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The big chords - Pt.2 in this two
part series will mostly deal with the big
hairy chords that always scared me as a kid.
I'll also show you some practical shapes
that can be used to make various chords in
the last half of this lesson. If you haven't
read through
Pt.1 yet, you might want to before
diving off into the deep end. |
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11th chords
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11th chords : Along with the 7th, the
11th is also added to the triad. There are a
few basic guidelines to remember here, as I
mentioned before in Pt.1 in regards to
sus4 chords, major 3rds and 4ths are not
considered to get along so well. To fix this
small problem, generally (and I stress the
word generally), the major 3rd either gets
omitted or the 11th gets raised, a harmonic
compromise in a way. This does however
create a few naming problems. By leaving the
3rd out of the voicing, we will simply be
making the chord a sus4 chord. If we
leave the 3rd in and raise the 11th, the
chord symbol needs to be written so. For
these two reasons you don't run across major
or dominant 11th chords such as C11
very often. As far as the minor version
goes, the minor 3rd and natural 11th get
along fine so there is no need to raise the
11th. Therefore, theoretically there are
only three 11th chords and they tend to be
notated this way: Cmaj7#11, C7#11
and Cmin11: |
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These are the common sixth string root
voicings for the maj7#11, min11
and 7#11 chords: |
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voicing: 1,7,3,#11,7
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voicing: 1,b7,b3,11,b7
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voicing: 1,b7,3,#11,b7
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The Lydian Chord: The maj7#11
chord is sometimes referred to as the lydian
chord. It is a beautiful, modern sounding
chord. Sometimes you may come across the
word lydian in a chart rather than a chord
symbol. The composer is just telling you to
play a major family chord with a #11
somewhere in it. Try the following
progression as an exercise: |
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Including 3rds and 4ths in the same
chord: The following is an example of
how you can keep your 3rds and 4ths (11ths)
together in your chord. The second chord
contains both a major 3rd and perfect 4th. I
would tend to use my fingers to "roll"
through the notes in the chords rather than
bashing them with a pick: |
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These chords is are good examples of a very
typical "guitar" chords that contains both
the 3rd and 4th (11th). Alex Lifeson from
the band "Rush" uses chords like the first
one from time to time. The second chord
often follows an open position C chord: |
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voicing: 1,5,1,3,4,b7
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voicing: 1,3,4,1
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Points to remember about 11th chords: |
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For the major and dominant versions, when
the 3rd is desired in the 11th chord
voicing, the 11th tends to get raised. |
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The 9th does not need to be included in the
voicing but the 7th and 3rd do. Without the
3rd present, the chord becomes a sus4
chord |
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Is there a dominant 11th chord? Yes and no.
Technically a 3rd and 4th don't get put in
the same major or dominant chord so a
dominant 11th chord doesn't generally show
up in a chart. With the 3rd removed, the
11th gets considered a 4th and that would
just make the chord into a sus chord.
In reality, the (modern) ear accepts the 3rd
and 4th in the same chord if voiced
correctly so the dominant 11th chord does
get played from time to time, it just gets
notated as a 9sus chord and the 3rd
is considered an option. You may from time
to time run across an 11 chord in a chart,
but the composer most likely is telling you
to play a 9sus chord (1, 4, 5, b7,
9). Add 3rds at will but be careful. |
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What is the difference between a 7#11
and a 7(b5) chord? Hmm.. Not too
much on the surface but there are a few
differences that need to be discussed. One
thing that needs to be considered is what
liberties can be taken with the chord.
Derived from the lydian dominant
mode of the melodic minor scale,
the 7#11 chord can contain the
natural 5th. The 9th, and 13th are also in
the scale so they too can be added to the
chord. Since the 7(b5) chord, is
most likely coming from the altered
mode of the melodic minor scale,
altered 9ths can probably be added without
any complications. The 7#11 chord
generally resolves down a half step, while
the 7(b5) chord generally resolves
up a 4th to the tonic chord.
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