Key of A Minor
Another easy key for guitarists to play in is A minor.
- The most common chords in the key of A minor are - Am, C, Dm, Em, F, G and E7
The key signature for the key of A minor is the same as C major, i.e., it contains no sharps or flats.
This English folk song is in the key of A minor. The melody contains an F# note in bar 8. Use your fourth finger to play this note. The abbreviation rit. in bar 18 indicates to gradually slow down.
Greensleeves is an old English folk song which has been used in the soundtracks of many motion pictures and television shows. It is in the key of A minor. The melody contains F# and G# notes. The G# note is a part of the E7 chord shape and is on the first fret of the 3rd string.
Songs in the key of A minor often contain F# and / or G# notes. The sharp sign (or flat sign) affects all notes of that name within the bar in which it appears. For example, in bars 10 and 26 of Greensleeves the # sign appears before the first G note in each bar. The sharp also applies to all other G notes within that particular bar. The effect of a sharp or flat sign is cancelled by a bar line, meaning that a new sign would be needed to indicate any sharps or flats in the following bar.
The suggested rhythm uses a bass note rhythm pattern in ^ time. The bass note to play is the root note of the chord, e.g., for an A minor chord pick the open 5th string (an A note).
The Eighth Rest
This symbol is an eighth rest. It indicates half a beat of silence.
If a rest occurs after you have played a note, you must stop the note sounding. To do this, lift your finger off the fret but keep it lightly touching the string. To stop an open string sounding, lightly touch it with any finger of your left hand.
This song from South America is also in the key of A minor. Eighth rests are used throughout. The melody contains G# notes and uses a new A note on the fifth fret of the 1st string. Play this high A note with the fourth finger of your left hand.
The Six Eight Time Signature
This is the six eight time signature. There are six eighth notes in one bar of ) time. The six eighth notes are divided into two groups of three. When playing ) time there are two beats within each bar with each beat being a dotted quarter note. (This is different to * and ^ time where each beat is a quarter note). Accent (play louder) the 1 and 4 count to help establish the two-beats-per-bar feel.
D Major Chord
D
To play the D chord, place the first, second and third fingers of your left hand as shown in the diagram, but strum only four strings. Do not strum the 6th string or the 5th string (as indicated by the striped lines).
This song is in ) time and uses the D major chord. The suggested rhythm pattern is in ) time. Accent the strums on the 1 and 4 counts to help keep time.
The suggested rhythm for this song is a half note strum pattern which lasts for the whole six beats of the bar. In bars 13 and 14 you will need to strum twice per bar because there are two chords in these bars. This requires the use of two dotted quarter note strums. Since a dot placed after a note or strum extends its value by half, the dotted quarter note strum lasts for the same time as three eighth notes. This means that two dotted quarter note strums fit in exactly with the two dotted quarter note beats in one bar of ) time.
Bars 13 and 14
Rhythm Pattern
Know Your Guitars…
Dobro
The Dobro is a metal bodied "Resonator Guitar". It has a resonator cone which amplifies the sound even though there are no electronics involved. There are also wooden bodied guitars with a metal resonator cone. All of these guitars are great for slide and fingerpicking. They are traditionally associated with Blues, Bluegrass, Country and other Roots music.
