Alternate Ways to Harmonize Tunes

[TristanRogers]

Well, as most intermediate to advanced jazz players know, the simplest way to arrange a tune is to do a straight chord melody style arrangement. I think that this is a great way to learn the style and it generally works. However, I think that once one has done this to a great degree the guitar starts to dictate the way you will play a tune based on what chords are available over such and such melody notes. Recently, I've been trying to break out of this habit by adopting a more minimalist style of arranging with counter lines that might mimic a piano interpretation. Another thing is to not harmonize every single note so that the melody can come through more. Does anyone else have any other ideas on arranging tunes?

[seanlowe]

One way i tend to think on this is rather than, like you said, harmonising every note, i will pick up on two or 3 notes underneath the melody from the chord tones, and figure a way of sustaining them whilst keeping the melody over the top; as if someone else was comping rather than just playing a countermelody. as an example, the first few bars from "Beautiful Love" i would play:


--------|-------------|----0------|------------
--------|-10----8-----|-6----3-5-|-6-----------
-7-9-10-|--(7)-----(6)|-----------|(5)---------
--------|---(8)----(5)|-----------|(0)---------
--------|-------------|-----------|------------
--------|-------------|-----------|------------



pardon the ugly tab, not used to writing in it.
Also, use the fact you are a guitarist to your advantage, you can play two of the same note to make a note in a melody stronger, and remember the tone of the same note played in different places is very different.

[TheThunder]

i completely agree with seanlowe

"you can play two of the same note to make a note in a melody stronger, and remember the tone of the same note played in different places is very different"

sometimes all a song needs is not a countermelody or a harmonizing melody, but just a stronger note. the difference can be amazing!

[Pulseczar]

Not sure if this is exactly what you are looking for, but one of my favorite arranging substitutions I've discovered is using a Tri-tone sub. You can basically sub any chord 6 half steps away either direction, keeping the intervals all the same except changing the 7th depending on the key signature.

Best example of this is substituting I-ii-V progression. Let's say we're in C. So the I-ii-V progression would be C-Dm7-G7. You can sub that V7(G7) down 6 half steps to a Db7. So the progression becomes I-iim-bII (C-Dm7-Db7). The Reason this works is because the chords share two notes together. They both have the 3rd and 7th, the two most important notes in a dominant chord.

G7: G B D F
Db7: Db F Ab B

Like I said not sure if this is what you're looking for but I hope it helps. Happy Picking! >=)

[Gabriel]

Something that always strikes me as interesting is when tunes are arranged in a way that the melody or solo instrument plays alone for a few bars. Sometimes, guitarists will assault you with fancy "out" sounding arrangements that don't even resemble the original tune! Sometimes the "less is more" approach really works, and theres nothing like playing your melody with attitude. A benefit of this is that when you add the rest of your arrangement after a repeat, it seems to make much more sense to the listener.

One more point: Always remember your rhythm! I've seen professors of jazz guitar play in small clubs without even a trace of groove, because they neglected to make their rhythms interesting, in favor of intelligent chords.

[jlc]

Pulseczar

Not sure if this is exactly what you are looking for, but one of my favorite arranging substitutions I've discovered is using a Tri-tone sub. You can basically sub any chord 6 half steps away either direction, keeping the intervals all the same except changing the 7th depending on the key signature.


I wasn't aware of that particular relationship, "6 half steps", thanks i will explore this.

peace

[Pulseczar]

Originally Posted by jlc

I wasn't aware of that particular relationship, "6 half steps", thanks i will explore this.

peace

JLC,
I tried p.m. or sending an email to you, but it seems you have that disabled. I hope you read this.

Just another idea using the Tri-tone substitution ( 6 half steps away ). It works great on a iii-VI7-ii-V7-I progressions.

Lets say were in G: The iii-VI7-ii-V7-I progession would be Bm7-E7-Am7-D7-G. Let's Tri-tone sub (6 Half Steps) the VI7 and the V7. So VI7(E7) transcribed 6 steps away ( in either direction) becomes bIII7(Bb7) and V7(D7) becomes Ab7. Which turns the progression to iii-bIII7-ii-bII7-I (Bm7-Bb7-Am7-Ab7-G). Voila! A chromatic approach to tonic. Jazzguitar.be has a whole section on it here, Tri-Tone Chord Substitution.

>=)

[mr. beaumont]

well, i think the important thing is that every chord in a tune can be qualified as MAJOR, MINOR, or DOMINANT. diminished chords are just sitting in for a dominant somewhere...

so for majors, let's say the lead sheet says "Cmaj7" well, you can theoretically play any kind of C major chord, a 6,a 9, a 6/9, a maj. 13th, whatever. i could go on for days with minors and dominants (which of course, on the latter, we get into that ever so fun tritone sub that's already been mentioned)

what really dictates your arrangement in a chord melody is the melody itself. forget that, well...forget it.

[jazzalta]

Originally Posted by Gabriel

One more point: Always remember your rhythm! I've seen professors of jazz guitar play in small clubs without even a trace of groove, because they neglected to make their rhythms interesting, in favor of intelligent chords.

I find this as well. I tend to play rubato much of the time, but try to add some swing or meter somewhere in the song.

[jseaberry]

I would suggest looking at the melody for spots where it rests; those are the targets where you want to end up releasing the tension you build during the "active" sections of the melody. Play the melody and a bass line that lets you reach each resting point; you will find a whole myriad of chords to fill in between the melody and the bassline that may or may not differ from the original score, but by starting with melody and appropriate bassline, your arrangement can go from "here" to "there". Just an idea.

[Ornithologist]

As for the tritone sub, according to Ulanofski, it should not be treated as a bII 7 but as a subV7/II. This means that it is not a diatonic chord, but a sub, and has to be treated accordingly. You can't play a major scale over it, you'll have to find another scale, probably the lydian b7, which is the most commonly used for subs.

[wizard3739]

All these rules are ideas and should be treated as such. Don't get caught up in "the rules", it will drive you crazy (information overload). Remember to let your ear be the judge of whether or not the subs fit for you. Sometimes you will play something that does not fit any rule but still sounds great.

[renema]

I think the healthiest way of thinking to subV7 chords is to consider them as an inversion of a V7 chord.

For example, it happens very often that we play an Em7 arpeggio over a Cmaj7 chord as an upper structure chord. We still think of the chord as a Cmaj7 but we start on the third degree like an inversion.

With subV7's it's a bit similar... Once you know that:

• V7/I in C major is G7... SubV7/I is Db7...
• The basic relationship is: G7b5= Db7b5

Now when you improvise, you don't forget that the chord is a G7, but you play it starting from the b5th degree like an inversion of the G7 chord.

By the way the most used scales that contain the note Db are:

• G7 whole tone= Db7 whole tone
• G7 altered= Db7 Lydian b7= Ab Mel minor
• G7 symmetrical dominant= Db7 symmetrical dominant

[JohnW400]

Regarding the tritone sub, If you want to open up the possibilites, one thing I've seen done is to make it into a II-V. For example If the original chord is a measure or a half measure of Eb7, The substitution would be Em7-A7. A7 being the tritone sub of Eb and then the Em7 being the II chord. I think a lot of players use this kind of substitution in the tune "all the things you are"

Fm7-Bbm7-(Em7-A7)-Ab maj7

[renema]

Very good... Em7 analytically is bVIm7 of Ab major which is the key of 'All The Things You Are'... Also Em7= A9sus4... To me, it rather sounds like an initiated modulation to D major that gets aborted as soon as you hear Abmaj...
Now I have a question for everybody:
"How do you think of a tune where you have plenty of small modulations to unexpected places... How do you number these short modulations? How can you memorize such a tune and transpose it by ear to all keys? Modulations get tricky especially
1) in classical music where there is plenty of borrowed chords from all keys. (example: "Somewhere" by Leonard Bernstein)
2) or in modern jazz tunes where chords do not fit necessarily into a tonal frame (example: "Juju" by Wayne Shorter)