JAZZ MUSIC

Guitar Pedal Board Configuration

What happened to that skill and is it something you would like to use in church but don’t know how since most modern worship songs give you at best a chord chart when you were taught to play using a full music score.

Guitar Pedal Board Configuration

There are thousands of lapsed piano players out there who took classical lessons as children and are great at Fur Elise and Moonlight Sonata but feel rather out of their depth when faced with Here I am to Worship. Now this is ironic when you consider how easy it is to play so many of today’s contemporary worship songs – they are a lot less challenging than most of that music you learnt to perfection as a child. The role of the keyboard has evolved pretty rapidly over recent years.

Traditionally the organist or piano player was the only musician. They played all the bass, tenor, alto and soprano notes and most of them were adept at reading a musical score. Since the 1960s, however, the guitar has come to dominate so much of our worship music and many more contemporary instruments have also come to the fore. With lead vocalists and the congregation taking the soprano line, backing vocalists the harmonies and bass players picking up the men’s parts, its easy to see why the organ/piano might have fallen out of favour. With so many other people and instruments doing the job that the pianist used to do, its just overkill to have the piano doing it all.

So what should we piano players do in response? Learn to play guitar? Not at all – the keyboard still has a vital role to play and the good news is that we don’t have to be as skilled as previously to sound good. So what’s the secret? Well if you are handed a chord sheet without the musical score you simply use your knowledge of scales to work out what to play. If you see the chord of C, you play a C triad – C, E and G. We’d suggest you play this with your right hand and a C in the bass with your left (you can play two Cs as an octave in the bass if you’re feeling confident).

C is your root note, the E is a third above that and the G is a fifth above that. You follow the same pattern for any major scale so if you see a D, you play a D, F# and A). With minor scales (for instance if you see Cm) all you do is lower the third by a semitone so Cm is C, Eb and G. Dm is D, F and A. There are a few other common chords – like sus or 7th chords but using a basic triad instead is fine for getting started.

The first job of a good keyboard player is to learn all their major and minor chords so that they are natural and easy to play. Once you’ve learnt these you can start using different “voicings” to make your playing a lot smoother. To play a different voicing with your right hand you may play the third note with your thumb, the fifth with finger three and the third with your little finger – they can be in any order. Your aim here is to minimise movement across the keyboard as you move from one chord to another. If your knowledge of scales isn’t so great that so for some trickier keys you can’t remember exactly which notes form the root, third and fifth here is a little cheat to help you. Let’s take G major. Put your thumb on the G note and count in semitones up the keyboard. G# is 2, A is 2, Bb is 3 and B is 4. The fourth semitone up from the root is your third in the chord. Now let’s find the fifth. Count up from the B. C is 1, C# is 2 and D is 3. Your fifth note in the chord is D. This simple pattern of counting semitones up from the root works for any major scale. With minor scales you count three semitones from the root to find the third and four semitones from that to find the fifth.

Play EXISTING riffs and patterns with speed and accuracy click here

So for now what you are able to do is find the right notes to play. While you gain in confidence just play along with some worship CDs simply holding down the chord at the beginning of each bar or whenever it changes – it will probably sound better with a string or soft pad sound and remember to use a sustain pedal – in fact with many songs you could play like this in a live band situation and not disgrace yourself at all! Next is to add some rhythm – that’s a whole new lesson and not one we have room for today. One word of caution – if you see a chord with a slash sign in it you need to play a different note in the bass with your left hand. B/F# literally means B triad over F#. So with your right you play a B triad which is B, D# and F#, and with your left hand you play an F#.

Now you may have noticed that with chord-based playing we minimise any keyboard playing of the melody line – its not normally needed with singers and congregation covering it and often instruments like flutes and violins covering that too. Sometimes it can be helpful – that’s where your ability to go back to the musical score and play a melody line on top of these chords will come in. There are plenty of other interesting things you can do – such as using what we call auxiliary and passing notes. It takes a bit of practice to get used to playing with chords but believe me, if you persevere you will never want to go back – and your band will be really pleased to have a more contemporary feel to the keyboard.

CREATE patterns and riffs anytime of the day or night Click here

About the Author

Play with that star guitarist that you

always admired. Click here

How to Improvise on Piano : Piano Sustain Pedal Tips

Yamaha Piano/Keyboard Sustain Pedal $15.00

Ensoniq SW-6 Piano/Keyboard Sustain Pedal for Parts/Repair $10.00

MODTONE LEMON SQUEEZE COMPRESSOR / SUSTAIN PEDAL [4598] $69.99

Yamaha FC4 Piano Style Keyboard Sustain Pedal $26.49

Yamaha FC4 Piano Style Keyboard Sustain Pedal $26.49

M-Audio MA-SP-1 Sustain Pedal For Keyboard Keyboard Pedal – New $14.99

New KEYBOARD SUSTAIN PEDAL FOOT SWITCH FOR YAMAHA CASIO $16.50

Dynamic Compressor Guitar Effect Pedal Joyo JF-10 with Sustain Attack Level knob $20.99

Keyboard foot pedal sustain Roland $10.00

RADIO SHACK ELECTRONIC KEYBOARD SUSTAIN PEDAL NIB 42-4053 1/4″ JACK $4.69

Yamaha FC4 Piano-Style Sustain Pedal $29.99

Sustain Pedal Foot Switch Keyboard Piano For Yamaha Casio Korg SP20 $15.99

Ampico model A sustain-soft pedals valve unit player piano part orig condition $20.00

Ampico A sustain-soft pedal player piano part — rebuilt $30.00

Sustain Pedal Push Rod for Fender Rhodes E. Piano $42.00

Yamaha FC4 Piano Style Keyboard Sustain Pedal $34.48

On Stage KSP20 Universal Keyboard Sustain Pedal $13.99

Pyle Pro PPDLS10 Piano-Style Sustain Pedal For Keyboards And Synthesizers $31.99

YAMANO SOFT ROLL UP PIANO 61 KEY PORTABLE & DIGITAL MIDI KEYBOARD SUSTAIN PEDAL $59.99

YAMANO SOFT ROLL UP PIANO 61 KEY PORTABLE DIGITAL MIDI KEYBOARD SUSTAIN PEDAL $59.99

YAMANO SOFT ROLL UP PIANO 61 KEYS PORTABLE DIGITAL MIDI KEYBOARD SUSTAIN PEDAL $59.99

ELECTRO HARMONIX BIG MUFF DISTORTION SUSTAIN FX PEDAL $86.92

Electro Harmonix FREEZE Guitar sustain Pedal stomp box $121.50

Rivera Sustain Shaman COMPRESSOR Pedal $299.00

On-Stage Stands KSP100 Keyboard Sustain Pedal $23.99

Red Witch Seven Sisters Grace Compressor Guitar Effects Pedal Sustain GRACE $144.95

Goodrich (Preamp) (Guitar-Pedal Steel ?) Model 7A Super Sustain Match Box-RARE $132.50

Sustain Pedal Wurlitzer 200A / 206 / 200 U.S.A. Made $165.00

Roland SUSTAIN PEDAL $9.99

Korg DS1H Half Damper Piano Sustain Pedal $59.99

Fender Rhodes Sustain Pedal $26.00

Keeley Compressor / Sustainer boutique compression sustain 2-knob pedal $141.50

Wurlitzer Sustain Pedal Cable for the 200 & 200A models $81.25

MPM Normally Open Sustain Pedal for Keyboards PS10 $9.99

Electronic Midi Musical Keyboard -n Synthesizer Sustain Effect Foot Pedal Switch $0.99

NEW Proel SUSTAIN / DAMPER / FOOT SWITCH, compact Pedal $14.99

New Yamaha Foot Switch / Sustain Pedal for PSR DJX DGX DD Keyboards & Drum Pads. $14.99

Casio Synthesizer 61-Key Keyboard Piano Model CTK-574 w/ Stand & sustain PEDAL $61.00

Yamaha KX61 USB Keyboard Studio (MIDI Controller) $499.00 Yamaha KX61 is velocity sensitive sixty-four key keyboard controller that interfaces with a computer via USB, while providing advanced software integration and connectivity. The keyboard can be powered via the USB bus or us. Buy Yamaha KX61 USB Keyboard Controller now!… Buy Yamaha KX61 USB Keyboard Controller now!…

Keeley 4-Knob Compressor Guitar Effects Pedal $249.00 The Keeley Compressor is the award winning industry standard for stomp box compression. The 4 Knob adds Input Clipping and Attack controls to the top of the the original Keeley compressor for easy adjustment. Perfect for those that often switch live between single coils and humbuckers. The sound alone will inspire your creativity….

Tattoo Foot Pedal $1.70 Foot Pedal. Most used foot pedal in the industry. Small square shape . Durable. 1/4 inch phone plug….

MXR Super Comp Pedal $141.00 Countless pros rely on the original Dyna Comp to give them the edge in the studio an on stage. Now, the updated Super Comp takes your playing even further, providing an invisible boost to intricate licks, juicing up your sound, and helping you “lock in” like never before. Output and sensitivity knobs let you dial in the perfect setting to keep your parts where they belong in the mix. The new attac…

SP-2 Heavy-Duty Sustain Pedal $34.99 Heavy-Duty Sustain pedal for keyboards, classic-style damper pedal action. For use with Keystation 49e, Keystation 61es and the 49e/transit bundle. MAC & PC Compatible.

MAudio 99005080500 SP2 HeavyDuty Sustain Pedal $39.43 The MAudio SP2 Sustain Pedal is the perfect product for keyboard players who want the most realistic pedal action. The SP2 model is used in the same manner as the sustain pedal on an acoustic piano. This classicstyle pedal works with any MAudio keyboard. Designed to work. feel just like an acoustic piano s sustain pedal. it has a specially designed rubber bottom that grips the floor stays put while you play. The SP2 is a highquality switchable damper pedal.

Pyle PPDLS1 Acoustic Keyboard/Piano Sustain Pedal $29.51 Piano Style Acoustic Sustain Pedal. Specially Designed Rubber Bottom Floor Grips. Works with all 1/4 Input Keyboards

PylePro PPDLS1 Acoustic KeyboardPiano Sustain Pedal $29.51 Piano Style Acoustic Sustain Pedal. Specially Designed Rubber Bottom Floor Grips. Works with all 1/4 Input Keyboards

PylePro PPDLS10 PianoStyle Sustain Pedal for Keyboards And Synthesizers $41.67 Classic PianoStyle Pedal Works With Most Digital Keyboards And Synthesizers. Designed To Work And Feel Just Like Acoustic Piano s Sustain Pedal. Specially Designed Rubber Bottom Grips The Floor While You Play. HighQuality Chrome Foot Pedal With Expressive HalfPedal Capabilities. Includes 6 Ft. Cable With Mono Plug. Polarity Selector Switch For Maximum Compatibility. Pedal Structure: Thermoplastic ABS With Metal Pedal. Type: Sustain Temporary Switch. Controls: Polarity Switch. Rating: 0.3A/30v DC

Sp32 – Sustain Pedals For Px130/330 Requires Cs67 $55.99 the Sp-32 Pedal, Available as an Option, Provides an Extended Damper Function in That it Simulates a Pedal That Has Been Pressed Down Half Way. [SP32CASIO] UPC: 079767344306 4.4 LB

9900-50805-00 – M-Audio Sp-2 Musical Keyboard Pedal $29.91 the M-audio Sp-2 Sustain Pedal is The Perfect Product For Keyboard Players Who Want The Most Realistic Pedal Action. The Sp-2 Model is Used in The Same Manner as The Sustain Pedal on an Acoustic Piano. This Classic-style Pedal Works With Any M-audio Keyboard. Designed to Work And Feel Just Like an Acoustic Piano’s Sustain Pedal, it Has a Specially Designed Rubber Bottom That Grips The Floor And Stays Put While You Play. The Sp-2 is a High-quality Switchable Damper Pedal. [US65010] UPC: 612391650100 1.7 LB

Main blade sustain set $3 Main blade sustain set

Brunton Sustain Rechargeable Battery $279.95 Brunton Sustain Rechargeable Battery