

How To Read Guitar Chord Diagrams:

One of the first skills that all guitarists learn is how to read a
chord diagram. These diagrams are very helpful when it comes
to showing chord shapes and their fingerings.

Most chord diagrams will look very similar to this:

This is the chord Diagram of the E major chord. You

will be learning more about this chord as you follow
the course

Before getting into what all those numbers, dots,

and letters mean, let’s take a look at a blank
diagram and break that down first:

Beginning at the very top, the thick black bar

represents the guitar’s nut (object at the top of the
fretboard on the guitar that elevates the strings
over the fretboard.

The vertical lines that run down the diagram

represent the six strings on the guitar. The
leftmost line represents the sixth string,
which is the thickest string. The line on the
right represents the first or thinnest string
The frets are represented by horizontal lines.
15
 Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

Learning to play your first chords:

This is a good time to turn back a few pages and look at the
common mistakes that were discussed towards the beginning. The
Em chord is pretty basic and requires only two fingers for you to play
this chord. It might hurt a bit at the start but soon your fingers will
get used to enduring the pain!

If you take the same E minor shape down by a whole string then
you can play the Asus2 chord.

16
 Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

The Secret to learning a chord quickly:

Step 1: Hold
Hover your fingers in the correct chord position. Press it lightly and
try to feed into your mind this arrangement of your fingers to build
muscle memory
Step 2: Press
Press down hard on the chord positon using some force. If a lose
grip is 0 points and your fist gripped together with all the force you
have is equivalent to 10 points then you should be holding down
with a force of 6-7 points.

Step 3: Release and Relax

Let go of the chord position and stretch your hand out. Repeat the
whole process over and over again to play the chords right.

17
Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

CH 4: Count the Beats

Now that you know a few chords its time to get your right hand
to do some work. You see, music is about playing pleasant
sounds on regular intervals.

Beats are these regular intervals in music.

You must have most definitely tapped your feet or bobbed your
head to a song. That is the beat of the song. It’s measured by the
tempo.
The Tempo is counted in Beats Per Minute (BPM) and is pretty
self- explanatory meaning the number of beats a piece of
music is following every minute.

A song that has a tempo of 60 BPM will be slower. Such tempo

might be suited for a more emotional song. Whereas, a song
with a tempo of 120 BPM will be faster and might be more fun
to dance to. But all these are very blurry rules and contrary
might be very possible depending upon how the Artist wants to
use the tempo.

The 4/4 Time Signature:

The most common time signature is the 4/4-time signature in

modern music. It basically means that there are 4 bars of 4
beats that keep repeating itself.

What is a bar you may ask? A bar is a collection of beats. If we

take the 4/4-time signature there are 4 beats in one bar. This
means we count up to 4 and then start counting back from 1.
This collection of 4 beats will constitute a bar.
18
Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

Ch 5: Learning a Few more

Chords
So, you can now strum a few chords to a basic strumming pattern.
Let’s take your music game to another level now by improving on
your chord vocabulary. Here’s a new chord for you:

The G major chord is commonly used in songs. Its one of those

sounds that instantly remind you of a guitar. If a guitar player picks
up a guitar to try it out, there is a high chance that the first thing they
play is the G major chord.

A few tips for playing the G chord:

1) Pay attention to your fingers. They should not collapse.
2) Keep your fingers perpendicular to the fretboard else, a few
strings might not be clear.
3) This chord Involves your pinkie finger. Build its strength.
Shown above are the two variations of the same G chord. I strongly
suggest you to learn the second variation as it will make the
transition to other chords easy for you as a beginner.

19
Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

Speaking about transitions, lets look at a few more chords that are
similar to the G major chord.

This chord can be achieved by sliding your first two fingers down by a
string. Super easy to play if you have a grip on the G major chord.

Just remove your middle finger and slide the index finger down a string.

20
Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

Em 7

Remember playing the E minor chord from before? Well just add the
3rd and 4th fingers to mix to get a fresh new E minor 7 chord.

Putting it in a song:
Closer by the Chainsmokers ft. Halsey

21
Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

22
Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

Ch 6: Adding to the Beats

Until now, we had been counting beats as whole. Now we are going
to break them into smaller chunks while counting them.

The Whole Beats:

1 2 3 4

The Half Beats:

1 & 2 & 3 & 4 &

The ‘&’ beat lies between the whole notes. It divides the whole note
into two and is hence called as the half note.

The Quarter Beats:

1 e & a 2 e & a 3 e & a 4 e & a

The ‘e’ and ‘a’ beats divide the space between two half notes. And
are hence called as quarter notes. If you count up to all the beats the
total number will come to 16. This also called 16th rhythm in music.
Most of modern music is based on these 16 beats. Various
strumming patterns will be expanded upon these 16 beats in the
course further.

23
Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

A Strumming pattern has appeared:

To make things more interesting, lets take the strumming pattern

mentioned above and skip some of the beats that were a part of it:

1 |2 a |3 e & a| 4 & a
D D U D U D U D D U

By doing this we get a strumming pattern that is commonly used on the

guitar in many modern songs. It might be a little difficult to wrap your
head around this at first but soon it will make a lot of sense.

Tips to practice:
 Use a metronome to keep tracks of the beats.
 Don’t play it like a robot. It is extremely difficult to time the beats
right after intervals. So, it becomes important that your hands
keep swinging while strumming. The right way to skip beats is by
lifting your hands off a little bit away from the strings but not to
stop moving your hands all together between beats. Feel the beat
and keep moving your hands moving in a fluid motion.

An Introduction to palm-muting:

What is palm muting?

Palm muting is used to dampen the strings. The goal of palm muting is to
silence the strings to create a rhythmic effect,
This technique can be played on acoustic and electric. However, the
techniques are different on each instrument.

 On electric guitar:
Palm muting is used to make guitar chords sound chunky. Palm
muting can often be heard in rock and metal music.

24
 Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

 On acoustic guitar:
Palm muting technique is used to add percussion to chords. It adds
more dynamism to the playing technique and adds vibrance to
strumming patterns.

To hear this technique in action you can listen to these songs:

 Thinking out loud by Ed Sheeran
 Neon by John Mayer

How to palm mute?

Step 1: The Karate Chop

Imagine you are a karate master. Take your right hand and place it on the of
the bridge with a chopping motion. Like you would if you were doing a karate
chop on clay plates. Do not use much force though, you don’t want to hurt
your guitar. The flesh of your palm should be in contact with the saddle of
the bridge. The idea is to dampen the vibrations of the strings. The flesh of
your palm should not completely mute the strings but also not allow them to
ring about freely.

Step 2: Play individual Strings

Now that you have your palm at the right place, try playing one string at a
time. Take time and make sure that the sound of the palm mute is correct.
Play all six strings one by one and check if you are able to get the right sound
out of the guitar.

Step 3: Strum entire Chords

Once you have made sure that you are able to produce the right kind of
sound from the strings, try strumming entire chords. Make them sound right.
Practice both upstrokes and down strokes. Once you have the individual
strokes down, try strumming patterns you have learnt.
25
 Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

Scales: The Building blocks of Music

Scales are a series of musical notes arranged in ascending or descending
order according to a particular pattern. Scales are used to create melodies,
harmonies, and chords in music, and they form the foundation of most
musical systems around the world.

What are these patterns made up of?

Scales can be visualized in terms of intervals. An interval is the distance

between two pitches, or musical notes. It is the difference in pitch between
two notes, measured in terms of the number of steps or semitones between
them.

The smallest interval in Western music is the half step, also known as a
semitone, which is the distance between two adjacent keys on a piano
keyboard. The next largest interval is the whole step, or whole tone, which is
equivalent to two half steps.

For Example, If we have to go one half step above the A note, we will land up
on the A# note and if we have to go a whole step above the A note we will
land on the B note. Similarly, if we consider the E note, moving up a half step
would take us to the F note and moving up a full note will take us to F#.

26
 Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

Try the following questions:

What is the note a half step above B?

Ans:

What is the note half step below D?

Ans:

What is the note a whole note above E?

Ans:

What is the note a whole note below G?

Ans:

What is a note 1 and half step above C#?

Ans:

The Chromatic Scale:

The chromatic scale is a musical scale consisting of all 12 pitches within
the octave, including both the natural notes (C, D, E, F, G, A, B) and the
sharps and flats that fall in between them (C#, Db, D#, Eb, F#, Gb, G#,
Ab, A#, Bb).

Each pitch in the chromatic scale is separated by a half step or a

semitone, which is the smallest interval in Western music. The chromatic
scale is used extensively in many styles of music, including classical, jazz,
and popular music, and is often used to create dissonant or tense
sounds.

To put it very simply, the chromatic scale is collection of all the pitches taken
a semi-tone apart.
27
 Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

The Major Scale:

The major scale is often used to create a sense of stability, resolution, and
consonance in music. It is a common scale used in many genres of music,
including classical, pop, rock, and jazz, and is the basis for many chords and
melodies in these styles.

The pattern of whole and half steps for a major scale is as follows:

Whole-Whole-Half-Whole-Whole-Whole-Half

Let us take this knowledge and try to form the C major scale. To form
the C major scale, you would use the pattern of whole and half steps
mentioned above: Starting from the note C, you would apply this pattern
to obtain the notes of the C major scale as follows:

 Starting from C, go up a whole step to D

 From D, go up another whole step to E
 From E, go up a half step to F
 From F, go up a whole step to G
 From G, go up a whole step to A
 From A, go up a whole step to B
 From B, go up a half step to C

So the C major scale consists of the following seven notes:

C-D-E-F-G-A-B-C

Starting on D, we can apply this pattern to obtain the notes of the D

major scale as follows:

 Starting from D, go up a whole step to E

 From E, go up another whole step to F#
 From F#, go up a half step to G
 From G, go up a whole step to A
28
 Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

 From A, go up a whole step to B

 From B, go up a whole step to C#
 From C#, go up a half step to D

So the D major scale consists of the following seven notes:

D - E - F# - G - A - B - C# - D

In summary, to form any major scale, you need to start on a particular

note and apply the pattern of whole and half steps in the correct
sequence. The major scale pattern is the same for every key, but the
notes and key names change depending on where you start.

Now that you have learnt how to form these scales, write down the notes for
the following scales:
A major scale:

A# major scale:

B major scale:

C major scale:

C# major scale:

D major scale:

D# major scale:

E major scale:

F major scale:

G major scale:

G# major scale:
29
 Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

The Minor Scale:

A minor scale is a sequence of musical notes that creates a specific sound or

mood that is often described as sad, moody, or introspective.

Like a major scale, a minor scale consists of seven notes, but the pattern of
whole and half steps is different, which gives it a distinct sound.

The pattern of whole and half steps for a natural minor scale is:

Whole-Half-Whole-Whole-Half-Whole-Whole

Let’s try to form the A minor scale. Starting on A, we can apply this pattern to
obtain the notes of the A minor scale as follows:

 Starting from A, go up a whole step to B

 From B, go up a half step to C
 From C, go up a whole step to D
 From D, go up a whole step to E
 From E, go up a half step to F
 From F, go up a whole step to G
 From G, go up a whole step to A

So the A minor scale consists of the following seven notes:

A-B-C-D-E-F-G–A

Starting on G, we can apply this pattern to obtain the notes of the G minor
scale as follows:

 Starting from G, go up a whole step to A

 From A, go up a half step to B♭
 From B♭, go up a whole step to C
 From C, go up a whole step to D
 From D, go up a half step to E♭
 From E♭, go up a whole step to F
30
 Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

 From F, go up a whole step to G

So the G minor scale consists of the following seven notes:

G - A - B♭- C - D - E♭- F – G

Now that you know how to form minor scales, write down the notes for the
following minor scales:

A minor scale:

A# minor scale:

B minor scale:

C minor scale:

C# minor scale:

D minor scale:

D# minor scale:

E minor scale:

F minor scale:

F# minor scale:

G minor scale:

G# minor scale:

31
 Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

Did you notice something?

Looking at the notes of the A minor and the C major scale, you will find that
both of them have the same notes. Similarly, the notes of E minor and G
major scales have the same notes. It is interesting to note how the same
collection of notes can give a completely different feeling. This happens
because of shift of root or the tonal center around which the notes revolve.
The same notes revolving around a different tonal center can produce a
different emotion. This is a little insight into how modes work in music. We
shall discuss the concept of modes in detail at later stages of the course. For
now let us understand the concept of relative minors for a major scale.

The relative minor of a major scale is the minor scale that has the same key
signature as the major scale. In other words, the relative minor is based on
the sixth note of the major scale. For example, the relative minor of the C
major scale is the A minor scale, because A is the sixth note of the C major
scale.

The relative minor scale shares the same key signature as the major scale,
meaning that they have the same sharps or flats. However, the relative minor
scale starts on a different note and has a different sequence of whole and
half steps, which gives it a different sound and mood compared to the major
scale.

For example, the C major scale has no sharps or flats, and its relative minor,
the A minor scale, also has no sharps or flats. However, the A minor scale
starts on A, not C, and has a different sequence of whole and half steps:
Whole-Half-Whole-Whole-Half-Whole-Whole. This gives the A minor scale a
different sound and mood compared to the C major scale.

To find the relative minor, we can also count down 3 semi-tones or 3 frets
from the root of the major scale. For instance I want to find out what is the
relative minor for G major, so I would count down 3 notes from G. Hence, E
will be the relative minor for G major. It is the same as finding the sixth note.
32
Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

Match the following Major scales with their relative minors:

A major E minor

G major F minor

C major F# minor

D major A minor

G# major B minor

Chart of all the relative minor scales:

33
 Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

Chord progressions
Chord progressions are sequences of chords played in a specific order.
They provide a harmonic structure and contribute to the overall mood and
emotion of a piece of music.
There are numerous chord progressions used in various genres of music, but
for our purposes as beginners to play popular music we shall learn the
following progressions which I call THE GHAT CHORDS:

The Major Chord Progression:

I – vi – IV – V
This chord progression consists of:
1. 1st chord of the major scale(major chord)
2. 6th chord of the major scale(minor chord)
3. 4th chord of the major scale(major chord)
4. 5th chord of the major scale(major chord)

Example 1: Let us consider the Chords of the C major scale:

 1st Chord: C major
 2nd Chord: D minor
 3rd Chord: E minor
 4th Chord: F major
 5th Chord: G major
 6th Chord: A minor
 7th Chord: B diminished

The chord progression would be:

Cmaj – Amin – Fmaj – Gmaj

(I) (vi) (IV) (V)
34
 Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

Example 2: Let us consider the Chords of the E major scale:

• 1st Chord: E major

• 2nd Chord: F# minor
• 3rd Chord: G# minor
• 4th Chord: A major
• 5th Chord: B major
• 6th Chord: C# minor
• 7th Chord: D# diminished

The Chord Progression would be:

Emaj – C#min – Amaj – Bmaj

(I) (vi) (IV) (V)

EXERCISE:
Fill out the following major chord progressions:

Scale I vi IV V
C C Am F G
A
G
E E C#m A B
D
35
 Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

The Minor Chord Progression:

i – VII – VI – v
This chord progression consists of:
1. 1st chord of the minor scale(minor chord)
2. 7th chord of the minor scale(major chord)
3. 6th chord of the minor scale(major chord)
4. 5th chord of the minor scale(minor chord)

Example 1: Let us consider the Chords of the A minor scale:

 1st Chord: A minor
 2nd Chord: B diminished
 3rd Chord: C major
 4th Chord: D minor
 5th Chord: E minor
 6th Chord: F major
 7th Chord: G major

The chord progression would be:

Amin – Gmaj– Fmaj – Emin

(i) (VII) (VI) (v)
Scale i VII VI v
A Amin Gmaj Fmaj Emin

E
D

36
 Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

THE PENTATONIC SCALE

A pentatonic scale is a musical scale with five notes per octave. The term
"pentatonic" comes from the Greek words "penta," meaning "five," and
"tonos," meaning "tone." The pentatonic scale is used in many different
styles of music, including blues, rock, pop, and traditional music from around
the world.

The most common form of pentatonic scale is the "major pentatonic," which
consists of the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 5th, and 6th degrees of the major scale. For
example, in the key of C, the major pentatonic scale would be C, D, E, G, and
A.

Another common form of pentatonic scale is the "minor pentatonic," which

consists of the 1st, flat 3rd, 4th, 5th, and flat 7th degrees of the natural
minor scale. For example, in the key of A minor, the minor pentatonic scale
would be A, C, D, E, and G.

The pentatonic scale is often used in improvisation and soloing because its
simple structure makes it easy to create melodies that sound good over a
wide range of chords and progressions.

37
 Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

The Expansion of the Pentatonic Scale:

The pentatonic scale can be played in different positions on the fretboard of a guitar
or on different parts of a keyboard. These positions, or shapes, can be moved up or
down the fretboard or keyboard to play the scale in different keys.
The five positions of the pentatonic scale are often referred to as "boxes" because
they form rectangular shapes on the fretboard. Each box corresponds to a different
note of the pentatonic scale and can be played in any key. The positions are:

1. Box 1: This position is also known as the "open position" and starts on the root
note of the scale. It is played in the first few frets of the guitar and is the most
commonly used position.
2. Box 2: This position starts on the 3rd note of the scale and is played on the
higher frets of the guitar. It is often used for soloing.
3. Box 3: This position starts on the 5th note of the scale and is played on the
higher frets of the guitar. It is commonly used in blues and rock music.
4. Box 4: This position starts on the 7th note of the scale and is played on the
higher frets of the guitar. It is often used for soloing and creating a more
melodic sound.
5. Box 5: This position starts on the 10th note of the scale and is played on the
higher frets of the guitar. It is often used for soloing and creating a more bluesy
sound.

It's important to note that while each position has a specific starting note, they all
contain the same five notes of the pentatonic scale, just in different positions on the
fretboard.

38
Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

39
Guitar Methods by Pulak Pathak

40