by Marcy Prochaska
Home | Two-Note "Chords" and Fills | Chord Rolls and Flams | "Ash Grove" Examples
Solo arranging means adding embellishments to the melody. Embellishments can ornament or vary the melody, fill out the chord progression, and / or enhance the rhythm.
We'll begin with embellishments that involve chords, so our first task is to figure out how to find or choose chord notes. We can work by systematic trial-and-error, by using chords provided on our sheet music, or by using chord theory to work out our own chord progression.
Trial-and-error: For any note in the melody, we can systematically test four possible chord notes. Play the melody note with each of the four intervals shown in the diagram: two courses down, three courses down, straight across to the right, or straight across and one down. At least one of these notes should sound good*. Context may affect your choice -- a chord that doesn't sound great when the phrase is isolated may sound fabulous in the context of the tune.
Provided chords: If your sheet music provides chords, use them as a guide. For example, the music might have a D chord for the measure containing our melody note of A. In that case, you'd use one of the two other notes in the chord, F# and D. If you don't know what notes belong in each chord, see my article on chords, particularly the chord spelling chart on the second page.
Choosing chords: If you're working by ear, or from sheet music without chords, you can choose the chord progression yourself. Start with a chord spelling chart like the one on the second page of my article on chords. Divide the tune into short phrases, often measures or half-measures if you're using sheet music. For each phrase, select the chord that contains most or all of the notes in the phrase. If you have more than one chord choice, pick whichever you think sounds best.
More options: If you want to go beyond the four basic intervals, here are some additional ideas. Try an octave -- straight across and down three courses. Try one of the four basic intervals an octave lower. Try chord notes an octave higher, i.e. above the melody note -- but only if you can do so while keeping the melody prominent. Try dissonant intervals, like one course below the melody, or straight across and two down.
* No Good Choices: If none of the four basic intervals sounds good, first try moving to a duplicate of the melody note. For example, the diagram shows the A one above the marked G on the right side of the treble bridge. If you use the marked A on the left side, you'll get C# as one of the options, instead of C natural. The A one below the marked Bb on the bass bridge will give you F natural instead of F#. Or, just expand the trial-and-error method. Try every note, in order, beginning with one course below the melody, all the way down that bridge, then try the other bridge(s).
Home | Two-Note "Chords" and Fills | Chord Rolls and Flams | "Ash Grove" Examples