You Can Accompany Yourself

C Δ7 , or major seventh chord on C About this sound Play ( help · info ) . (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Triads are built from scale tones. There are both Major seventh and ninth chords (Maj7 or +7 and Maj9) and Minor seventh and ninth chords (m7 and m9):

CDEFGABCDE

C6 = CEGA

C7 = CEGbB

Cmaj7 = CEGB

Cmaj9 = CEGBD

Cm6 = CEbGA

Cm7 = CEbGBb

Cm9 = CEbGBbD

Cm(maj7) = CEbGB

When playing these chords from music with chord symbols, you can play the chord root with your left hand (try to hang around middle C with your left thumb(, and chord tones 3 and 5 with your right hand. From this position, it is possible to play every chord (major, minor, seventh, diminished and augmented):

C = CC/EG

Cmaj7 = CB/EG

C7 = CBb/EG

C6 = CA/EG

Cm(maj7) = CB/EbG

Cm7 = CBb/EbG

Cm6 = CA/EbG

Cdim = CC/EbGb

Caug = CC/EG#

Try playing these voicings in many different keys.

Wikipedia says:

In music composition and arranging, a voicing is the instrumentation and vertical spacing and ordering of the pitches in a chord (which notes are on the top or in the middle, which ones are doubled, which octave each is in, and which instruments or voices perform each). Which note is on the bottom determines the inversion.
Voicing is "the manner in which one distributes, or spaces, notes and chords among the various instruments" and spacing or "simultaneous vertical placement of notes in relation to each other."

You might be interested in these articles:

Voicings at Jazz Center

The ABCs of Chord Voicings.html

Two Handed Voicings

Why Don't A Lot of Songs Transpose Well?

Now, I met this very cool guy on FaceBook Jerald Simon, and received tons of songs for free awhile back. Right now, Music Motivation is offering free music for piano students and teachers, here


You may be interested in purchasing some teaching tapes about chord structures and names of chords; Chords 101 and 102

Warmly,






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

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Slash Chords

What are slash chords?

* Here's my definition of a slash chord:
Giving you an alternative bass note, we say A over E, for example. The chord looks like this: A/E So, play A in the r.h. and E in the l.h.

* Here's an online definition of slash chords at

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slash_chord
"In popular music a slash chord or slashed chord is a chord whose bass note or inversion is indicated by the addition of a slash and the letter of the bass after the root note letter"...

* Piano Chord Symbols: Slash Chords by Duane Shinn
Great video showing you what slash chords are all about

Piano Chord Symbols: Slash Chords

* Use Slash Chords, Diminished Sound in Gospel Music
Play:
C/ C E G
B/ B E G#
A/ C E A
F#/ A D F#
G/ B D G

* LGM Definition of Slash Chord
A slash chord is nothing more than a chord with an alternate bass note.
They're also called compound chords.

When you see a chord like A/E, the first character is the chord and the second character after the slash is the bass note, so A/E would be an A chord with an E bass note instead of an A bass note.

Some of the most common types of slash chords are inversion based, meaning that one of the notes already in the chord triad are used for the bass note.
G/B, D/F#, A/C#, A/E...all are inversions of the chord but using either the 3rd note of the 5th note as the bass note instead of the root note.

Some slash chords are non-inversion based, like B/E. The B triad is B, D#, F#...there's no E there BUT if you add extensions to the triad to make, say, a BMaj9/E, then you've got B, D# and F# as well as C# and E so BMaj9/E becomes inversion based.

http://www.learngospelmusic.com/forums/index.php/topic,51740.0

So, C/G means play G chord with your left hand and a C chord with your right.

* Chord Charts At LGM

Slash chord chart #1:

http://www.learngospelmusic.com/forums/index.php/topic,55476.0.html


Slash chord chart #2:

http://www.learngospelmusic.com/forums/index.php/topic,55491.0.html

Slash chord chart #3:

http://www.learngospelmusic.com/forums/index.php/topic,55694.0.html


http://www.learngospelmusic.com/forums/index.php/topic,55603.0.html

slash chords

http://www.ibreathemusic.com/cat/3

http://www.learngospelmusic.com/forums/index.php/topic,52634.0.html



* Duane has an Ebook on Power Chords

http://www.ebookexplorer.com/book_1971.html

* FOUR PART CHORDS OVER ROOT - Chord Voicings

REMEMBER: for these chords you'll want to play a 4-note chord in your RH over your root in the LH. Also you can invert that chord in your RH to any inversion you'd like unless otherwise noted.

Em7 / C = Cmaj9 spelled out.. C/EGBD
note: another way to think about this one is to play a minor 7th chord off of the 3rd in your RH and the root in your LH

Ebmaj7 / C = Cm9 spelled out.. C/EbGBbD
note: another way to think about this one is to play a major 7th chord off the minor 3rd in your RH and the root in your LH

Bm7b5 / G = G9 spelled out.. G/BDFA
note: another way to think about this one is to play a minor 7 flat 5 chord off the 3rd in your RH and the root in your LH

Fmaj7b5 / G = G13 spelled out.. G/FABE
note: another way to think about this one is to play a major 7 flat 5 chord off the flat 7 in your RH and the root in your LH
note: only root and 2nd inversion should be used on the chord in the RH

Dm7 / G = G9sus4 or G11 <-- this is a HOT chord that I use all the time I substitute the 3 chord in a 3-6-2 progression for this sus chord (I'll post this later)
note: another way to think about this one is to play a minor 7th chord off the 5th in your RH and the root in your LH
note: spelled out.. G/DFAC

Fmaj7 / G = G13sus4 <-- Another HOT chord I use a lot too. I substitute the 5 chord in a 2-5-1 progression for this sus chord
note: another way to think about this one is to play a major 7th chord off the flat 7 in your RH and the root in your LH
note: spelled out.. G/FACE

Fm7b5 / G = G7 (b9 #5)
note: another way to think about this one is to play a minor 7 flat 5 chord off the flat 7 in your RH and the root in your LH
note: spelled out.. G/FAbBEb

Bmaj7b5 / G = G7 (#9 #5)
note: another way to think about this one is to play a major 7 flat 5 chord off the 3rd in your RH and the root in your LH
note: only root position should be used on the chord in the RH
note: spelled out.. G/BD#FA# or G/BEbFBb (the first way is the best way to look at it b/c you can see that the 9 and 5 are sharped)

Fmaj7#5 / G = G13 (#11)
note: another way to think about this one is to play a major 7 sharp 5 chord off the flat 7 in your RH and the root in your LH
note: only root position should be used on the chord in the RH
note: spelled out.. G/FAC#E

http://www.learngospelmusic.com/forums/index.php/topic,55491.0.html

* Final Note

I have found that most people who chord songs in the LH/RH format do so because they play by ear. Many folks want to read sheet music and read chord symbols. It's great to have the chords written out for voicing purposes. Using chord symbols for posting chords is easier, but many want chords written out so that they can understand. Learning alternative bass notes will add so much more to your playing. When I first started playing the piano and soloing, I used sheet music. When I came aboard worship teams and gained experience playing with a bass player, I learned to read chord charts and gladly welcomed slash chords, so as not to step on the bass players toes! lol

All the best,

~ LadyD

Piano Voicing- What Does It Mean?

What does voicing mean exactly? Simply put, voicing is the way chords are played which gives them their timbre or richness. In other words it’s how many notes are played, the distance between each of the notes and the quantity and quality of extensions.

There are literally thousands of ways to play a single chord. There are also millions of ways to play a chord progression if you consider that each chord can be played a thousand different ways. However, it’s likely a good idea to start off with a few solid possibilities instead of a thousand.

For example, let’s take a Cmaj7 chord. The chord itself is simple enough and is made up of C E G and B. However, depending on how rich you want the chord to sound you can also add D and A to the chord as extensions. Why? Because D and A come from the C major scale and do not clash with the basic chord.

These are what we call extensions. In other words a good pianist will already consider D and A in their chord voicing when they see the chord symbol Cmaj7. It doesn’t have to be written Cmaj7 (9 13) for them to understand this.

So, how would a pianist then voice this chord? Well, for starters, that depends on the melody. Whatever the melody note is will become the highest note of the chord. For example, let’s say D is the melody note of prominence while the chord is being played. That means that for a pianist our 9th is already understood as part of the chord and is the top note.

Next, it’s generally a good idea to play the bass note in the left hand which is C of course. Then the next 2 most important notes are the 3rd and the 7th because these notes give the chord its flavor. Consider playing the 7th in the left hand above the bass note. That would mean playing the C with finger 5 (baby finger) and B with finger 1 (thumb).

Then, play the 3rd, 5th and melody (9th) in the right hand with the 1st, 2nd and 5th fingers respectively. What’s left? The 13th or A which, you can cover with the 3rd finger of the right hand. So, from bottom to top you would have the notes in this order; C B E G A and D. That right there is a very rich sounding chord and you’d have to go a long way to find one richer.

However, this is only one way of voicing the chord. There are literally thousands of ways. My suggestion is this; learn one way at a time until it becomes second nature. Voicing the root and 7th in the left hand and covering the 3rd and the melody in the right hand is a very good system to start with. Then with your left over fingers in the right hand cover the 5th and any other extension that’s available. This works for all chords including major, minor, dominant and diminished chords.

Once you’ve learned this way of voicing chords it becomes much easier to tackle a new formula because this one is already clear and concrete and will help you hear very clearly the difference between the chords.

Have you heard of Quartal Voicings? A new field in harmony is to build chord structures in fourths (quartals). It produces a more open harmony and is a very practical resort for pianists. Left hand plays chord voicing in fourths. Do Quartal Voicings departing from 3. from 13, from 9, from 7
In the upper staff: Take notes of C scale in fourth intervals departing from B.
All are notes of extended C chord: 7, 3, 13, 9, 5, 1. Play in r.h.arpeggiated:
B-E-A-D-G-High C
B-E-A-D-G-High C
B-E-A-D-G-High C
B-E-A-D-G-High C

Practice these four voicings:

C/ D-G-C
C/ E-A-D
C/ A-D-G
C/ B-E-A

Have a great week ahead!
LadyD
Low C-E-A-D, Low C-A-D-G, Low C-D-G-C, Low C-B-E-A

PHAT Chords

When I first learned of Phat Chords, this is what I found in my research:
http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/Studios/9783/ci5.html I felt like I had arrived at another advanced level of music and that it would be hard to understand! lol I had discovered a dictionary of Phat Chords!

In many music forums, you'll find slash chords written to give you examples of those Phat Chords! For Example:

FC / EbGBbD / F (foot pedal)
ADbG / ACFA / B
BbF / AbCEbF / Bb
FB / EbGBb / Db
CBb / EbBbDF / C
FBb / ADGb / F
BbF / AbCDF / Bb
DbAb / FAbCEb / Db
CBb / EAbBbEb / C

Or, how about this chart:
Phat Chords

#1.

Bb/Ab Db Eb F
B/Bb Db Eb Gb
F/Ab Db Eb F
Gb/B Db Eb Gb
B/Eb Ab Bb Db

#2.

C/C Eb Ab
Db/Db F Ab
D/DFAbB
Eb/Db Gb Bb
D/Ab B D F
Eb/Db Gb Bb
D/Ab B D F
Eb/Gb Bb Eb
Bb/ F Ab Db
B/Eb Ab Bb Db

And then here are some more of them Phat Chords:
Legend LH/RH

#1.
BbFAb/CDbEbAb
BGbBb/DEbGbBb
FEb/DbEbFAb
GbDbF/DbFBbDb
BGb/AbBbDbEbGb

#2.
C/BbEbAb
DbAb/CEbFAb
DBb/DGbAbBb
EbBb/DbGbAbBb
EDb/EAbBbEb (passing to 3 (to get to 1-4-5) change to resolve to Key of Db)
FCEb/GAbBbEb
GbF/DbFBb

BAb/G#ADbF (filler)
AGb/GbADbEb (filler)
AbF/DbEbFAb

AGb/ADbEbAb (filler)
EbB/ADbEbGb (filler)
AbEbF/AbDbEbF

EbDb/GbBbDbF
G/FBbEb
AbEb/GbBbCF
DA/CEGbBb
DbAb/CEbFAb

I actually found a website regarding Phat Chords. Got Phat Chords is the #1 community for finding fat chord progressions, scales for piano and guitar, learning music theory, and meeting new musicians. Have a look:

http://gotphatchords.com

My friend Labsonqu, from the HearandPlay zone posted these chords and midi of Phat Chords:
GdBb/BEbGbBb
EbG/AbCEbG
DF/GCEG
BbD/EbGBbD



Jonathan Powell from hearandplay.com reveals many hidden secrets that advanced musicians don't share. These chords are used in todays top gospel songs. He speaks a lot about dissonance and he adds lots of grace notes in his West Coast style of playing. I actually own his Dvd and I'm very pleased with it.
Learn To Play Phat Chords



I have also found a great Tutorial: Gospel Harmonization technique to get phat chords!!! Listen to some beautiful sounding passing chords and Phat Chords!



If you would like to learn about E minor9 chords, where you add F#, or how to play a G minor11, or adding B to an A2 voicing, watch this video. Keep in mind that the 9th and minor 3rd give that great dissonance sound that make up our Phat Chords! Hope you enjoy the study, I know I did!






http://www.LadyDpiano.com

Jazz By Ear- Esperanza Spalding

I wanted to thank the folks from Copenhagen for stopping by and checking out my blog! A friend of mine from a guitar forum posted a clip of Esperanza Spalding performing live from Copenhagen. Her style of jazz singing and playing, well I give her 10+ stars! Those following jazz ought to keep an ear on the bassist ESPERANZA SPALDING, who is going about things her own way.
There are many gifted singers in jazz today, and no shortage of accomplished acoustic bass players. But few jazz artists can be both. Read more about Esperanza
http://www.npr.org/templates/story.php?storyid=90478162
Esperanza likes to say it was an accident that she started playing the bass, and it was a miracle she ever made it to Berklee. It's probably an even bigger miracle that she stayed. But while fate and chance may have played a part in getting Esperanza where she is today, talent like hers is no accident.
http://www.berklee.edu/profiles/spalding.html Take a look and listen for yourself. You ask me why I wrote about a jazz bassist? Well, listen to the piano player. I love how he plays those rootless chords. There is so much air and space in his playing. That's where the expression: "Less is more" is applied. Enjoy!

A style of voicing made popular by McCoy Tyner is based on the interval of the fourth. This type of voicing is used most often in modal music. To construct a quartal voicing, simply take any note in the scale associated with the chord, and add the note a fourth above, and a fourth above that. Use perfect fourths or augmented fourths depending on which note is in the scale. For instance, quartal voicings for Cm7 are "C F Bb", "D G C", "Eb A D" (note the augmented fourth), "F Bb Eb", "G C F", "A D G", and "Bb Eb A". This type of voicing seems to work especially well for minor chords (dorian mode), or dominant chords where a suspended or pentatonic sound is being used.
These voicings are even more ambiguous, in that a given three note quartal voicing can sound like a voicing for any number of different chords. There is nothing wrong with this. However, if you wish to reinforce the particular chord/scale you are playing, one way to do this is to move the voicing around the scale in parallel motion. If there are eight beats of a given chord, you may play one of these voicings for the first few beats, then move it up a step for a few more beats. The technique of alternating the voicing with the root in the bass, or the root and fifth, works well here, too. On a long Cm7 chord, for instance, you might play "C G" on the first beat, then play some quartal voicings in parallel motion for the duration of the chord.
As with the 3/7 voicings, these voicings are convenient left hand voicings on the piano or three or four string voicings on the guitar. They can also be made into two handed or five or six string voicings by stacking more fourths, fifths or octaves on top. For instance, the Cm7 chord can be voiced as "D G C" in the left hand and "F Bb Eb" in the right, or "Eb A D" in the left and "G C G" in the right. So much to learn! :D

http://www.LadyDpiano.com

What Are Gospel Turnarounds?

Exactly what are gospel turnarounds? And when and how are they used? I would say a gospel turnaround by definition is a combination or sequence of chords or combination or sequence of single notes that are used to get back to a certain point in a song usually the beginning. A 3-6-2-5-1 progression is a very common turnaround in gospel or wherever.
This is a basic 3-6-2-5-1 turn around. You can use it nearly everywhere you see a 2-5-1
Key C
L.H/RH and (1) = tone chord number
(3) E-D/G-B-D-Gb
(6) A/ G-B-Db-F
(2) D-F-A-C/F-A-C-E or you can just use D-C on the bass
(5) G/ B-E-Ab or you can use G/F-A-B-E
(1) C/ B-D-E-G
Here is another example but the difference is in the chord voicing:
(3) E-G/Gb-G-B-D
(6) A-G/E-G-Bb-Db
(2) D-F/F-C-E-G
(5) G-F/F-Ab-B-Eb
(1) C-E/B-D-E-G
So a 5-1 progression can be just as powerful as a 7-3-6-2-5-1. In fact, as I mentioned earlier, the 5-1 progression is in the 7-3-6-2-5-1. Each progression has its own role.And you can use each of these progressions at different points in a song. One progression is not better than the other. You see they all contribute to the songs that you hear every day, whether gospel, jazz, blues or rock. Learn where to find the 3 6 2 5 1
The First Step To Playing Tons Of Gospel Songs By Ear Starts Right Here

http://www.LadyDpiano.com

Chord Voicing

Chord voicing? Well, voicing is how many notes are played, the distance between each of the notes and the quantity and quality of extensions.
There are many, many ways to play a single chord. There are also tons of ways to play chord progressions, considering that each chord can be played many different ways. It’s a good idea to start off with a few simple possibilities instead of hundreds.
For example, take a Cmaj7 chord. The chord is simple and is made up of C E G and B. Depending on how rich you want the chord to sound, you can also add D and A to the chord as extensions because D and A come from the C major scale and do not clash with the basic chord.
These are what we call extensions. In other words a good pianist will already consider D and A in their chord voicing when they see the chord symbol Cmaj7. It doesn’t have to be written Cmaj7 (9 13) for them to understand this.
So, how would a pianist then voice this chord? Well, for starters, that depends on the melody. Whatever the melody note is will become the highest note of the chord. For example, let’s say D is the melody note of prominence while the chord is being played. That means that for a pianist our 9th is already understood as part of the chord and is the top note.
It’s a good idea to play the bass note in the left hand which is C of course. Then the next 2 most important notes are the 3rd and the 7th because these notes give the chord its flavor. Consider playing the 7th in the left hand above the bass note. That would mean playing the C with finger 5 (baby finger) and B with finger 1 (thumb).
Then, play the 3rd, 5th and melody (9th) in the right hand with the 1st, 2nd and 5th fingers respectively. What’s left? The 13th or A which, you can cover with the 3rd finger of the right hand. So, from bottom to top you would have the notes in this order; C B E G A and D. That right there is a very rich sounding chord.
This is only one way of voicing the chord. Learn one way at a time until it becomes second nature. Voicing the root and 7th in the left hand and covering the 3rd and the melody in the right hand is a very good system to start with. Then with your left over fingers in the right hand cover the 5th and any other extension that’s available. This works for all chords including major, minor, dominant and diminished chords.
It's fun to learn ways of voicing chords!

http://www.LadyDpiano.com

JAZZ VOICINGS, RUNS and LICKS

Hey Fellow Jazz Lovers,

If you're truly serious about taking your jazz piano and keyboard playing to new heights (...learning new jazz voicings, incorporating various "runs" and "licks" into your playing, learning the ins and outs of improvisation, etc.), I definitely recommend you check out this new jazz resource...

http://www.HearandPlay.com/441295/jazz201.html



http://www.LadyDpiano.com

JAZZ 101 - BLAST OFF!

Discover:

* How to quickly and easily form tons of jazz chord patterns and runs that are guaranteed to have you standing out from the crowd.

* Accelerate your jazz learning curve by combining 3 secret elements that the pros don't want you to know!

* How to ensure that no matter what voicings and blues licks you play, they'll turn heads each and every time!

* The 7 secrets to playing signature solos like a pro from a pro!
Here's what you'll get:

Disc 1: In Part 1, James demonstrates specific chord voicings, placement, and patterns you'll need to know to start playing jazz by ear. Not only that, you'll also learn to get both your left and right hand working together as jazz can be a little different than most styles you're used to.

2) Hear and Play Jazz 101 Disc 2: This is where James will break down all the ins and outs to the 12-bar blues... step by step! He'll also show you over 7 jazz licks and tricks that you can add to your playing immediately. What he's got in his bag of tricks you definitely won't pick up any where else.

Order here:
http://sell.hearandplay.com/at.cgi/441295/jazz.html