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Course Reviews

Video Review: Developing a Personal Approach to Chords 2 – 5 – 1 by Dan Arcamone

March 7, 2022 by azsamadlessons Leave a Comment

This 22-minute video (or course, depending how you look at it), gives you Dan’s systematic way of deriving modal chord voicings for the 2-5-1 chord progression.

He begins by showing you the scale choices he uses to approach the chord progression, the fingerings along all the strings, then he shows the voicing possibilities, voiceleading them & also the different string set options.

Dan also demonstrates the voicings in context of the song, Tune Up and also shows how he improvises using the chord voicings freely in last example for the video. Everything is notated clearly in the accompanying 18-page PDF file, which is helpful when you’re practicing the material.

I would recommend this course for guitarists who are already familiar with more standard chord voicings (shell voicings, drop-2 & drop-3, fourth voicings & inversions) and want to explore different options for comping. This is definitely not a beginner course, so if you’re still unfamiliar with the voicing types I mentioned, I recommend studying other books & courses first.

The video is short, relatively compared to what I usually consider a course, but Dan explains everything in clear manner. This makes it easier to consume the material. In short, there’s no filler material here.

In conclusion, this is an interesting course for the right kind of guitarist – someone who is interested in a simple way of approaching voicings, AND is willing to put in the systematic work to explore these uncommon possibilities.

Pros: Clear teaching, good notated materials, straight to the point.
Cons: Might feel like a lot to digest if you’re not the exact target audience for this.
TLDR: Bored of drop-2 voicings and playing shell voicings all the time? Want to play more modern chord voicings? Get this.

Get your copy here:
https://mikesmasterclasses.com/course/developing-a-personal-approach-to-chords-2-5-1/

Check out my other book, video & course reviews here:
https://azsamadlessons.com/book-reviews/

[Submissions for Review Consideration]

  • Are you an author who wrote a jazz, guitar or music book?
  • Have you created a DVD or an online video course or subscription based website?
  • Would you like me to review your book/course?

Please send me a message at azsamad2 at gmail.com with:

For courses: a link to the course/video/product + access info etc.
For books: a link to the book (Dropbox) or PDF attachment (if it’s small) for review consideration.

Depending on whether I dig the book/course, I’ll let you know if I do plan to review it!

I cannot guarantee a review for every submission & if I’m not too into it, I may opt not to review it. I mean, it’s better to get a good review that for me to write a bad review just because it’s not a match for the kind of stuff I dig right? :p

NOTE: All reviews reflect my honest personal opinion so be aware that I will point out both cool Pros and Cons that I see in the work. You dig? 

Filed Under: Course Reviews, Guitar Chords, Guitar Technique, Jazz, Jazz Guitar, Jazz Guitar Harmony, Music Theory, Practice Secrets, Video Lessons Tagged With: guitar lessons, how to practice guitar, jazz guitar, jazz guitar techniques, vocabulary

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Hi Az Samad here! I am disclosing that I’ve included certain products and links to those products on this site that I will earn an affiliate commission for any purchases you make. 

Whenever possible, I've tried to include a mention that the link is an affiliate link but since the site is so big by now, I'm including this note so so that you are aware.

That being said, as I always mentions - all reviews reflect my honest opinion of the book/course/product. My goal is not to recommend everything to everyone but to give you as much information about my experience with it so that you have a better idea whether it might be for you (or not).

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