14 Ways to Improvise Over Major Chords

[dirkji]

This is the lesson we are talking about: How to Improvise Over Major Chords

Let us know if you have more ideas...

[derek]

Cool lesson Dirk, thanks. I have a couple questions. I have seen most of the subs you used, but wondered about a couple of them. With regard to the D7 (dominant 2nd) arp, and the F#-7b5 (#4 1/2 diminished).

I haven't seen these used, and would like to know what the rules of theory are regarding them, so I can use them in other keys. Thanks.

[wizard3739]

Very nice lesson , Dirk. Adding the audio to the examples is really a good idea! I especially liked the very thorough approach to playing over major chords without needing to start on the root and using rhythm (triplets, etc.) as part of your lines.

[seansdadj]

Nice lesson, thanks for the link. I will def. put it to use.

[jazzsnob]

Hi to everybody, this is my first time here in this forum and I hope we''ll have a great debate in the future about anything concerning our favorite instrument that is of course the jazz guitar.

[aPAULo]

great lesson dirk. keep it up!

[Keith Martin]

.hey Dirk, real nice job on your site.My question is: Why is the 1st scale starting a halfstep before the root and is it just little old me.The stucture of the ionian begining @ the root seems easier to understand the layout.
............It's just me, huh

[Dennoow]

great lesson Dirk! Some other ideas are: You can use the VI mode of harmonic minor on them if you're playing in a minor progression or using one of the harmonic minor chords as a substitute. For instance, over a I-VI-II-V minor progression. An example of using them as substitues would be playing Dm7 - G7 - Dm7 - Bbmaj7 - A7 - Dm7 etc. You can use D harmonoc minor over the Bbmaj 7 - A7 progression. If it's a static Major vamp I wouldn't recommend it either! Or a harmonic major scale over a major b6 or b13 chord. It's an interesting scale and I'm at the moment doing some research on it. It doesn't work well over a static major chord. But if you have a minor II-V resolving to a major chord this one works pretty well IMO.

[kevro2000]

Great lesson!

I have a ?, please. In the last bar of the Metheny-esque example, the Ionian scale, what fingering should I used to slide down from the C to B, before playing the last E to G?

I've tried putting both 1st (index) and 2nd fingers respectively. My hand seems to naturally be in position to use the 2nd finger for the C to B, but then I either have to shift back up or stretch to get the E to G. Using my index finger for the C to B slide makes the setup for the last two notes easier to play.

What does everyone think?

[Frank Savage]

Hi i just want to say what a great site man! It's great to be within a community of musicians...
I approach a piece or a rythmn, with scant memories of my formal guitar training and things i heard back then seem to make sense now when i improvise...create something simple and beautiful and Ionian later.

Frank Savage.

[Gustaff]

Hello all! Can't we use harmonic major scale, lydian augmented scale, augmented scale or diminished scale beginning with H-step? and Dennoow has mentioned interresting usage of VIth mode of harmonic minor

[dirkji]

Originally Posted by Dennoow

An example of using them as substitues would be playing Dm7 - G7 - Dm7 - Bbmaj7 - A7 - Dm7 etc. You can use D harmonoc minor over the Bbmaj 7 - A7 progression. If it's a static Major vamp I wouldn't recommend it either! Or a harmonic major scale over a major b6 or b13 chord. It's an interesting scale and I'm at the moment doing some research on it. It doesn't work well over a static major chord. But if you have a minor II-V resolving to a major chord this one works pretty well IMO.

Dennoow, the c# of D harmonic minor acts as a minor third on the Bbmaj7. What you hear then is Bbm/maj7, not maj7. In fact, the harmonic minor scale isn't used a lot in jazz, it's more a folk, East European scale. A lot of theory books say: play harmonic minor over minor ii V Is, but this is just theory, not a lot of players use it. It's because the harmonic minor chord doesn't entirely fit over a chord progression like a minor ii V I, there are lots of avoid notes. If it is used, it are certain parts of it. You're right about the harmonic major scale, I'll ad it to the article.

I have a ?, please. In the last bar of the Metheny-esque example, the Ionian scale, what fingering should I used to slide down from the C to B, before playing the last E to G?

I use the index finger Kevro.

Hello all! Can't we use harmonic major scale, lydian augmented scale, augmented scale or diminished scale beginning with H-step? and Dennoow has mentioned interresting usage of VIth mode of harmonic minor ?

Thanks Gustaff, I forgot the lydian augmented, I'll ad it. Can you elaborate on the diminished scale? I play it over dominant chords, can't think of a use over major chords.

[Dennoow]

Originally Posted by dirkji

Dennoow, the c# of D harmonic minor acts as a minor third on the Bbmaj7. What you hear then is Bbm/maj7, not maj7. In fact, the harmonic minor scale isn't used a lot in jazz, it's more a folk, East European scale. A lot of theory books say: play harmonic minor over minor ii V Is, but this is just theory, not a lot of players use it. It's because the harmonic minor chord doesn't entirely fit over a chord progression like a minor ii V I, there are lots of avoid notes. If it is used, it are certain parts of it. You're right about the harmonic major scale, I'll ad it to the article.



I use the index finger Kevro.



Thanks Gustaff, I forgot the lydian augmented, I'll ad it. Can you elaborate on the diminished scale? I play it over dominant chords, can't think of a use over major chords.

Yeah but the D is functioning like a major third in the Bbmaj chord. It's the VI chord in harmonic minor ---> Major 7th chord, not m/maj7. You're right about the sound, but that's why it sounds especially good followed or preceded by that A7(b9) chord, in that harmonic context it works well over a major chord, indeed creating a different sound. You're right about the avoid notes. Still I don't mind them too much. Just don't hold them against the chord. I really love the sound of it in small doses it can sound really great. It tends to get a bit of a drag IMO.

About Harmonic Major mentioned bij Gustaff: Yeah you can use it over a major chord. You do need either a b6 in the major chord or a minor ii-V resolving to a major chord to make it sound good, else the b6 can sound pretty awkward IMO.

[mike walker]

Har min is used by many contemporary players. Bb in a dhar min scale would be a maj7th sharp 9 chord. This is exactly the kind of sound that is being used
by these musicians.
Har min is used on min ii v i progressions. The 'avoid' notes (not my fave term) are more like notes that should travel as in F in a cma line.
A Ma7th or Ma9th chord is contained in a C har maj scale so it works even if the chord has no b6. In other words even if the progression is a simple i vi ii v you could still use a har maj on the i chord. Phew!!

[Dennoow]

Originally Posted by mike walker

Har min is used by many contemporary players. Bb in a dhar min scale would be a maj7th sharp 9 chord. This is exactly the kind of sound that is being used
by these musicians.
Har min is used on min ii v i progressions. The 'avoid' notes (not my fave term) are more like notes that should travel as in F in a cma line.
A Ma7th or Ma9th chord is contained in a C har maj scale so it works even if the chord has no b6. In other words even if the progression is a simple i vi ii v you could still use a har maj on the i chord. Phew!!

haha you're 100% right but I'd be cautious using the b6 on a regular major chord since it's an extra avoid note. Sounds pretty dreadfull holding it against the chord IMO But indeed, you could use it that way too

[Jazzelder]

Question Dirkji:
Why can't you use a Harmonic minor over a mii v i
Bm7b5= B D F A E7= E G# B D Am7= A C E G
A Harmonic minor= A B C D E F G A (only one avoid note G over E7)

Please correct me if I'm wrong, Thanks

[mike walker]

Avoid notes are better thought as travel notes. You wouldn't necessarily avoid an F in cma. You might not arrive and stay on that note but you would certainly use it to create tension and release. Ab on aCma7 chord is exactly the same. Har min is totally cool on a ii v i min prog.

[Dennoow]

Originally Posted by Jazzelder

Question Dirkji:
Why can't you use a Harmonic minor over a mii v i
Bm7b5= B D F A E7= E G# B D Am7= A C E G
A Harmonic minor= A B C D E F G A (only one avoid note G over E7)

Please correct me if I'm wrong, Thanks

A harmonic minor = A B C D E F G# A

The reason I think Dirk was saying that is because the harmonic Minor scale doesn't fit one particular chord. No matter what chord you're playing in the minor ii-v-i, there's always one "avoid" note. Bm7b5 --> b2 (in this case C), E7 the b2 and the b6 (unless you alter it to an E7b9) (in this case the F and the C) and on the Amin 7, as you pointed out correctly, the G# and also the b6 in that one (the F). there's always at least ONE avoid note in there, that's why many jazz players pick different scales. To me it sounds great though, I love the sound it creates, very dark! But then again, I used to be a (neoclassical) rock/metalguitarist Btw Dirk, I'm not that sure about the b6, could you elaborate on that for a bit?

Thanks!
- Dennoow

[Jazzelder]

I enjoyed your lesson on Major scale ideas. Very good stuff your sharing and your a good player too!
Great job.

[Squid]

Dirk, I have an ongoing confusion about the assertion that harmonic minor isn't used for these in Jazz. With all due respect, I have heard that stated soooo many times, and I remember even reading it in Levine's tome (which is perhaps one reason it's so oft repeated), but I have to say that this may just be a stylistic thing. I mean, if we're talking bebop, I hear harmonic minor all over the place in the lines of the most respected and most imitated players of the genre. If one wants to see it in writing, one needs only open the omnibook to virtually ANY tune with a minor ii-V-i to see it in action (with the caveat that there are often enharmonic spellings in that volume).

In more modern approaches, a lot of players interpret any dominant with any alteration as a fully altered dominant that draws from the altered scale (or whatever one likes to call the 7th mode of melodic minor). This type of interpretation certainly warrants the use of 3 different melodic minors over a minor ii-V-i min(maj7), but in the bebop era the dominant was often interpreted specifically as a b9#5(or b13).

Another question in all that is how far you want your tonality to stretch within a line or how deep into the sound of the chord you want to play. And, for that matter, are you drawing your chordal harmony from the linear tonality or drawing your linear tonality from your chordal harmony? That can make a big difference between,for example, wanting to hear the flat 9 sound versus the natural 9 in a line over a half-diminished (min7b5) chord.

I hope that didn't come across as combative. I'm just trying to shed some light on what I see and hear in the analysis of some of the masters...

[mike walker]

Couldn't agree more squid.
And can we start a campaign to push out the lame terminology of 'Avoid Note'?
It really has to be the worst idea i have come across in recent times. I can understand why most people call locrian in mel min a locsharp2 when in actual fact it's a natural2 but 'avoid note' is a terrible term i feel.

[Squid]

I'm glad to have your support on that one. In my personal experience, I couldn't really even begin to grasp (still got a LONG way to go...) what I was hearing Bird et al doing until I started to experiment with harm minor over those cadences on my own terms.

Yeah, I hear you about "natural 2". I may just refer to it as "locrian with a major 2nd" from here on out. It doesn't exactly roll of the tongue, but oh well.

Yeah, although I understand the reason for calling them that, I don't really like that term either. Especially since "avoid" notes are so often fundamentally important to harmonic movement. In a sense, they almost make the difference between key center playing and making the changes. Not to say there's anything wrong with key center playing, but if you want to be building and resolving dissonance, you gotta access the dissonance at some point, right? And what better way to get to know the sound of dissonances than landing on them at exactly the wrong time? That'll teach you the kind of lesson you can't pay for. I can't remember which jazz educator refers to them as "handle with care notes"... That sounds like a good compromise, though.

Oh, and not to mention the use of quartal harmony in a modal setting.

I first learned what an "avoid note" is during my short stint in music school. More specifically I learned that the p4th degree over a major 7 chord is an "avoid note". It seriously screwed me up for like a year. I was around all these teachers with phenomenal ears and was doubting my own ability to ever hear on that level, and here I am trying to learn to improvise while being afraid to try to play what I'm hearing in my head and soul. Like "oh god, what if i accidentally accent the p4th?! Or worse, what if there's an accented p4th in the melody I'm hearing internally?!!!" Talk about crippling counter-productivity... I can only wonder how many others may go through exactly that scenario.

[mike walker]

could not agree more.
If bach took any literal notice of that term had it been around in his day imagine the difference in the melodies we all know and love. In some contemporary jazz music people have been adding the 4th to a maj chord for a while now. Vince mendoza and kenny wheeler are 2 that come to mind. Classical, as usual was doing it much earlier.

[m78w]

Great lesson! A couple of other things to think about when playing in a modern context are triad and pentatonic pairs.

For example on a Cmaj7, or turnaround in C, you can use several pairs of triads:

Dm and Em
F and G
C and D (only over Cmaj7, produces a lydian sound)

or for a more outside sound C and F# (this is the tritone scale.)

or Caug and Baug (this is the Augmented scale)

As well you can use the B minor pentatonic scale on its own, to produce a lydian sound, very Scofieldesque.

And if you want to pair pentatonics try:

D minor and E minor

or if you prefer major pentatonics try F and G.

or you can do C major and F# major, or D minor and Ab minor, basically any diatonic pentatonic scale and one a tritone away, this comes from Woody Shaw.

For examples of this type of playing check out anything by Adam Rogers, Kurt Rosenwinkel or Ben Monder.

And if you want to go back and listen to how these two concepts developed check out the Coltrane album live at the Village Vanguard and Sorceror by Miles Davis especially the solos on Pee Wee and Prince of Darkness.

Cheers
MW

[Antonio Carvalho]

Tanks Dick for all of those licks and short lesson...amazing material...you're certanely a marvelous musician...
Tanks again.
cheers from Portugal
Antonio

[bobvicks]

Thanx Dick for all the useful info really appreciate it

Bob Evans Saudi Arabia

[robfly]

I'm just starting jazz guitar (was a rock player) Now I've time to work and try to improve my way. Great to find such a site ! I saw last concert of Jim Hall in Gent (Belgium) I'm such a poor lonesome little guitar player...

[Josh Gibson]

Fantastic lesson! Thanks for putting it out there for all of us!

[SHAHINOVE]

quite inspiring dick. You're the best.

[williambanzai7]

Great lesson. Thanks for your efforts.