JFRocks Ear Training 101 Problem page                                                     Copyright © 2005-2006 JFRocks

This page contains no tabs.  This is a page that contains an Audio lesson in mp3 format that contains a riff or solo for you to try to figure out using the tips that Jeff gives you as a guideline.  If this is an older problem and already has an answer page there will be no opportunity for you to submit a tab of how you think this problem is played.  If however it is a new problem and has no answer posted as of yet you will be able to anonymously submit a tab of how you think Jeff is playing the problem.  Be warned these are designed to help your ear and are designed to fool you most of the time.  Please don't cheat and do the answers too fast if they are available.  You are only depriving yourself of a great learning opportunity if you do that. 

All content on this page is protected by US copyright and is owned by JFRocks or is used by special permission.  Reproduction or redistribution of any kind free or otherwise is prohibited.  JFRocks content must remain on JFRocks.com and is the property of JFRocks.

Be sure to listen to the whole audio file.  The answer to this problem will have a video and detailed lesson.

Audio

Contains the problem riff or solo to be figured out

Problem Tips: 

This problem deals with something that really gives people issue.  Sometimes simple stuff gives us the most trouble.  This problem is a basic "strummy dummy" kind of chord pattern on acoustic.  Something like any player would do for some sort of an acoustic power ballad or even a Jimmy Buffet type dude for a whole track. 

There usually some twists to these patterns though and this example is no exception to that.  These are not all the basic "Mel Bay" chord book chords.  Some of these have some weird notes in them.  The trick is to figure out the ROOT chord pattern first, then and only then do you worry about the subtleties of each chord and whether it's a 7th or a suspended this or an augmented that. 

Chord patterns are something where again, "association" comes into play quite a bit.  Association means things you've heard before.  For instance a 2nd to 5th transition is very common in Jimmy Buffet style music.  What I mean by that is if you're in G and doing a G, C, D chord pattern, then you're doing a Root, 4th, 5th chord pattern as the C is the 4th of the G and the D is the 5th of the G.  So a 2nd to 5th transition is the 2nd of the G which is an "A" and the 5th which is our "D".  Through association (experience) most players learn that this "A" or 2nd is a Dominant 7th 9 times out of 10.  So experience tells you when you hear that chord pattern that the pattern is, G, A7, D.  This is often used as a transition. 

Not saying this pattern is in this problem, all I'm saying is once you know that transition and you know what it sounds like, you know what the player is doing when you hear it and it doesn't take very long to nail a given chord pattern.  So always listen to music you want to learn, as a guitarist and not as a fan, and of course, remember what you hear and store it away for use when either writing music or figuring out other songs.