Chord Progressions?

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BOOBOO619

BOOBOO619

Sicc OG
#1
Apr 26, 2006
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#1
What's the best way to go about learning some chord progressions? I personally end up using the same chords & progressions over and over because their what sound good to my ears.

For ex:
Em to Am



Am to Dm



Very good sounding tones, yet simple to build a beat upon.


Is there like a simple chart somewhere that can teach you visually some chords and progressions to go along, similiar to those pics I'm posting up?


There's hardly any real talk about beat construction or theory on here, now's the time to contribute. Thanks.
 
BOOBOO619

BOOBOO619

Sicc OG
#4
Apr 26, 2006
4,496
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#4
Tony Lo said:
wen it comes to chords i usually play by ear, but wen i did want a specific sound i went to a website that warbeats.com mentioned
(http://www.looknohands.com/chordhouse/piano/)
Click to expand...
Yeah I play by ear too. Cool site btw, I've been there a while ago.

The thing is though, how would you go about using that site and coming up with progressions?

For example, lets say I use that "D 6/9" chord, what other chords can I use that sound good with it? How do I figure that out using the website?
 
INCHEZ

INCHEZ

Sicc OG
#5
Jan 2, 2003
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#5
Thats been my major problem recently....
I got handfull of the chords down, but like u I don't really know where to go after I play the 1st chord.
(normally I just play around with something till it sounds good to my ear)
I got some Music theory books and Chord charts, and they give a basic overview of progression, but don't fully get into it...
 
BOOBOO619

BOOBOO619

Sicc OG
#6
Apr 26, 2006
4,496
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#6
^^^I see, I just do the same thing, all by ear.

I would admit though, this is going to sound kinda wierd and funny, but using the QWERTY as a two octave keyboard to play midi, helps me. I visually break shit down into patterns with how I see the letter keys. So I use the letters on the keys as a guide. For example, in that first pic I posted above, the E minor chord = the letters E T U, with how the QWERTY midi keyboard is setup in FL Studio. It's also very easy to find my spot because the letters Z & Q are the C keys and their right near the edge, so the starting point of each octave. Kinda wierd, but for me it has to do with visualizing shit better, I get lost quick on a real keyboard with all the white keys. Not to mention, a normal sized keyboard has wider keys and their more spread out compared to a more compressed QWERTY, so it makes it a bit more difficult to go in with your hands to dissect the keys to figure out chords and progressions IMO. This is another reason why I kinda want to buy the new Korg nanoKey 2octave midi keyboard because it's so small and I can go in more focused to figure shit out like chords. I can look over on top of it and visual/memorize patterns for chords, considering it's so small I don't have to shift my head/eyes left or right to see the entire keyboard, it's all infront.
 
B.C.

B.C.

Sicc OG
#7
Mar 12, 2005
462
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#7
I think playing by ear is how we all got our start. I had my favorite chords that I would always use but then all my stuff was sounding the same so I had to take a new approach. All songs don't need chords so I took pressure off myself by not putting them in every song. But what helped me was taking piano lessons and music theory. Believe me this helps. Sometimes when you're trying to come up with chord progressions and you get stuck on a D 6/9 you just gotta play what sounds good to you as long as you're in the right key you're ok.
 
S

Sick Wid It

Sicc OG
#8
Apr 25, 2002
2,207
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#8
You can learn chords by the ways mentioned (lessons, theory, screwing around until you find some you like) if you can't 'hear' them. I guess you could also look at midi files of songs that have chords you like.

As far as breaking the habit of using the same stuff, I force myself to do something different at the beginning of the process. Start with a chord, sounds, etc. I wouldn't normally use and build around that. If you're a creative person you'll come up with something hot that doesn't sound like your other stuff. Forcing myself to try new things has made me a better musician overall. Experiment man... That's how you keep from being a follower.
 
BOOBOO619

BOOBOO619

Sicc OG
#9
Apr 26, 2006
4,496
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#9
Sick Wid It said:
You can learn chords by the ways mentioned (lessons, theory, screwing around until you find some you like) if you can't 'hear' them. I guess you could also look at midi files of songs that have chords you like.

As far as breaking the habit of using the same stuff, I force myself to do something different at the beginning of the process. Start with a chord, sounds, etc. I wouldn't normally use and build around that. If you're a creative person you'll come up with something hot that doesn't sound like your other stuff. Forcing myself to try new things has made me a better musician overall. Experiment man... That's how you keep from being a follower.
Click to expand...
That's what I usually do. Sometimes I'll start with like a single chord, single note sound like a pad or string, bassline and build upon that. Or come up with a melody and try to make some chords out of it. I do prefer to start off with a set of chords though because it builds a nice foundation and you can build of it's ryhthm.
 
Sydal

Sydal

Sicc OG
#10
Apr 25, 2002
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www.idealsentertainment.com
#10
Sick Wid It said:
I guess you could also look at midi files of songs that have chords you like.
Click to expand...
That's kinda how I started. I took midi loops, opened 'em up in a the sequencer along with the Midi window (which has a piano)...looked at how some of the loops were laid out, learned what sounds good with what, etc.

I'd say it's easier to play by ear, though.
 
DJ_JG

DJ_JG

Sicc OG
#12
Apr 5, 2008
240
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#12
To come up with chord progressions I almost always choose the key, then just play the root notes to come up with a progression, then play their chords later. Im tryna get better at incorporating 7ths, 9th, sus, all those slight dissonances. Thats what really sets it off, otherwise it sounds too perfect and boring.

I dont rly trip off using the same progressions, because there are common progressions that are used in soo many songs, like 1-4-5 and 2-5-1. You can still make songs that sound hella diff with the same progression.
 
MALKI

MALKI

Sicc OG
#13
Feb 2, 2006
2,193
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#13
Filthy_Rich said:
steal the chords from other songs. go to the bookstore and get a book of popular songs for guitar or piano. then just lay down the chords. you'd have to know what the symbols mean but you can look that up online. that's what i do when i feel like i need a new progression.
Click to expand...
isnt this wat dr dre was doing i heard he was learning classical music and taking chords from chopin for the new detox. that actually isnt a bad idea.
 
BJv

BJv

Member
#15
May 6, 2005
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www.dr-dre-fans.com
#15
I would put more focus on the scales, modes your playing in and creating the chord progressions based on the melodies you come up with.

But if you wanna start songs based on progressions, check out this website, theyre for guitar but work everywhere:

http://www.torvund.net/guitar/index.php?page=prog_main

By the way:

is there any place to post my beats on here to get feedback I dont see anyone posting theirs? (I just made this last night http://anotha.com/showthread.php?t=57155)

peace
 
Carnage187

Carnage187

Sicc OG
#16
Sep 24, 2005
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soundcloud.com
#16
Just harmonize your melody. Say you have a melody that consists of scale degree 1, 2, 5, 1
You could harmonze that with the tonic chord, the dominant, and then the tonic again, i mean, you need to know about how to construct chords in a major scale, or minor. Then use your ears a bit to find out which inversions work. Good luck. It's not as easy as it sounds.
 
BOOBOO619

BOOBOO619

Sicc OG
#17
Apr 26, 2006
4,496
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#17
BJv said:
I would put more focus on the scales, modes your playing in and creating the chord progressions based on the melodies you come up with.

But if you wanna start songs based on progressions, check out this website, theyre for guitar but work everywhere:

http://www.torvund.net/guitar/index.php?page=prog_main

By the way:

is there any place to post my beats on here to get feedback I dont see anyone posting theirs? (I just made this last night http://anotha.com/showthread.php?t=57155)

peace
Click to expand...
Nice beat. Sounds really jazzy. :cool: Could work for some smooth G-Funk type shit though. My only gripe are the percussion sounds. I think real drums would have sounded better instead of the 808 kit. The kick is nice, but not sure about the hats and snare.

This one of my latest funky style beat if you want to hear.
http://www.zshare.net/audio/5218913760f33c38/
 
BJv

BJv

Member
#19
May 6, 2005
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www.dr-dre-fans.com
#19
BOOBOO619 said:
Nice beat. Sounds really jazzy. :cool: Could work for some smooth G-Funk type shit though. My only gripe are the percussion sounds. I think real drums would have sounded better instead of the 808 kit. The kick is nice, but not sure about the hats and snare.

This one of my latest funky style beat if you want to hear.
http://www.zshare.net/audio/5218913760f33c38/
Click to expand...
Thanks man, I just wanted to do something over a simple 808 pattern thats what I started with.

Loving the beat :cool: funky shit
 
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