Fingerboard memory exercises I've made myself

[jakebeamish]

Hello guys, it's been a while since I lurked around here!

I've recently been getting into jazz playing, specifically walking - and to improve my knowledge of note names and chord shapes up and down the fretboard, I came up with a couple of exercises. Thought they might be worth sharing.

http://jakebeamish.co.uk/2013/12/ascending-chord-exercises-pt-2/

http://jakebeamish.co.uk/2013/11/ascending-cycle-of-fourths-exercise/

People talk about the fretboard 'lighting up' or being like a map - I do understand the idea, but I'd like help with finding out how to really work hard on this.
I suppose the most basic step toward achieving this would be knowing that the 12th fret is an octave of open, 2 frets up and 2 strings down is an octave, etc. I'm completely comfortable with doing that, as well as lots of different scales and arpeggios, but sometimes I still falter when trying to find multiple and ever changing chord tones in one 'position' of the neck. Any clues?

[Myke]

I like your exercises Well done with them.

As to the other part of your question, I'm not quite sure what you mean?

[XB26354]

A simple answer to the 2nd part of your question is to take a four fret area, with one fret below and one above as "extension" areas, and play both of your exercises without moving out of this area (which will require some transposition as you won't be able to go as high). Then try an entire tune in one position. You end up with some rather awkward fingering but it really helps to know more about changing chords. To get away from the root bias inherent in bass playing try to invert arpeggios or start scales on non-root notes. If you can do all if that easily then you're well on the way
Fingerboard knowledge breaks down into 3 areas: notes in one position, notes moving from one position to another and lines that run vertically across multiple positions. When I say notes, that could mean a scalar line, an arpeggio or a wider intervallic motif.
A stringed instrument is very hard to learn comprehensively because the same bunch of notes can be found in different areas of the neck, so many lines can be played with different fingering and will sound differently as a result. The payoff is the breadth of timbre and attack!

[tinyd]

+1 to what XB26354 says above.

One pattern that I use quite a bit is using the first inversion of chords when you're playing the root on the D and G strings. So for example, if you're playing over an Eb major chord, then you have the root (Eb) on the D string on the first fret, the fifth (Bb) on the A string on the first fret and the third (G) at the third fret on the E string. If it's a minor chord, then the third is instead at the second fret (Gb in this case). This pattern will work all the way up the neck. What I like about this is that if you're walking, then you have the first three notes immediately available (root, third and fifth, although not necessarily in that order). Then, depending on the next chord, all you have to do is choose a fourth note that leads to that next chord (either chromatic, scale or chord tone). I'm not saying that you should use this all the time, as it'll quickly sound pretty mechanical, but it's a useful pattern to have available under your fingers.

[Ashwood1985]

Good thread!

[Coilte]

I found this to be very helpful.


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