- Lessons
- Guitar
- Ukulele
- Bass
- Music
- Articles
- Clinics
- FAQ
- Play-along Tracks
- Repertoire
- Solo Arrangements
Triggers - How to Remember Songs
Tips and Tricks to remembering songs an chord progressions
.png)
Triggers - How to Remember Songs (index.shtml) | Updated: 29-Nov-2008 - 22:00
How Triggers Work
Triggers are a way to remember a song or chord progression, independent of a particular key. It is a pathway or road map through a song. I've always had trouble remembering songs and was amazed at how most pro musicians can remember so many songs.
The trick is to remember the very common harmonic sequences, be able to identify a chord's function within a tonalty and apply roman numerals to these chords. So when starting at A, how to get to B and pathway to get you there. Like a maze or directions when travling.
Look for cycles, modulations an repeating sections.
Here is an example using a very simple standard song Blue Bossa by Kenny Durham.
The most common key is Cm
Cm7 | Cm7 | Fm7 | Fm7 |
Dm7b5 | G7 | Cm7 | Cm7 |
Ebm7 | Ab7 | Dbmaj7 | Dbmaj7 |
Dm7b5 | G7 | Cm7 | Cm7 |
This can be summarized as:
Cm: I | I | IV | IV |
II | V | I | I |
Db: II | V | I | I |
Cm: II | V | I | I |
And further summarized keyless as:
I IV II V I ↑m3 II V I ↑m2 II V Im
The key to this notation if found on every song page.
And in english if you where explaining it to a fellow musician that has a little of the principles of how chord progressions work would be:
It is a I IV II V I on minor then up a minor third and them II V I in a major key. Up 1/2 step and II V minor to the I of the key. That is the whole harmonic structure of Blue Bossa.
Search & Talk
Quick Links
Ukulele
Guitar
Lessons
Instruments
Luthiers
Musicians
Learning Songs
Misc. Music
Racewalking
Random Stuff
Featured Books
Ukulele Chords
NEW This small (1/2 size) chord book is a great little book to carry with you. Ukulele Chords covers basic open position and basic movable form chords. From these two chord categories a variety of songs and styles can be played.
A Guide to Ukulele Strums & Rhythmic Patterns
This book is designed as a guide to ukulele (pronounced “oo-koo-lele”) strums. From rock and waltz strums to reggae and broken chord strums.
A Guide to Ukulele Chords
This book is designed as a guide to ukulele (pronounced “oo-koo-lele”) chords. Covering basic ukulele chords that ALL uke players MUST know, movable chord forms, rock uke chords, how to transpose chords, learning the ukulele fingerboard and an introduction to 4-part “jazz” chords and more...
Ukulele For Guitar Players
Ukulele for Guitar Players is a guide to transferring the accumulated experience and knowledge gained as a guitar played to the ukulele.
A Guide to Blues Chord Progressions for Ukulele A to Z
Covers the key of C major and C minor, including a detailed accompanying text explaining the principles behind each progression and the chord substutitions.
Exploring "Jazz" Chords on Ukulele
Exploring "Jazz" Chords takes the core chords from A Guide to Advanced Chords for Ukulele and shows their use over a variety of common chord progressions based on songs from the standard jazz repertoire.
A Guide to Advanced Chords for Ukulele
If your goal is to expand your chord vocabulary, The Advanced Guide to Ukelele Chords Series is your answer. Commonly referred to as "jazz" chords. A Guide to Advanced Ukulele Chords Volume I provides detailed information on voicing 4-part chords.
The Advanced Guide to Guitar Chords
Commonly referred to as "jazz" chords this provides detailed information on voicing 4-part chords.
Harmonic Analysis For Scale Selection And Chord Substitution
Harmonic Analysis is the understanding of the functional sequence of chords. It is the process used to analyze the harmonic structure of a progression, song or composition. This analysis is then used to make scale selections for improvisation and chord substitution.
Ukulele - Reading Music Series
Reading Music in Open Position, Single Note Studies- Primer. Reading music is not as hard as one might think. It may be new and unfamiliar to you but is not hard when you have a proper plan of attack.
Website brought to you by
Curt Sheller
Curt Sheller Publications
www.CurtSheller.com
Hosted by MacHighway
Online Orders & shipping Information
We have been getting our products to our customers using online ordering since 2000. In all of that time (and across the hundreds of orders processed) our customers have not had one instance of credit card difficulties due to online ordering.
Our online orders are fully encrypted and our e-commerce site is directly provided by ccNow, a secure online retailer. The security technology is state of the art and your credit card information is transmitted only once.
All products are in stock and will normally be shipped out to you on the next business day.
All orders purchased here at CurtSheller.com,
JazzGuitarResources.com,
UkuleleChords.net and
UkuleleForGuitarPlayers.com
are processed using a secure shopping cart system and shipped within 48
hours USPS. Allow 7 to 10 business days for delivery. It is not our
intention to profit from shipping and handling charges. The rates are an
average cost, and intended to cover expenses only. Please do not ask how
long it will takes to get your order. All US orders are shipped USPS
Priority Mail® or USPS First-Class Mail® (under 1lb) and delivery dates
are not predictable. I do not check on an order not received until three
weeks have elapsed since it was shipped. Three weeks is not how long it
takes to get your order. Rather, it is how long it takes to convince us
that something is wrong. Some orders are returned by the USPS and we
have to wait to see if that has happened before any action is taken.
Thanks, Curt Sheller Publications.
Goods and services provided by Curt Sheller Publications (PA, United States) and sold by ccNow.com.
Other items purchased through Amazon.com and SheetMusicPlus.com are shipped by Amazon.com and SheetMusicPlus.com.
BOOKS AUTHORED BY CURT SHELLER ARE NOT AVAILABLE ON AMAZON.COM
This web site uses safe, secure online shopping provided by ccNow.com Inc. Goods and services provided by Curt Sheller Publications (PA, United States).
Sold by ccNow.com Inc. (Delaware, USA).
Created on a Macintosh using Mac OS X and BBEdit (hosted on Mac OS X servers by itsamac.com) Site designed and maintained by Curt Sheller Publications
All trademarks are the property of their respective holders.
Site is best view on anything except Explorer (PC or Mac). Tested on Safari, Firefox on Mac and PC. Even looks good on iPhone.
And, always attempting to get it OK on Explorer 6 and 7.
More site mumbo jumbo can be found here...
The links to Amazon and SheetMusicPLus contain my referrer id, so when you buy any books through these links, you also indirectly support my sites with a big thank you).
It doesn’t cost you anything and it gives me a little boost to recoup the hosting and development expenses.
This sit has ben profesionaly red. awl tpyos aree free and no aditonal chrge.
No Microsoft products were used in the creating of this website - tested in IE using Parallels on my Mac. And what a pain that is!!! - The Windows part not the Parallels.
BEST viewed using Safari or FireFox on PC or Apple. REALLY!!! IE should not be allowed on the web ;-) Use Firefox, Safari, Opera or basically anything else that is W3C compliant. Hey Braddah, Now lets have a Kani Ka Pila - Hosted on MacHighway
www.CurtSheller.com • Curt Sheller Publications © 1995 - 2008 Curt Sheller - On the web since 1995 and a Mac since 1987 (Mac II) • Kanakapila!!!
No Microsoft products were used in the creating of this website - tested in IE using Parallels on my Mac. And what a pain that is!!! - The Windows part not the Parallels.