Songwriting/chord progression question

casper leblanc

Okay, ever since I got my Guild (did I tell you all about my Guild? ) I've gotten into songwriting overdrive. Before I used to mess around with some chord progression, but these days it's like 'the light' finally has come upon me. Don't know if it's the Guild, but since I got her, I've been playing much more than before - she sounds so purdy - and that definitly has had an effect.

But to the point! Just right now I made this new progression I like very much. Only thing I don't know - since I don't sing and have a voice pitch to base myself on - is whether to play it down at the neck with a couple of open chords, or an octave higher, way up the neck, with barred chords - which gives it a special ring, you know. And my Guild really pulls that of wonderfully, playing her way up the neck.

How do you decide? My guess would be you base it on the key or pitch (?) the singer uses, but I don't sing and don't play in a band.

Or can you, for example, play the intro high up there and the rest of the verses down low, maybe just not to strain those muscles?

Any thoughts?

the unseen

pearlwax wrote:

Okay, ever since I got my Guild (did I tell you all about my Guild? ) I've gotten into songwriting overdrive. Before I used to mess around with some chord progression, but these days it's like 'the light' finally has come upon me. Don't know if it's the Guild, but since I got her, I've been playing much more than before - she sounds so purdy - and that definitly has had an effect.

But to the point! Just right now I made this new progression I like very much. Only thing I don't know - since I don't sing and have a voice pitch to base myself on - is whether to play it down at the neck with a couple of open chords, or an octave higher, way up the neck, with barred chords - which gives it a special ring, you know. And my Guild really pulls that of wonderfully, playing her way up the neck.

How do you decide? My guess would be you base it on the key or pitch (?) the singer uses, but I don't sing and don't play in a band.

Or can you, for example, play the intro high up there and the rest of the verses down low, maybe just not to strain those muscles?

Any thoughts?

maybe combine the two for dynamic purposes.

FinsburyParkCarrots

I think if you have a particular singer in mind, and have a concept of how this singer sounds with a band, it's likely that, when you're playing, you'll choose chordal voicings that are appropriate to their voice and interpretation of the song. However, for the purposes of writing the rudiments of the song initially, I'd work it out in first position chords first. Then you can start finding alternative ways of playing it. After all, there are always easy-chord buskers' books of well known songs that when first released used complex voicings. Often the stronger the song, the more sound, solid and basic the progression (I-IV-V, or II-V-I-IV).

Milhouse VanHouten

Don't forget to try the progression using a capo, too.

Novawind

I always find that when I play on the octave up higher up on the neck I get unnecessary buzzing in my strings. That's probably just my acoustic being it's finicky self, but I personally favor the lower open chords because of it.