Classical Guitar, Academy, Practice Session K. Margaritis Classical Guitar, Academy, Practice Session K. Margaritis

Understanding Double Stops

An Intensive Journey to Demystifying the Fretboard - Part 2

If you haven’t read yet, make sure to check the previous segment of the series:
Part 1 - Practising Scales with Creativity

I always find it fascinating how much colour we can squeeze out of combining just two notes together.  

Traditionally, the most common use of the double stop is to add more weight and support to melodic lines. Therefore it’s our obligation to study them exhaustively since not only they can assist us with the further demystification of the fretboard but they are also quite useful compositional elements. 

Within one octave can be found the intervals of the second, third and fourth as well as their inversions fifth, sixth and the seventh. It is very useful to think of these pairs of intervals as reflections on a mirror since their effects are similar and we deal mostly with how much space you leave between the voices. 

The following happens when we invert the intervals: 

  • Seconds become Sevenths and vice versa  

  • Thirds become Sixths and vice versa 

  • Fourths become Fifths and vice versa 

Also: 

  • Major intervals become Minor and vice versa 

  • Diminished intervals become Augmented and vice versa  

  • Perfect intervals remain Perfect 

Bonus Info: 

  • When Major or Perfect intervals become a half step larger are called Augmented 

  • When Minor or Perfect intervals become a half step smaller is called Diminished 

The diverse pool of emotions and colours that different intervals convey can be by a not so subtle margin subjective and therefore their uses differ across various cultures, centuries and genres of music.  

It is generally accepted though that:  

  • Thirds and a Sixths are consonant and colourful 

  • Perfect Fourths and Fifths are tonally ambiguous 

  • Seconds and Sevenths are dissonant and provide plentiful tension 

Music with excessive use of dissonance can sometimes be alienating but contrarily music without tension and dissonance can quickly become boring and too convenient. A way to use dissonances in a more companionable tone is to hide dissonant intervals within a consonant texture so that they become less animating and dominant features of the overall music. 

Things to do: 

  1. Explore all intervals in the same diagonal manner similar to the scales practising 
    Pause and try to think what each interval brings out to you 

  2. Create miniature works or improvise only with the use of double stops, why not restrict yourself to only one type of double stop 

  3. Find uses of double stops in the works of the composers you like and analyse them.

When practising intervals and double stop, my goal is to be able to recall any sound without much thinking and to be able to play anything, anytime and everywhere on the guitar!  

After all, double stops are 66,6% triads.

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Classical Guitar, Academy, Practice Session K. Margaritis Classical Guitar, Academy, Practice Session K. Margaritis

Practising Scales with Creativity on a Classical Guitar

An Intensive Journey to Demystifying the Fretboard - Part 1

First Notes

Learning and practising all twelve (or twenty-four) scales is essential for any guitarist, as it is an efficient way of building technique and developing awareness. But, practising doesn't have to be a purely mechanical exercise.

My main objectives in the way that I approach the instrument are:

  1. to be able to see all notes across the whole fretboard and how they relate,

  2. to stop relying on fingerings as much as possible as they can easily become a prison the more one relies on them,

  3. be able to sing or hear a melody and play it without much fuzz.

Practicing with Games

What I found useful was to treat practising as distinct small games that have different rules.

Some examples of different games:

  • Starting on the lowest note of the scale, play four notes per string up to the highest

  • Do the same with starting on the next note - that will create a different path to follow, so that will make it impossible to start memorising fingerings

  • Do the same by using only one finger on the left hand - again it works against memorising patterns

  • Start on a different but higher position and play two notes per string - that will lead to a different kind of diagonal path

  • Play only specific intervals - like only 3rds or specific up-down combinations

Exploring the fretboard

Additionally, a different type of game is what I would call Explorative Improvisation, where I thoughtfully improvise with a specific objective.

Here are some rules:

  • You are only allowed to use the notes of a specific scale

  • You can put range restrictions as well

  • Every time you play anything that is something, stop and analyse it, invert it, play it in different ranges and areas of the fretboard

  • If you feel that you are stuck in a rut - playing the same things, again and again, restrict yourself to a part of the fretboard that you are not as familiar

  • Allow yourself to make melodies only with using a specific or combination of intervals - what if you could only play 4ths and 5ths

Bonus game: Take a melody or a song that you know quite well and play it in a different tonality and/or register - play it by ear or by analysing the intervallic structure of the melody - do not just move a familiar fingering pattern in a different position! Depending on your level, folk songs to Bach’s cello suites can provide a very fun game!

Remember, practice as slow or fast as you need to make it sound right!

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