Chord voicings for jazz keyboards. |
Ever wondered why your C7 didn't sound as cool as those played by Bill Evans or McCoy Tyner?     The answer is mainly in the chord voicing and the additional tones.   This article helps in moving from 'stacks of thirds' to more modern voicings and is intended as a summary to facilitate practice of different voicings of most chords met by jazz pianists.   Excellent detailed material is referenced at the end of the notes.   Anyone with an interest in understanding chords and voicings is strongly urged to purchase the references for a fuller explanation of the theory and development.
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  [TOP] Another consideration is that, in present-day jazz, the bass (acoustic or electric) is omnipresent so that the chord roots can generally be left to the bass-player.   As a result, many of the modern voicings omit the root (and the 5th).   Where a pianist is playing without bass and drums, a root-based voicing will possibly be required and examples are included. In the use of the subjective word 'modern' there is an implied 'style' in the selection of the voicings for this summary.   However, at the very least, they can be regarded as a first move away from 'stacked 3rds in the root position'. The performance framework for the jazz pianist usually devolves into 3 broad areas:
The notated examples are split into the first two approximate groupings.   The 'Left Hand Chords' for solos, are generally 4-tone chords frequently omit the root/5th and leave the right hand for the melody line.   Some 3-tone chords are shown using 4th intervals or 'fragments'.   The 'Comping' chords require 2 hands and frequently omit the root/5th ('left hand' voicings are, of course, not precluded from 'comping').   For 'Solo Piano' chords, where there is no bass accompaniment, root voicings may be required and some examples are included. The illustrative examples of voicings are shown for C-root chords and will, of course, need to be transposed for other roots.   However, it is likely that the student will learn the chords by the shapes and/or the succession of intervals to enable 'sight reading' from chords to finger shape and position. A few common progressions (e.g. II, V, I) are shown as examples of using the voicings, paying attention to voice-leading and minimising finger movement.   The example voicings are, of course,not exhaustive and some experimentation with other voicings of the progressions is recommended as,indeed, are other progressions. Format.
  [TOP] Accidentals.   In the musical notation, accidental sharps (#) are applied to 5ths, 9ths and 11ths in a major context.   Accidental flats (b) are applied to 3rds, 5ths, 9ths and 13ths in a minor context.   Accidental flats (b) are always applied to a 7th.   Accidentals also reflect the chord description.   Double-accidentals (e.g. bb) , or accidentals that result in an enharmonic natural, are replaced by their perhaps more familiar, but less precise, enharmonic equivalents, except where the double-accidentals are diatonic to the key. Intervals between tones.   Intervals between tones are indicated by the number only for major /perfect intervals, prefixed by 'm' for minor intervals and 'T' for the tritone interval (augmented 4th).   The intervals are indicated to show the 'shape' of the chord, which then may be applied to other roots. Grouping of Chords.     'Tonic' chords are those that provide the listener with the 'rest' position of a key (e.g. a minor 7th, unlike minor 6th, does not provide a 'tonic' feel to the key).   Augmented chords (#5) are not shown as a separate group but are included in the altered dominant 7ths group.   Suspended chords are treated separately since they do not imply a resolution like a dominant 7th.   Suspended chords are regarded as containing 11th tones; however they are still described by the conventional 'sus' or 'sus4'.   Altered dominant chords are those where the 9th and/or 5th and/or 11th are sharpened/flattened.   The use of the description b5 has been replaced by the more modern nomenclature of #11, except in half diminished chords (e.g. Cm7(b5)). Timbre and Register.
  [TOP] As a general rule for best timbre:
Where a voicing would take the chord beyond those limits,' inversions' of the chord components may be required.   The 'inversions' shown for any chord can still be identified as 'shapes' and the pianist can select the appropriate shape for the required root and timbre.   (When a chord omits the root or other tones, a re-ordering of the tones in the chord cannot be strictly described as an 'inversion'.   However, the term is used, in these notes, to indicate a re-ordering of the constituent tones of a chord.) Of course, 'timbre' is a matter of taste and it is your choice - the suggestions above are a guide.   As a general rule, the more 'open' chords, using 4ths, tritones or octaves in the lower register, tend to be more forgiving of use where the lowest note is below C'.   However, sounding tones making 'soft' dissonant intervals with the root or 5th (e.g minor 2nd) too low in the register may conflict with the bass.   For example, the use of a voicing where B is the lowest note of a C chord, will conflict with the bass player if he is playing C next to the B (a safe solution is for the pianist to use C instead of B). Of course, the musical context may require the general 'timbre' rule to be totally ignored - nothing is immutable.   Additionally, in selecting a voicing, the pianist simply may want to get his left hand out of the way of the right hand (e.g. dominant 7ths in the lower register may be played using only the tritone of the 3rd and 7th, giving the right hand more room for melody). Selecting a Voicing.
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It is worth noting that often the 'simplest' voicing of a chord may be desirable.   For example, supporting a dense piece of harmonic writing (e.g. a 5-sax soli) with 'hip' piano voicings can result in conflict with the writer's own passing chords and voicings.   To avoid this, some writers 'rest' the piano in these circumstances or, even, pace Gerry Mulligan and Lennie Niehaus, dispense with pianists altogether.   (Not good for gig prospects).   Vocalists, too can have intonation problems and may like straight-forward chords without bite notes, well away from the voice register. Required Characteristics of 'modern' voicings.
Chord substitutions.     In considering chord substitution, we are concerned more with simplifying or enhancing the chord choice, rather than examining re-harmonisation to change the chord flavours and harmonic context.   In general, we are permitted to select substitute chords which do not contribute dissonant tones to the specified chord, but retain the specified chord's 'flavour'.   On this basis, the following general inferences can be made concerning chord substitutions:
If the arrangement or the soloist is doing things that don't permit the above substitutions (e.g. unilaterally flattening all the dominant 9ths), a hasty review of the substitution rules might be necessary... In identifying a voicing in your mind, one authority suggests that you do not consider it in an 'analogous' fashion.   For example, the voicing of the Cm7 at chord 11 can be viewed as Ebmaj7, but it is better in the context of a C root chord to identify it, in your mind, as Cm7.   (After all, it is also Fsus, when the bass player is playing F).   It might be a moot opinion, however, because another authority invites you, for example, to 'think Db7 for G7alt' and another to learn altered voicings by 'knowing' the right hand as triads of polychords (one chord on top of another).   Take your pick. Bearing in mind the above, we can arrive at a selection of voicings (there are others, of course), which cover most performance requirements.   However, to reduce the initial learning (and practice drilling) load, we can select a few, which particularly lend themselves to good voice-leading whilst retaining the desired characteristics listed above. These 'notable' chords are shown numbered and would be a good place to start on practice.   Chords with 4th intervals are also highlighted, because of their 'modern', 'open' sound. Voice Leading.
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Altered Dominant 7ths.
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Left Hand Chords.
  [TOP] Comping Chords.
  [TOP] Example Progressions.
  [TOP] Bibliography.
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Fig. 1 Notated Example Voicings (1).
  [TOP] Fig. 2 Notated Example Voicings (2).
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