Jazz Voicings For Piano: The complete linear approach - Part I

Publisher: Advance Music
Level: intermediate to advanced
Part I: The "Drop Two" Harmonic Technique
Part II: Voice Leading, Scales and Chord Progressions

Jazz Voicings: The Complete Linear Approach is designed for jazz pianists seeking to broaden their knowledge of jazz harmony and to cultivate practical skills for mastering the harmonic progressions found in standard tunes and jazz instrumentals. Created for amateur or professional jazz pianists, this path takes you step-by-step through all essential aspects of the linear approach.

Part 1: The “Drop-Two” Harmonic Technique begins with the simple process of dropping the second note from a close position chord down an octave to create an open position voicing. Making an analogy between language and music, natural languages contain a lexicon of words that allow people to communicate their thoughts and feelings to others, music (jazz) harmony contains a lexicon of chords that allow jazz musicians to communicate. Part 1 defines these rules and clearly explains how with a distinctive approach to voice leading, dissonances treatment, and counterpoint, which are logical extensions of the syntax of jazz harmony.

The chapters are: “Four-Part Chords,” “Inverted Chords,” “Five-Part Chords,” “Rootless Chords,” and finishing with “Six-Part Chords” and “Incomplete Chords.”

The concluding Exercise Section contains carefully-designed harmonic drills that utilize and complement the content of each chapter in unique and interesting ways.

Chapter 1 – Four-Part Chords: Major Chords
Minor Chords
Dominant Chords
Half-Diminished / Diminished Chords
"Drop Two" Technique
Piano Textures
Voice Leading
Exploring the Potential of "Drop Two" Voicings
Exercise Section
Chapter 2 – Inverted Four-Part Chords: Preliminaries
Chromaticism
Invertible Counterpoint - Exercise Section
Chapter 3 – Five-Part Chords: Major Chords
Minor Chords
Diminished Chords
Dominant Chords
Suspended Chords
Keyboard Style
Chorale Style
Inverted Five-Part Chords
Exercise Section
Chapter 4 – Rootless Five-Part Voicings: Practicing Rootless Chords
The ii-V7-I Progression in Keyboard Style
The Sus7 Dominant Preparation
The iiø-V7-i Progression in Keyboard Style
Basic Melodic Elaborations in Chorale Style
Exercise Section
Chapter 5 – Six-Part Chords: Pairs of Triads
Superimposed Triads
Rootless Voicings
Upper-Structure Triads in the Dominant 7th Chord
Combinations of Extensions
"Drop Two" Dominant 7ths
Suspended Chords
Rootless Dominant 7th and Sus7 Chords
Voice Leading
Exercise Section
Chapter 6 – Incomplete Chords: J. S. Bach's Setting of a Chorale
Major, Minor and Half-Diminished / Diminished Chords in Chorale Style
Dominant 7th and Suspended Chords in Chorale Style
Rootless Formations in Chorale Style
The II-V-I Progression
Invertible Counterpoint
Linear Embellishments
Exercise Section