Rock in E minor (variant) — chord change
The catalogue labels this sequence in E minor (i-iv-VII-III), but the same four chords are a vi-ii-V-I in G major — E minor's relative major. That's why it settles so well onto the final G: Am-D-G is the ii-V-I cadence, the most conclusive move in tonal music, and the opening Em only sets it up. To play, four very common open chords; the challenge is the transition. Em to Am: the shape slides over one string without changing its spread. Am to D: the hand pivots around the index. D to G: the biggest move, the one to anticipate.
Tips
Play the loop hearing the G as the destination: the first three chords only lean toward it.
Em to Am: keep the exact same shape and shift it one string toward the treble.
Lift the fingers a beat before the D-to-G move; the hand resets during that short gap.
Understanding this type of exercise
Em-Am-D-G, the minor rock loop
Em-Am-D-G (i-iv-VII-III): the dark i and iv, then the VII and III that open toward the relative major (G). A wistful but not sad rock colour. Here you isolate the four changes — Em and Am differ by one finger, D and G answer each other.
Chord progression — Em
Chords
The same exercise in other keys
Related sheets
- Improvisation — rock in A minor (Level 3)
- Drop D riff — Dorian colour in D (Level 3)
- Rock in A minor — chord changes (Level 3)