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Topic: E Diatonic to E9 conversion |
Karlis Abolins
From:
(near) Seattle, WA, USA
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Posted 20 Feb 2020 5:46 pm |
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After playing E Diatonic tuning for a few months, I have decided that it somewhat limiting in dynamics. My tuning gives me one octave of notes. While adequate to cover most common folk and country melodies, I find I am missing the dynamics of the E9. So I have decided to re-tune my steel to E9 and learn it properly. If I find that I can't wrap myself around the tuning, I will probably put my steel up for sale and concentrate on my Baltic Psalteries.
In preparation for re-tuning, I have made a poster of the layout and possibilities of the "standard" E9 tuning in the diatonic mode. I may make one later for the blues mode if I find that I this is working for me.
Here is my "map". It really needs to be poster sized to see all of the details.
Karlis
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Jacek Jakubek
From:
Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
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Posted 21 Feb 2020 5:35 am
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Karlis, that is a pretty elaborate diagram you have there and it looks like you put a lot of effort into making it.
But, to be honest, I don't know if you'll get any practical usage out of it.
We must both have a similar way of thinking, because I remember when I first started learning E9 over a decade ago, I made many intricate diagrams like yours. The idea was that if I memorized ALL the pedals/levers and ALL the positions, strings, etc., then I'd be able to put them together in my mind and start playing well...but it didn't happen that way. I ended up becoming confused and overwhelmed, until I started modifying copedents as a last-ditch desperate attempt to avoid giving up altogether.
What I should have done, and what I recommend for you to do is to set up your guitar for standard E9 (See Tommy White's copedent, it's great) and get beginner instruction that only focuses on using the A & B pedals. By learning basic melodies and chord grips using just the A & B pedals only, you'll be able to play like 80-90% of all you'll ever need to be able to play. Then, when you get familiar with A & B pedals, start learning about the E lower lever, F lever, BC pedals, etc. These will mostly just give you different positions to play what you will already know using the A & B pedals. This is the route I'm taking, ten years too late.
I know it's tempting to want to know everything at once in one big picture , but I have found this is not realistic for such a complex instrument and tuning...And I like making elaborate charts/diagrams too, some guys can't help it 
If I'm wrong, someone please correct me. I don't want to start giving inaccurate advice again, like in my recent post on "Super Simplified Chord Substituions." |
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Karlis Abolins
From:
(near) Seattle, WA, USA
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Posted 21 Feb 2020 8:31 am
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Jacek, Thank you for the thoughtful advice. My approach in this endeavor is to add a step in the process of arranging music for the pedal steel starting with music notation and ending up with a "map" of the song on the instrument. The chart is just a tool to show me where the possibilities are.
Unlike my diatonic tuning where the harmonized scale is laid out in a straightforward pattern, The E9 requires complex combinations of bar and pedal movements to play a harmonized scale.
Years ago, I went to a pedal steel jam and was struck by the players interpretation of the songs. Almost invariably, the players used the same pattern of bar and pedal movements as each player took his ride. Everything was played at the (pedals up) root position, and the (pedals down) fourth and fifth positions. This happened on every song. The rest of the guitar was left untouched even though the same notes are available in many places.
My intention is to be able to play a song using the whole instrument.
Karlis |
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Dennis Montgomery
From:
Western Washington
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Posted 21 Feb 2020 5:12 pm
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Hi Karlis & Jacek,
I've been playing E9 (actually extended D9 which is the same thing but downtuned a full step on my 12 string) for a couple years now. While starting out I spent an insane amount of time making spreadsheets and charts, analyzing this change and that one to figure out the capabilities of E9 and where all the notes are and how to approach them etc...and I got pretty much nowhere 
I really started to progress and learn E9 when I began arranging Beatle songs. My thing is to arrange these so I can play both the backing chord and the vocal melody at the same time (which usually means finding the right chord position with the melody notes available at the same fret - or just a knee or pedal away). That's when things began to click and I started having those "a-ha" moments 
All the studying and analyzing in the end did very little to help me (though they seemed so important at the time). What it really took was rolling up my sleeves and jumping into the deep end of the pool arranging songs. When I started out I felt like I was trying to solve a jigsaw puzzle with blank pieces. Now after arranging about 10 songs, those jigsaw pieces are starting to show an image...it's still a faint image...but it's there...and putting the pieces together is making much more sense 
I'll admit when I started out I was skeptical that E9 could do the things I wanted, but the more I arrange for it the more amazed I am at how flexible and logical it reveals itself to be 
_________________
Hear my latest album, "Celestial" featuring a combination of Mullen SD12 and Synthesizers:
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Ian Rae
From:
Redditch, England
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Posted 22 Feb 2020 2:47 am
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Karlis, the limitations you observed at the jam session were more to do with the players than the instrument.
People tend to play safe in a public arena - it's no place for experimenting or taking risks, and they are confined to well-worn tunes.
The E9 and C6 tunings contain the essence of the instrument, which can be applied to any music, especially when you combine them into a universal tuning.
As for harmonised scales, yes, they require coordination but so does everything, and it's the interaction between bar and pedal that makes our instrument unique.
_________________
Make sleeping dogs tell the truth!
Homebuilt keyless U12 7x5, Excel keyless U12 8x8, Williams keyless U12 7x8, Telonics rack and 15" cabs |
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