How to Play I–ii Progressions in C and G Major | Acoustic Guitar’s Chord by Chord

  • Home
  • Featured
    • Friends
    • Pedals
  • Latest
  • Playlists
  • Blog
  • Channels
    • Brands
    • Artists
    • Retail
  • Contact

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 4 months ago

Welcome to the latest installment of Chord by Chord, a series designed to build your understanding of harmony and the fretboard. So far, if you’ve been a diligent student then you have a bunch of different major and minor voicings at your fingertips. This week your focus will be on connecting two chords, the I and the ii, in both the key of C major and G major, using shapes you already know.

In the key of C major, the I chord is C and the ii is D minor. Example 1 shows the most basic way to connect these two chords, by using your basic open voicings. In Example 2, you’ll find another common move—playing the C chord as a barre shape in third position and the D minor in fifth position. As before, you don’t have to play all five notes in each chord. Try just the notes on strings 2–5, for instance. That way, you can avoid playing barre chords. Example 3 shows you how to play the progression higher still up the neck. If you can, play the full six-note chord voicings before exploring partial shapes, like just the bottom or top four notes of each chord.

Now let’s move along to the key of G major, in which the I chord is G and the ii is A minor. First try this progression with open chords, as shown in Example 4. Try the G chord as written, or use any of the open variations you learned previously. Then try the closed-position shape (not involving any open strings) in Examples 5–6. When playing through all of these examples, make sure that you can hear all of each chord’s notes clearly, and try to name the pitches as you go along. Work on switching between the chord shapes as smoothly as possible.

The Result

If you’ve been following along since the beginning, you should now know how to play C, G, D, Am, Em, and Dm chords—and how to switch between some of them. This week, you focused on the I–ii progression in the keys of C and G major. One song that makes good use of the I–ii in C is Lucinda Williams’ “Am I Too Blue,” which also incorporates another chord you already know, G. Practice these moves until next lesson, when I’ll show you how to switch between the I and vi chords, also in the keys of C and G.

Fender Custom '68 Sound & Style! A Closer Look at... Fender '68 Custom Amplifiers

Peach Guitars | 6 months ago

Laura Snowden Performs “The Parting Glass” | Acoustic Guitar Sessions in Place

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 19 hours ago

Imaj7–IV–V7–Imaj7 Progression in G Major | Acoustic Guitar's Chord by Chord

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 6 days ago

Acoustic Guitar Gear Demo: MXL Revelation Mini FET Condenser Microphone

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 1 week ago

I–vi–IV–viidim–V7–I Progression in G Major | Acoustic Guitar's Chord by Chord

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 2 weeks ago

I–vi–IV–V7–I Progression in G Major | Chord by Chord

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 3 weeks ago

I–IV–V7–I Progression G Major | Chord by Chord

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 1 month ago

I–ii–V–I Progression in G Major | Chord by Chord

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 1 month ago

Learn 6 Ways to Play D Major 7 | Acoustic Guitar's Chord by Chord

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 1 month ago

Guitar Lesson: How to Go From Standard to Open-G Tuning (Excerpt)

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 2 years ago

Learn 6 Ways to Play G Major 7 | Acoustic Guitar Chord by Chord

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 2 months ago

Campfire Songs for Acoustic Guitar: Learn to Play "John Henry"

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 2 years ago

Scottish Songs for Acoustic Guitar: Learn to Play "Cam Ye O'er Frae France" in Dropped-D Tuning

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 3 months ago

7 Ways to Play a C Major 7 | Acoustic Guitar Chord by Chord

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 2 months ago

Acoustic Guitar Flatpicking Repertoire: How to Play "Home Sweet Home"

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 3 months ago

Learn a Chord-Melody Arrangement of the Jazz Standard "Whispering" on Acoustic Guitar

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 2 months ago

Guitar Lesson: Learn How to Sweep Pick on Acoustic Guitar

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 3 months ago

A Mini Guitar Lesson with Ben Harper | "Better Way"

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 2 months ago

Gibson’s 50s LG-2 Pairs Vintage Vibe with Modern Playability | Acoustic Guitar Demo

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 2 months ago

How to Restring Your Guitar With Ease

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 2 months ago

Learn 5 Ways to Play a C7 | Chord by Chord

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 2 months ago

PRS Guitars Tonare Parlor SE P20E | Acoustic Guitar Review

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 2 months ago

Acoustic Guitar Lesson: An Easy Introduction to Ragtime Guitar with Mary Flower

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 3 months ago

New Gear- Gold Tone’s F-6 Mando-Guitar Makes it Easy for a Guitarist to Sound Like a Mandolinist

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 2 months ago

Brandon Lee Adams Performs and Teaches a Bluegrass Tune | Acoustic Guitar Sessions in Place

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 2 months ago

Learn 5 Ways to Play G7 | Acoustic Guitar's Chord by Chord

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 2 months ago

6 Ways to Play D7 | Acoustic Guitar's Chord by Chord

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 2 months ago

Nile Rodgers Performs “Inside The Box” with the Acoustasonic Stratocaster | Sponsored by Fender

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 2 months ago

Jontavious Willis | Acoustic Guitar Sessions in Place

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 2 months ago

Campfire Songs: Learn an Easy Acoustic Guitar Arrangement of "Deck the Halls"

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 2 years ago

6 Ways to Play G Augmented | Chord by Chord

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 3 months ago

Andy McKee Performs and Teaches ‘She’ | Acoustic Guitar Sessions in Place

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 3 months ago

5 Ways to Play C Augmented | Acoustic Guitar Chord by Chord

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 3 months ago

Gretsch Gin Rickey Parlor Acoustic-Electric Guitar | New Gear Demo

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 3 months ago

Badi Assad Performs "Zoar" | Acoustic Guitar Sessions in Place

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 3 months ago

How to Play E Diminished Voicings | Chord by Chord

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 3 months ago

Jerry Douglas Performs “Foggy Mountain Rock” on his Blackbeard Resonator | AG Sessions in Place

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 3 months ago

5 Ways to Play an A Diminished Chord | Chord by Chord

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 3 months ago

Radial’s HDI High Definition Studio DI Is a Unique Tone-Shaping Tool for Guitars | Demo

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 4 months ago

How to Play Bottleneck-Slide On Acoustic Guitar

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 4 months ago

Rhett Miller (Old 97s) Performs “This House Got Ghosts” | Acoustic Guitar Sessions in Place

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 4 months ago

How to Play I–vi Progressions in C and G Major | Chord by Chord - Acoustic Guitar

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 4 months ago

iZotope RX 8 Audio Editor is Ideal for Home Recording in Less Than Perfect Environments

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 4 months ago

Mike Dawes “Somewhere Home” DADGAD Lesson | Acoustic Guitar Sessions in Place

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 4 months ago

Taylor’s American Dream AD27 Delivers All the Tone Without the Frills

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 4 months ago

The Guitars of Anaïs Mitchell's Hit Broadway Play, Hadestown

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 4 months ago

Acoustic Guitar Demo | Breedlove Organic Signature Concert Copper CE

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 4 months ago

Molly Tuttle and Billy Strings | American Acoustasonic Stratocaster | Sponsored by Fender

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 4 months ago

Acoustic Guitar Lesson: An Introduction to Swing Leads

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 4 months ago

Learn a Fingerstyle Guitar Arrangement of the Mysterious Celtic Tune "Dans Kef"

Acoustic Guitar Magazine | 4 months ago

Links

  • Contact
  • Advertise
  • Submit Channel

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Android
  • iOS
  • © Ocean Reef Studios Pty Ltd. All rights reserved
  • Design: HTML5 UP

More

  • Terms & Conditions
  • Privacy Policy