Autumn Leaves Fingerstyle Acoustic Guitar
Hey, guys, today I really want to show you how you can simplify this awesome song called Autumn Leaves on Acoustic guitar and really make it simple and fun to play.
Autumn Leaves is one of the most famous Jazz Standard written by Joseph Kosma in 1945 and then played and rearranged hundreds of times by elite musicians worldwide.
A simple song for beginners
Today I am going to propose this fingerstyle acoustic guitar arrangement for beginners, which will help you improve not only your fingerstyle technique but also your musicality and dynamics.
If you want to warm up before you start to learn this song, you can check out this awesome fingerstyle warm up here!
Let’s get started and enjoy the lesson!
The Video Tutorial
In this video lesson, I want to show you how you can easily simplify this beautiful song on acoustic guitar using the fingerstyle technique. If you are a beginner and want to learn how to play something really cool, make sure you watch the video lesson and learn how to play this awesome song. You can also start here if you need a few guitar tips for beginners.
How to Simplify Autumn Leaves
Today I will tell you one thing that is going to change the way you think about learning and playing the guitar. This thing is: EVERYTHING CAN BE SIMPLIFIED.
I know it sounds pretty straightforward, right, yet many guitar players fail to understand this concept. They believe they know how to make a song simple, but practically, all they do is play the song slower. Trust me, playing a song at a slower speed doesn’t make it easier.
For me, simplifying a song means eliminating one or more musical elements so that all you are left with is one musical aspect of the song. Music is made of three elements: Harmony, rhythm, and melody. By eliminating one or two of these elements, you are not only simplifying the song, but you are also becoming aware of its structure.
Step 1 – Start with the melody.
One of the most common ways to simplify a song is by eliminating the harmony (chords) and learning the melody individually. I personally think that learning the melody as the first step will help you memorize the rhythm and chords easily. If you are a beginner, it’s probably the easiest way to get started with a song.
Autumn Leaves melody is straightforward and easy to memorize. This acoustic guitar arrangement focuses.
As you notice, the guitar tab above only shows Autumn Leaves melody played on acoustic guitar. The melody is quite “jumpy,” so I highly recommend you really learn it step by step and memorize the frets and notes to play.
One thing I would also consider is the “alternate fingering” with the right hand. Pluck the melody starting with the index finger and then always alternate between index and middle. The fingerstyle pattern will change a little when we add the bass note, but it will be easy for you to play this simple melody with alternating index and middle finger.
Step 2 – Add the bass note.
Once you practiced the melody and learn it by heart, it is time to add the bass note. The bass note will add more texture to the song and. Also, the chords will come up more clearly, and we start hearing the chord progression.
We are still only playing one single bass note per chord, but the difference is pretty clear. The acoustic guitar tab will look like that. 
Now that we added the bass note, the guitar tab looks more “busy” and reach. I can guarantee you that even though we added just one bass note, the song will sound completely different.
If you are a beginner guitar player, you will probably find this stage pretty challenging, so I highly recommend you practice one note at a time and slowly familiarize yourself with the fingerstyle pattern.
As we add the bass note, your plucking will be slightly different. You have to pluck some strings with the thumb simultaneously with the melody, so a little bit of time to adjust is required. Don’t get frustrated if you struggle at the beginning. Keep pushing forward, and you will be fine!
Step 3 – Add chords
Once you really feel like adding the ultimate touch to this awesome acoustic guitar melody, you can definitely start working on chords and harmony.
Let me show you a simple way to add a few chords to Autumn Leaves.
I still want to keep things pretty simple, so I am not going crazy with chords. I will only add a few notes here and there to spice up the harmony and make it sound less basic and more advanced. Check it out!
The Chord Progression
Few words about Autumn Leaves chord progression and its structure. Like much standard Jazz, this song follows a prevalent chord progression found in hundreds of Jazz songs. It goes as follow:
Am7 – D7 – Gmaj7 – Cmaj7 – F#min7b5 – B7 – Em
Many guitar players would refer to this chord progression as II – V – I – IV – VII – V – I.
Music is numbers
The Roman numbers represent the grades that each chord represents in the G major scale (which is the scale/key of this song). Jazz musicians need to know each song’s chord progression perfectly so that when gathering together for a “Jam,” they can freely improvise and express themself.
Conclusion
The art of simple songs
Playing the guitar is awesome. It’s fun, creative, and “social.”
The acoustic guitar is definitely one of the most popular instruments around, and it’s amazing how you can learn songs easily if you just spend a few hours practicing.
However, playing the guitar can be frustrating and upsetting sometimes. As for everything we learn, we all come across setbacks and frustrations. The awful moment we try to become better, but for some reason, we don’t see the results.
So how can you keep going even when things get ugly and keep motivated if you are stuck in a guitar rut?
Easy! You simplify the song as we did today so that it’s easy and step by step!
You start by playing the melody and familiarizing yourself with the mood of the song. Then you add the bass note, and only at the end, you spice up everything with some beautiful chords.
The art of simplifying a song is the one important skill you want to acquire if you want to make playing guitar the most enjoyable moment of your day.
To learn this song and then apply this concept to everything you play. You will improve quickly and with joy!
Good luck with your journey, guys.