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I find many of my songs are in G…that fits my vocal range. I’m just learning the Caged system. Can anyone suggest some go to parts of caged system that would be most useful when playing in key of G. Just trying to filter the massive info down to something that is most useful as a starting point. Eventually maybe will know all shapes in all keys etc…but narrowing it down to something useful would be helful as a start. I know brian said in one of the videos that some of the shapes in caged system he found more useful than others which prompted this post. Thank you.
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Hello again Bryan,
I think the most useful major chord voicings in G (or any key) are the A, D, E shapes on the highest pitched 2 string sets, ie. the E,B,G strings and the B, G,D strings. Most of the chord voicings that will cut through the mix are here and the triads that are most useful for soloing are here. You can expand to triads on the lower strings and integrate major chord arpeggios, incorporate harmonized 6ths and overlay the major pentatonic after getting these basics down.
I think you are on the right track for your learning. The best advice, one I wish I had taken, is to start making music with the basic knowledge. It is enough to start being creative.
John -
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Charjo,
Perhaps you can answer this. I have now good understanding of the E D and A shapes. What do you use as a connection point or anchor between The D and A shapes? Between the E and D seems easy I slide up to the 1 note on the 3rd string and play the box (D shape). There doesn’t seem to be such an easy connection pointe between the D and A shape an I want to be able to seamlessly go from D to A without getting lost…since I won’t always be playing in the same key. Any tips would be appreciated. Another way of asking…what note do you key off of in the D shape to get you to the A shape.Thanks.
Bryan -
Hi Bryan,
I’m not 100% sure I understand what you are trying to achieve…If you are currently improvising using the D shape and you want to go improvising in the A shape of the same pentatonic scale (major or minor, it doesn’t matter), then you have to walk your way up the finger board through the C shape, or walk your way down the finger board through the E and G shapes, because the D shape and the A shape are not directly connected. That’s precisely what “CAGED” implies: the shapes follow each other in the sequence ….GEDCAGEDCAGEDCAGE… (assuming an infinitely long fingerboard).
There is a totally different question that you may be asking: “what if I am currently improvising in the G major key over a G major chord (the I chord) using the G major pentatonic scale off the D shape, and I want to follow the change to the D chord? (i.e. the V chord)”… This situation is completely different because you now need to change scale!
But I am not going to answer this question before being sure to understand what you are asking, because I suspect the answer might totally confuse you.
Let us know if you have questuions. -
Jean Michael,
Thanks, and to clarify I am using minor pentatonic scale and have only so far learned pattern 1 (e shape), 2 (d shape), and 4 (A shape). Brian and others had suggested these 3 as most important to start with. So yes say i am in minor pentatonic D shape and the 5 notes that Brian focused on in his diagram (top 3 strings)….so to get to the A shape I have to jump up 2 notes on the 1st string to get to the A shape….maybe its as easy as remembering that…”when in D shape jump up 2 notes on the first string to start pattern 4″. I just thought, perhaps, maybe there was a better way that would lead to more fluid transition. There is always the possibility that I am overthinking this!Bryan
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Hi,
I don’t think you are overthinking this. Your questions are normal and very relevant. However, I think you may be jumping ahead of yourself a little bit… I would recommend spending some time (read: a lot of time 😉 ) making music with each “pattern”. Try to create melodic phrases, reproduce some licks you heard, etc. Get to know one or two shapes (patterns) well before moving to the next shape.
You will always be playing the exact same notes, no matter what shape you use. The only difference is the location of these notes on the fingerboard, and because of that, learning a new shape is like starting all over…As I said in my previous reply, shapes are connected in a a very specific and remarkable way, called CAGED. If you think you are ready for it, there are many lessons on this site about this.
Good luck!
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