Voicing 7th Chords

 A little bird told me you wanted to learn voicing 7th chords. Thanks for your emails.

 Here is what I have learned from Noah Baerman on voicing 7th chords.

7th chords open up a whole new world of possibilities. It is funny to think that just
one extra note per chord can greatly alter the sound, but dealing with 7th chords does
just that. Voicing becomes much more important now that we are using 7th chords.
More notes create more voicing possibilities. As jazz keyboardists, we strive to learn
what those possibilities are, how to execute them and what impact each one may have
on the overall sound.

Voice Leading

Here are two examples of voicings for a ii-V-I in Bb Major.

1. C/ CEbGBb
  
    F/CEbFA

    Bb/BbDFA

2. C/CEbGBb

    F/FACEb

    Bb/BbDFA

The first example makes more sense. Each voicing flows smoothly to the next one,
and the hands have to move very little to play the progression. In the second example
the sound is broken up, and the right hand has to jump around to play the chords.
The difference is that the first example uses good voice leading. Voice leading is the
smooth movement of voices (notes) from one chord tot he next. If your hands are
jumping all over the place, you're probably not using good voice leading, and the
music is unlikely to sound smooth or cohesive. To voice lead well, your hands should
use the least possible amount of energy. Imagine that, the easier it is to play, the better it sounds!

3. Example of a iii-vi-ii-V-I progression in F Major with good voice leading.

A/GACE (Amin7)

D/FACD (Dmin7)

G/GABbD (Gmin7)

C/GBbCE (C7)

F/FACE (FMaj7)

Each of the four voices in the right hand moves very little as the chords change.
Just like the individual singers in a choir, who can't jump around too much without 
getting tired and confused, the voices in a chord should avoid leaps whenever possible.
The bass notes move around more but that's inevitable when the roots are moving in large
intervals like 4ths and 5ths. Since the left hand is playing one note at a time, it is not
difficult to play.

We have more freedom with voicing when the left hand plays the roots. So far, we've
been playing four notes at a time in the right hand whenever we play 7th chords.
Now that we're getting  the hang of them, we can eliminate one of those notes.


4. The right hand can play the 3rd, 5th, and 7th of each chord. The left hand can take 
care of the roots.

D/FAC (Dmin7)

G/DFB (G7)

C/EGB

With this kind of voicing, the sound becomes more open. We don't lose the fullness
because all four notes of each chord are still being played. WE still use the same method
of voice leading, simply omitting the root from the right hand. Let's take the following
progression in B minor.

5. Roots in l.h. and 3rds, 5ths and 7ths  in r.h. with smooth voice leading.

B/ADF# (Bmin7)

E/BDG (Emin7)

B/ADF# (Bmin7)

G/BDF# (GMaj7)

C#/GBE (C#min7b5)

F#/A#C#E (F#7)

B/ADF# (Bmin7)

If we begin the progression with a different voicing for the first Bmin7 chord,
then the voice leading will naturally lead to other voicings for the rest of the chords,
since other voicings will be within easier reach.

6. Here's another way of voicing the same changes with the same technique.

B/DF#A (Bmin7)

E/DGB (Emin7)

B/DF#A (Bmin7)

G/DF#B (GMaj7)

C#/EGB (C#min7b5)

F#/C#EA# (F#7)

B/DF#A (Bmin7)


Hope these are helpful examples. You may want to visit these resources.

Advanced Gospel Courses

Gospel Core Essentials


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All the best,





"The beautiful thing about learning is that no one can take it away from you." B.B.King

Reharmonizing V as II-V

Let's continue with reharmonization.



Reharmonizing V as II-V

Many of the standard tunes in the jazz repertoire were written in the 1920s and 1930s. Those tunes consist largely of V-I progressions. II-V and II-V-I progressions were used only by the more sophisticated songwriters of that time. One of the first reharmonization techniques used by the jazz musicians of the 1930s was to proceed a V chord with its II chord to create a II-V progression. Reharmonizing V as II-V  makes a tune sound more modern, and expands the improvisational possibilities.

Here's 2 examples of 2 measures from the song "I Remember You", written by Victor Schertzinger. The V chord (E7) has been proceeded by a II chord (B-7).

F/ AE
E/ G#DE 

Then Play:
F/AE
B/ADE
E/G# 


Tritone Substitution



Reharmonizing can mean replacing one chord with another, or using a substitute chord. A substitute chord is just what it sounds like: a chord that substitutes for the chord written on the lead sheet.

Here's four bars of "All The Things You Are" by Jerome Kern. I"ll substitute the A7 for Eb7. 

F/EbAb
Bb/AbDb
Eb/DbG
Ab/CG


Then Play:


F/EbAb
Bb/AbDb
A/C#G
Ab/CG


Now Try This:


F/EbAb
Bb/AbDb
E/DG
A/C#G
Ab/CG


Listen for the chord progression and tell me, does  it sounds smoother? More modern? Do you like it? This is the sound of tritone substitution.

Jermaine Griggs has a very nice theory course book that I refer back to many times. He has a section on altering chords that is very good. For more information, visit Playing Altered Chords By Ear.

Here's the II-V-I in the Key of C.

D/CF
G/BF
C/BE


Then hear how the Db7 for G7 creates a chromatic bass line: D, Db, C.


D/CF
Db/CbF
C/BE


Here's how tritone substitution works: As you have learned before, the two most important notes in major, minor, and dominant 7th chords are the 3rd and the 7th. These notes determine the quality of, or differences between those chords. 

Let's review some rules: 


1. A major 7th chord has a major 3rd and a major 7th.
2. A minor 7th chord has a minor 3rd and a minor 7th.
3. A dominant 7th chord has a major 3rd and a minor 7th

Tritone Substitutions

You may be interested in Jamal Hartwell's Tritone Xtravganza Dvd, especially if you like tritone sounds and are an intermediate-advanced player. For more information, visit Tritone


Advanced players, take a look at this advanced reharmonization technique chord chart and video of Thelonius Monk Round Midnight

Here's another great site for reharm practice with midis:
Mallet Jazz
 
Next time, I'll list various combinations of altered chords.

Until then,
-- LadyD


"The beautiful thing about learning is that no one can take it away from you." B.B.King

What's A Tritone?

Q: What's a Tritone?
A: An interval composed of three whole tones.
tritone
In music, the interval of the diminished fifth, exactly half the octave, and considered in the Middle Ages to be the moral antithesis of the octave's perfect consonance, or ‘diabolus in musica’ (devil in music). Its prominence during the late 19th and early 20th centuries helped to undermine the remaining foundations of tonality, as in Debussy's Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune (1894).
tritone
Sounds scary? Hear for yourself and find out why Tritones were banned from Christian music several hundred years ago and why they have now been embraced by contemporary gospel musicians and used in almost every modern song!

My friend, Willie Myette, wrote a great article on Tritones. He says "Tritones definitely add spice to your playing. But, many people are confused when it comes to using them."

http://www.jazzpianolessons.com/articles/tritones.php
Tritones are the 3rd and 7th of a chord. The most efficient and musical method of right hand fill for any 7th chord is to add the Tritones below the melody. The left hand only has to provide the root of the chord. Have
a listen:

http://www.keyboardedu.com/Pamphlets/pamtritones.html
In this free video series (there's 16 videos!), watch as expert piano player Ryan Larson teaches how to play tritone substitutions. Tritone substitutions are often used in jazz music, in which a chord progression of a dominant 7th chord that is three whole steps from the original dominant 7th chord, creating a chromatic root movement in popular jazz chord progressions. Have a look:

http://www.expertvillage.com/video-series/3911_tritone-substitutions
What I learned about Tritones is that to use a tritone in a ii-V-I, first start by finding the tritone of the V7 chord's root. 1. What is the V7 chord? [It is G7]
2. What is the root of G7? It is G
3. What is a tritone note of G? The tritone is Db
To find the tritone easier, first find the 5th (D), then go down a 1/2 step (Db). I think it is easier to think of it this way rather than sharping the 4th.
Tritone Substitution
Each dominant seventh chord has a tritone. For example in the G7 chord:
We find the tritone between notes B and F.
In the Db7 chord:
The tritone is found on notes F - Cb. As you may have noticed, these chords share the same tritone (F = F and B = Cb):
Because of the fact that they share the same tritone, one chord can substitute the other. This is called in jazz music theory tritone substitution. Note that the chords are one tritone apart (G - Db).
A friend shared this with me. I hope you find this useful!
Finding a passing tritone:
Here’s a useful shortcut for tritone work today. Lots of people are/were confused as to forming a decent sounding tritone.
The tritone is basically two notes 3 whole steps apart from each other e.g. F and B played together form a tritone. Tri meaning 3.
The tritone can be used as a passing tone in gospel and jazz movements. It’s usually that dynamic sounding chord you usually hear especially in spacious movements i.e.
"2-5-1" may become "2 - WOW! - 5 - WHAT? - 1"
The Dynamic chord i.e. passing tone tritone is formed like this:
1. The basic structure to give the potent sound is basically a ditone (2 notes played together 2 whole steps apart). Added harmonics are formed by playing them at least one octave apart though. The major chord (right hand) is the right most note in the ditone. Whereas the tritone you'll play with the major chord is based on the left most note.
So basically for an A-Major passing tone you'll play the A-major chord with your right hand with the F tritone.
2. Form the tritone. Remember F + (3 whole steps) = B. So the tritone is F+B. Play this with your left hand.
3. For the major chord, I advise you play your major chord one inversion down- but play what you're used to. So right hand plays E+A+Db.
4. The final result would thus be: F+B // E+A+Db. Quite dynamic.
Bearing all of this in mind, you should be able to figure any tritone (passing tone) you so wish e.g.
C tritone (passing tone) would be Ab+D // G+C+E



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