Make the Address System Movable

Day 8 | about 25 minutes

G

Focus: the first relocation, into the key most of what you play is already in.

• 3 min: Predict G roots and the 3rd and 5th nearest each root. The orange dots on the board are the G's these four hands use: the D course at the fifth fret, the G course at the twelfth, the A course at the tenth and the E course at the third. Positions I, II and III all start from the G at the fifth fret of the D course, and Position IV starts from the G at the twelfth fret of the G course. The 3rd is B and the 5th is D, and nearest that low root they are B at the ninth fret of the D course and D at the fifth fret of the A course. Point at all of it before you check the board.
• 8 min: Play I to IV in G; degrees up, note names down. Position I runs G, A, B, C up the D course at frets 5, 7, 9 and 10, then D, E, F sharp, G up the A course at the same four frets. Position II keeps that low G and crosses sooner, with C at the third fret of the A course and G at the third fret of the E course on top. Position III crosses sooner again, B at the second fret of the A course. Position IV is the high one: the pinky takes the G at the twelfth fret of the G course and the hand comes down onto the D course for A, B, C and D at frets 7, 9, 10 and 12. Say one through eight going up, then G, F sharp, E, D coming back.
• 6 min: Start each position on degree 3, not the root. Degree 3 in G is B. Position I has it at the ninth fret of the D course under the ring finger, Position II at the same fret under the pinky, Position III at the second fret of the A course under the index, Position IV at the ninth fret of the D course under the middle finger. Start there, run up to the top of the shape, then come back down through the root and out the bottom of it, so the root arrives in the middle of what you play. A shape you can only enter from its root is a fingering; a shape you can enter from anywhere is a place.
• 6 min: Two choruses: one zone per chorus, then one connected chorus. A chorus is one time through eight bars, thirty two beats. Play the first with the hand inside one zone, Position II say, which is the D course from the fifth fret to the ninth plus the A and E courses at the third. Play the second crossing as you go: Positions I and II both hold G, A and B on the D course and D, E and F sharp on the A course, so any of those six is a door. Count the bars yourself, or set a G drone going and let it keep the place for you.
• 2 min: Log first-attempt starts. Four positions, four first attempts. A clean start means the right note sounded first, with no hunting and no run up to it from somewhere else. Write the number out of four, and which position failed.

Where a closed shape lands: The four positions of a key do not sit in a neat row up the neck. A shape goes wherever its whole pattern fits between the first and the twelfth fret with no open string, so in G Position III ends up the lowest of the four and Position IV the highest, with its root up at the twelfth fret of the G course. That is not a mistake in the picture. It is what closed means, and it is why the brackets are worth reading before you play.

• End-of-day check: Four positions, no diagram.

Day 9 | about 25 minutes

A

Focus: the second jam key, and the first day the test tempo is asked for.

• 3 min: Silent map of A roots across the usable neck. The first board draws every one of them: the G course at the second fret and again at the fourteenth, the D course at the seventh, the open A course and the A course at the twelfth, and the E course at the fifth. Touch each one and say which octave it is. Then cover the board, because that is the last look you get today.
• 8 min: Play I to IV in A at control tempo, then at test tempo. Position I in A is the low one, its root the A at the second fret of the G course, running B, C sharp, D up that course and E, F sharp, G sharp, A up the D course. Positions II, III and IV all live an octave above it, starting from the A at the seventh fret of the D course. Control tempo is whatever speed keeps every note the same length; test tempo is a quarter note at 100 with two notes to the beat. Play all four at the first, then all four at the second, and if the second pass is not clean the first one was already too fast.
• 6 min: Connect I to II and III to IV using a different shared note each time. Positions I and II in A touch at exactly one note, the A at the seventh fret of the D course, which is the top of I and the bottom of II, so that crossing has one door and it is worth knowing there is only one. Positions III and IV share six: A at the seventh fret of the D course, C sharp and D at the fourth and fifth frets of the A course, E at the seventh, G sharp at the fourth fret of the E course and A at the fifth. Cross on a different one of those six on every pass until you have used them all.
• 6 min: Phrase over A; land on C sharp on every fourth bar. C sharp is the 3rd of A, and it is the note that makes a line sound major rather than merely in A. Count one, two, three, four, arrive on a C sharp at the top of every fourth bar, then carry on. In Position II that C sharp is the eleventh fret of the D course under the pinky; in Position IV it is the fourth fret of the A course under the middle finger. Set the A drone going so the note has something to be the 3rd of.
• 2 min: Note the weakest shift. I to II in A has one door and III to IV has six, so the two fail in different ways. Write down which one, and whether what went wrong was a missed note, a late one, or the pulse dropping while you found it.

Control tempo and test tempo: Control tempo is the speed at which every note comes out clean and the same length. It is where the learning happens and it is slower than it feels. Test tempo is a quarter note at 100, two notes to the beat, and from today that is what the week's exit standard means. Practice at the first and prove at the second. Playing everything at the second is how a rough pass gets mistaken for a fast one.

Play an A drone with the bandEight bars of A going around, so the C sharp you are aiming for has something to be the 3rd of. Set the speed where your eighth notes are still clean.mandolintrainer.com/app/#jam?c=1~A~A%20drone~Chords.1.A%7CA%7CA%7CA%7CA%7CA%7CA%7CA&go=play

• End-of-day check: Clean at a quarter note of 100.

Day 10 | about 25 minutes

F and B flat

Focus: two keys with nothing open in them, where a closed shape is the only option.

• 3 min: Locate every F and B flat without playing a scale. F sits on the D course at the third fret, the G course at the tenth, the A course at the eighth and the E course at the first. B flat sits on the G course at the third, the D course at the eighth, the A course at the first and the E course at the sixth. Touch each one and name it out loud. Nothing in either key can be had off an open string, which is exactly what makes them a fair test.
• 8 min: One careful four-position pass in F; one in B flat. In F, Positions I and II start from the F at the third fret of the D course and Positions III and IV start from the F at the tenth fret of the G course. In B flat, I and II start from the B flat at the third fret of the G course, and III and IV start an octave up from the B flat at the eighth fret of the D course. Careful means slower than yesterday: the two notes that go wrong are the E flat in B flat Position II, the first fret of the D course, and the B flat in F Position II, the first fret of the A course. One pass through each key, up and back, and no second try at a position you rushed.
• 6 min: Random key and position calls between only these two keys. Take the eight F and B flat slips from the call slips page below, or write your own: F I to IV and B flat I to IV. Draw them one at a time. Read the slip, get the first note sounding inside five seconds, play the octave up and stop. Two keys only, so the mistake waiting for you is the right position in the wrong key. That is the mistake worth making here rather than in a jam.
• 6 min: Four 2-bar phrases per key; begin away from the root. A two-bar phrase is about eight notes and a breath, over a steady eight beats. In F begin on A, the 3rd, at the seventh fret of the D course, or on C, the 5th, at the third fret of the A course. In B flat begin on D at the seventh fret of the G course or F at the third fret of the D course. Four phrases in each key, and if one of them starts on the root, play it again.
• 2 min: Mark any note-name hesitation. In these two keys it is usually the B flat, the E flat, or telling the F at the eighth fret of the A course from the F at the tenth fret of the G course. Write the note rather than the feeling: a name you hesitate over is a name you will lose at speed.

Why F and B flat come this early: These are the two keys where nothing at all falls on an open string, so a shape has to be closed whether you meant it to be or not. Every other key lets you cheat somewhere. If the four positions hold up here, the closed shape is real rather than a habit propped up by open strings.

Call slips to printThe key and position set: take the eight F and B flat slips.mandolintrainer.com/workbooks/fretboard/slips/#key-and-position

• End-of-day check: 8 of 10 callouts inside 5 seconds.

Day 11 | about 25 minutes

E

Focus: the key that pushes the upper zones highest, kept relaxed and even.

• 3 min: Predict E roots, then verify. They are the G course at the ninth fret, the D course at the second and again at the fourteenth, the A course at the seventh, the open E course and the E course at the twelfth. Say them out loud before you look, then check them against the first board, which draws every E and nothing else.
• 8 min: Four positions in E; keep the upper zones relaxed and even. Position I in E is the low one, its root the E at the second fret of the D course. Positions II, III and IV all start from the E at the ninth fret of the G course, and Position II reaches up to the G sharp at the thirteenth fret, the highest note this week asks for. Relaxed means the thumb stays where it is and the hand does not grab to make that reach. Even means the notes up there come out the same length and the same loudness as the ones below them, and if they do not, slow down until they match.
• 6 min: Play degree routes 1 to 3 to 5 to 7 and 7 to 5 to 3 to 1 inside each zone. A degree route skips through the shape instead of walking it, and in E those four notes are E, G sharp, B and D sharp. In Position I they are the second and sixth frets of the D course and the second and sixth frets of the A course. In Position II they are the ninth and thirteenth frets of the G course and the ninth and thirteenth of the D course, the same shape one course along. Every position has its own version, and the numbers in the dots are how you find it without being told.
• 6 min: Cross one position boundary per phrase, never at the same beat twice. Play two-bar phrases over a steady eight and put exactly one position change in each. Cross on beat two in the first phrase, beat five in the second, beat seven in the third. Positions III and IV in E share six notes, among them the G sharp at the sixth fret of the D course and the D sharp at the sixth fret of the A course, so there is more than one place to do it. Crossing on the same beat every time is a habit, and it sounds like an exercise.
• 2 min: Log the least secure zone. In E that is usually II, because it reaches the thirteenth fret, where the frets are narrow and the hand wants to squeeze. Write the zone down and what went wrong up there: the intonation, the tone, or the pulse.

What a degree route is: Walking a scale up and down teaches the hand the order of the frets. A degree route, 1 to 3 to 5 to 7 and back, teaches it what each note is: every note in it is one the harmony wants, which is why it comes out shaped like an arpeggio rather than a scale. Say the numbers while you play them and four frets turn into four jobs.

• End-of-day check: Four clean degree routes.

Day 12 | about 25 minutes

Key-switch matrix

Focus: answer a called key and position out of all seven keys, cold.

• 3 min: Prepare 12 calls from G, A, C, D, E, F and B flat by Positions I to IV. Seven keys by four positions is twenty eight calls. Pick twelve, not all of them. All twenty eight are on the call slips page below, ready to print. Or write your own, a key and a numeral to a slip: G III, B flat II, E IV. Include at least one from each of the seven keys. Weight the rest toward F, B flat and E, the ones that go wrong.
• 8 min: First six: play the full called position. Draw a slip, read it, first note inside five seconds, then the whole octave up and back down, and stop. Full means all eight notes both ways at control tempo with the named finger on the root: the numeral in the call is the finger, index for I through pinky for IV. A call you answer by playing up from an open string until something looks familiar is a miss even if every note was right.
• 6 min: Next six: answer root, 3rd, 5th, 7th without a scale run. That is Thursday's degree route, and it is the whole answer. In G Position II it is G at the fifth fret of the D course, B at the ninth, D at the fifth fret of the A course, F sharp at the ninth. In E Position IV it is E at the ninth fret of the G course, G sharp at the sixth fret of the D course, B at the ninth, D sharp at the sixth fret of the A course. Four notes, stop, draw again.
• 6 min: Alternate two bars in one key, two in another, staying near the same fret area. Pick two keys a tone apart, G and A say, and play two bars in one and two in the other without the hand traveling to find them. The board shows why that is possible: Position I in G sits on the D and A courses from the fifth fret to the tenth, and Position I in A sits on the G and D courses from the second to the seventh, so the two windows overlap around the fifth and sixth frets and share not one single note. Same stretch of neck, nothing in common, and the only thing telling you which key you are in is your ear.
• 2 min: Record accuracy out of 12. One point for a call that started inside five seconds, on the right note, in the right key. Ten out of twelve is the proof line. Write down which keys the misses came from, because that is where Sunday's second test key comes from.

Same frets, different key: A closed shape moves by fret, so Position I in A is the same hand as Position I in G, two courses over and three frets along, and their windows overlap. Nothing on the fretboard tells you which of the two you are in. The bass underneath tells you, and so does the note you stop on. That is the whole thing this week buys: relocating without relearning.

Call slips to printThe key and position set: all twenty eight calls. Pick your twelve from them.mandolintrainer.com/workbooks/fretboard/slips/#key-and-position

• End-of-day check: At least 10 of 12 correct starts.

Day 13 | about 25 minutes

Direction changes

Focus: start from somewhere other than the root, and stop coming home by reflex.

• 3 min: Call key, zone and direction: up, down, or middle-out. A call now carries three things. Up starts from the lowest note of the shape. Down starts from the highest. Middle-out starts from the 5th, about halfway through, and goes both ways. Draw a direction slip beside each key and position slip. Both sets are on the call slips page below, or write the three directions on three slips of your own.
• 8 min: Play eight random calls; start from the nearest 3rd or 5th. Whatever the call says, find the 3rd or the 5th nearest your hand and begin there rather than on the root. In E Position I the 3rd is G sharp at the sixth fret of the D course and the 5th is B at the second fret of the A course; in E Position III the 3rd is that same G sharp and the 5th is B at the ninth fret of the D course. First note inside five seconds, about eight notes, stop, draw again.
• 6 min: Connect two nonadjacent zones by passing through the middle zone musically. Go from Position I to Position III. Play a few notes in Position II on the way, instead of rushing through it. The third board draws one route in E, and the lines below spell it out. Two changes of position, one line, and no pause at either.
• 6 min: Improvise with no phrase longer than six notes. Count six notes and stop, whatever you were in the middle of. Breathe, then start again somewhere else. Short phrases make you choose a first note rather than drift into one, and they leave the silence the later weeks depend on. If you catch yourself ending every six notes on E, you have found your escape route without looking for it.
• 2 min: Identify one recurring escape route. An escape route is what your hand does when it stops deciding: a run home to the root, the same four notes again, or a slide back toward the nut where everything is familiar. Write down the one you did most today, because naming it is what lets you catch it tomorrow.

• 1. Position I: E, F sharp, G sharp up the D course, frets 2, 4 and 6, index, middle, ring.
• 2. Cross to II: the next note is A, seventh fret of the D course. Position I would play it with the pinky. Play it with the index and the hand is in Position II. Carry on up the D course: B at fret 9 with the middle, C sharp at fret 11 with the ring.
• 3. Cross to III: do not reach up to the thirteenth fret for D sharp. Take it at the sixth fret of the A course with the index. The hand is now in Position III. Finish on E at fret 7 with the middle.

What middle-out means: Up and down are obvious. Middle-out means starting on the 5th of the shape, which sits about halfway through it, and going both ways from there. In E Position I that is the B at the second fret of the A course: up to C sharp, D sharp, E, and down to A, G sharp, F sharp, E. A shape you can only enter at one end is half a shape.

Call slips to printThe directions set, and the key and position set above it.mandolintrainer.com/workbooks/fretboard/slips/#directions

• End-of-day check: No automatic return to the root.

Day 14 | about 25 minutes

Phase 1 test

Focus: record the whole system in two keys and find out whether it is yours.

• 3 min: Draw one familiar and one less comfortable key. Familiar means one you have played all week without thinking, D or G probably. Less comfortable is the one you have been quietly avoiding, which for most players is B flat, F or E. Draw them rather than choosing them if you can, because choosing is how a test gets easy. The seven keys are on the call slips page below, or use slips of your own. The two boards on this card are D and B flat, the pair that most often tells the truth.
• 10 min: Record all four positions in each key at a quarter note of 100. Set a metronome or the band at a quarter note of 100 and play two notes to the beat, so one octave up and back takes eight beats. Say the key and the position out loud, then play it. Eight passes, one take each, and do not stop the recording in between: the gaps are part of the evidence.
• 5 min: Draw six key and position calls; answer with 1, 3, 5, 8. In D Position III that is D at the seventh fret of the G course, F sharp at the fourth fret of the D course, A at the seventh, D at the fifth fret of the A course. In B flat Position IV it is B flat at the eighth fret of the D course, D at the fifth fret of the A course, F at the eighth, B flat at the sixth fret of the E course. Four notes inside five seconds, then the next call.
• 5 min: One 45-second connected improvisation in either test key. Pick either of the two and play for forty five seconds using at least three of the four positions, crossing zones inside phrases rather than between them. Connected means no pauses to reset the hand. If you lose your place, hold the pulse and come back in on the next bar instead of starting again.
• 2 min: Pass, repeat, or use Week 2 again. A pass is all four positions in both keys at a quarter note of 100 from memory, twice, the two attempts at least ten minutes apart. If only the familiar key passed, the week is not finished, and Days 12 and 13 are what to repeat. If both passed, Week 3 changes the subject completely, so go into it rested.

Call slips to printThe keys set for the first step, and the key and position set for the six calls.mandolintrainer.com/workbooks/fretboard/slips/#keys

• End-of-day check: All four positions, time intact, no diagram.