What am I Implying?

[bobsguitars09]

If I play a solo using the notes C E G B on a C major seven chord I am implying a major 7 tonality right? What if I were to play C D E F G A B? am I now implying a Major thirteen?

[mr. beaumont]

You're playing a Cmajor scale.

Not trying to be flip, I mean, you could look at a c major scale as being all the notes of a Cmaj13, but to me, implying is more direct. Play an Em7 arpeggio over a Cmaj sound and that's implying a Cmaj9...

[bobsguitars09]

That clears it up for me. thank you sir

[JonR]

Just to expand a little...
By playing the whole scale, you're not implying a chord, necessarily. It would depend on which notes you stressed (played on the beat, or held for longer).
So, on a C chord, the C major scale (all 7 notes) will certainly imply that the chord is the tonic. (If that has not already been established in some other way, by melody or chord progression.) IOW, it will give you the chord function (of the triad), without suggesting any particular stack of extensions. But then so will a select number of notes from the scale (specifically F and B, which belong to no other scale).
(You could look at it the other way, and say the CEG triad is pointing out, selecting, the tonic chord from the set of 7 notes you're randomly playing.)

Stressing the B and A (over the C chord) will be enough to imply "Cmaj13" (B = "maj(7)", A = 13). But stressing the F is likely to sound "wrong" - like an "avoid note", not "Cmaj11". IOW, the F - a perfectly usable note in a scale run - doesn't belong on the tonic chord as an extension; it's a dissonance that sounds like it comes from another chord with a different function (F, Dm7 or G7).

[JonnyPac]

A little related idea...

If you play the C Major scale in a few ways you can get vanilla or extended harmony.

If you start an arp with C E G the next note you tend to hear is either the C starting the triad over again, or the B continuing the tertian stack- from there the D becomes stable, the F clashes with the E below, and the A completes the C maj13. I like to think of the 7th of any chord-scale as the "gateway tone"- after it is successfully introduced into the chord, it stabilizes the upper structures and polychord possibilities. Of course, pentatonics are stable too- C6/9 is the chord-scale of C major pent C E G A D.

[bobsguitars09]

What happens (theory wise) when you play a C Major 7 and play in thirds up to the next C? C major 7 chord and then C E D F E G F A G B A C?
C9? or C7sus4?

[JonnyPac]

C E D F E G F A G B A C... not sure what you mean.

[whatswisdom]

Originally Posted by bobsguitars09

What happens (theory wise) when you play a C Major 7 and play in thirds up to the next C? C major 7 chord and then C E D F E G F A G B A C?
C9? or C7sus4?

All I see happening is that you're just going up the C major scale in thirds, one step at a time.

[JonnyPac]

Right... Thanks, WW. It's just a melodic pattern. If you think of the underlying pulse, it may imply some chords. Context is everything. Play that over a strong A bass note and it will sound like A Minor, etc. You can play scales in lots of ways- and broken into lots of interval patterns. Their implications are all going to be determined by the underlying context.

[BigDaddyLoveHandles]

How about this: if someone plays C-E-G-E-C-E-G-E... over an F pedal, it sounds like FMaj9 to me, and there isn't even an A in sight!

[JonnyPac]

Exactly. Fun stuff, them upper-structure polychords.

[AlsoRan]

Originally Posted by mr. beaumont

You're playing a Cmajor scale.

Not trying to be flip, I mean, you could look at a c major scale as being all the notes of a Cmaj13, but to me, implying is more direct. Play an Em7 arpeggio over a Cmaj sound and that's implying a Cmaj9...

Mr. B,

Since E is the third tone and the key for C major, are you basically going to sound like E Phrygian? Thanks.

[JonnyPac]

Not trying to be flip, I mean, you could look at a c major scale as being all the notes of a Cmaj13, but to me, implying is more direct. Play an Em7 arpeggio over a Cmaj sound and that's implying a Cmaj9...

The C tonality wins in this case; the Phygian sound will not appear whatsoever.

[AlsoRan]

Got it, and I can see why this is true now.

[JonnyPac]

It's a battle between the bass/lower structures vs the upper structures and melodic content! See who wins! lol ...not really. Just hear the Gestalt and that says it all.