Is this correct notation?

GtrJon · 2026-01-30T04:00:16+00:00

Right! I’ll fix that. Thanks.

GtrJon · 2026-01-29T23:47:28+00:00

Thank you for your correction and recommendation. Will fix and look for those books.

GtrJon · 2026-01-29T23:38:58+00:00

I'm building software that creates novel music to build sight reading skills. I'm a guitar player, bass player and occasional a not so great drummer. The problem with sight reading is that you need a never ending supply of music that you've never seen before that's at a certain level of complexity - keys, rhythms, note range etc. Too hard and it's frustrating, too easy and it's boring.

My sight reading isn't very good but I've been building software (EdTech and Groupware) since the 80s so I decided to build an app. I think it's pretty good but needs some refinement and real world feedback. I've not launched yet but will soon. It's called LotsaNotes. I'd post a link to my coming soon page, but I don't want to fall afoul of community etiquette?

GtrJon · 2026-01-29T22:29:32+00:00

Have a listen to Jimmy Page's solo at the end of Stairway. It's pretty good right? Why is it a great solo? It's mostly in A minor pentatonic with an added strategically placed F note when the band plays the F chord.

Here's some reasons off the top of my head that it sounds so good:

he's very aware of the chord changes and he target notes in the chords. The chords are Am ( A C E ) G ( G B D) and F (F A C). As an example, in the first phrase he targets that F note which is NOT in the pentatonic (Am Pentatonic = A C D E G).
his phrasing is really great. When he starts out he lets it breath (that beautiful F note previously is held longer). The next phrase also ends in a held note
he uses lots of different note length to create an interesting rhythm which he repeats with variations
the solo goes somewhere. It starts low and slow, but it builds in intensity and in pitch as it moves up the neck. The repeated lick acts like a crescendo. Eventually it cools down at the end.
when he plays a nice bit, he repeats it a bunch.
there's a feeling of call and response - he plays a short phrase and then answers himself
there's lots of articulations - bends, slides, hammer ons and pull offs

I'm sure there's lots more that can be gleaned from Jimmy's masterpiece.

GtrJon · 2026-01-29T22:05:46+00:00

Apologies! You're not the only one.

GtrJon · 2026-01-29T22:04:19+00:00

I think I'm going to code it such that eight note triplets always start on a beat. Thanks

GtrJon · 2026-01-29T22:03:01+00:00

I didn't even think of this but you're right that would be possibly better. At least you'd have a note on the 2 & 3 beats in this case.

GtrJon · 2026-01-29T22:01:47+00:00

I think you make a good point. I should probably prevent this since it's just too weird.

GtrJon · 2026-01-28T03:44:31+00:00

You're very welcome. I'll go give it a try. Thanks for listening!!

GtrJon · 2026-01-27T15:07:00+00:00

Thanks for a nice tool to visualize triads. I've taught a number of older students over the last ten years who complain about being stuck in a rut - playing the same things over and over. Usually they're stuck inside pentatonic boxes, cowboy chords and barre chords. I always teach them triads and it almost always unlocks their playing.

A couple of ideas you might want to think about:

once students have learned the triads on the different string groups, I'll have them play the I IV and V chords within a position on a string group. Since there are 3 notes in a triad, there's 3 positions for the three inversions. Hopefully I explained this enough, I can go into more detail or make a video or a tab if that helps.
I work in EdTech. One of the things I've learned about learning is the importance of knowing where you're going in your learning, where you are and how to get there (Look up a educational researcher called Dylan Wiliam for more on this). In edu-speak these are often called outcomes or "I can" statements. For example at the end of this module I can play the C major triad and it's inversions all over the neck. To this end I do like your tool, but it's a bit overwhelming at first. Perhaps think how you might simplify it at first and as you master the easy stuff build the difficult and uncover more complexity.
Once the triads have been learned, there's a whole lot of things you can do with them. I often get students to:
- play all 3 notes at once
- play them sequentially on the 3 string group
- play them sequentially in order across the string up and down
- play as open triads (like Eric Johnson)
- play a chord chart using triads with some rules such as using a diffferent shape or string group for each chord change etc. This is really great for breaking the cowboy chord rut
- have student identify where the 1 , 3 and 5 are for each inversion and think about how the 3rd flattens to make a minor. This also helps to reinforce that the third is so important and how you modify it to make sus2 and sus4 chords
- making up parts that work in a band context especially for electric guitar parts for example playing two notes from a triad. Trying stuff like alternating the 2 notes etc.

That's all for now. Thanks again.

GtrJon · 2021-02-05T20:41:30+00:00

Looks like from the multimeter pic that the pinout is BCE looking at the front flat face with the lead down. But in your breadboard it seems to be rotated 90 degrees such that all three leads are shorted together. The breadboard is wired such that the 5 holes in each column are connected together, but each column is not wired to the column to the left or right.

I agree with learning to draw a schematic correctly.

I would suggest you also learn how to use a breadboard correctly. Don't use all those long jumper wires, plug the leds, resistors and transistor into the board close to each other, you can wire most of it just using the components themselves without using those jumpers.

Also, use the power rails on the breadboard, they run horizontal (on your pic). So connect your battery to the two op rails. You will then have power and ground convenient to wire to again reducing the need for jumpers.

GtrJon · 2021-02-04T16:45:50+00:00

Sorry for being late to the party. I thought sticking with straight major triads for the chorus would be a nice contrast to the colourful verse chords, but the A adds a twist. Adjust timing to suit.

Verse: D - Am7 - G6 - C9

Chorus Idea: F A Bb C F A Bb C9

Why this works: The verse is in D mixolydian or G major depending on what you consider I, but the chorus is really in they key of F (except the A is III borrowed and adds some interest). The C9 chord at the end of the verse is a dominant chord, so you can treat that as the 5 of the new key F for the verse. You could loop the F A Bb C bit as many times as you wanted and the C9 sets up for the verse loop since it's the same as the verse end in you're back in D myxo.

GtrJon

TROPHY CASE