Hey there everyone,
This song by Tyler the Creator is an instance of a piece that has repeatedly reappeared within my teaching. Boredom is a track that has a similar chord movement throughout the song. We'll delve into those details shortly.
The other component of the song that creates momentum is that the guitar and the keyboards get time in the limelight. Using multiple instruments to play the same part at different times uses texture to rejuvenate interest and keep us from getting bored. With that said, I've transcribed the same parts for both guitar and keyboards.
The core of the chord progression is a strong motion called "up 4." One of the strongest, if not the strongest resolution in music is the motion of the 5 chord moving back to the 1 chord. This resolution is the sensation of being far from our home notes and returning back to them.
Chords in a key: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8ve
Counting the chord motion: 1 2 3 4
The progression that Tyler is working with works by asking the question "what is 5 the target of an up 4 motion from?" We start on the 5 and count down 4, 3, 2, 1 to the 2 chord. Now we have a progression that goes 2,5,1. The start of the song is in Ab major.
Ab Bb C Db Eb F G Ab
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8ve
M - - M M - d M
Due to how a major key is constructed this gives us a Bb- (minor) to Eb (Major) to Ab (major). (This progression is the root of Jazz harmony.). What happens next is the Ab Major becomes the 2 of the next key. What is Ab the 2 of? Well if you remember how a major scale is built (W,W,H,W,W,W,H) you need to go down a whole step to Gb. Now we have the 2 and the 1, but what is the 5 of the key of Gb?
Gb Ab Bb Cb Db Eb F Gb
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8ve
We end up with Ab- to DbMajor to GbMajor. We repeat this process a third time to get F#- B to E.
Now all of that said, these are each 7 chords, meaning they have 4 notes in each chord.
The 2 is a minor 7, the 5 is a dominant 7 and the 1 is a major 7.
in the starting key of Ab, the final cadence is a slash chord that uses Ab major over Bb. This creates a rich suspended sounding chord that feels like the 2 (Bb in the bass) leading to 5 (Eb). The Eb is a major 7 instead of a dominant 7, which means it feels more like 1 than 5. It's a really creative motion that constantly feels like its arriving but is in a new place each time.
I would suggest that you start with the A Section. It's a simplified motion and a shorter phrase. If you get comfortable with this, the B Section is the same shapes transposed a couple of times.
You can download the sheet music here.
Now then, you can't say you're bored.
Take your time, enjoy the process and keep playing.
Christopher
Comments