Practical Theory Part 1: Intervals Guitar Lesson
Practical Theory Part 1: Intervals
Orville dives into part 1 of his beginners' guide to practical theory. In this lesson, you will learn the basics of intervals.
Taught by Orville Johnson in Beginner Acoustic with Orville seriesLength: 17:30Difficulty: 2.0 of 5
Scene 1: Introduction
Orville Johnson introduces his practical music theory – concepts that will help you communicate and understand musical ideas with other musicians.
The first theory concept to know is the musical alphabet. The letters A through G are used to name notes. After G, it starts over at A again.
The letter names of the notes that the strings of a guitar are tuned to are (from low to high): EADGBE.
Scene 2: IntervalsThe scale that Orville demonstrates is the C Major scale. The notes of a C Major scale are: CDEFGABC.
By assigning numbers to each note in the scale we have the intervals for the scale (eg. D is the 2nd interval of the C Major scale, E is the 3rd, etc.). Notice that the eighth note of the scale is the same as first note. It is the same note, just played an octave higher, so the number assigned to it is 1 instead of 8.
Here are some terms that you need to know:
Octave – The eighth interval of a scale, it has the same letter name as the root note.Root – The first note of a scale.
Diatonic Scale – Scale with seven different notes.
Chromatic Scale – Scale with every note played between the root and the octave.
Half Step – An interval equivalent to two adjacent keys on a piano or two adjacent frets on a guitar.
Sharp Note – A note raised by a half step, represented with the symbol “#.”
Flat Note – A note lowered by a half step, represented with the symbol “b.”
Major Interval – The 2nd, 3rd, 6th, and 7th interval of a major scale.
Minor Interval – A major interval lowered by a half step.
Augmented Interval – An interval that is widened by a half step.
Diminished Interval – An interval that is lowered by a half step.
The C chromatic scale looks like this: C C#/Db D D#/Eb E F F#/Gb G G#/Ab A A#/Bb B C.
Notice that there are no notes between E and F or between B and C. Also, there is at most one half step between each note of the major scale. That means that there is one note between C and D, for example, so C# and Db is the same note.
Supplemental Learning Material
Beginner Acoustic with Orville
Found in our Beginner Lesson SetsDiscover the essentials with Orville Johnson by learning some of the most popular topics and techniques in beginner guitar.
Lesson 1
Overcoming Beginner Challenges
Orville talks about some challenges you will likely face as a beginner and offers some advice that will help you overcome them.
Length: 13:05 Difficulty: 0.5 Members OnlyLesson 2
Flatpick and Strumming
Orville talks about flatpicks, how to hold them, and how to strum with them.
Length: 13:29 Difficulty: 1.0 FREE
Fingerpicking and Patterns
Orville Johnson introduces some basic fingerpicking patterns.
Length: 6:58 Difficulty: 2.0 Members Only
Metronome and Practicing
Orville Johnson explains why it is important to practice with a metronome. He also covers some practice strategies that will help minimize your frustration.
Length: 21:35 Difficulty: 1.0 Members Only
Practical Theory Part 1: Intervals
Orville dives into part 1 of his beginners' guide to practical theory. In this lesson, you will learn the basics of intervals.
Length: 17:30 Difficulty: 2.0 Members Only
Practical Theory Part 2: Scales
Orville Johnson takes a look at scales in part 2 of his practical theory mini-series.
Length: 18:40 Difficulty: 2.0 Members Only
Practical Theory Part 3: Chords and Construction
Orville Johnson jumps into part 3 of his practical theory mini-series. This lesson is about chords and their construction.
Length: 21:08 Difficulty: 2.0 Members Only
Connecting Chords with Bass Runs
Orville Johnson demonstrates how simple chord progressions can be spruced up with bass runs. The classic song "Oh! Susanna" is used as an example.
Length: 12:04 Difficulty: 1.5 Members Only
Basic Blues Shuffle
Orville Johnson demonstrates a basic blues shuffle. This incredibly easy rhythm piece will have you sounding like a blues great in no time!
Length: 12:38 Difficulty: 1.5 Members Only
Voice Leading
Orville Johnson talks about the concept of voice leading. This concept will help you play chord progressions that flow better and sound more harmonious.
Length: 10:20 Difficulty: 2.0 Members Only
Major Chords
Orville Johnson teaches the basic major chords in this lesson. He also explains the best way to change from chord to chord, a challenge for many beginners.
Length: 19:23 Difficulty: 1.5 Members Only
About Orville Johnson
View Full Biography
Orville Johnson was born in 1953 in Edwardsville, Illinois and came up on the St. Louis, Missouri music scene, where he was exposed to and participated in a variety of blues, bluegrass and American roots music. He began singing in his Pentecostal church as a young boy, in rock bands in middle school, then took up the guitar at 17,with early influences from Doc Watson, Rev. Gary Davis, Mississippi John Hurt, and Chuck Berry. In the early 1970's, Orville spent several seasons playing bluegrass on the SS Julia Belle Swain, a period-piece Mississippi river steamboat plying the inland waterways, with his group the Steamboat Ramblers.
Orville moved to Seattle, Washington in 1978, where he was a founding member of the much-loved and well-remembered folk/rock group, the Dynamic Logs. Other musical associates include Laura Love, Ranch Romance, File' Gumbo Zydeco Band, Scott Law, and the Twirling Mickeys. Johnson, known for his dobro and slide guitar stylings and vocal acrobatics, has played on over 100 albums. He has appeared on Garrison Keilor's Prairie Home Companion, Jay Leno's Tonight Show and was featured in the 1997 film Georgia with Mare Winningham. His musical expertise can also be heard on the Microsoft CD-ROMs, Musical Instruments of the World and the Complete Encyclopedia of Baseball. He teaches as well at the International Guitar Seminar, Pt. Townsend Country Blues Week and Puget Sound Guitar Workshop.
Orville released 4 recordings in the 1990's: The World According to Orville (1990) Blueprint for the Blues (1998) Slide & Joy (1999) an all-instrumental dobro tour de force and Kings of Mongrel Folk (1997) with Mark Graham. He also appeared on 4 discs with the File' Gumbo Zydeco Band and produced Whose World Is This (1997) for Jim Page and Inner Life (1999) for Mark Graham. In the 21st century, he has released Freehand, a new Kings of Mongrel Folk disc, Still Goin' Strong, and been featured in the soundtracks of PBS' Frontier House and the Peter Fonda flick The Wooly Boys as well as the compilation cd Legends of the Incredible Lap Steel Guitar.
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Discussions with our instructors are just one of the many benefits of becoming a member of JamPlay.@tifoso Thanks for the additional info. But let us not confuse it here - Its for beginners, and its better not to mess it up.
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A bit of trivia, which I suspect you know. You stated that we do not have a key of H or one of S. Your choices show you do know that in German music of the 19th Century, there were keys of H and S. H was what we now call B natural with their B being our B flat. S was E flat. Thus, Lizst could write a Fugue on B A C H, the letters in the much-revered Bach's name. Schumann, in Carneval, included a piece using S C H A, the letters in his name. There are various stories that they letters also spelled Asch, the town wherein lived a girl to whom he was betrothed - before Clara, of course. The notes for the letters appear in the tenor line of the piece Pierrot, depicting a rude clown who, musically, sticks his tongue out at us every four bars. Useless trivia.