The Skeptical Guitarist, Vol. 1: The Big Picture - Guitar Method

In the First Approach, we see how major and minor chords are grouped into keys (chord families) according to the 1 - 4 - 5 and C-A-G-E-D Systems, with examples from popular music.  Topics include the Big Fifteen chords, using the capo, finding the starting note, tuning, the Rhythm Changes and secondary dominant chords.

In the Second Approach, we start over from the beginning and fill in the details of how to use Major Scales to generate the five C-A-G-E-D chord families and how all 12 key are related through the Circle of Fifths, the cosmic nutshell of the entire musical universe.  Topics include transposing from key to key, dominant seventh chords, triad spellings, the jazz turnaround, back cycling through the Circle, and relative minor keys.  Plenty of examples.

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

• The First Approach

  Notes and pitches 
  The layout of the notes 
  Tuning the guitar 
  Chords and chord quality 
  The Big Fifteen chords 
  Playing in different keys 
  The 1-4-5 system
  C-A-G-E-D examples 
  Chord Families 
  The 1 and 5 chords 
  Songs in different keys 
  The 1, 4 and 5 chords Songs in different keys 
  "Silent Night" in all 5 keys 
  Choosing the right key 
  Using the capo 
  Quiz time for the 1-4-5's Finding the starting note
  Adding the Minor chords 
  Songs in the Keys of G and C 
  "Rhythm Changes" Secondary Dominants Bunches of useful chords (A-G)

  The Second Approach

  The Chromatic scale 
  Layout on the neck 
  The Major scale 
  The Key of C 
  Scale degrees and other keys 
  The Key of G 
  Worksheet for Major scales 
  Traveling by Fifths 
  Major scale summary 
  The flat keys 
  The fretboard and the keyboard 
  Major scale exercises 
  Back to Chord Families 
  The C Harmonized Diatonic scale 
  Major chords versus Minor chords 
  Four combinations of Thirds Other 
  Chord Families 
  Worksheets for Chord Families 
  C-A-G-E-D Chord Family summary Example: "Morning Has Broken" 
  Full Chord Family summary 
  Transposition chart 
  Details of the 1-4-5 relationship 
  The Dominant 7th chord 
  Overlapping Chord Families 
  Chord substitutions 
  Triad spellings 
  My Bio 
  The Circle of Fifths 
  More on Secondary Dominants 
  Examples in the Key of C 
  Down by a 5th = up by a 4th 
  Backcycling through all the keys 
  C-A-G-E-D Chord Family examples 
  Mixing in the Minor chords 
  The Jazz Turnaround 
  "Morning Has Broken" again 
  Yuletide Backcycling in a the C-A-G-E-D keys Starting notes 
  Shortcuts in terminology 
  The 4th of the 4th 
  Major 7th and Minor 7th chords 
  Minor keys 
  C Major versus A Minor 
  Three kinds of Minor scales 
  Carols in the Keys of Am, Dm, and Em 
  Appendix 1: Why the number "five"? 
  Appendix 2: Key signatures 
  Volume One in a nutshell
  One last quiz