ESCALA MAYOR: MODOS

Chord Mode Scale Notes & Degrees Sheet Music

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I C Ionian
CDEFGAB

1 2 ♭3 4 5 6 ♭7
ii D Dorian
DEFGABC

1 ♭2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7
iii E Phrygian
E FGABCD

1 2 3 #4 5 6 7
IV F Lydian
FGABCDE
1 2 3 4 5 6 ♭7
V G Mixolydian
GABCDEF

1 2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7
vi A Aeolian
ABCDEFG
1 ♭2 ♭3 4 ♭5 ♭6 ♭7
vii B Locrian
BCDEFGA

JAZZ

Rhythm
Jazz generally (though not always) uses a swing rhythm with a backbeat (accent on beats 2 & 4).
This creates a strong syncopated feeling.

Form
Most ‘Traditional’ Jazz Standards have either a 12 bar Blues or a 32 bar AABA/ABAC form, and
are played using a ‘Head-Solo-Head’ structure:
• Head: Means playing the chords and melody largely as written (with substitution and
embellishment)
• Solo: Means improvisation over the same chord progression (again, with substitutions)

JAZZ CHORDS
the root, 3rd, 5th and 7th of a chord are called Chord Tones, and the 9th, 11th and 13ths of a chord
are called Tensions. As such, each of the 12 notes in an octave can be divided into the following
categories and subcategories:
• Chord Tones = 1, 3, 5, 7
• Weak Chord Tones = 1 & 5
• Guide Tones = 3, 7
• Tensions = every other note (9, 11, 13, or alterations of these –♭9, #9, etc.)
• Available Tensions = some tensions based on chord type
• Avoid Notes (AKA Unavailable Tensions) = the remainder of tensions

Guide Tones are the most harmonically important notes because they establish the quality of the
chord.
Avoid Notes are notes that cause a dissonant interval with one of the chord tones.

ACORDES QUE NO SON DE DOMINANTE:

ACORDES DE DOMINANTE:
With dominant chords, you are allowed to create a ♭9 interval against the root and 5th; but NOT
against the 3rd and 7th. This is because the 3rd and 7th are Guide Tones and are thus more
harmonically important. So you don’t want to clash with the more important notes (3rd & 7th), but
you can clash with the less important notes in a Dominant chord (root and 5th).

QUE HACE LAS TENSIONES DISPONIBLES?:

Chord Feel/Sound
CMaj7 Happy or calm
C7 Tense
Cm7 Sad
CmMaj7 Confused sadness
It is believed that an available tension complements the sound or feel or consonance of the 7th
chord. For example:
• A CMaj7 chord sounds ‘happy’ and ‘calm’
• A CMaj9 chord (available tension) still retains the same sound or feel as the CMaj7
chord. It still feels ‘happy’ and ‘calm’.
• Similarly, a CMaj13#11 (all available tensions) also retains the ‘happy’ and ‘calm’
sound of a standard CMaj7 chord.
• But a CMaj7♭9 chord (unavailable tension) no longer sounds ‘happy’ or ‘calm’.
Instead, it sounds very dissonant and jarring. The ♭9 ruins or clashes with the feel of
a CMaj7 chord – and is therefore ‘unavailable’. a CMaj7♭9 chord no longer feels or
sounds like a CMaj7 chord. It sounds more like a diminished chord of some kind.
• Similarly, a Cm7 chord sounds ‘sad’.
• A Cm11 (available tensions) also sounds ‘sad’.
• But a Cm7♭9#11 (unavailable tensions) sound harsh and tense. The ♭9 and #11 ruin
the feel of the minor chord.
 • On the other hand, a C7 chord already sounds ‘tense’ and ‘dissonant’ (again, because of the
tritone between the 3rd and 7th).
• So a C7♭9#11♭13 (all available tensions) still sounds ‘tense’ and ‘dissonant’, so still
feels like a C7 chord, so is a perfectly fine chord to play.
• However, a C11 (unavailable tension) is thought to ruin the purity of the C7 chord
because the 11th (F) clashes with the 3rd (E). (This makes it sound like a C7sus
chord).
• Similarly, the C7 cannot have a ♮7 (B) because it already has a ♭7 (B♭). As such, this
is also an unavailable tension.
SHELL CHORDS:
Well, it’s possible to omit the less important notes (root & 5th) from a chord and only play the guide
tones (3rd & 7th) and still retain the original ‘feel’ of the chords. So for example, you could play a:
• CMaj7 – as just E & B
• C7 – as just E & B♭ (a tritone interval)
• Cm7 – as just E♭ & B♭
• CmMaj7 – as just E♭ & B

This is called a shell chord (because it’s only the shell of the whole chord). Shell chords are
important because they represent the minimum harmonic material (i.e. notes) needed to play a
chord. Any chord voicing should generally include the 3rd and the 7th of the chord; without these
the chord will sound incomplete.
laying two notes could indicate a number of different shell chords.
ACORDES SUBSTITUTOS:
For this same reason chords can be substituted. If the substitute chord contains the 3rd and the 7th
of the substituted chord, the two chords will have a similar feel and so can act as substitutes for each
other. The five most common chord substitutions found in Jazz are shown below.

Substitution Name Original Substitute Chord

Em7
CMaj7
Am7
Median Note Substitution
CMaj7
Am7
FMaj7
G7 Dm7 G7
ii-V7 Substitution
G7 Em7 A7 | Dm7 G7
G7 D7 G7
II7-V7 Substitution
G7 E7 A7 | D7 G7
#Vdim7 Substitution G7 G#dim7
Tritone Substitution G7 D♭7

CHORD AMBIGUITY:
So again we find that chords are very ambiguous. They depend on the note that’s being played in
the bass (the bass-note) and on the chord that’s played before and after that particular chord (the
chord progression).
a Jazz musician would never play a song exactly as written on a lead sheet. Instead, he or she would
add tensions or use chord substitutions to make the chord progression more interesting. Below are a
few examples of how a II-V-I in the key of C can be made more interesting and complex by using
extensions, alterations and substitutions. Notice also that a substituted chord can be further extended
and altered.

Original Progression Dm7 G7 CMaj7

D♭9
Substitution #1 Dm11 CMaj13#11
(tritone sub)
FMaj9 Am9
Substitution #2 G13
(median note sub) (median note sub)
Dm11 - G7♭9
Substitution #3 Em11 - A7♭9 CMaj9
(ii-V sub)
Bm7♭5 Bo7 Am7
Substitution #4
(median note sub) (#Vdim7 sub) (median note sub)

ACORDES DE PASO:
Because they are played quickly (they generally never last more than 1/2 a bar), they are not
harmonically important. And because they are not harmonically important, they can be almost any
chord you like. Passing chords can make a chord progression more interesting because they speed
up the rate at which chords change (called Harmonic Rhythm) and make a chord progression more
harmonically interesting.

Passing Chords
Passing chords generally have the following features:
• They last for a very short period of time (1/4 or 1/2 a bar). You never sit on them for long,
they are passing chords, you pass by them quickly;
• They are inserted between two harmonically important chords (i.e. chords that are written
out on a lead sheet and that occur on beats one or three of a bar);
• They can be diatonic (a chord from the key that you are playing in) or non-diatonic (a
chord NOT from the key that you are playing in);
• They can be consonant or dissonant.
A specific type of passing chord is called an approach chord. This is a passing chord that is either
1 (chromatic) or 2 (diatonic) semitones away from the next chord.

Passing Chord Name Chord Progression

Original Chord Progression
Tritone (of previous chord)
Tritone (of next chord)
Approach #1 (diatonic)
Approach #2 (semitone)
Approach #3 (semitone)
Diminished #1
Diminished #2
Dominant-minor
Secondary V
Secondary II, V
| CMaj7 | Dm7 ||
| CMaj7 - G♭7 | Dm7 ||
| CMaj7 - A♭7 | Dm7 ||
| CMaj7 - Em7 | Dm7 ||
| CMaj7 - D♭7 | Dm7 ||
| CMaj7 - E♭7 | Dm7 ||
| CMaj7 - D♭o7 | Dm7 ||
| CMaj7 - E♭o7 | Dm7 ||
| CMaj7 - D7 | Dm7 ||
| CMaj7 - A7 | Dm7 ||
| CMaj7 - Em7 A7 | Dm7 ||

Theoretical Convergence
You may have noticed some of the above approach chords are also chord substitutions. For
example, the Diatonic Approach Chord of Em7 is also a Median Note substitution of CMaj7. You
will also notice that one of the passing chords is a Secondary Dominant
There are many ways of analysing the same chord progression.

It’s important to remember that: first came music, then came theory.

Original All of Me Chord Progression

C7 C7 E7 E7 A7 A7 Dm7 Dm7
E7 E7 Am7 Am7 D7 D7 Dm7 G7
All of Me Chord Progression with Passing Chords #1
A7 - Eø7
C7 C7 - Dm7 E7 E7 - B♭7 A7 Dm7 Dm7 - D#o7
A7
 Am7 -
E7 E7 - Bø7 Am7 D7 D7 - A♭7 Dm7 - Do7 G7 - D♭7
A♭7
All of Me Chord Progression with Passing Chords #2
C7 - Dm7 - Dm7 -
E7 - CMaj7 Bø7 - E7 A7 - A♭7 A7 - G7 Dm7 - D#o7
C#dim D#o7 C#o7
D7 -
E7 - F7 G7 - G#7 Am7 - E7 A♭7 - E♭7 D7 - Eø7 Dm7 - Do7 G7 - D♭7
D#o7

Secondary Chords & Tonicization

Tonicization
Let’s begin this lesson with a few definitions:
• Modulation is changing a key of a long period of time.
• Tonicization is changing key for a short period of time. It is the process of temporarily
making a non-tonic chord sound like the tonic, just for a moment, by using Secondary
Chords before immediately returning back to the original key.
Tonicization is short (a couple bars at most) while modulation is long (no less than two bars).

Secondary Chords
There are two ways to ‘tonicize’ a chord (i.e. there are two types of Secondary Chords), by inserting
either a:
• Secondary Dominant (V7); or
• Secondary Leading-Tone Chord (viiø7 OR viio7).

before the chord you are trying to ‘tonicize’.

The idea is to create a V-I Perfect Cadence with a non-tonic diatonic chord, so it sounds like you
temporarily change key, before immediately going back to the original key.

What you can do with Secondary Dominants:

Cycling Secondary Dominant CMaj7 - B7 Em7 - A7 Dm7 - G7 CMaj7

Cycling Secondary Dominant without resolving CMaj7 - B7 E7 - A7 D7 - G7 CMaj7
Secondary ii, V CMaj7 Em7 - A7 Dm7 G7
Chromatic Cycling Secondary ii, V Em7 - A7 E♭m7 - A♭7 Dm7 G7
Modulation = Changing key for a long period of time
• Modal Interchange = Changing key (using chords from a different key) for a short period of
time while retaining the same ‘tonal centre’ (root note)
What ‘a long period of time’ compared to ‘a short period of time’ means is subjective.

Modal Interchange is used to add ‘colour’ to a chord progression and make it a little more
interesting.

Relative vs Parallel Keys

It’s also worth quickly explaining the difference between a relative key and a parallel key:
• Relative key = two keys that have the same notes but a different root note (C Major & A
natural minor)
• Parallel key = two keys that have different notes but the same root note (C Major & C
natural minor)
In Modal Interchange you ‘borrow’ a chord from a parallel key. This is why using ‘Modal
Interchange’ is also called using ‘Borrowed Chords’. You can ‘borrow’ a chord from a parallel key
or mode, and as long as the chord progression is still leading towards the ultimate tonic chord, it
won’t sound like you’ve completely changed key – it won’t be ‘Modulation’.

Modal Interchange & Borrowed Chords

Below is a table of all the Modes of the Major Scale, the Melodic Minor Scale and the Harmonic
Minor scale and all their associated chords – both in Roman Numerals and from the root note of C.

Roman Numbers
Scale 1 (Root) 2 3 4 5 6 7
Ionian IMaj7 IIm7 IIIm7 IVMaj7 V7 VIm7 VIIm7♭5
Dorian Im7 IIm7 ♭IIIMaj7 IV7 Vm7 VIm7♭5 ♭VIIMaj7
Phrygian Im7 ♭IIMaj7 ♭III7 IVm7 Vm7♭5 ♭VIMaj7 ♭VIIm7
Lydian IMaj7 II7 IIIm7 #IVm7♭5 VMaj7 VIm7 VIIm7
Mixolydian I7 IIm7 IIIm7♭5 IVMaj7 Vm7 VIm7 ♭VIIMaj7
Aeolian Im7 IIm7♭5 ♭IIIMaj7 IVm7 Vm7 ♭VIMaj7 ♭VII7
Locrian Im7♭5 ♭IIMaj7 ♭IIIm7 IVm7 ♭VMaj7 ♭VI7 ♭VIIm7
Melodic Minor ImMaj7 IIm7 ♭IIIMaj7#5 IV7 V7 VIm7♭5 VIIm7♭5
Harmonic Minor ImMaj7 IIm7♭5 ♭IIIMaj7#5 IVm7 V7♭9 ♭VIMaj7 VIIo7

Root C
Scale 1 (Root) 2 3 4 5 6 7
C Ionian (C Major) CMaj7 Dm7 Em7 FMaj7 G7 Am7 Bm7♭5
C Dorian (B♭ Major) Cm7 Dm7 E♭Maj7 F7 Gm7 Am7♭5 B♭Maj7
 Scale 1 (Root) 2 3 4 5 6 7
C Phrygian (A♭ Major) Cm7 D♭Maj7 E♭7 Fm7 Gm7♭5 A♭Maj7 B♭m7
C Lydian (G Major) CMaj7 D7 Em7 F#m7♭5 GMaj7 Am7 Bm7
C Mixolydian (F Major) C7 Dm7 Em7♭5 FMaj7 Gm7 Am7 B♭Maj7
C Aeolian (E♭ Major) Cm7 Dm7♭5 E♭Maj7 Fm7 Gm7 A♭Maj7 B♭7
C Locrian (D♭ Major) Cm7♭5 D♭Maj7 E♭m7 Fm7 G♭Maj7 A♭7 B♭m7
C Melodic Minor CmMaj7 Dm7 E♭Maj7#5 F7 G7 Am7♭5 Bm7♭5
C Harmonic Minor CmMaj7 Dm7♭5 E♭Maj7#5 Fm7 G7♭9 A♭Maj7 Bo7
Notice that all the scales have the same root note – C – so they are all ‘parallel’. This means you can
borrow any chord from any of these ‘keys’.

So let’s take a II-V-I in the key of C Major and borrow some II-V’s from different modes:

Major Dm7 G7 CMaj7

Harmonic Minor Dm7♭5 G7♭9 CMaj7
Aeolian Dm7♭5 Gm7 CMaj7
Phrygian D♭Maj7 Gm7♭5 CMaj7
Lydian D7 GMaj7 CMaj7
We can ‘borrow’ the II-V chords from any of the other ‘parallel keys’. All of these are plausible
‘modal interchanges’, because the tonal centre stays the same – C. The chord progressions still feel
like they are leading towards the CMaj7 chord.

However, some ‘borrowed chords’ work better than others and thus are used more often than others.
Remember the definition of ‘modal interchange’ is a change of key while still retaining the same
tonal centre. The Lydian mode ‘modal interchange’ has a D7 moving to the GMaj7. This creates a
V-I perfect cadence which makes it sound like the tonal centre is G (that’s the nature of a V-I
cadence – that’s how tonicization works). But we want C to sound like the tonal centre, so this
particular modal interchange doesn’t work very well.

The Harmonic Minor II-V ‘modal interchange’, on the other hand, works very well as it still retains
the C as the tonal centre because of that altered G7 chord.
Some especially common borrowed chords are:

Mode Modal Interchange Songs

Aeolian - Minor iv - All The Things You Are
- ♭VII7 (Backdoor progression) - I Got Rhythm
- ♭VI - There will never be another you
- ♭III - My Romance
- Lament
- Lady Bird
 Mode Modal Interchange Songs
- Misty
- Cherokee
- Alone Together
Harmonic Minor - Minor II-V - What is this thing called love?
- You Go To My Head
- Every Blues Song
Mixolydian - I7 - I Got Rhythm
- Alone Together

The borrowed chords are surrounded on both sides by chords from the key of B♭ Major
• The ‘key change’ only happens for ½ a bar
• The ‘tonal centre’ still sounds like it is B♭

Therefore, this is NOT modulation but rather modal interchange.

But this raises the obvious question, how long does a modal interchange have to be before it
becomes a modulation? Obviously, there’s no answer to this question. It’s subjective, because the
answer depends on what you perceive the tonal centre or root note to be. If you hear a change in the
tonal centre – then it’s modulation. If you do NOT hear a change in the tonal centre – then it’s
modal interchange. And so the line between modulation, toniciziation and borrowed chords, is
fuzzy.

Suspended Chords
Introduction
Suspended Chords (or Sus Chords) are chords where the 3rd has been replaced by a 2nd or (usually)
4th. These create a much more ambiguous and floating sound.
• Basic G Triad = G B D
• Gsus2 = G A D
• Gsus4 = Gsus = G C D

The sus4 chord is much more common than the sus2 chord, so the ‘4’ is often dropped. So if you
see just a sus chord with no number after it, it implies a sus4 chord.
Suspended Chords
In Jazz, sus chords act as substitutes for ii or V7 chords and are usually extended to 9sus or♭9sus
chords (we will discuss♭9sus chords in the next lesson).
• Dm7 = D F A C
• G9 = G B D F A
• G9sus = G C D F A

However, these are generally voiced as:

As you can see, there is only one note difference between the Dm7 and G9sus (the G) and a G7 and
G9sus (the C). So, in a sense, the sus chord is half way between a ii (Dm7) and a V7 (G7) chord,
which is why it can act as a substitute for both. So for example, if we take a II-V-I in the key of C,
we can substitute in the G9sus chord in as follows:

ii V I
Dm7 G7 CMaj7
G9sus G7 CMaj7
Dm7 G9sus CMaj7
Dm7 - G9sus G7 CMaj7
G9sus G9sus CMaj7
Suspended chords create an interesting and, dare I say, suspenseful sound and are used quite often
in modern jazz. Further, just because the sus chord replaces the 3rd with a 4th DOESN’T mean you
can’t play the 3rd as well. You can also play a 3rd in a sus chord (though you should place it above
the 4th in your chord voicings otherwise it will sound like a G11 chord and thus quite dissonant).

Phrygian Chords
Introduction
Phrygian Chords are simply sus♭9 chords. They are derived from either the:
• Phrygian mode (3rd mode of Major Scale); or
• Dorian ♭2 mode (2nd mode of the melodic minor scale).
And you can use these two modes to improvise over Phrygian Chords.

Unavailable Tensions (AKA Avoid Notes)

Let’s look at the E Phrygian mode (3rd mode of C Major). If we take E Phrygian mode and
derive the tonic 7th chord and tonic 13th chord of that key we get:
• E Phrygian Scale = E F G A B C D
• Associated 7th Chord = Em7 = E G B D
• Associated Extended Chord = Em7♭9♭13 = E G B D F A C

Notice that the extended 13th chord derived from the E Phrygian mode is Em7♭9♭13. Now, as we
learned in the lesson on Available Tensions, neither the ♭9 nor the ♭13 are available tensions over a
m7 chord. The Phrygian Chord exists to fix this problem.

And as we learned in the previous lesson, in Jazz, suspended chords act as substitutions for V7
chords. The Phrygian Chord is no different.
So let’s look at the Em7♭9♭13 chord again. By changing the ♭3rd into a 4th, we turn the Em7♭9♭13
into a E7sus♭9♭13. And if we drop the 13th, then we have an E7sus♭9 (or Esus♭9) – the E Phrygian
Chord. By doing this, we have turned a Em7 chord into an E7 (substitute) chord. The benefit of this
is that the ♭9 and ♭13 ARE BOTH available tensions over a V7 chord.
• E7sus♭9 = E A B D F

The E Phrygian Chord can also be derived from the 2nd mode of D melodic minor (E Dorian ♭2
Mode) for the same reason.

Mode Key Notes Voicing Avoid Note

LH: E
E Phrygian 3rd mode of C Major EFGABCDE C
RH: F A B E
LH: E
E Dorian b2 2nd mode of D melodic minor E F G A B C# D E None
RH: F A C# E

Notice also that the E Phrygian Chord is very similar to a Rootless G13 chord – only with an E in
the bass. As such, another way of notating Phrygian Chords is G7/E
The Phrygian Chord acts as a substitute for:
• V7 Chords;
• Regular Sus Chords (which themselves are substitutes for V7 chords);
• II-V progressions.

So now let’s do exactly that. Let’s use the E Phrygian Chord to substitute the II and/or V chords of
a II-V-I in A Major:

ii V I
Bm7 E7 AMaj7
Bm7 Esus♭9 AMaj7
Esus♭9 E7 AMaj7
Esus♭9 Esus♭9 AMaj7

Improvisation
The Phrygian mode is a minor scale (it has a ♭3) and as such you would expect to use it over a
minor chord. However, it also has a ♭2 which is one semitone above the root note and therefore an
avoid note. As a result, this scale is quite dissonant when played over a m7 chord and thus is
generally not used over m7 chords other than the iii chord (the chord from which the mode is
derived).

As such, we only use the Phrygian mode to improvise over a:

• Phrygian Chord; or
• iii chord.

You may occasionally (though not often) see Phrygian Chords written out in lead sheets as either:
• E Phryg
• E7sus♭9
• G7/E

However, you can also use them like a regular chord substitution over a V7 chord.

SLASH CHORD

A Slash Chord is (generally) a Major triad over a bass note.

Slash Chords are notated as Chord/Note. So a D/C reads ‘D slash C’ or ‘D over C’ and is a D Major
Triad over a C Bass Note.
Slash Chords exist because:
• They are an easier way to read complex chord notation
• For example instead of writing CMaj7#9#11 (a complex looking chord), you can just
write B/C
• They give a ready-made voicing for the chord
• They give you a ready-made bass-line (often a chromatic bass-line)

The triad can be played in any inversion but generally the 2nd inversion is considered the strongest.
Below is a list of all possible slash chords that use a Major triad with their effective chord name and
related scales:

Slash Chord Notes Effective Chord Scale

C Major
C/C C|CEG CMaj
C Lydian
D♭Maj7 C Locrian
D♭/C C | D♭ F A♭
Csus♭9♭13 (C7 sub) C Phrygian
D7 C Lydian
D/C C | D F# A CMaj13#11 C Lydian
C13#11 C Lydian Dominant
E♭/C C | E♭ G B♭ Cm7 C Dorian
E/C C | E G# B CMaj7#5 C Lydian Augmented
F/C C|FAC FMaj F Major
C Altered
G♭/C C | G♭ B♭ D♭ C7♭5♭9
C Half/Whole diminished
CMaj9 C Major
G/C C|GBD
CmMaj9 C melodic minor
A♭ Major A♭ Major
A♭/C C | A♭ C E♭
C7#9♭13 C Altered
A/C C | A C# E C13♭9 C Half/Whole diminished
C9sus C Mixolydian
B♭/C C | B♭ D F
Cm11 C Dorian
CMaj7#9#11 (CMaj7 sub)
B/C C | B D# F# Altered Co7 C Whole/Half diminished
CmMaj7♭5
Harmonic Rhythm
The Harmonic Rhythm is the rate at which the chords change. This influences the strength of a
chord progression and even the function of a chord. For example, if we play the following two
chord progressions, you’ll notice that the bottom one (Chord Progression #2) sounds ‘stronger’,
even though they both use the same chords in the same order. This is because of the Harmonic
Rhythm.

Chord Progression #1 A7 - Dm7 G7 - CMaj7 CMaj7

Chord Progression #2 CMaj7 - A7 Dm7 - G7 CMaj7

Below are a number of chord progressions that all use a vi-ii-V-I pattern but shift the timing around.
• Chord Progressions #2 sound weak because the V7 is on a relatively stronger beat than the I
chord; while
• Chord Progressions #1, 3, & 4 all sound strong because the V7 is on a relatively weaker beat
than to the I chord.

Chord Progression #1 CMaj7 - A7 Dm7 - G7 CMaj7

Harmonic Rhythm S ------ W s ------ w S ------ (W)
Chord Progression #2 A7 - Dm7 G7 - CMaj7 CMaj7
Harmonic Rhythm S ------ W s ------ w S ------ (W)
Chord Progression #3 Dm7 - G7 CMaj7 CMaj7
Harmonic Rhythm S ------ W s ------ (w) S ------ (W)
Chord Progression #4 Am7 - Dm7 G7 CMaj7
Harmonic Rhythm S ------ W s ------ (w) S ------ (W)

Functionality
And in fact, the location of the V7 chord in relation to the Harmonic Rhythm can even affect the
‘function‘ of the V7 chord. We have not discuss functionality yet (we will in a future lesson). But
very quickly: the usual ‘function’ of a V7 chord is to resolve down a 5th to the I chord (like a G7
resolving to a C). The function of the G7 (it’s whole purposes or point in life) is to move to the C
(the Tonic Chord). Being on a weak harmonic rhythm beat facilitates this function.

POLYCHORDS

here are two ways of thinking about polychords:

• You can about a polychord as a single entity or single chord.
 • Or you can think about it as two separate entities or chords – and so creating a kind of
polytonality.

Polychords as a Single Entity

Using this approach, when improvising you simply play the scale or arpeggio implied by the actual
full chord.

Polychords as Two Entities

The second way of thinking about polychords is as two separate entities which imply a polytonality.
Using this approach, when improvising over a polychord you play a scale or arpeggio that fits over
each of the two individual chords.
In this way you are outlining each of the tonalities implied by the polychord – thus creating some
polytonality. Now, some notes will clash, but that’s OK – polytonality is supposed to be a little bit
dissonant. We are, after all, superimposing unrelated keys on top of each other.

Modern Harmony
So far, all the above examples have been polychords that only make use of available tensions. But
in more ‘Modern’ or ‘Contemporary’ Jazz you also find polychords which make use of unavailable
tensions and therefore create non-standard, atonal chords. So you could have polychords like:

These polychords do not obviously describe any standard ‘tonal’ chord. Neverthless, all the
above rules apply here also. You can play a ‘scale’ comprised of all the notes in the polychord, even
if it is not a ‘real’ scale.

Now, the ‘poly’ in polychord implies ‘many’ – not just two. So it is possible to have more than two
chords in a polychord. For example you could have a:
You could even find a polychord in a slash chord – who knows?…Once you hit modern,
contemporary, atonal Jazz, anything is possible. But again, they all work just the same way as I’ve
described above. Either analyse all the individual notes separately and try create a regular chord, or
play the implied scale for each individual chord.

MODULATION:
Unprepared/Direct modulation – which modulates to the next key with a I chord.
Many songs use this kind of modulation, especially between sections. Modal Jazz songs like So
What and Impressions use this type of modulation when they move from the key of D Dorian in part
A of the song, to E♭ Dorian in part B.
• Prepared modulation – which modulates to the next key by preparing the new I chord with
a V or ii-V. So you’re given a bit of warning before you encounter the next tonic chord.
How High the Moon does this with the chord progression:
GMaj7 | GMaj7 | Gm7 | C7 | FMaj7 | FMaj7 | Fm7 | B♭7 | E♭Maj7 ||
And changing the chord quality while keeping the same root notes, as is done here, is very
common.
• Pivot Chord modulation – which uses a diatonic chord common to two keys to pivot from
one key to the other, such that the pivot chord is in both keys.
For example, take the chord progression:
Dm7 | G7 | CMaj7 | Em7 | A7 | DMaj7 ||
This looks like a ii-V-I in C followed by a ii-V-I in D, but looking closer we see that the
Em7 chord is both in the key of C and D Major, so is arguably in both keys at once.
The song Autumn Leaves does this as it modulated from the key of B♭Maj to its relative
Gmin:
Cm7 | F7 | B♭Maj7 | E♭Maj7 | Am7♭5 | D7 | Gm7 | Gm7 ||
• Transitional/Chain modulation – which uses a succession of ii-V’s to quickly move
through a number of different keys, moving down by a semitone, tone or fifth. Though this
could arguable be tonicisation.
Blues for Alice does this:
FMaj7 | Em7♭5 A7 | Dm7 G7 | Cm7 F7 | B♭7 ||
As does In Your Own Sweet Way:
Am7♭5 D7 | Gm7 C7 | Cm7 F7 | B♭6 ||

Modulation to Where?
And most modulations change key to the:
• Relative Major or minor (C Major to A minor)
• Parallel Major or minor (C Major to C minor)
• A key closed related on the circle of fifths and so sharing many notes in common (C Major
[no sharps of flats] to F Major [one flat] or G Major [one sharp])
There are other types of modulation – like common-tone modulation, enharmonic modulation,
chromatic-tone modulation – but these aren’t really common to Jazz, they are more applicable to
Classical.
Tonicisation
If the key changes for a short period of time, before concluding that a modulation has taken place,
always look for:
• Secondary dominants
• Borrowed chords
• Chord substitution
• Passing chords

As these are often a better explanation for chords in a different key – especially if there is no
confirming V-I cadence.

JAZZ SCALES
CHORD-SCALE SYSTEM

Mode Chord 1 3 5 7 9 11 13
Major Scale Modes
C Ionian CMaj13 C E G B D F A
C Dorian Cm13 C E♭ G B♭ D F A
C Phrygian Cm7♭9♭13 C E♭ G B♭ D♭ F A♭
C Lydian CMaj13#11 C E G B D F# A
C Mixolydian C13 C E G B♭ D F A
C Aeolian Cm11♭13 C E♭ G B♭ D F A♭
C Locrian Cm7♭5♭9♭13 C E♭ G♭ B♭ D♭ F A♭
Melodic Minor Modes
C Melodic minor CmMaj7 C E♭ G B D F A
C Phrygian ♮6 Cm13♭9 C E♭ G B♭ D♭ F A
C Lydian Augmented CMaj13#5#11 C E G# B D F# A
C Lydian Dominant C13#11 C E G B♭ D F# A
C Mixolydian b6 C11♭13 C E G B♭ D F A♭
C Half-diminished Cm7♭5♭13 C E♭ G♭ B♭ D F A♭
C Altered C7♭5♭9#9♭13 (C7alt) C F♭ (E) G♭ B♭ D♭ E♭ (#9) A♭
Other Scales
C Harmonic minor CmMaj7b13 C E♭ G B D F A♭
??? C7#5♭9#11♭13 C E G# B♭ D♭ F# A♭
So a 13th Chord is it’s own diatonic scale. But this means that chords NOT extended all the way
out to the 13th are slightly ambiguous because they are missing a few chord (and therefore scale)
notes. And the key that they are in depends on the previous and subsequent chords in the
progression. For this reason it is possible to play multiple scales over the same chord (if the chord is
not a 13th chord). For example:
 • Because a CMaj7 chord (C E G B) does NOT have an F in it, you can use the following two
scales to improvise over it:
• C Ionian (C D E F G A B); or
• C Lydian (C D E F# G A B).

The Chord-Scale System looks at individual chords in isolation and allocates scales to each
individual chord. We do NOT need to know what key a particular chord is in, in order to choose a
scale to play over that chord. In the above example, it doesn’t matter what key the CMaj7 chord is
in, we can use both scales to improvise over it.

Indeed, it’s often preferable to choose the scale outside the key of the chord progression in order to
give a more harmonically complex and jazzy sound.
You could use the following scales over a Cm7 chord:
• C Dorian (C D E♭ F G A B♭)
• C Aeolian (C D E♭ F G A♭ B♭)
• You could use the following scales over a C7 chord:
• C Mixolydian (C D E F G A B♭)
• C Lydian Dominant (C D E F# G A B♭)
• C Mixolydian♭6 (C D E F G A♭ B♭)

Why You Can Use Multiple Scales Over the Same Chord
So that means, when improvising, you can use any scale over a particular chord, as long as that
scale has all the notes found in that particular chord.

This works even if the whole progression is in a particular key. For example, if we take a II-V-I in C
Major:

Comments II V I
- Chord Progression is IN the key of C Major
Dm7 G7 CMaj7
- All chord are FROM the key of C Major
- Chord Progression is IN the key of C Major
Dm7♭5 Gm7 CMaj7
- II-V are FROM the key of C Aeolian

There are two further complication:

• It’s possible to omit notes; and
• It’s possible to treat notes enharmonically (i.e. as a different chord degree).

If a scale has BOTH a minor 3rd and a Major 3rd – the Major 3rd is the True 3rd and the minor 3rd
is actually a disguised #9. And it is possible for a scale to omit the 3rd or 7th of a chord and yet still
work over that chord – the 3rd or 7th is implied by the harmony. Some examples will make this
clearer.
Let’s take the C7 chord and see what scales we can use to improvise over it.

Scale Degrees Comments

C Dominant Bebop scale 1 2 3 4 5 6 ♭7 7 Maj 7 used as passing note
Whole-tone scale 1 2 3 ♭5 ♭6 ♭7 1, 3 & ♭7
♭3 = #2 = #9
Altered scale 1 ♭2 ♭3 ♭4 ♭5 ♭6 ♭7
♭4 = 3
♭3 = #2 = #9
Blues scale 1 ♭3 4 #4 5 ♭7
Omits 3
• The C Dominant Bebop scale fits perfectly over a C7 chord because it starts on the root
(C) and has the 3 and ♭7. The ♮7 acts only as a passing note.
• The C Wholetone scale fits perfectly over a C7 chord because it starts on the root (C) and
has the 3 and ♭7.
• The C Altered scale also fits over a C7 chord even though it has a ♭3 (E♭). This is because
the ♭3 acts as a #9 (D#) and the True 3rd is the ♭4 (E). So the♭3 is enharmonically the same
as a #9 and the♭4 is enharmonically the same as a♮3. So actually, this scale fits rather well
over a C7 chord.
• The C Blues scale also fits over a C7 chord. The♭3 is treated as a #9 and the♮3 is omitted.
The♮3 is implied by the chord C7. So then the scale has an implied♮3 and a ♭7, so fits over
C7 perfectly well.
(Aside #1: The ♮3 always overrides the minor ♭3 and turns it into a #9. This generally only applies
to V7 chords and works because the #9 is an available tension over a C7 chord).
(Aside #2: This idea does NOT apply to 7ths. You cannot turn a♭7 into a #6 or #13. This is
because a #13 is not an available tension over any chord).

below is a selection of scales that can be used over particular chords, precisely because they share
the root, 3rd and 7th of the chord.

Chord Possible Scale Degrees From C

Ionian 1234567 CDEFGAB
Major 7 Lydian 1 2 3 #4 5 6 7 C D E F# G A B
(any scale with Maj 3 & Maj 7) Lydian Augmented 1 2 3 #4 #5 6 7 C D E F# G# A B
Major Bebop Scale 1 2 3 4 5 ♭6 6 7 C D E F G A♭ A B
Aeolian 1 2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7 CD E♭ F G A♭ B♭
Minor 7
Dorian 1 2 ♭3 4 5 6 ♭7 C D E♭ F G A B♭
(any scale with min 3 & min 7)
Phrygian 1 ♭2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7 C D♭ E♭ F G A♭ B♭
Half Diminished Locrian 1 ♭2 ♭3 4 ♭5 ♭6 ♭7 C D♭ E♭ F G♭ A♭ B♭
(any scale with min 3, ♭5 & min
7) Half-diminished 1 2 ♭3 4 ♭5 ♭6 ♭7 C D E♭ F G♭ A♭ B♭
Dominant 7 Mixolydian 1 2 3 4 5 6 ♭7 C D E F G A B♭
 Chord Possible Scale Degrees From C
Lydian Dominant 1 2 3 #4 5 6 ♭7 C D E F# G A B♭
Mixolydian b6 Scale 1 2 3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7 C D E F G A ♭ B♭
1 ♭2 ♭3 ♭4 ♭5 ♭6
Altered C D♭ E♭ F♭ G♭ A♭ B♭
♭7
Dorian ♭2 1 ♭2 ♭3 4 5 6 ♭7 C D♭ E♭ F G A B♭
Major Pentatonic 12356 CDEGA
Blues 1 ♭3 4 #4 5 ♭7 C E♭ F F# G B♭
(any scale with Maj 3 & min 7) 5th mode of harm
1 ♭2 3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7 C D♭ E F G A♭ B♭
min.
5th mode of harm
1 ♭2 3 4 5 6 ♭7 C D♭ E F G A B♭
Maj.
Dominant Bebop 1 2 3 4 5 6 ♭7 7 C D E F G A B♭ B
1 ♭2 #2 3 #4 5 6
Dominant Diminished C D♭ D# E F# G A B♭
♭7
Whole Tone 1 2 3 #4 #5 ♭7 C D E G♭ A♭ B♭

Melodic Minor Modes

Notes Avoid
# Mode Name Degrees Chord Comments
from C Notes
Jazz Melodic C D E♭ F Chord not found in
I 1 2 ♭3 4 5 6 7 CmMaj7 None
Minor GAB Major harmony
1 ♭2 ♭3 4 5 6 D E♭ F G Dm7 E♭ Not used
II Dorian ♭2
♭7 ABC Dsus♭9 None V7 of G Major
Lydian 1 2 3 #4 #5 6 E♭ F G A B None
III E♭Maj7#5 Already dissonant
Augmented 7 CD (Maybe C)
1 2 3 #4 5 6 F G A B C
IV Lydian Dominant F7#11 None None
♭7 D E♭
G7♭13 C Not used
1 2 3 4 5 ♭6 G A B C D
V Mixolydian ♭6 CmMaj7/
♭7 E♭ F None Rarely used
G
1 2 ♭3 4 ♭5 ♭6 A B C D
VI Half-Diminished Am7♭5 None None
♭7 E♭ F G
1 ♭2 ♭3 ♭4 ♭5 B C D E♭ Bm7♭5 C & E♭ Not used
VII Altered Scale
♭6 ♭7 FGA B7alt None Used often

in Jazz, we play the ‘true’ melodic minor scale both up and down, and call it the Jazz Melodic
Minor Scale. The associated chord is the CmMaj7 chord – which is not found in Major scale
harmony.
 • The Dorian ♭2 mode is generally reserved for the Phrygian Chord (D7sus♭9). While it can
be played over a m7 chord, the ♭2 would be an avoid note.

Altered Scale
One of the most widely used scales in Jazz is the Altered Scale. It is played over a V7 chord and is
an interesting scale because every note that can be altered, is altered. Below is a comparison of the
Altered Scale to the standard Mixolydian Scale:

Degree 1 2 3 4 5 6 ♭7
C Mixolydian (F Major) C D E F G A B♭
Degree 1 ♭9 #9 3 ♭5 (#11) ♭13 (#5) ♭7
Altered Scale C D♭ E♭ (D#) F♭ (E) G♭ (F#) A♭ (G#) B♭
• You can’t alter root, 3rd or 7th without changing chord tonality or quality – but you can alter
every other note
• Notice there is no ♮5th

Avoid Notes
It’s also generally accepted that the melodic minor scale modes do NOT have avoid notes. This
means you can all the notes of the scale over any of the chords, and that all the chord voicings are
completely interchangeable. That is, the CmMaj7 chord (C, E♭, G, B) can be used as a voicing for
any chord in the key of C melodic minor just by changing the bass note.
For example, the only reason an FMaj9#11 (F A C E G B) cannot be a G13 (G B D F A E) is
because the FMaj7 contains a ‘C’, which is an unavailable tension or avoid note from the point of
view (POV) of the G7. Otherwise the two chords share many notes in common.

Chord Voicing F A C E G B
POV of FMaj7 1 3 5 7 9 #11
POV of G7 7 9 ♮11 (Avoid Note) 13 1 3
Interestingly, if you omit the 5th from both chords (which is allowed), you get the exact same notes.
So, a 5th-less FMaj9#11 = a 5th-less G13.
• FMaj9#11 (no 5th) = F A ( ) E G B
• G13 (no 5th, no 11th) = G B ( ) F A ( ) E

This means, the only reason one chord cannot be a different chord is because avoid notes and guide
tones exist. But if you have no avoid notes (like the melodic minor scale), then every chord can be
any other chord in that key.
This means when you are playing in melodic minor harmony, you don’t play the chord individually
so much as you play the whole key all at once.

V7 Chords
Also notice that two V7 chords can be derived from the melodic minor scale.
• IV – F7#11
• VII – B7alt

These V7 chords are a tritone apart from each other – they can therefore be tritone substituted for
each other.

Scales over Chords

So, summarising what we know so far, we can play the following Major and Melodic Minor modes
over the following chords:
• CMaj7
• C Ionian = C D E F G A B
• C Lydian = C D E F# G A B
• C Lydian Augmented = C D E F# G# A B
• Cm7
• C Dorian = C D E♭ F G A B♭
• C Aeolian = C D E♭ F G A♭ B♭
• CmMaj7
• C melodic minor = C D E♭ F G A B
• C7
• C Mixolydian = C D E F G A B♭
• C Lydian Dominant = C D E F# G A B♭
• Altered Scale = C D♭ E♭ F♭ G♭ A♭ B♭
• C Mixolydian♭6 = C D E F G A♭ B♭
• Cm7♭5
• C Locrian = C D♭ E♭ F G♭ A♭ B♭
• C Half-Diminished = C D E♭ F G♭ A♭ B♭
BEBOP SCALES
Bebop Scales are just your regular scales and modes – such as the Major, melodic minor, Dorian
and Mixolydian – but with an added chromatic note. So:
• Bebop scales = Traditional scales + 1 chromatic passing note

Bebop Scales
The most commonly used Bebop Scales are listed below.

Chord Name Notes from C Degrees Passing note

ii Bebop Dorian D E F F# G A B C 1 2 ♭3 ♭4 4 5 6 ♭7 b/w ♭3 & 4
V Bebop Dominant G A B C D E F F# 1 2 3 4 5 6 ♭7 7 b/w ♭7 & 1
I Bebop Major C D E F G A♭ A B 1 2 3 4 5 ♭6 6 7 b/w 5 & 6
i Bebop melodic minor C D E♭ F G A♭ A B 1 2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 6 7 b/w 5 & 6
First, a few generalisations:
• Most Jazz Standards are in 4/4 time;
• Most improvised scalar runs are in quavers (therefore 8 notes per bar);
• Notes played ON the beat sound stronger than notes played OFF the beat;
• A diatonic scale has 7 notes (this is just a fact rather than a generalisation)

By adding an extra chromatic note, Bebop scales are able to:

• Better emphasise the harmonically important notes (Chords Tones) during descending
scalar runs, by playing the chord tones ON the beat.
• Better align the number of notes in the scale to the number of beats in a bar. The scale ‘fits’
better over a 4/4 time signature because there are 8 quavers per bar & 8 notes per scale.
For example, let’s compare a Mixolydian scalar run to a Bebop Dominant scalar run:

G Mixolydian
Ascending (in quavers) Descending (in quavers)
Beat Beat Beat Beat Beat Beat Beat Beat

G A B C D E F G G F E D C B A G
G Bebop Dominant
Ascending (in quavers) Descending (in quavers)
Beat Beat Beat Beat Beat Beat Beat Beat
G A B C D E F F# G F# F E D C B A

However, there’s no reason to restrict yourself to these particular extra chromatic passing notes. In
theory, you can add any additional chromatic passing note to a standard 7 note (Heptatonic) scale
and create your own quasi-‘Bebop Scale’.
WHOLETONE SCALE
The Wholetone Scale, as the name implies, is made up exclusively from whole tones. Because of
this there are only 2 distinct wholetone scales (i.e. scales with a unique collection notes) and then
the various modes of those two scales:
• G Wholetone Scale = G A B C# D# F
• C Wholetone Scale = C D E F# G# A#

The chord derived from the Wholetone scale is the V7#5 chord, which can be extended to a
V9#5#11.
• G Wholetone Chord = G7#5 (G B D# F)
• C Wholetone Chord = C7#5 (C E G# B♭)

But the scale can be used over any V7 Chord.

No Avoid Notes and Interchangeability of Chords

Like the melodic minor scale, the Wholetone Scale does NOT have avoid notes. This means that all
the chords are interchangeable. Notice that all the following chords have the same notes:

Chord F A C# D# G B
F9#5#11 1 3 #5 ♭7 9 #11
G9#5#11 ♭7 9 #11 #5 1 3
A9#5#11 #5 1 3 #11 ♭7 9
B9#5#11 #11 ♭7 9 3 #5 1
C#9#5#11 3 #5 1 9 #11 ♭7
D#9#5#11 9 #11 ♭7 1 3 #5
So all these chords are equivalent.
Diminished Scale & Double Diminished Chord
The Diminished Chord
The diminished chord is built out of minor 3rds (3 semitones). Because an octave is 12 semitones,
stacking further minor 3rd above the top note of a diminished chord just repeats the same existing
notes (D → F → A♭ → B → D → F → A♭ → B → D → etc.). Because of this the diminished chord
repeats at intervals of minor thirds. This means there are only 3 unique diminished chords:
• Cdim7 = E♭dim7 = G♭dim7 = Adim7
• D♭dim7 = Edim7 = Gdim7 = B♭dim7
• Ddim7 = Fdim7 = A♭dim7 = Bdim7

The Diminished Scale

The Diminished Scale is:
• An Octatonic Scale (i.e. it has 8 notes)
• A Symmetrical Scale (i.e. the intervals repeat in a pattern)

Because it is a symmetrical scale (and much like the diminished chord) there are only three
unique diminished scales:
• C = E♭ = G♭ = A diminished scale
• D♭ = E = G = B♭ diminished scale
• D = F = A♭ = B diminished scale

There are, however, two possible modes of each diminished scale. And they get their names from
the interval pattern that create them. These are:
• The Half-Whole (H/W) Diminished Scale
• Interval Pattern: semitone – tone – semitone – tone – …etc.
• Used over a V7 chord
• The Whole-Half (W/H) Diminished Scale
• Interval Pattern: tone – semitone – tone – semitone – …etc.
• Used over a Diminished chord

Scale Chord Notes & Degrees

C13b9#9#11 C D♭ D# E F# G A B♭
C H/W Dim OR
C7b9 1 ♭9 #9 3 #11 5 13 ♭7
D♭ D# E F# G A B♭ C
D♭ W/H Dim D♭dim7
1 + 1 tone ♭3 + 1 tone ♭5 + 1 tone ♭♭7 + 1 tone
Notice that:
• The C H/W = D♭W/H Diminished Scales (i.e. they are modes);
• The chord from the C H/W Diminished Scale is a C7♭9 (C E G B♭ D♭);
• The chord from the D♭W/H Diminished Scale is a D♭dim7 (D♭ E G B♭)
 • D♭dim7 = Rootless C7♭9.

The H/W Diminished Scale and/or associated chord can be substituted in place of a V7 chord.
While, the Whole-Half Diminished Scale is used over a diminished chord. For example:

Chord Progression D♭o7 Gm7 C7 (or C7♭9) FMaj7

Scales D♭ W/H Diminished G Dorian C H/W Diminished F Ionian
Now, remember that the diminished chord and scale repeat at intervals of minor 3rds. This means
that:
• C H/W = E♭ H/W = G♭ H/W = A H/W = D♭ W/H = E W/H = G W/H = B♭ W/H

Diminished Lick
Below is a classic diminished lick in B♭ H/W Diminished Scale. Try it out and listen to how it
sounds.

Associated Chords
Just like with regular diatonic scales, we can assign each note in the diminished scale an associated
chord. This gives us:

Scale Scale Chords

C H/W Diminished C7♭9 D♭o7 D#7♭9 Eo7 F#7♭9 Go7 A7♭9 B♭o7

No Avoid Notes and Interchangeability of Chords

Just like the Melodic Minor and Wholetone scale, the Diminished Scale has no avoid notes. This
means that all of the above chords are completely interchangeable. Playing a D♭dim7 chord is
effectively like playing all eight of the above chords at once.

Chord D♭ E G B♭
D♭o7 = Eo7 = Go7 = B♭o7 Diminished Chord
C7♭9 ♭9 3 5 ♭7
D#7♭9 ♭7 ♭9 3 5
F#7♭9 5 ♭7 ♭9 3
A7♭9 3 5 ♭7 ♭9
Altered Diminished Chord
Interestingly, if you move any note in a diminished chord up a whole-step, you still remain within
the Diminished Scale – so you still have a diminished chord. I will call this the Altered
Diminished Chord. You can substitute this new note in whenever you have a diminished chord.
This greatly increases the tension of the chord which can make it sound really interesting and jazzy.

D♭o7 D♭ E G B♭
Change note to D# F# A C
Chord Diminished Altered Diminished
A♭ B D G
A♭ B E F
A♭o7 A♭ B D F
A♭ C# D F
B♭ B D F
Taking this to the extreme, you can also move ALL the notes up a whole-step and play a D#dim7
chord instead of a D♭dim7 chord. This will sound incredibly dissonant, but it’s theoretically correct.

Double Diminished Chord

You may have also noticed that the Diminished Scale is really just two Diminished Chords a
semitone apart, superimposed over each other. Using this idea allows you to create something called
a Double Diminished Chord.

If you play a D♭dim7 chord in your left hand and a Cdim7 chord in your right hand, you have
yourself a Double Diminished Chord. This is a very jazzy and dissonant sound which can actually
be a number of different chords at once. These are listed below.

Voicing Chord Notes Combined Chord

C13♭9#9#11
D#13♭9#9#11
Left Hand D♭o7 D♭ E G B♭
F#13♭9#9#11
A13♭9#9#11

Technically, a Pentatonic Scale is any scale with 5 notes. However, when people use the term
‘Pentatonic scale’ they are generally referring to the Major Pentatonic Scale.
The Major Pentatonic Scale is a very consonant & pleasant sounding scale. This is because:
• It is made of stacked Perfect 5th intervals: C, G, D, A, E; and
• It has no semitone intervals between any of the notes.

Arranging the above notes in sequential order gives you the:

• C Major Pentatonic Scale = C, D, E, G, A

They are a good way of avoiding Avoid Notes. And, just like any other pre-existing scale, you can
create modes out of the Major Pentatonic Scale by selecting a different root note.

Modes of the Pentatonic Scale

The below table summarises all 5 modes of the Major Pentatonic Scale, each using C as the root.

As I mentioned above, the Pentatonic Scale is often used to avoid Avoid Notes. In the key of C
Major, the note ‘F’ (♮11) is an avoid note over the chords CMaj7 and G7; therefore we should avoid
using any Pentatonic Scale which has the note ‘F’ in it over these two chords. However, ‘F’ is an
available tension over a C7sus and a Cm7, so we can use such a scale over these chords. Similarly,
A♭ (♭13) is NOT an available tension over a Cm7, so we cannot use any Pentatonic Scale which has
the note A♭ in it over this chord.

Major Pentatonic Avoid

Mode Notes Chord Blues – Tonic Dominant
Scale Note
1 C Maj Pent C D E G A CMaj7 & C7 None
C7sus &
2 B♭ Maj Pent C D F G B♭ F
Cm7
C7
3 A♭ Maj Pent C E♭ F A B♭ C7sus F & A♭
(Tonic Dominant
C7sus & -allow♮11)
4 F Maj Pent CDFGA F
Cm7
E♭ Maj Pent C7sus &
5 C E♭ F G B♭ F
(C minor Pent) Cm7
(Aside: The Blues harmony is a little bit different. The ♮11 (F) IS an available tension over a C7
chord in a blues context. This is because Blues is a little bit ‘rougher’ and ‘bluesier’ and so a little
bit of dissonance fits the style rather well. This is also because the dominant chord in a Blues does
NOT necessarily function as a dominant chord – it can also function as a Tonic Dominant. There
will be more on this in future lessons.)
Major Scale Harmony
The C Major Scale contains three naturally occurring Major Pentatonic Scales:
• C Maj Pent – C D E G A
• F Maj Pent – F G A C D
• G Maj Pent – G A B D E

Below is a table summarising the Pentatonic scales which can be used over a II-V-I in C Major.
Notice that the G Pentatonic Scale fits over all three chords.

Chord Possible Pentatonic Scales Notes Comment

C Maj Pent CDE GA
Dm7 F Maj Pent FGACD No Avoid Notes
G Maj Pent GABDE
G Maj Pent GABDE
G7 C & F Maj Pent have note C (avoid note)
D♭ Maj Pent D♭ E♭ F A♭ B♭
C Maj Pent CDE GA
CMaj7 F Maj Pent FGACD F Maj Pent has note F (avoid note)
G Maj Pent GABDE

Melodic Minor Harmony

The C melodic minor scale contains one naturally occurring Major Pentatonic Scale:
• F Maj Pent – F G A C D

This scale can thus be used over any chord derived from the key of C melodic minor. This can then
be expanded to cover the minor II-V-I (below).

Chord Dm7♭5 G7♭9 CmMaj7

Scale B♭ Maj Pent D♭ Maj Pent F Maj Pent
Note also that there are other Pentatonic Scales, including but not limited to:
• In-sen Scale
• Dorian ♭2 Pentatonic Scale
• Blues Scale (this is technically a hexatonic scale, actually)

AUGMENTED SCALE
Much like the Diminished Scale is actually just two diminished chords superimposed over each
other. The Augmented Scale is just two augmented chords superimposed over each other. But it
can also be thought of as three major triads superimposed over each other:

Scale Notes Chords

C Augmented Scale C E♭ E G G# B C+ = C E G#
 Scale Notes Chords
E♭+ = E♭ G B
C=CEG
E = E G# B
A♭ = A♭ C E♭

The Augmented Scale

The Augmented Scale is:
• a Hexatonic Scale (6 notes)
• a Symmetrical Scale (repeating intervals)
• Also knows as the minor-third half-step scale (because that is the intervals that make up
the scale)
Because the scale is symmetrical, there are only 4 unique Augmented Scales (i.e. the C Augmented
contains all the same notes as the E and A♭ Augmented)
• C = E = Ab Augmented
• Db = F = A Augmented
• D = F# = Bb Augmented
• Eb = G = B Augmented

And also, much like the Diminished Scale, you can create modes of the Augmented Scale by just
starting on a different note. So for example, C minor-third half-step scale contains all the same
notes as E♭ half-step minor-third scale.

Scale Notes
C minor-third half-step scale C E♭ E G G# B
Eb half-step minor-third scale E♭ E G G# B C
You can use the C Augmented Scale over any chord that:
• Contains only notes from the C Augmented Scale;
• Contains the C Augmented Triad within it.

Chord Notes Equivalent Chord

CMaj7#5 C E G# B NA
CmMaj7 C E♭ G B NA
CMaj7 CEGB NA
C+ C E G# NA
G♭7#11
D7#11 D F# A C E G#
B♭7#11
FmMaj7
D♭mMaj7 D♭ E A♭ C
AmMaj7
G♭m9♭5
Dm9♭5 D F A♭ C E
B♭m9♭5
Note: The Augmented Scale contains ‘avoid notes’ so be careful when using it. For example:
 • E♭ over CMaj7#5
• B over C7#5

You can use both the C minor-third half-step scale and the C half-step minor-third scale over a
C7alt chord:

C minor-third half-step scale notes C E♭/D# E G G#/A♭ B

C7alt degrees 1 #9 3 5 ♭13 7 (avoid note)
C half-step minor-third scale notes C D♭ E F A♭ A
C7alt degrees 1 ♭9 3 11 (avoid note) ♭13 13

Augmented Lick
Below is a classic augmented lick in C Augmented. Try it out and listen to how it sounds.

MINOR SCALES
Some of the most common ones are listed below:

Scale Name Derived From Scale Degrees From C Chord

C Melodic Minor I Melodic Minor 1 2 ♭3 4 5 6 7 C D E♭ F G A B CmMaj7
C Dorian II Major 1 2 ♭3 4 5 6 ♭7 C D E♭ F G A B♭ Cm7
C Harmonic Minor I Harmonic Minor 1 2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 7 C D E♭ F G A♭ B CmMaj7
C Aeolian VI Major 1 2 ♭3 4 5 b6 ♭7 C D E♭ F G A♭ B♭ Cm7
C Dorian ♭2 II Melodic Minor 1 ♭2 ♭3 4 5 6 ♭7 C D♭ E♭ F G A B♭ Cm7
Dorian #4 IV Harmonic Minor 1 2 ♭3 #4 5 6 ♭7 C D E♭ F# G A B♭ Cm7
C Phrygian III Major 1 ♭2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7 C D♭ E♭ F G A♭ B♭ Cm7
C Half-diminished VI Melodic Minor 1 2 ♭3 4 ♭5 ♭6 ♭7 C D E♭ F G♭ A♭ B♭ Cø7
Locrian #6 II Harmonic Minor 1 ♭2 ♭3 4 ♭5 6 ♭7 C D♭ E♭ F G♭ A B♭ Cø7
C Locrian VII Major 1 ♭2 ♭3 4 ♭5 ♭6 ♭7 C D♭ E♭ F G♭ A♭ B♭ Cø7
??? ??? 1 ♭2 ♭3 #4 #5 #6 7 C D E♭ F# G# A# B CmMaj7#5

SELECTING SCALES FOR IMPROVISATION

Locrian mode
• Used for Half-diminished chord (because of the ♭5)
• Has two Avoid Notes
• Phrygian mode
• Used for Phrygian chord
• Has two Avoid Notes
• Aeolian mode
• Has one Avoid Notes
• Dorian mode
• Has zero avoid notes

So, while you can use all the above modes over the Am7 in theory, because the Dorian and Aeolian
modes have zero and one avoid notes respectively (rather than 2), most Jazz musicians play the
Dorian or Aeolian modes over a m7 chord in practice.
Now, let’s look at the chord AmMaj7, where the 3rd and 7th are C and G# respectively. We can use
the following scales over this chord:
• A Melodic Minor = A B C D E F# G# – No Avoid Notes
• A Harmonic Minor = A B C D E F G# – One Avoid Note
• A Double Harmonic Minor = A B C D# E F G# – One Avoid Note

And again, we find that while in theory all of the above scales are perfectly fine to use over an
AmMaj7 chord, in practice most Jazz musicians play the melodic minor scale (because it has no
avoid notes as opposed to one).

The same can be done with the chord CMaj7. The following scales can be used over this chord:
• C Ionian (C Major) = C D E F G A B – One Avoid Note
• C Lydian (G Major) = C D E F# G A B – No Avoid Notes

Notice that C Lydian Mode does not have any avoid notes. And you will find that many Jazz
musicians use the Lydian mode to improvise over Maj7 chords.

TRITONE SUBSTITUTION
One of the most common Chord Substitutions in Jazz is the Tritone Substitution. This is a way
of substituting V7 chords. So a G7 would become a D♭7 (the root note is a tritone away). They
work because the Guide Tones (3rd & 7th) are the same in both chords.
• G7 = G B D F
• D♭7 = D♭ F A♭ B
Tritone Substitution and Scales
Ordinarily, you would just use the C Major Scale (or equivalent modes) to improvise over a II-V-I
in C, as shown in Chord Progression #1 below.

ii V7 I
Chord Progression #1 Dm7 G7 CMaj7
Scales D Dorian G Mixolydian C Ionian
Key C Major
Chord Progression #2 Dm7 D♭7 CMaj7
Scales D Dorian D♭ Mixloydian C Ionian
Key C Major G♭ Major C Major
Chord Progression #3 Dm7 G7 - D♭7 CMaj7
Scales D Dorian ? C Ionian
But what if you were to tritone substitute the G7 to D♭7, like in Chord Progression #2 above? Then
you cannot (generally) use the G Mixolydian mode over the D♭7 because it contains the note C
(which is a natural 7th from the point of view of the D♭7). You could, however, play the D♭
Mixolydian mode (G♭ Major).
• G Mixolydian (C Major) = G A B C D E F
• D♭ Mixolydian (G♭ Major) = D♭ E♭ F G♭ A♭ B♭ C♭

But what if the chord progression was 1/2 a bar of G7 and 1/2 a bar of D♭7, like in Chord
Progression #3 above? Or what if someone was ‘comping and you didn’t know which chord they
were going to play?
• D♭ Mixolydian doesn’t quite fit over the G7 chord; and
• G Mixolydian doesn’t quite fit over the D♭7 chord

And changing scales for 1/2 a bar, especially at a quick tempo, can be challenging and
unnecessarily complex.

Wouldn’t it be great if there was a scale that fit over both G7 AND D♭7? Well, there is. You have a
number of options when improvising over G7 and/or D♭7:
• Play G Mixolydian but avoid the C
• C is an avoid note for G7 and D♭7 – so just omit it
• Scales that fit over G7 and D♭7
• Wholetone Scale = G A B D♭ E♭ F
• Dominant Diminished Scale = G A♭ B♭ B D♭ D E F
• A♭ melodic minor = A♭ B♭ C♭ D♭ E♭ F G
• AKA G Altered Scale
• AKA D♭ Lydian Dominant
• D melodic minor = D E F G A B C#
• AKA D♭ Altered Scale
 • AKA G Lydian Dominant

So now it doesn’t matter whether the accompaniment plays a G7 or a D♭7, because the above scales
work well over both chords.

Miscellaneous Dominant Facts

A few more interest points about tritone substitution:
• A V7♭5 Chord is its own tritone substitution
• G7♭5 = G B D♭ F = D♭7♭5 = D♭ F G B
• Rootless Voicings of Dominant Chords include the: 3rd, 7th, 9th & 13th (we will discuss
rootless voicings a future lesson)
• Rootless G7 = F A B E
• Rootless G7#9♭13 = Rootless D♭7 = F A# B E♭
• You will often see Tritone Substituted II-V‘s
• When improvising, use the relevant Dorian scale for m7 chords
• The possible combinations and permutations are listed below

Dm7 G7 CMaj7
A♭m7 D♭7 CMaj7
Dm7 D♭7 CMaj7
A♭m7 G7 CMaj7

Chromaticism and Synthetic Scales

Introduction
In this lesson we will explore a simple idea, that your improvisation should reflect your chord
progression.
• So if you chord progression increases tension, then your improvisation should also increase
tension.
• So if you chord progression resolves tension, then your improvisation should also resolve
tension.
• So if you chord progression uses chromaticism, then your improvisation should also use
chromaticism.
• Etc.

There are four ways to use chords from a different key without changing key. These are:
• Chord substitution;
• Secondary chord;
• Borrowed chords;
• Passing chords.
Chromaticism & Improvisation
If the chord progression uses of these techniques then it has used chromaticism and has NOT truly
modulated to a new key. When this happens you can do one of three things with your improvisation:
• Change keys in your improvisation;
• Do not change key and simply play over the top of the foreign chord with your existing
scale;
• Do not change key but modify your existing scale to account for the Guide Tones of the
foreign chord.
For example, let’s say we have the following chord progression.

This chord progression is all in the key of C Major. However it has the following chromaticisms:
• The A7 is a secondary dominant tonicising the Dm7 (highlighted red);
• The D♭7 is a chord substitution of G7 (highlighted blue);
• The Fm7-B♭7 are borrowed chords from the parallel natural minor (highlighted green).

Let’s go over each of the three options in a bit more detail.

Option A) Change keys (not recommended)

You could change key to the appropriate diatonic scale. This approach is not recommended because
the improvisation does not reflect the chord progression. It ignores that fact that the chord
progression hasn’t modulated. Now, of course, it sounds fine and you can use this approach, but it’s
a bit of a lost opportunity. This kind of approach is pretty standard and as such can eventually sound
a little bit boring and expected.
Option B) Play over the top of the foreign chord with your existing scale

Alternately, you could just keep playing the C Major scale all the way through this progression
without worrying about the chromaticism. So we are just ignoring those foreign chords. This is an
ok approach to take. You’re going to hit some unpleasant sounding avoid notes, but that’s ok, at
least your solo is reflecting the chord progression by not changing key. The fact that you’re
improvising with a single scale all the way through will give you solo some consistency and
structure.

Option C) Modify your scale to account for the Guide Tones of the foreign chord
(recommended)

Finally you could play the C Major scale, but alter some of the notes to account for the
chromaticism. This is done by sharpening or flattening one of the notes in the C Major scale to take
account of the guide tones of the foreign chord. For example, the guide tones of the chord A7 are
C# and G. G is already in the C Major scale, but C# is not. Therefore, over this chord, we can plat
the C Major scale, but with a C# instead of the note C. Below are the scales we can use for each of
the foreign chords in this progression.
While any of the above approaches to improvising over this progression can work, the last one is
recommended because it keeps most faithfully to what is happening in the chord progression. We
are not change key here, we are simply using chromaticism in our harmony to make the progression
more interesting. As such, we should not change keys in our improvisation, instead we should
similarly use chromaticism to mirror and adhere to the harmony. And because the Guide Tones are
the most important notes in a chord, the scale which we use to improvise over them should reflect
this and not clash with the harmony.

Synthetic Scales
This required us to create synthetic scales that we could use over the foreign chords in this chord
progression. A synthetic scale is a scale that is derived from the Major scale but has had one or more
notes altered by a semitone. Notice that these synthetic scales are actually already existing scales
with conventional names. This need not always be the case. You may create a synthetic scale that
does not yet exist and thus does not have a conventional name. So, in a sense, these synthetic scales
are often just another way to think about modes and how to map particular scales to particular
chords.

Having said that, Option B is also acceptable. Some of the notes in the C Major scale will clash
with the foreign chords, but that’s ok if you treat them as either Avoid Notes or as notes that build
tension. But a good rule to follow when improvising is: when the harmony changes key, your
improvisation should change key; when the harmony uses chromaticism, your improvisation should
use chromaticism.
JAZZ IMPROVISATION
The overarching idea behind Jazz Improvisation is that of 'Tension' and 'Release'. You build 'tension'
by playing 'wrong' notes (playing 'outside'), and you resolve or 'release' that tension by playing
'right' notes (playing 'inside').

Tension should rise and fall like a wave during a Jazz solo. You build tension (just like building
suspense in a story) by playing jarring notes and intervals that clash with the chords, before
resolving the tension (resolving the suspense) by playing smooth and consonant notes and intervals
that complement the chords. An improvisation that does not build and resolve tension is not a Jazz
improvisation.

You need to create tension by using ‘outside’ or ‘wrong’ notes and then resolve that tension artfully
by falling back onto the ‘inside’ or ‘right’ notes. But, rather strangely, there are ‘right’ ways of
playing ‘wrong’ notes. While you can just play wrong notes at random, it’s generally better to play
them in a structured way. There are numerous ways of doing this, and I’ve listed some of the
techniques below. The rest of this module will be covering these improvisation techniques.

Creating and Resolving Tension

Ways you can create tension:
• Scales
• Polytonality
• Ambiguous
• Passing Notes (Approach Note/Targeting)
• Cycled Patterns
• Dissonant intervals
• Avoid notes
• Displacing the Melody
• Chord Extensions
Ways you can resolve tension:
• Riffs
• Scales
• Diatonic
• Arpeggios
• Guide Tones
• Melody
• Quotes & Cliches

Playing Inside – In Theory

To ‘resolve tension’ and play consonantly, you can:
• Play the chord tones (especially the guide tones). Because you’re literally just repeating the
chord an octave or two higher, this sounds very consonant and resolved.
• For example, playing the notes C, E, G, or B (especially E or B) over a CMaj7 will
sound very consonant because those are the notes that make up the chord.
• Play available tensions over a chord. These, by definition, sound pleasant and consonant.
• For example, playing the notes D, F#, or A over a CMaj7 will sound quite consonant.
• Avoid emphasising an unavailable tension over the chord. These, by definition, sound
unpleasant and dissonant. (Treat unavailable tensions as quick passing notes).
• For example, playing the notes D♭, D#, F, G#, or B♭ over a CMaj7 will sound quite
dissonant.
• Play an appropriate Jazz Scale over the chord. These, also by definition, sound good and
smooth over a particular chord. We learned a number of Jazz Scales in the previous module.
• For example, playing C Ionian, or C Lydian, or C Lydian Augmented over a CMaj7
chord generally sounds good (again, don’t overemphasis the avoid notes).

Playing Inside – In Practice

In practice, it’s a little bit harder because you need to perfect your timing and phrasing. You want to
finish your phrase on a strong note and a strong beat. You want your solo to sound interesting but
not too busy. You want to leave breathing space (pauses) between phrases and include a certain
amount of repetition (to build familiarity). You want to make some reference to the melody, and
perhaps insert a few clichés, but still have enough unique content for the solo to be more than just a
collection of riffs (this isn’t Rock!).

Most beginners, when they first starting trying to improvise, end up playing a scale up and down the
chord progression. This is fine to begin with, but is not really improvisation. Below is a list of
techniques you can use to expand your improvisation when playing ‘inside’ to make it more
interesting and varied.
• Play scale and exercises
• Change Direction
 • Change Rhythms
• Change Pitch
• Change Duration of notes
• Change Dynamics
• Skip Notes
• Circle notes
• Silence is ok (use it as thinking time)
• Repeat notes
• Repeat phrases & Sequence phrases
• Use Arpeggios (playing chord tones!)
• Use Phrases & Pause between Phrases (breathing space!)
• Start Phrases off the beat (just sounds jazzier!)
• Call and response (this is one of the characteristics of Jazz and Blues music)
• Theme and Variation
• Harmonising – use more than 1 note
• Use Riffs
• Use ornamentals – turns, trills, mordents, etc
• Use the Melody
• Use Guide Tones
• Cliches/Quotes
• Avoid ‘Avoid Notes’

When improvising ‘inside’ (i.e. resolving tension), try targeting the guide tones of each chord. It’ll
sound great. And when learning a new song, it’s worth playing the guide tones of each chord
through the entire progression (like playing Shell Chords). This will help you memorise where the
harmonically important notes are and tell you where to target and finish your solos. We will discuss
this further in the lesson on Chord Mapping.

A great way of creating a simple and strong sounding solo is by simply playing the actual melody
but with embellishments. This is a great improvisation technique when playing ‘inside’ and
resolving tension, because nothing resolves tension like playing the actual song. Most good solos
have some kind of reference (however slight) back to the original melody.

Improvising around the melody isn’t too difficult. There are just a few things you can do:
• Change the rhythm of the melody (keeping the pitch the same)
• Change the pitch of the notes (keeping the rhythm the same)
• Add ‘fills’ over long notes and rests
• Add ornamentals to the melody (trills, turns, mordents, grace notes, etc.)

AVOID NOTES
Degree Mode Chord Avoid Note Avoid Note Degree
I C Ionian CMaj7 F 4
ii D Dorian Dm7 None None
iii E Phrygian Em7 C&F ♭2 & ♭6
IV F Lydian FMaj7 None None
V G Mixolydian G7 C 4
vi A Aeolian Am7 F ♭6
vii B Locrian Bm7♭5 C ♭2

If it’s easier for you, an approximate rule of thumb is:

• On Maj7 & V7 Chords – Avoid the 4th
• On m7 Chords – Avoid the 6th
• On Half-Diminished Chords – Avoid the 2nd & 6th

Avoid Notes can be used to build tension and as such can be used as an improvisation technique,
but do ensure that you resolve them nicely.

DISSONANT INTERVALS

Perfect Consonance Imperfect Consonance Dissonance

Perfect Unison Minor 3rd Minor 2nd
Perfect Octave Major 3rd Major 2nd
Perfect 5th Minor 6th Minor 7th
Perfect 4th Major 6th Major 7th
Tritone
Minor 9th (8av + semitone)
(Aside: Consonance and dissonance is subjective, some people classify the Perfect 4th as imperfect
or dissonant; and others classify the Major 2nd and minor 7th as imperfect.)

You can use dissonant intervals to build tension in your solo and then resolve the tension by
retreating to a consonant interval (or a Guide Tone).

Passing Notes and Target Notes

Targeting and Passing Notes are a great improvisation technique when wanting to build and
resolve tension quickly.
Passing notes:
• Are notes you pass through quickly and are not important to the harmony of your
improvisation/melody line (similar idea to Passing Chord)
• Can be diatonic or chromatic (1 tone or 1 semitone from the target note)
 • Can ascend or descend
• Can be one note or multiple notes

Target Notes
Targeting is the opposite of passing notes. It is the specific note you want to play (i.e.
target). Target notes should generally be a Chord Tone (especially a Guide Tone), an Available
Tension or a Melody Note. You play through passing notes to get to your target note. If passing
notes are the journey, then your target note is the destination.

Below is an example of a simple phrase in C Major.

SIDE-SLIPPING AND BITONALITY

Bitonality
Bitonality (a form of Polytonality) simply means playing a scale other than the diatonic scale of a
chord progression. This is very common in Jazz, because of the Chord-Scale System.

Chord Potential Scale Notes

D Dorian DEFGABC
Dm7 D Phrygian D E♭ F G A B♭ C
A♭ Major A♭ B♭ C D♭ E♭ F G
G Mixolydian GABCDEF
G7 G Altered G A♭ B♭ C♭ D♭ E♭ F
E Major E F# G# A B C# D#
C Ionian CDEFGAB
CMaj7 C Lydian Augmented C D E F# G# A B
A Major A B C# D E F# G#
If we take a II-V-I in C (as above), we can use a number of different scales (from different keys)
over each chord. The top scale listed for each chord is in the key of C Major. The middle scale is in
a different key but one that can plausibly be used and sound good. The last scale (in red) doesn’t
quite fit and so will create a high degree of tension and dissonance if played over those particular
chords.

This technique can be used to create tension by playing an ‘incorrect’ scale, before resolving it
back to the appropriate diatonic scale or a Guide Tone
When choosing a bitonal scale to use over a chord progression, keep the following in mind:
• The more closely related the bitonal scale is to the diatonic scale (i.e. the closer the two
notes are on the Circle of Fifths – we will cover the Circle of Fifths in a future lesson) the
more consonant or pleasant the scale will sound.
 • For example, playing the G Major Scale over a Chord Progression in the key of C
Major is quite smooth and pleasant because there is only one note difference between
the G Major and C Major Scale (F# instead of F).
• Playing the G♭ Major Scale on the other hand, will be quite dissonant.
• The bitonal scale will ‘fit’ better if it retains the two Guide Tones of the chord.
• For example, playing G♭ Major Scale over a G7 chord – the G♭ Major scale
contains the notes B and F.
• Sometimes, using bitonality can actually make your solo sound more consonant and pleasant
by choosing scales that do not have avoid notes.

Side-Slipping
Side-Slipping is a fantastic and really simple Jazz improvisation technique that sounds great. All it
involves is playing a phrase in the diatonic scale, repeating the phrase one semitone above or below,
before returning back to the diatonic scale.
This technique works well because:
• You’re only displacing the ‘correct’ scale by one semitone before quickly returning to it
(resolving it);
• By repeating a phrase, you create a strong link between the ‘wrong’ notes and the ‘right’
notes. You’re NOT just playing ‘wrong’ notes at random. You are playing them in a very
structured way – which sounds good. The repetition makes it sound like you know what
you’re doing and that you are playing ‘wrong’ notes intentionally.
Below is an example of potential side-slipping in a solo:

Cycled Patterns
Symmetry & Structure
A principle we will come across many times in these lessons is that ‘Music must be structured‘.
Music without structure is noise. ‘Structure’ can mean many different things – there are lots of
different ways to structure music.
• Tonal music is structured around keys and functional chords (we will discuss functionality
in a future lesson)
• Modal music is structured around modes
 • Atonal music (12 tone serialism) is structured around atonality – it has many rules that must
be obeyed in order to create a song with a complete lack of tonality
For our purposes, there are two distinct ways that we can think about music:
• In terms of keys and diatonic scales and chords; or
• In terms of patterns.

You’re creating a pattern by repeating a phrase and transposing it up or down at fixed

intervals. This lets you move outside the diatonic scale, thus creating tension, and then slide
back inside the scale to resolve the tension. Another name for this is a Sequence, or more
accurately a Real Sequence.

Sequences
• A real sequence is a sequence where the subsequent phrase is an exact transposition of the
first phrase.
• A tonal sequence is a sequence where the subsequent phrase is a diatonic transposition of
the first phrase.
You don’t need to think about cycled patterns in terms of keys or scales or chords, but rather simply
in terms of patterns. Thinking about music in this way (in patterns rather than keys) makes all notes
equal and lets you play literally anything over any chord progression – as long as it’s structured.

Cycled Patterns
• Take a simple phrase and repeat it at fixed intervals (regardless of the key);
• 12 is divisible by 1, 2, 3, 4, and 6. So if you want to end on a particular note, you can start
the cycled pattern on that note but an octave higher and move down by 1, 2, 3, 4, or 6
semitones.
• The reason cycled patterns sound good is not because they are in a particular key or scale,
but rather because they are creating a pattern. Playing a simple pattern at fixed intervals will
sound good regardless of what notes you play or what chords you play them over. And
because you’re playing outside notes, this creates tension which you can then resolve to a
Guide Tone or an Available Tension.
Just be careful when using this technique, as it can sound mechanical and artificial – like a robot
following an algorithm – so it also needs to be mixed with some diatonic/melodic/key based
phrases.

Below is an example of a Cycle Pattern played over a chord progression in the key of C Major.
Symmetrical Scales
Well, symmetrical scales fall under the latter category and are therefore non-functional (we will
learn much more about functionality in future lessons). They divide an octave into equal intervals
and follow a intervalic pattern both up and down the scale. They do NOT sound like they have fixed
root note precisely because they are symmetrical – unlike the Major Scale. Because
symmetrical scales are constructed from repeating interval patterns, each ‘mode’ of a
symmetrical scale sounds the same as (or very similar to) all the others.
• C Chromatic sounds like C# Chromatic sounds like D Chromatic sounds like…etc.

This means symmetrical scales sound much more ambiguous and atonal compared to the Major
Scale. This makes them a great technique to include in your solo, as it allows you to play outside
notes in a structured way (following a repeating pattern, similar to cycled patterns, but in the form
of a scale) and thus build tension in your solo.

Below is a list of some symmetrical scales you can use.

 Scale Intervals Notes from C
Chromatic All st C D♭ D♮ E♭ E♮ F G♭ G♮ A♭ A♮ B♭ B♮
Wholetone All T C D E G♭ A♭ B♭
H/W Diminished st, T, st, T, etc. C D♭ D# E F# G A B♭
W/H Diminished T, st, T, st, etc. C D E♭ F G♭ A♭ A B
Augmented Scale 1.5T, st, 1.5T, st, etc. C E♭ E G G# B
Tritone scale st, 1.5T, T, st, 1.5T, T, etc. C D♭ E G♭ G♮ B♭
Two-semitone tritone scale st, st, 2T, st, st, 2T, etc. C D♭ D F# G A♭

Clichés and Quoting

Musical clichés and quoting are a powerful and entertaining improvisation technique that can really
engage your audience. It involves playing well known licks, riffs or songs within your
improvisation. This creates a humorous effect within your solo and will bring a smile to the
everyone’s face.

Some well known outro clichés are:

• V I Outro

• Blues Outro

• Take the A Train Outro

• Take the A Train Variation Outro

 • Count Basie Outro

Quoting involves playing the melody of a completely different song over your chord progression.
Some ideas for quoting are:
• Steal Nursery Rhythms
• Steal other Jazz songs
• Steal whatever you like

Displacing the Melody

Well, you can also build tension by using the melody in your solo. This is done by displacing the
melody – that is, pushing it forward or pulling it back in the chord progression. That is, you can
play the melody a little bit too late (creating anticipation when the melody that everyone was
expecting did not happen and then suddenly tries to catch up); or a little bit too early (so it sounds
like you’re rushing through the song, only to then stop and wait for the chords to catch up).

This creates tension because it is unexpected and unusual, and because you’re playing the melody
over a different part of the chord progression so it will probably clash with the harmony a bit. But it
still gives the listener a reference point with which they are familiar – the melody. This gives your
improvisation a solid foundation and sounds great when done well.
(listen to Billie Holiday)

Jazz Improvisation Tips

And I’ll leave you with some final Jazz Improvisation tips:
• Pick a ‘base scale’ for a given song and pivot back and forth between improvisation
ideas/concepts/techniques and that ‘base scale’. This will stop you from getting lost and give
you time to think of something to play. After exploring, always return back to base.
• Practice using Melodic Continuity (constant quavers)
• For a new song, map the chord, guide tones and avoid notes (see next lesson)
• Use pentatonic scales (they’re nice and easy and consonant)
• Recover from mistakes by turning them into chromatic runs and cycled patterns
• Retreat to the closest guide tone or chord tone when in doubt
• Don’t be afraid to make mistakes and sound bad – that’s what Jazz is all about
• If you make a mistake, repeat it, and it will sound like you meant to do it

• Do it again in the next verse, and people think you meant it.

Every time I begin learning a new song I do the following steps:

 • Learn the chords & melody of the song
• Play the chord progression as a series of arpeggios (broken chords)
• Chord Mapping
• Find Common Scales
• Find more Exotic Scales (see Jazz Scales module)
• Apply Jazz Improvisation Techniques (see previous lessons in this module)
• Apply Jazzier Chord Voicings (see Jazz Chord Voicings module)

Chord Mapping
Chord Mapping is just a fancy word for analysing the chord progression of a particular song. For
every single new song I learn, I map out the following:
• The chords
• The key each chord is in
• Each chord’s Guide Tones
• Each chord’s Avoid Notes

So that I get a table that looks as follows. I have used Section A of the Jazz Standard Satin Doll as
my example of Chord Mapping.

(Aside: Some people believe the 6th in the Dorian mode is an avoid note over a m7 chord because it
is a tritone (another dissonant interval) above the 3rd of the chord. I disagree (avoid notes are a
little subjective) but have put the note in brackets above nevertheless.)

Having learned the chords & melody (Step 1 above), practiced playing arpeggios over the chord
progression (Step 2 above), and completed my chord mapping, I then go through the following
steps:
 • Play the Guide Tones
• First playing each individually
• Then playing them together (like Shell Chords)
• Avoid the Avoid Notes
• Play the relevant diatonic scales
• First just up and down – like scale runs or finger exercises
• Then targeting Guide Tone with simple melodies & avoiding Avoid Notes
• Then I find Common Scales

Common Scales
A common scale is a scale which you can use over all or most of the chord progression, regardless
of the key changes.

For this, Pentatonic (or Blues) Scales are great because they only have 5 (or 6) notes and so can fit
into many diatonic scales. However, keep in mind that they can be harmonically weak because they
sometimes skip the Guide Tones of a chord; but they make up for it by being simple and consonant.

To find a common scale, write out all keys and related scales in the chord progression and look for
common notes:
• C Major = C D E F G A B
• D Major = D E F# G A B C#
• G Major = G A B C D E F#
• G♭ Major = G♭ A♭ B♭ C♭ D♭ E♭ F

Below are 3 common scales that can fit over Satin Doll.
• G Major Pentatonic (G, A, B, D, E) = E Blues
• C, D & G Major all contain the notes from G Major Pentatonic
• So G Major Pentatonic fits over the entire chord progression except Bar 6, which is
in G♭ Major.
• Now, you could change scales for 1 bar, but that’ll just complicate things. Instead
because it’s only 1 bar (so is quite quick) you can just continue playing G Major
Pentatonic over Bar 6 and just create some tension as the scale clashes with the
chords before slipping back to that CMaj7 and resolving the tension.
• Note: G Major Pentatonic (+B♭ passing note) = E Blues Scale
• C Major Pentatnoic (C, D, E, G, A) = A Blues
• C, D & G Major all contain most of the notes from C Major Pentatonic
• Same as above for Bar 6 (just play through it)
• C Major Pentatonic (+E♭ passing note) = A Blues Scale
• G Blues (G, B♭ , C, C#, D, F)
• At first glance, the G Blues scale doesn’t seem like it fits the keys very well.
 • But while it doesn’t fit well over the keys it does actually fit rather well over the
particular chords used in Satin Doll. This is because the G Blues Scale contains most
of the Guide Tones from most of the chords in the song (see below).
• G Blues, however, does NOT fit over CMaj7. This is because G Blues does not have
either the 3rd or the 7th of CMaj7 (E and B) in it – so we should change scales for
this one chord or just target a Guide Tone.
Chords in Satin Doll
• Dm7 = D F A C
• G7 = G B D F
• Em7 = E G B D
• A7 = A C# E G
• Am7 = A C E G
• D7 = D F# A C
• CMaj7 = C E G B – G Blues doesn’t fit over the CMaj7 chord.

Playing over this entire chord progression (Section A of Satin Doll) using either E Blues, A Blues or
G Blues will sound good, because these particular scales fit the keys and the chords rather well. And
so we have found 3 simple common scales which fit over the entire chord progression. So even
though this chord progression changes key a few times, you almost don’t have to worry about that,
and you can just keep on playing your common scale. Finally, you can also mix all three common
scales however you like to create a more interesting and complex sounding improvisation that is
conceptually very simple.

Base Scale
You can use any one of these scales as your ‘base scale’. By this, I mean that you can use say, G
Major Pentatonic as your ‘inside’ scale. You can pivot back and forth between improvisation
techniques and that ‘base scale’. So every time you want to resolve tension, you can return back to
the G Major Pentatonic scale. For example, you could:
• Start playing the G Pentatonic Scale;
• Throw in some Cycled Patterns (thus building tension);
• Return to the G Pentatonic Scale (resolving the tension);
• Play some Symmetrical Scales and some chromatic notes (thus building tension);
• Return to the G Pentatonic Scale (resolving the tension);
• Play some dissonant intervals (thus building tension);
• Return to the G Pentatonic Scale (resolving the tension);
• and so on;

This is an easy way to resolve tension and gives you thinking time before your next phrase. As I
said in the previous lesson: After exploring, always return back to base.
Adding Complexity
Having done some Chord Mapping and found some Common Scales, you can now already create
a relatively complex sounding (but conceptually simple) improvisation. And you use this as your
foundation upon which you build even further complexity by (as I listed at the beginning of this
lesson):
• Finding more Exotic Jazz Scales, such as
• The Wholetone or H/W diminished over V7 chords
• Applying Jazz Improvisation Techniques, such as
• Passing notes
• Cycled patterns
• Chromatic scales
• Applying Jazz Chord Voicings

Approaches to Improvisation
It’s possible to structure your improvisation around one of these elements. Doing so presents
different ‘approaches’ to improvisation. These are listed below:

Element Approach Example

Melody + Embellishment New Orleans Jazz
Keys/Scales Modal Jazz
Melody
Melody based: Sonny Rollins
Motivic Development
Non-melody based: Cecil Taylor
Coleman Hawkins
Harmony Chords with alterations and substitutions
Bebop
Rhythm Rhythmic Groove Latin Jazz (clave rhythm)
Timbre Noise, Microtones, etc. Free Jazz (John Coltrane)
Mood (Expressionism) ‘Peace’ ~ Ornette Coleman
External Scene (Impressionism) ‘Lonely Woman’ ~ Ornette Coleman
Culture/Political ‘Riot’ ~ Herbie Hancock

Historical Development of Improvisation

Since the beginning of Jazz, the preferred approach to improvisation has evolved.
• When Jazz first started in the early decades of the 1900’s (New Orleans and Dixieland Jazz)
improvisation was just playing the melody with embellishments. Have a listen to King
Oliver, Louis Armstrong, and Jelly Roll Morton.
• During the Swing Era, Coleman Hawkins (sax player with Count Basie’s Band) changed
Jazz improvisation from melody based to harmony based. Instead of just embellishing the
existing melody he created new melodies based on the song’s harmonic progression – by
arpeggiating the chords with relevant extensions, alterations and substitutions.
• Bebop took this harmonic approach to improvisation and expanded it further – using more
and more complex substitutions.
• The arrival of Modal Jazz caused a shift from this ‘vertical’ chord based improvisation
approach, to a ‘horizontal’ scale based improvisation approach.
• At the same time, Jazz musicians began placing greater emphasis on Motivic Development
in improvisation.
• Sonny Rollins returned to using the melody within this improvisation. But instead of
just embellishing the melody, he took fragments of the melody as motifs and then
developed them gradually through this solo, but constantly referred back to the motif.
• John Coltrane’s used the ‘Love Supreme’ motif in all 12 keys in the song
Acknowledgement (on the album A Love Supreme). (Aside: The album ‘A Love
Supreme’ is a deeply religious one for Coltrane. The use of the Love Supreme motif
in all 12 keys is metaphorical. It signifies that God (the motif) is everywhere (in
every key).)
• In Free Jazz, melodic motifs became increasingly important precisely because Free
Jazz had largely rejected harmony. As such, it makes sense that Free Jazz songs are
structure melodically (through the use of motivic development) rather than harmony
(like most tonal songs).
• Miles Davis’ groups used a technique (let’s call it ‘Motivic Transfer‘) whereby the
last phrase a soloist plays becomes the opening phrase and motif for the next soloist.

• In some genres of Jazz, rhythm or groove is more important than any other element.
• Afro-Cuban Jazz requires everyone (including the soloist) to adhere to the clave
rhythm. (with the piano playing montunos) The actual notes you play are less
important than the rhythm of the notes.
• Jazz generally swings, so should the soloist.
• Free Jazz also cause musicians (notably Coltrane) to experiment with the timbre of their
instrument. Coltrane would use things like false fingerings, multiphonics, harmonics,
microtones, and creating noise in his solos. Timbre became more important than any other
element of music.
• Improvisations can be based on some external, non-musical factor.
• Peace ~ by Ornette Coleman is about peace
• Lonely Woman ~ by Ornette Coleman is about a lonely woman
• Riot ~ by Herbie Hancock is about the riots during the Civil Rights movement.
Indeed, it was recorded two days after the 1967 Newark riots.
Coltrane
John Coltrane’s music can be broken into roughly 3 periods:
• Vertical (Sheets of Sound)
• Horizontal (Modal Jazz)
• Experimental (Free Jazz)

And his Sheets of Sound technique falls into the Vertical period which was in the late 1950’s and
can be found on albums like:
• Blue Train
• Soultrane
• Thelonious Monk Quartet with John Coltrane at Carnegie Hall
• Milestones (Miles Davis Album)
• Any other late 1950’s Coltrane album

Verticality
As we covered in a previous lesson, to improvise vertically means to think in terms of chords and
chord progressions – so your solo traces out each individual chord in the progression. While to
improvise horizontally means to think in terms of scales, modes and keys – so your solo isn’t
tracing out each individual chord, but rather you are just playing a particular scale over the entire
progression. The end result can be very similar. A vertical solo can sound exactly the same as a
horizontal solo – it’s just a different way of thinking about improvisation.

Sheets of Sound
And so the Sheets of Sound technique is a vertical improvisation technique; that is, it uses
arpeggios, patterns, licks and scales that trace out each chord in a progression.

So let’s say we are playing a song, and we have the chord G7 for a full bar. Now, let’s just list a few
scales and arpeggios that you could plausibly use to improvise over this chord:
• G7 arpeggio
• G13♭9 arpeggio (extension)
• D♭7 arpeggio (tritone substitution)
• D♭13♭9 arpeggio (tritone substitution with extension)
• Am7 | D7 (II-V)
• G Mixolydian (C Major)
• G Wholetone
• G H/W Diminished Scale
• G Lydian Dominant (D melodic minor)
• G Altered Scale (A♭ melodic minor)
• G Blues Scale
• G Major Pentatonic
 • We could keep going, but let’s stop there…

If you play all of these scales/arpeggios in their entirety over those 4 beats of G7, you are playing
Sheets of Sound. Now, obviously, this is impossible so you just try squeeze in as much as you can.

Coltrane tried to squeeze every possible harmonic implication into his solo – play every possible
chord and every possible scale for each chord.

This is still a vertical approach because we have chosen our scales and arpeggios based on the
chord.

Breaking that down, the Sheets of Sound technique involves:

• Playing really really fast – using slurred glissandi
• Playing asymmetrically with odd groups of notes (groupings of 5, 7, 9, 11, 13, 15, etc.)
• Sweeping between high and slow registers
• Superimposing new chords over the existing chords (playing a D♭7 arpeggio over the G7
chord)
if everything you play is super fast (a la Sheets of Sound), then every note you play effectively
becomes a passing note (and thus they all become equally unimportant). This means you can
literally play any note or chord that you like, because you are passing through each individual note
so quickly. So using the Sheets of Sound technique allows you to play absolutely anything you like
– ignoring avoid notes.
Coltrane is:
• Playing through all the notes very quickly
• Grouping them in odd numbers
• Using a whole bunch of different scales and arpeggios

Bar-Line Shift and Superimposition

Modifying a Chord Progression
If we take a simple chord progression, say:

| Am7 | D7 | Dm7 G7 | CMaj7 ||

Then we can do a number of things to make it more interesting. We can:

• Anticipate a chord – play a chord a few beats early
 • Delay a chord – play a chord a few beats late
• Omit a chord – not play a particular chord
• Add a chord – add in a passing chord
• Substitute a chord – substitute one chord for another related chord
• Superimpose new chords – reharmonise the whole chord progression by replacing all the
existing chords with brand new unrelated chords (for example, descending ii-V’s)

When improvising, there’s no reason you can’t do the exact same thing with a melody line. That is,
play a melody that outlines or suggests a chord progression different to the one being played by the
rhythm section (or your left hand). The easiest way to do this is by using arpeggios (because it
spells out the chords), but you can also use the relevant chord-scales.

Superimposing a completely new chord progression over an existing one is called

‘Superimposition‘.

Some Guidelines
• Superimposed chord progression sound better if they are structurally
strong, functional/cadential or otherwise well-known (cliché). That way, even though the
notes you are playing clashes with the underlying harmony, the strong structure gives your
solo form and logic and ensures that it still sounds good.
• Try using ii-V-I’s or a V-I’s or a V-IV-I’s.
• Create and resolve tension (just like any other Jazz solo)
• This works better if you use smooth, lyrical and melodic phrases
• Use steps and skips (arpeggios), and no big leaps!
• Try keep everything ‘balanced’
• As you increase the complexity of one musical element (say, harmony)
• Decrease the complexity of all other elements (melody & rhythm)

HOW TO DEVELOP YOUR IMPROIVSATION

LICKS AND EXERCICES
Below is a brief summary of what tensions are considered ‘available’ for each of the three major
chord types.
• m7 = 9, 11, 13
• V7 = b9, 9, #9, #11, b13, 13
• Maj7 = 9, #11, 13

And we are going to pay special attention to the last note in each phrase. We want a strong
resolution for each phrase, and in order to do this we will finish each phrase either on a chord tone
or an available tension of the chord.
The first four Jazz improvisation exercises use a ii-V7-I over 4 bars.
The last lick uses a ii-V7-I over 2 bars (i.e. it has a faster harmonic rhythm)

As stated earlier, feel free to memorise these few Jazz improvisation exercises and use them as
licks. Or use them as inspiration to create your own licks.

Common Threads
Hopefully you noticed that these licks generally have the following characteristics:
 • They heavily use arpeggios (with available tensions)
• We are especially the 9th
• They use the diatonic scale (Bb Major)
• They use chromatic passing notes (occasionally just to get us to the next note in the scale)
• Lick 2 uses short chromatic run
• Each phrase finishes on a chord tone or available tension
• They use a lot of repetition and sequences and rhythmic patterns
• Licks 1 & 2 are just the same phrase transposed to each of the different chords
• Using repetition helps link the individual phrases into your solo into a logical,
holistic improvisation
• They mostly use a combination of swung 8th notes and triplets
• Phrases often start and end on an off-beat
• This helps create a little bit of syncopation in your solo

The last two points are especially important for jazz rhythm and phrasing. Jazz improvisation often
uses phrases that start and end on off-beats and combine swung eighth notes with triplets. You’ll
also often find 16th notes (played straight), but these are not covered in the above examples.