Arranging a Traditional Hymn:
I Surrender All
by Lance Allen

Arranging a well-known tune for solo fingerstyle guitar can be a daunting task. So many things have to be considered: the key, a bass line, chord changes, and harmonic details, not to mention a tasteful and creative treatment of the melody. You might also try using the lyrics from subsequent verses as a source of rhythmic variation for second and third statements of the melody.

I once heard that Chet Atkins said, "Let's put this tune in the key of B. Who arranges in B for the guitar anyways?"

So there you have it from the master! I was challenged to do something in the key of B. The song I chose was the popular late nineteenth century hymn, "I Surrender All". It has a simple melody and chord changes that beg for some kind of tasteful fingerstyle guitar treatment.

Starting out, I used a B chord shape at the 9th fret. This allowed me to incorporate the open B string and establish a nice drone sound. The melody stays up high when in this position and also allows for a walking or Alberti bass line. One item about playing in the key of B is that the IV chord can be accompanied by the open 6th string, which allows a really nice fundamental tone for the chord. You can see this effect in measure 12. The V chord in measure 13 continues to use the open B string as a drone as well as switching to an inverted chord shape.

To keep things interesting in the second section (beginning at m.19) I moved the melody down an octave, using a few jazzy chords; Cm7, G#m7 add11 and Gaug7 added a nice touch to the intro melody. In measure 20 I used a G chord to pass to the G#m7. This allowed me to get out of my short jazz section and resolve with a nice F#sus chord with a downward moving harmony in measure 22.

Measure 25 demonstrates the use of a reverse major scale along with the melody. The short bar of 2/4 in measure 27 is a riff used to get back into the chorus of the song. I use a right-hand pattern of i p i m i p p m. I used 6ths in measure 33-34 to maintain interest in the arrangement.

Just before the last statement of the theme, I thought it would be fun to include a short bit (a quodlibet) reminiscent of the Beatles song, "If I fell." Then, finishing it all up in measure 46, I use cascading harmonics achieved by using a Bmaj7 bar chord shape at the 4th fret. Then, using the right-hand index finger, touch the harmonic note lightly over the 16th fret while plucking the string with your thumb. After that I use the third finger (a) to play the non-harmonic note, while pulling off the high A# to the G#. The harmonics put a nice finishing touch on the arrangement giving it a striking ending.

If you wish to construct your own variation on this arrangement, lyrics and a bit of history about "I Surrender All" can be found at http://www.the-synergy.com/lyrics/surrend.html.

Lance Allen
-Fingerstyle Guitarist
www.myspace.com/guitarlancer
www.youtube.com/guitarlancer

I Surrender All

All to Jesus I surrender
All to Him I freely give;
I will ever love and trust Him,
In his presence daily live.

I surrender all, I surrender all;
All to thee, my blessed Savior,
I surrender all.

All to Jesus I surrender,
Humbly at His feet I bow,
Worldly pleasures all forsaken,
Take me Jesus, take me now.

I surrender all, I surrender all;
All to thee, my blessed Savior,
I surrender all.

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About the Author

Lance Allen was born and raised in Kentucky and first showed interest in the guitar at age 11. Being surrounded by music in his home, he began learning songs from his father and before long the guitar became his primary focus.

After a lot of practicing and playing, he began to pick the guitar with his fingers and discovered the possibilities of fingerstyle guitar. He learned songs from recordings by Chet Atkins, Tommy Emmanuel, Phil Keaggy, and other great fingerstyle guitarists. Soon, writing his own compositions became a normal part of daily life.

With an album already under his belt and a second one on the way, Lance continues on his musical journey. He teaches guitar fulltime and has been featured in Fingerstyle Guitar Magazine as well as on Nashville Public Television.

To learn more about Lance Allen and his music check out his website and CD and watch his videos online:
www.myspace.com/guitarlancer
www.guitarlancer.com
www.youtube.com/user/guitarlancer
www.jonathanfletchermusic.com