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Chord and Fret

Choro · ciclo de dominantes (diatônico) — Guitar

What is the Choro · ciclo de dominantes (diatônico) progression?

The Choro · ciclo de dominantes (diatônico) progression is AmAmAmAm → DmDmDmDm → G → C (vi – ii – V – I), in the key of C. Read as harmonic function it moves tonic → subdominant → dominant → tonic, arriving home on a cadence. Play one chord per bar and let it loop.

Four chords, a whole story: Am (vi, home) → Dm (ii, the stroll) → G (V, time to come back) → C (I, home). Hit play. First pass, just listen. Second pass, follow with your finger on the names — and notice that by the second-to-last chord, your body already knows C — home — is coming.

Guitar

On the acoustic guitar you hold the whole song in your hands: the low sixth string lays down a bass note while the higher strings build the chord above it. The acoustic guitar sits at the very heart of Brazilian music: bossa nova was practically invented on it, and it carries samba, choro and MPB with equal ease. Its home chord C keeps its lowest note on C and rings 2 open strings.

Cadences — Harmony comes to rest here — hear every cadence type and train your ear · see it in Chord and Fret

Save this progression in Chord and Fret

Reharmonize — Want richer substitutions? Reharmonize the progression in a tap · open in Chord and Fret

Learn each chord of the trip

Am · Dm · G · C

C, x 3 2 0 1 0C321×CEGCE

This is one shape of C. In Chord and Fret, you open every position of all 4 chords in this progression along the neck — on any instrument, and hear each one. Open in Chord and Fret →

Metronome — Drill this change in time, with tap tempo and subdivisions · use it in Chord and Fret

If you want to keep exploring, the Chord and Fret app picks up right here, with every chord and scale variation one tap away. On Google Play.

Glossary