how to find what notes or chords work in a song

hey, im really new to this whole music stuff. I was wondering, I produce remixes and wanted to know how do you find what notes or chords or whatever it might be call, im really not sure, would work in a song. thanks.

Wow, Jared .... you have a whole world of oportunity available to you , but you will need to learn at leat a FEW basics before you produce that first million seller that's in your head.

You'll need a few simple, theory lessons, and a working knowledge of scales and chords before you can assemble the raw notes into a meaningful arrangement.

Start with a do -re - mi scale. Ever see the movie, "The Sound OF Music" That's a great place to start.

Learn a few scales, then the chord names that go with each note in the scale, and you'll be ready to start experimenting!

Good luck !

a great way for beginners is to use the circle of 5ths.

The circle of 5ths are all the 12 keys organised in a circle of 5th intervals. The way to use it is to choose a key, then the 5 chords next to it are the basic chords of the key.

For instance in the key of F, the basic chords are: F, Bb, C, Dm, Gm, and Am.

Here's the circle http://library.thinkquest.org/15413/media/images/circleof5ths.gif

Red ones are minor keys, and blue ones are major keys.

Doc-Z

Doc-Z,
thanks for that... but i didn;t eactly relise how it works.....
so, using your example i move from F to C...that means thet the 5 chords surrounding C can be used next?
like F, G, Dm, Am, and Em?
that is gow it works?

I've done some remixes, under the Vibelicious name .. have a few release (of course with people helping) .. wow! im so confused, anyone know where I can learn some stuff or is anyone here willing to teach some stuff? I am totally confused on the 5th thing you showed as well

[This message has been edited by Jared4781 (edited 10-05-2006).]

Jared,

Try these links: It's one way to learn chords/progressions.
http://www.alcorn.edu/musictheory/Version2/theory1/Roman.htm
http://www.franksinger.com/Amusic/rom_num_ana.htm
http://www.musictheory.net/lessons/html/id44_en_uk.html



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http://www.myspace.com/mychrisvalenti

wow thanks for all the help ... however im still really confused. I really have no knowledge of scales, chords, etc ... so when reading all of these sites I am really confused and have no understanding of that they mean.

The best way is to buy a book on scales and learn them, (C.F &G will get you going on a lot of songs) that way you have played virtually every song ever made. (They all use notes from the relevant scale)
Once you have learnt a scale, you can use the Circle of Fifths to find the Main Chords.
Hope this Helps

Bill

Hi All
I am coming into this thread at a late stage.
What's all this about the circle of fifths?
I have known these for 60 years.... but where do these help you to find the chords of a song?!!!
cheers
Eddie

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Eddie from Rotherham
Skype:eddiefromrotherham
www.yamahakeyboards.info

For me, this is the easiest way (a cheats way too, but who gives a ...).

With C, G, F and A minor and you'll have the equipment for the vast majority of pop songs.

Throw in D minor and E minor and you're well on the way.

Start with a right hand melody and see which chord works best.

Experiment with Em and Dm, if you need a more mellow sound.

The rest is to play them until it sounds right. You'll know which ones fit together.

Once the tune sounds right, use a transpose function to make it fit the actual key of the original.

Bob's your uncle ...

Trident, yes that is basically how it works.
Essentially there are only three chords in a song, all others are variation, you can literally play most songs (allthough there are exceptions) with only three chords. The tonic, the dominant and the sub-dominant chord. The dominant chord is to right of the tonic (the key of the song), and the sub-dominant is to the left of the tonic, this makes the tonic, the dominant chord for the subdominant. As a basic rule of thumb, the dominant resolves to the tonic. And the subdominant resolves to the dominant. The minor chords on the oposite side is the paralel keys. Am is the paralel key of C, meaning the scale is the same for both keys. So essentially you can exchange any tonic chord for Am, the same goes for the subdominant, and the dominant.

Example: (key of C)

2-5-1 progression. This is by far the most common progression ever.
In the Key of C:

Dm - G - C

If we simplify this we get:

F - G - C
Or
Subdominant - Dominant - Tonic

Once you get this you can add stuff like 7ths, suses and stuff like that later... But get yourself a keyboard, or a guitar and learn the six chords of a key, then basically you can learn any song in that key.

Doc-Z

You MUST learn the scales first, at the very least. The chords follow and then the embellishments.

There is no shortcuts if you want o be able to figure it out for yourself.

The circle of 5th and 4th are great tools for finding key signatures, but I disagree that they help find the chords in any given key. That's simply not true, according to what I've learned. There are infinate combinations of chords within any given key, and following the 5ths will not get you there.

Uncle Dave.
The circle of 5ths is a great tool for beginners to figure out chords. Unless you are doing soloing, scales aren't that important. For very basic comp, or using an arranger, or strumming a guitar, the circle of 5ths is a great tool!

Let me do another example, a more complex one:

Let's take "Angels" by Robbie Williams.
In the key of D major.

Last part of the chorus:

D A
She won't forsake me
C G A D
I'm loving angels instead

Let's analyse

Tonic Dominant
? Sub Dominant Dominant Tonic

Ok here we have a chord that doesn't fit into the pattern, what has happend?
Well the song changes key... C is not a note in the D major key that song is in. But lets look again a little closer. The thing that actually happend is: The song changes key. From D major, to C major, then back to D major again. Using this pattern

Tonic Dominant
Tonic(in C) Dominant Dominant(in D) Tonic(in D)

If we look even further, and substitute a chord from the D major key with the C, the chord that shares most notes with C is Em. Let's try that..

Tonic Dominant
Paralell Sub dominant, Sub dominant, Dominant Tonic.

That works to.. not as good as the C, but it works.

The point of this is not that every song correctly conforms into the circle of 5ths, but that you can essentially play most songs using it in this fashion.

Doc-Z

Thanks doc-z,
I guess a printout of the circle of 5ths in forn of me will improve my pick up of chords in an unknown song.
Thanks again,
Theodore

Here you go, Theodore:
http://home.austin.rr.com/jmjensen/CircleOf5thsFun.html

There are many more of such sites. Just google for "circle of 5ths".

Now, THAT's a cool site for the real discription of how to use the circle to it's fullest !

Taike thanks, it'll take a little time for me to absorb all this!!!

Absorb this???

From that diagram, one could design the great pyramids, redefine planetary motion, and play with 5th dimensional quantum mechanics.

Now... what's a "C" scale again?

mark

Sometimes I'm glad I play by ear. Music reduced to mathematics can be horribly boring in my opinion!

I agree Carrie! The best tool for playing music is your ear!

Doc-Z

I love the fact I play by "ear" too, although sometimes I wish I paid more attention during "A" Level music so I could read as well..........but if I had to choose, playing by ear, to me, is more natural.

I play virtually everything in the key of "F", and can play most songs quickly without much thought in this key, however if I am to play in another key, I actually have to learn the song.

Transpose was a wonderful invention Although it can lead to laziness, with me being a prime example.

I hope Jared isn't discouraged by all that mathematical stuff above.

Music is an art form. To turn it into a scientific endeavour is a total 180 degree turnabout - art and science equate to oil and water, if you get my drift. Math hardly comes from the heart.

Jared, just find yourself a good teacher and stick with him/her. Unless you have an exceptional ear, it really is the only way to go. Practically every good musician you've ever heard has put in countless hours of practice. That's the simple truth, and I wish you every success in your musical journey.