Beginner Guitar · PLECK lesson

PLECK lesson 144 · suggested week 29, day 4

Arrange a separate chord accompaniment

Objective. Demonstrate this observable music task: Create eight 4/4 accompaniment bars using taught chords with one chord per bar; play them once and submit a bass-string/voicing note.

Enlarge/print text, speak or dictate written responses, use parent scribing, quiet practice and a visible score. Left-handed hand roles are equivalent. A hearing/one-hand or temporary-instrument limitation can use an explicitly documented alternative target; do not claim an unobserved auditory or two-hand playing skill. Parent may consult an appropriate music/access professional; no medical diagnosis is made.

Start any clip at a low comfortable volume. No headphones or amplifier are required. Pause and tell an adult if it is uncomfortable. A download is not browser playback, and the clip is not a recording of a person playing.

About 45 minutes. The due date is chosen by a parent.

Materials: An available ordinary six-string acoustic/classical/electric guitar in standard tuning; no amp required, Pencil/paper or on-site text area, A nearby parent/teacher for live observation OR an optional private recording device, Optional existing pick, dry cloth, free reference tones/tuner or metronome; no purchase or account required.

Comes after GTR-L143.

The supplied Lantern and River studies are original course music, not third-party songs. Each A or B section has four complete 4/4 bars. AB therefore has eight bars, ABA twelve, and four four-bar sections such as AABA sixteen. A silent count-in is preparation, not a sounded section. Arrangement can alter voicing, texture, dynamics or order within a readable plan. A beginner may perform melody and accompaniment sequentially; simultaneous solo chord-melody technique, an amplifier, overdubbing and recording software are not required. Keep an original and adapted score if notes, rests or basses change. A complete private performance has a feasible opening, intelligible form and a deliberately counted ending. Today: A chord arrangement should specify when changes happen and which strum or arpeggio is used. Keep its meter aligned with the melody plan. It can be played after the melody rather than recorded as an overdub. Use fretting/plucking hand roles for either handedness; string numbers stay fixed. Play in short comfortable blocks with breaks. Stop for pain, numbness or unsafe peg uncertainty; tell a responsible adult. No forced stretch, amp, purchases or new account is required.

Worked example

Original worked score GTR-EX144 (minor-path). First event: string 5 fret 0 (A2), string 4 fret 2 (E3), string 3 fret 2 (A3), string 2 fret 1 (C4), string 1 fret 0 (E4), lasting 4 quarter beats. Sound each event once, allow its duration to pass, and count rests without a new attack. Numbers aligned within a column belong to the same event. The following duration row, not character spacing, specifies time.

Bar 1 (4/4, quarter=1 beat)
beats |  4  |
1 E4 |--0--|
2 B3 |--1--|
3 G3 |--2--|
4 D3 |--2--|
5 A2 |--0--|
6 E2 |-----|
r=rest in all strings; dash=do not attack that string; each column is one event.
Bar 2 (4/4, quarter=1 beat)
beats |  4  |
1 E4 |--1--|
2 B3 |--3--|
3 G3 |--2--|
4 D3 |--0--|
5 A2 |-----|
6 E2 |-----|
r=rest in all strings; dash=do not attack that string; each column is one event.
Bar 3 (4/4, quarter=1 beat)
beats |  4  |
1 E4 |--0--|
2 B3 |--0--|
3 G3 |--1--|
4 D3 |--2--|
5 A2 |--2--|
6 E2 |--0--|
r=rest in all strings; dash=do not attack that string; each column is one event.
Bar 4 (4/4, quarter=1 beat)
beats |  4  |
1 E4 |--0--|
2 B3 |--1--|
3 G3 |--2--|
4 D3 |--2--|
5 A2 |--0--|
6 E2 |-----|
r=rest in all strings; dash=do not attack that string; each column is one event.

Bar 1, event 1, 4 beats, string/fret 5/0 sounding A2; string/fret 4/2 sounding E3; string/fret 3/2 sounding A3; string/fret 2/1 sounding C4; string/fret 1/0 sounding E4 Bar 2, event 1, 4 beats, string/fret 4/0 sounding D3; string/fret 3/2 sounding A3; string/fret 2/3 sounding D4; string/fret 1/1 sounding F4 Bar 3, event 1, 4 beats, string/fret 6/0 sounding E2; string/fret 5/2 sounding B2; string/fret 4/2 sounding E3; string/fret 3/1 sounding G#3; string/fret 2/0 sounding B3; string/fret 1/0 sounding E4 Bar 4, event 1, 4 beats, string/fret 5/0 sounding A2; string/fret 4/2 sounding E3; string/fret 3/2 sounding A3; string/fret 2/1 sounding C4; string/fret 1/0 sounding E4

Arrange a separate chord accompaniment — play, record and check

  1. 1. Does one chord per 4/4 bar require four new chord attacks?
  2. 2. Read the supplied worked score, not a different composition: name all sounding pitches in its first event (or identify a rest).
  3. 3. Create eight 4/4 accompaniment bars using taught chords with one chord per bar; play them once and submit a bass-string/voicing note. Actual playing: a parent hears the live guitar, or a private clip under 4 MB. Writing this answer does not replace the playing.
  4. 4. Spiral review from GTR-L109: perform only bar 1 of its supplied worked score once at a comfortable pulse. Name one location or timing feature you remembered; if playing is unavailable, record that performance is pending rather than claiming it. Actual playing: a parent hears the live guitar, or a private clip under 4 MB. Writing this answer does not replace the playing.
  5. 5. Record three things for this lesson: (1) actual task and chosen tempo or count method, (2) one specific audible/observed result, and (3) one safe next action. If already accurate, name a checked feature instead of inventing a mistake. Label support, adaptation or missing performance; do not invent minutes. Practice record. Text, a photo, or paper is enough for the log.

Feedback bands. R-THEORY. Music/instrument understanding. Answers the exact supplied question; Correct string/fret/pitch/rhythm or safety meaning; Clear labels distinguishing sounding/written pitch. 0: No relevant evidence yet. 1: Partial recognition with a material confusion. 2: Meaning mostly accurate with a correctable labeling gap. 3: Requested facts/calculation are accurate and clearly labeled. R-PERFORM. Actual guitar playing. Pitch/chord/string choices required by the visible task; Counted rhythm, rests and continuity at an agreed comfortable tempo; Clear intentional sound/phrasing within the stated task; Safe feasible movement and honest support/adaptation labels. 0: No usable observed/audible playing evidence yet; pending or access-adapted, not inferred from text. 1: Some assigned sounds evident; substantial location/time support needed. 2: Required task mostly recognizable with a few gaps and labeled supports. 3: Required notes/chords and rhythm are clear, with intentional starts/ends and safe control at the chosen tempo. R-ARTIFACT. Readable notation, design and original music. Exactly the features/counts visible in the task; Usable string/fret and duration/form labels where assigned; Consistent bar totals and actual performed version; Original/arranged/source and adaptation labels. 0: No inspectable artifact. 1: Some relevant work but key requested labels/counts missing. 2: Mostly reconstructable with limited inconsistencies. 3: Visible task complete, readable and musically reconstructable; labels honest. R-PRACTICE. Honest practice and reflection. Names actual task/attempt and tempo/count method; Specific observable result; Feasible safe next action. 0: No relevant record. 1: Vague record with little inspectable evidence. 2: Specific observation and plausible next step. 3: Clear evidence-linked observation and a feasible safe next action.

Acceptance checks

A student may explain aloud to a parent. Written/diagram tasks: on-site text, readable photo, print-and-hand-in or private scan. Playing: a parent hears actual live playing and logs the named task/bars, or submit short private audio/video clips each strictly below 4 MiB (4,194,304 bytes), using an app-supported format. Split by labeled phrases; check actual bytes. No face, legal name, home view, public account, ZIP or code upload is required. Actual upload formats/UI are unverified; use the live-parent route if unavailable. Text/photos alone do not establish playing. Label adaptations/support and allow resubmission.

Optional extra. Optional, not a grading requirement: make one new two-bar variation of the minor-path model using only already taught notes/chords and its meter; explain one changed rhythm or ending, or increase tempo slightly only if still relaxed.

Name ____________________ Date ____________________