Inside the chords

[feloniuspunk]

I'm a wannabe jazzer. No matter how far I get I will always consider myself to be on the path of learning more. Playing chord melodies in jazz you get into a lot of voice leading. You can have ascending melody lines contrasted against decending bass lines, or vice versa.

Normally I think of voicing chords to play the melody note(s) on top of the chord, the highest note in the chord. The bottom note is either the root bass note, if possible, or the third or fifth of the chord. Many chords happen so quickly that they are truly passing tones and only lend the most subtle nuance of change to the background harmony.

My question is this, if for the time being we forget about the top and bottom notes of the chord, what then do we put in the middle? I often find myself playing four note chords on the middle four strings of the guitar. Minor elevens for example are ones I use a lot. I'll usually put a minor third in the bass, the eleven on top and the inner two notes are the five and one. Here is a Dm11 for example (with no 7):

Dm11
E) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - mute
B) - - - - - - - x - - - - - - - G (4)
G) - - - - - - x - - - - - - - - D (1)
D) - - - - - - x - - - - - - - - A (5)
A) - - - - - - - x - - - - - - - F (m3)
E) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - mute

Flip-flop that pattern a bit and you end up with I call an Fmaj9b5 (with no 3):

Fmaj9b5
E) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - mute
B) - - - - - - - x - - - - - - - G (9)
G) - - - - - - - - x - - - - - - E (maj7)
D) - - - - - - - - x - - - - - - B (b5)
A) - - - - - - - x - - - - - - - F (1)
E) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - mute

I like those type chords because they are easy to grab and very effective tone-wise in capturing the essence of a tonal cluster. But I'm curious to know what other players use so I can broaden my choices. Here is another favorite of mine, played on the last five strings, I call this one an Fm13sus (with no 5):

Fm13sus
E) - - - - - x - - - - - - - - - Bb (sus 4)
B) - - - - - x - - - - - - - - - F (1)
G) - - - - - - x - - - - - - - - D (6)
D) - - - - - x - - - - - - - - - Ab (m3)
A) - - - - - x - - - - - - - - - Eb (7)
E) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - mute

Those same notes can also of course form a Bb7sus

Bb7
E) - - - - - x - - - - - - - - - Bb (1)
B) - - - - - x - - - - - - - - - F (5)
G) - - - - - - x - - - - - - - - D (3)
D) - - - - - x - - - - - - - - - Ab (7)
A) - - - - - x - - - - - - - - - Eb (4)
E) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - mute

But without getting into a debate about what we call a chord, let's just concede that although a single chord can have many different 'correct' names, it's true use or flavor within a song passage rests more on the context in which it is used rather than on a clinical analysis of its components.

Here's another useful chord fingering I think is pretty cool sounding on the guitar. It starts out being a plain old E7. Notice that the inner pattern stays the same. Just keep sliding it down one fret at a time.

E7 < down - up >
E) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - E open
B) - - x - - - - - - - - - - - - D (7)
G) - - - x - - - - - - - - - - - B (5)
D) - - - - - x - - - - - - - - - G# (3)
A) - - - - x - - - - - - - - - - D (7)
E) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - E open

Gdim
E) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - E open
B) - x - - - - - - - - - - - - - C# (b5)
G) - - x - - - - - - - - - - - - Bb (m3)
D) - - - - x - - - - - - - - - - G (1)
A) - - - x - - - - - - - - - - - C# (b5)
E) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - E open

Am6
E) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - E open
B) x - - - - - - - - - - - - - - C (m3)
G) - x - - - - - - - - - - - - - A (1)
D) - - - x - - - - - - - - - - - F# (6)
A) - - x - - - - - - - - - - - - C (m3)
E) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - E open

If you resolve it into an ordinary E7,

E7
E) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - E open
B) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - B open
G) x - - - - - - - - - - - - - - G# (3)
D) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - D open
A) - x - - - - - - - - - - - - - B (5)
E) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - E open

it gives you a nice descending progression using the same pattern three times over (real easy - my favoirite kind!). It sounds particularly cool if you develop a busy fingerpicking style of playing it while decending. Try four beats/one measure per chord. It sounds really cool on a Tele or a Strat using pup position 2 or 4 for that "quack" real 'country' sound.

Here's another useful fingering. I call this one either an Fm9 or a Bb13 sus depending on which bass note I want to use or emphasize.

Fm9
E) - - - - - x - - - - - - - - - Bb (4)
B) - - - - - - - x - - - - - - - G (9)
G) - - - - - - - x - - - - - - - Eb (7)
D) - - - - - x - - - - - - - - - Ab (m3)
A) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - mute
E) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - mute

The above chord has a nice airy sound to it. You can also play it as shown below. This fingering however is much more difficult for me to hold as a bar chord, but does give the F and Bb to use as bass notes, and has that same light, airy sound. I bar the entire first fret and then hold the other notes as necessary but my fingers don't normally want to just go there.

Bb13sus
E) - - x - - - - - - - - - - - - G (6)
B) - - - x - - - - - - - - - - - Eb (4)
G) x - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Ab (7)
D) - - x - - - - - - - - - - - - F (5)
A) x - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Bb (1)
E) x - - - - - - - - - - - - - - F (5)

Tonally it's like playing a 1-4-4-4 or F-Bb-Eb-Ab

[RandyO]

But without getting into a debate about what we call a chord, let's just concede that although a single chord can have many different 'correct' names, it's true use or flavor within a song passage rests more on the context in which it is used rather than on a clinical analysis of its components. fp -
I just worked my way through your examples and especially dig the descending pattern from E7. I hear what you're saying about correct chord naming. For me, it's generally helpful to have the 3 and the 7 to pin down the flavor of the chord. Sometimes it's cool to discover that I already know a new chord ... just by another name. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.

[Peter]

I will grab a guitar and try all this out. Looks good.

[feloniuspunk]

Forgot to mention that this same thread is also posted over at The Gear Page as well, with quite a different reception over there than it has gotten here I might add.

It's in their Playing and Technique area.

[Dancing Frog]

As long as it sounds good to your ears, I don't think it matters what notes are in middle of a passing chord. How you get from point A to B is your signature. Whose to say what's correct?

That being said, my mentor tends to like contrary motion in the middle voices which I think he does partly to torture me with difficult fingering.

[mr.flash]

Once you've mentioned jazz chords, i read a book with some of the basic chords that that Scofield, Metheny and the rest of the big guys use. I remembered that i thought just the same as you said earlier in the post while reading Sco's chords and harmonics. By the way thanks for sharing an opinion.

[RandyO]

...i read a book with some of the basic chords that that Scofield, Metheny and the rest of the big guys use.Ya gotta link with the name and where to buy the book?

[Dancing Frog]

As long as we are talking books, the book for me that seems to come most in conversations of this sort is Ted Greene's Chord Chemistry available on amazon. A good book to have although some of the chords he comes up with are unfingerable for me.

I worked through a Barry Galbriath book awhile back that was really good. The title escapes me, but it was the one where he couldn't play certain standards because of copyright problems. So, he made up something extremely similar with a title that made it obvious the piece his was referencing.

The new book, Barry Galbriath Guitar solos#2, is pretty good. I have had a chance to play through some of them. They are grouped in order of complexity from simple to really advanced.