Stop Learning Chord-Scale Theory! Do THIS Instead! Ultimate Dominant 7 Practice Workout

[@joshr4575]

Always love to work through these lessons thank you for all your contributions to the KZbin guitar community!

[@dsg_studio]

Glad to hear this! It's my pleasure. Just trying to put out what I wish I had when I was learning haha. Thanks for watching!

[@CHYPCAR]

David - Just recently subscribed and really enjoying your focus on Barry Harris. What a goldmine Barry has left us with and your teaching style certainly does it justice! Many Thanks

[@dsg_studio]

You're welcome! Thanks for watching! I don't always teach Barry's methods but they always resonate with the algorithm when I do lol.

[@aryarseno7760]

Nice and helpful Video.!!!

[@JazzStrat781]

Excellent video as always 👍🎸 hope you are well

[@dsg_studio]

Thanks! Doing well. Just getting back into my routine after several weeks off haha.

[@patrickcaron5929]

Thanks a lot David . It's very good stuff like always . In these exercises , how is your picking ?? A lot of P.O and Hammers ??

[@dsg_studio]

For most of them the idea is to slur the last note on a string. Gives more of a horn-like articulation.

[@AdrianFarrell]

I've subbed 🙂

[@abraxas1]

when you mentioned the mixolydian mode in the beginning it really clicked for me! finally some progress in relating the dominant 7 to something i'm at least a little familiar with.

[@dsg_studio]

@@abraxas1 glad to hear it! Hope this stuff helps. This and the next couple episodes have a lot of mileage in them in my opinion. Thanks for watching!

[@AdrianFarrell]

This is an amazingly comprehensive lesson, thank you. I've bookmarked it and will return to it with a patreon subscription for the pdf soon when I've solidified some current things I'm working on.

[@dsg_studio]

Thanks so much for the kind words. Glad you found it so helpful. Check back next week for more!

[@jeffreyjohnson5652]

Hi, to be hones I don't really get what the point of learning this scales is. I mean I don't get concept of the video. Can someone help?

[@dsg_studio]

@jeffreyjohnson5652 the point is to be able to play lines over dominant 7 chords while making the chord tones land on strong beats.

[@ChristianBalcharan]

Never thought I'd see CaptainSparklez teaching me guitar

[@dsg_studio]

Lol! Someone on another video said a similar comment about me looking like Tony Stark 🤣

[@patrickcaron5929]

Hi David . Thanks a lot . Now I'm learning bebop dominant scale with his arpeggios . Have I to stop that and the best is it to learn the system of Barry Harris???? Thanks for all you give

[@dsg_studio]

@patrickcaron5929 I wouldn't get hung up on best or worst. It all leads to the same place so it's whatever clicks for you. I personally love Barry's approach. It's all very clear and musical

[@vivsavagex]

i think this is all great stuff but i think its more about - FORGET thinking about chord scale theory and not really DONT learn chord-scale theory. if you are unfamiliar with the shapes for these chords and scales (chord-scale theory) i think this becomes a lot more work to learn and internalize these ideas...chord scale theory should be the alphabet and this is learning grammar.

[@pickinstone]

Chord scale theory does more harm than good. The chord shapes we learn come from BASIC arpeggios, major, and minor scales. Chord scale gets you into the "every chord, a different scale" mess. Chord scales also totally ignore the rhythm of the notes--where you play the notes in the measure. Bebop scales were an after thought in the world of chord scales. The Barry Harris method limits your scale decisions--dominant, major, minor, diminished, and augmented. There is no bebop scale because the rhythm and PULSE are built into the scale at the onset. Triads are emphasized in the Barry Harris method, as well as BASIC seventh chords. Barry Harris teaches melodic and harmonic tension and release as part of the method, not the icing on top. Since Dr. Harris simplifies the material, he allows you to take it to your instrument QUICKLY instead of getting into never ending conversations about theoretical application (which I totally did and it was a painful to know all that theory and then come up with nothing MUSICAL when I got to my guitar). For most of the jazz you'll encounter at jams and gigs, you shouldn't bother with your lydian super dominant b9 scales. Even for more modern tunes, that stuff just slows down your thinking. For many of the modern tunes--like Wayne Shorter tunes--you think SIMPLIER when you improvise, like pentatonics. So chord scales are in essence, a waste of time (but a great way to write tons of theory books).

[@dsg_studio]

This is all very true! It's why love the Harris approach to these things. It's what I teach my students. I tell them that knowing modes is good and necessary but it doesn't get you all the way or even half way to the goal, which is playing melodies over changes. This stuff gets you much closer and combined with transcription, learning etudes, and careful study, it's a much more rounded approach.

[@vivsavagex]

​@@pickinstone i dont agree. if you think about chord scales in the right way then its not too much work or too hard. you really only need to know a handful of scales. major, melodic minor, harmonic minor, diminished, and whole tone...everything else is derived from these patterns. major being 80% of where youre going to spend your time and most of the time theres only one choice for a chord except for dominants which have a lot of flavors. but even then you can break it down pretty easily and you will usually favor one sound in a situation over another so its not like every time you hit a 7b5 chord your having to think about every single possibility. youre probably gunna be a guy who reaches for lydian dominant. or maybe your a diminished guy, etc. but you SHOULD investigate these sounds. all the greats did this they just didnt have a systematic way of memorizing them like the chord-scale theory at the time. it was idiosyncratic to them and/or the people they learned/copped off. now im not saying from the beginning you should be learning every single scale possibility but as youre advancing, what is your excuse? this is your art form its a lifelong endeavor there are no shortcuts...i love barry harris and i have studied him quite a bit but theres no reason you shouldnt eventually investigate every kind of sound that you can...every single successful guitarist working today knows how to use all these scales derived from the scales i mentioned. some spend more time thinking about it than others but every single one of them knows this stuff. what does that tell you?

[@vivsavagex]

@@dsg_studio absolutely agree. chord-scale syllabus on its own is like trying to learn spanish by reading a spanish dictionary...i usually limit my students to improvising with just the triads for a long time. and then just the 7th chords. and then approach and enclosure ideas for the chord tones. you could really get by almost entirely with just that stuff. limiting students to just these notes is amazing to watch their faces light up at the infinitely better melodies they improvise when switching to this when they were bogged down by too much other stuff...harris is the man! it took me a long to really internalize his concepts as i learned of him when i was already pretty far a long in my guitar journey but it was well worth the effort! he was a master and i think hes experiencing a bit of a resurgence and it wouldnt surprise me if his concepts become core curriculum in jazz programs (if they already arent. but they arent where i have taught and went to school)

[@dsg_studio]

@vivsavagex I agree on some points and while I have fully investigated the major and minor modes as well as other systems, I find these I've detailed in the video to be a more direct line to the language. You're free to disagree of course.