Chord / Scale Relationships
This is the most complicated of GuitarPower's display modes. Chord / Scale Relationships allows you to superimpose the notes of a scale against the notes of a chord arpeggio enabling you to make choices of scales to use when soloing over chord types and also to visualise how chords and scales fit together.
Chord Type Selector
Allows the selection of a chord type. All of the chords and groups supported by the chords display mode are found here. Click here for more information about chords.
Scale Type Selector
Once a chord is selected, two groups of scales are available.
Recommended scales tend to contain all of the chords notes and are those that are generally used when soloing over the selected chord type.
Other scales may contain many non-chord notes and chord notes may be totally missing from the scale. Often these are not a good choice for improvisation.
When more that one scale is recommended the best choice often depends on the context of the chord ie. whereabouts in a chord progression a chord appears and what its relationship to the key is.
All of the scales supported by the scales display mode are found here. Click here for more information about scales.
Chord and Scale Information
Displays detailed information about the currently selected chord and scale
Name: The root note and the name of the chord and scale
Notes (in red): The notes contained within the chord and scale. This changes to reflect the current root note.
Formula: A method of calculating the notes in a musical structure regardless of key. For more information about how formulas work see chords or scales.
Postion Selector
GuitarPower can display chord and scale notes over the entire fretboard or can restrict display to a position. (A position refers to where the first finger is placed on the fretboard and all the notes that can be reached by the other fingers.) Example: 2nd position means first finger at the 2nd fret.
In many cases selecting 4 note positions will display all of the chord and scale notes in a position. In some cases selecting 5 note positions may be necessary - this is sometimes called an extended position where either the first or fourth fingers stretches to reach a note outside the normal 4 note position. This technique is often employed when playing scales with 3 notes on each string.
Selecting All Positions will display notes over the entire length of the fretboard.
Key
Clicking this button shows the fingering colours dialog box which allows you to view and change the colours used to represent chord notes, scale notes and notes that are common to both. Being familiar with the colours used to represent chord and scale notes is paramount to the effect use of the chord / scale relationships option.