articles
Pat Metheny transcription
download this article as a PDF file >>
From the 1992 Secret Story release, this timeless composition pays tribute to Metheny’s parents and features an elegant chord solo rich in lyricism. Having a reputation for his meticulous nature, one suspects Metheny has carefully constructed and pre-composed this chordal passage. Nevertheless, it offers great insight into Metheny’s harmonic approach and displays a significant reliance on triads to generate his unmistakable melodic quality.
Due to the slow tempo and Metheny’s tendency to push and pull the time, there are sections that have proven difficult to determine correct rhythmic notation. A compromise has been made between an accurate representation and a cumbersome notation (which at times has been difficult to avoid). For this reason, I would highly recommend using these notes as a guide and working in conjunction with the recording to glean the subtleties and nuance of phrasing that makes Metheny’s playing masterful.
A brief analysis:
• Closed triads (1,2, 4, 7,11,20)
• Open triads (9,10,19)
• 4th harmony (17,18)
• Use of Guide tone/ common tone (5,6,)
• Use of diminished 7th chords to generate 7th b9 harmony (8, 16,18)
• Rootless voicing (15,16,17)
• Inner voice leading (15)