Hi. I’d like to get into chord melody arrangements. I’ve been playing for about a year (learning entirely from Justin Guitar). I am comfortable with my open chords and barre chords. I’m ok with fingerstyle, and I know the basics of chord and music theory. But even the simplest of chord melodies (Happy Birthday, Greensleeves, simple arrangements of Autumn Leaves, etc.), are very difficult for me.
The quick forming of chord shapes, (and especially segments of chord shapes), up the neck, that accompany melody notes, is unfamiliar, and feels unlike anything I’ve practiced so far.
Are there stepping stones in the learning path between open/barre chords and chord melodies that I might be missing? Do I need to be more comfortable with finding/forming triads, or finding intervals, or ear training, or something else?
I know the answer to the above is “YES”, but I’m looking for what the recommended path is for getting into chord melodies, as opposed to “of course you need to know all those things”.
Hi Andrey, firstly slow down there man and relax 1 year is not long in guitar years there is lots to learn apart from all you have mentioned, I take it you are following Justins lessons ? if so you will be introduced to such things as you progress cheers Hec and its nice to meet you
Guitar is like eating an Elephant and Chord melody is a very big big piece of that Elephant.
You mentioned simple songs like Happy birthday etc. are very difficult. What ever you find difficult about these song is what you need to practice, but I’m thinking after only a year of playing you’ll need to work mostly on finger independence between your two hands.
Kinda like patting your body head and rubbing your body.
Once you have that down the rest will fall into place.
For me, triads were at the core; the link between harmony and melody.
Its a longer term process though. Took me about 2 years before I felt somewhat competent with them. Other items you mentioned there -intervals, ear training -are all related.
I dont think triads begin in Justin’s course until Grade 4, so Im guessing you’re not there yet.
Ease into it mate, if you’re keen. See how you go.
Hello Andrey, I love chord melodies with all my heart! At the beginning I wouldn’t have dared to set it as a goal to learn how to arrange them, as it seemed so difficult. But I was always wondering…how beautiful they sound! …and questioning “how do they work?”
I’m much tempted to write a lot about this but I 'm afraid I would confuse you., when at the same time I still have so much to learn myself!
Here are the links to my vey first attempt at arranging a chord melody, the last one is a short video but do check how I got to it…
it still makes me laugh when I think of when a friend listened and commented (face to face) “Oh! This sounds very nice indeed! But it’s not a popular traditional carol, is it?”…and it was We wish you a Merry Christmas
I don’t understand it, but Justin’s fingersstyle arrangement ‘we wish you a merry Christmas’ is still full of mistakes ( and there are some serious hours of practice already started last year and in recent weeks,probably not the nicest tune I’ve learned, but it has now become a matter of principle ) and I really want to play/post it properly this Christmas …
Hi Andrey ,
Make sure you have a good foundation because that will save you a lot of unnecessary frustration and a lot of time time…Building up layer by layer is really a lot of fun for the long time.
I still remember my struggle in the first year very well with this Happy Birthday, and also the joy when I could finally play it flawlessly and then have a moment like that…WHY was this difficult? …And the reason why it was so difficult was because I didn’t do the path very neatly, and slowly and with a also not with a lot of consolidation … During the first year I spent more than 5 hours a day playing guitar and theory (sometimes up to 8)…So a year for one person can easy be 5 years for someone with little playing time a day
Well, now you all have motivated me to go back and work on Happy Birthday and Greensleeves. I too stumbled through those lessons, never really got them down and moved on. I don’t want to earn a “laggard” badge!
Rogier if Music is like a woman to worship and she’ll say Yes in the end , (like Justin told us in a on-line workshop a few years ago I was lucky enough to win and take part to ) you’re not gonna get this tune just for a matter of principle…hahaha you wouldn’t with a woman! Show her some love instead! My advice (which you didn’t ask btw, I know ) is to simplify…just play the melody only and only add the root note of the chord on beat one: it’s gonna sound very musical and sweet! I rewatched Justin’s lesson yesterday, his arrangement sounds pretty advanced to me and he himself says he needs much concentration to play it; if you observe him while he’s playing you see that is true and that he’s probably reading as well…and look at his face when he gets to the end! I mean, that’s a very beautiful arrangement but not the easiest one even for him. Good luck anyway if you decide to re try it!
Ha ha, you can always give me unsolicited advice Silvia…You did it before (with that wrist, which I still haven’t quite solved), and you will do it later too …
it’s nice that you notice that it also costs Justin a lot of concentration,I didn’t even watch the video this year… but all in all, this is not even close to some of the things I have learned in
terms of difficulty grade … but then I accidentally pluck a wrong string … a buzzz note, and I have more to complain about, it’s mostly mistake or sometimes 2… arrggg…and also somewhere else every time…otherwise I could isolate it…now the entire song actually has to be isolated’‘’
Okay, I’m going to try it again tomorrow with renewed love It is indeed better to think of a woman practicing a song than to think of the Santa Claus , and from now on you will always echo through my head while playing this …be nice in my head teacher … I will try to keep my mind/words neatly when I make mistakes
( and there are some serious hours of practice already started last year and in recent weeks,probably not the nicest tune I’ve learned, but it has now become a matter of principle 
) and I really want to play/post it properly this Christmas …
, (like Justin told us in a on-line workshop a few years ago I was lucky enough to win and take part to ) you’re not gonna get this tune just for a matter of principle…hahaha you wouldn’t with a woman! Show her some love 
instead! My advice (which you didn’t ask btw, I know 
) is to simplify…just play the melody only and only add the root note of the chord on beat one: it’s gonna sound very musical and sweet! I rewatched Justin’s lesson yesterday, his arrangement sounds pretty advanced to me and he himself says he needs much concentration to play it; if you observe him while he’s playing you see that is true and that he’s probably reading as well…and look at his face when he gets to the end! I mean, that’s a very beautiful arrangement but not the easiest one even for him. Good luck anyway if you decide to re try it! 
