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Jazz Guitar: Pentatonics Part 4 - On Major and Minor Chords ...

Posted: 22 May 2014 06:30 AM PDT

Let's turn up the heat a little on this one. We are going to take everything we studied so far in Part 1, Part 2, Part 3 and apply it to improvisation on actual chords. Meaning that we're now learning to improvise and apply the jazz guitar pentatonics here.

Yay! :-)

This is really where the fun begins. We finally start to apply minor and dominant pentatonic scales on harmony. We'll work on them using some static chords for now… and those contexts closely ressemble what you can stumble upon in real playing situations.

Since there are so many chord types to deal with (that's Jazz, right?!), we'll have to break this down into two parts. Part 4 will deal exclusively with major and minor chords. We'll go about this business by considering different types of major and minor chords too. We have 9 applications to look at in this post. And then, in Part 5, we'll look at darker types of chords.

Applied Pentatonics for Jazz Chords

Ok before we start, here's my little "treatise" on using pentatonics for jazz guitar improvisation. A few words of caution:

These approaches are only my suggestions. They come from my very own practice and experience (in other words : "works for me…") Feel free to experiment and make sure you listen for your favorite sounds. Never mind what the teacher said, do your own thing! Also: read books on the matter to give you other, fresh ideas. Suggestions: Jerry Bergonzi's Volume 2 and Steve Khan's Pentatonic Khancepts.
The scope of my approach is only on a "chord to chord" basis. The examples do not necessarily work on entire chord progressions. I simply aligned a SINGLE chord with a SINGLE pentatonic scale choice. Applying pentatonic scales to chord sequences could be the topic of another article. However, if you'd like to apply pentatonic scales to improvisation on chord progressions, consider the examples below as a buffet of scales in which you can pick and choose your favorite "flavours"!
Go by sound! Listen and listen even more! You'll get nothing by wailing on a certain pentatonic application (just noodle) if you can't sing / hear / play some simple improvised melodies on it. Try and see if you can come up with obvious, beautiful yet convincing pentatonic ideas on some of your favorite tunes. Also, you don't necessarily have to play just pentatonics for your whole solo. You could, for instance dedicate pentatonic applications to just a few of the chord changes within the song.
Apply Carefully. Work on the different pentatonic sounds you like over chords during your practicing but NOT in your performance: never try to brute force an idea you practiced into your performance just for the sake of it. There lies the danger in learning new things… We are impatient and seeking to use "it" right now! We all wish we had the flexibility of Woody Shaw or Wayne Shorter with pentatonics… Once more: be careful and patient. What you practice will show up, eventually, when you are ready and the musical context is optimal.
Know your pentatonics first! Know the Am and D7 pentatonics as we worked on in Part 1. Then practice the five jazz guitar positions for these pentatonic scales, as seen in the PDF in Part 2. Then practice the four nice pentatonic patterns from Part 3. Remember: all you need, really, is minor pentatonic scale and its dominant counterpart. (Think Am7 to D7 to keep this in your memory).

Jazz Guitar Pentatonics on Major Chords

I have four favorite applications here: two for the normal, unaltered major chord and two for the lydian-sounding chord (i.e., chords which have a #11).

• On Unaltered Major Chords
(plain C major chord: Here's a play-along of 4 x 8 bars of Cmaj7)

Use the minor pentatonic from degree vi or degree iii.

Degree vi is simply the relative minor. On C major, use A minor pentatonic. This is the most obvious pentatonic application of all, since we know A minor pentatonic contains the same notes as C major pentatonic.

Next, degree iii is a standard substitute for I. On C major, use E minor pentatonic. I say "standard" because:

C major 7th = C E G B
E minor 7th = E G B D (notice the three notes in common).

This is the more interesting application for "straight" major chords. Degree iii application uses some extensions (7th and 9th).

This one above (use Em pentatonic on C major) is my favorite pentatonic application for unaltered major chords.

• On Lydian Chords
(Lydian C major chord: Here's a play-along of 4 x 8 bars of Cmaj7(#11))

Use minor pentatonic from degree vii
or dominant pentatonic from degree ii.

First, degree vii is the "note sensible". On C major (#11) use Bm pentatonic. Think John Scofield.

Next, degree ii is the "Take the A Train" chord. On C major (#11) use D7 pentatonic.

Remember : D7 pentatonic originated from Am pentatonic from which we lowered the G to an F#… (see Part 1)

You may find other more interesting options major (#11) chords. Simply make sure you have the #11 (raised fourth degree) somewhere in the pentatonic scale you will select. Personally, I still stick to those two basic ones above for maj(#11) chords because I hear them well enough to use convincingly in playing contexts.

Pentatonics on Minor Chords

I have five favorite applications here: two for our basic minor 7 chords (often associated with the Dorian mode) and three for so-called tonic minor chords (minor with 6th and/or maj 7th)

• On Minor 7th Chords
(Plain Am7 chord: Here's a play-along of 4 x 8 bars of Am7)

Use the minor pentatonics on degree i or degree v.

First, degree i is just too obvious: On Am7, use Am pentatonic …

Next, degree v has more extensions. So, on Am7 simply use Em pentatonic.

I really like the second. It gives just enough "spice" to my improvisations!

• On Tonic Minor Chords (m6 and/or minor-maj7th chords)
("Tonic minor" Am chord: Here's a play-along of 4 x 8 bars of Am6)

Use the minor pentatonic on degree ii and
dominant pentatonics degree iv and on degree v.

First, degree ii give a minor 6/9 sound: On Am6, use Bm pentatonic.

Next, degree iv dominant is in reality the minor 6th pentatonic. On Am7, use D7 pentatonic, (aka Am6 pentatonic). This is just like playing on a ii-V (from the root), easy to remember!

And lastly, degree v dominant is also like literally playing on the ii-V. On Am6, use E7 pentatonic … (aka Bm6 pentatonic) … it gives the minor-major 7th sound.

Wrap Up

Practice applying the suggestions above using the play-along vamps provided. See which ones make sense and sound good to you. Keep in mind that it is possible that some of my suggestions are too "foreign" and strange for you. Just find your own things.

Then move on to Pentatonics: Part 5 where we'll tackle "darker" types of chords (dominants, half-diminished, altered dominants, etc.)

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How to Play Jazz Blues Chords For Guitar - Matt Warnock Guitar
5 Easy Drop 2 Chord Exercises For Jazz Guitar - Matt Warnock Guitar
Jazz Guitar: Pentatonics Part 5 - Dominants, Altered Dominants and ...

How to Play Jazz Blues Chords For Guitar - Matt Warnock Guitar

Posted: 05 Jul 2013 12:07 PM PDT

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How to Play Jazz Blues Chords For Guitar – 5 Studies

Studying Jazz Guitar means learning how to play jazz blues chords in a variety of textures, progressions and musical situations as you expand your knowledge of this common and important musical form.

In today's jazz guitar lesson. we will be looking at five different chord studies written out over the jazz blues form, in the key of Bb for the purpose of this article, and that use five different types of chord shapes to build each study.

After you have working any of these studies in the key of Bb, feel free to work in in a few, or all 12, keys around the neck in order to get a full understanding of these shapes in all 12 keys.

As well, to make them easier to read, I wrote each chord as a whole or half note in the notation, but mixed in different rhythms and rhythmic groupings during the audio examples for each chord study.

Feel free to mix in your own rhythms when working on these chord studies, and to help you with your rhythmic exploration of these studies, I have included a number of my favorite jazz rhythms at the end of this lesson that you can use to expand upon your study of these jazz blues chord etudes in the woodshed.

Jazz Blues Chords For Guitar – 3rds and 7ths

The first chord shapes that we will explore are the easiest to play, as compared to larger grips, but that are some of the most important chords that you can have under your fingers as a jazz guitarist.

By eliminating all other notes besides the 3rd and 7th of each chord, you will be able to quickly move from one shape to the next on the neck, while effectively outlining the underlying chord progression at the same time.

After you have checked out this example in the practice room, try taking these 3rds and 7ths to other string sets on the neck, as well as inverting them so that you can play 2 positions of each 3rd and 7th for any string set that you explore in the woodshed.

Click to hear audio for this jazz blues chord study.

Jazz Blues Chords For Guitar – 3 to 7 Triads

The second chord study builds upon the previous example, by adding the 5th to each chord shape in the example. By doing so, you are playing a "shell" voicing for each chord, where you take out the root and are only playing the 3rd, 5th and 7th of each chord in the progression.

Not only are these triads easier to play than many four-note grips, but they outline the chord changes effectively, allowing you to move through a jazz blues chord progression by using only 3 notes at a time on the fretboard.

To learn more about these triads, visit the "3 to 7 Triads for Jazz Guitar" page on my site.

Click to hear audio for this jazz blues chord study.

Jazz Blues Chords For Guitar – Drop 2 Shapes

For anyone that has visited my site knows, I'm a big fan of Drop 2 Chords, both as chord soloing and as comping tools for any jazz guitarist to check out. The following chord study uses Drop 2 chords as the basis for each shape in the form, providing a real-life example of how to take these important shapes from the practice room and out onto a tune.

Though these shapes are all written out on the top-4 strings, feel free to explore these shapes on the 5-4-3-2 string set as well, by simply taking the same notes and moving them down by one string-set each.

Learn more about these important shapes by visiting the "How to Practice Drop 2 Chords for Guitar" page on my site.

Click to hear audio for this jazz blues chord study.

Jazz Blues Chords For Guitar – Drop 3 Chords

The next Jazz Guitar Chord Study uses Drop 3 chords as the basis for each shape in this example.

Drop 3 chords have a thicker, lower sound than their Drop 2 cousins, and provide a nice compliment to the shapes explored in the previous chord study. These are usually some of the first shapes we explore when beginning our discovery of jazz guitar, but they are worth coming back to time and again as you continue your development as a player.

You can read more about these shapes by visiting the "How to Practice Drop 3 Chords for Guitar" page on my website.

Click to hear audio for this jazz blues chord study.

Jazz Blues Chords for Guitar – Rootless Chords

The final example of jazz blues chords for guitar that we'll look at uses some of my favorite chord shapes, rootless chord voicings, to build a comping pattern that is reminiscent of great players such as Ed Bickert and Jim Hall.

These chords are built by removing the root from each shape, with the exception of the G7b9 chord which keeps the root in this case, and using other color tones in place of that root.

Though they sound great, and usually fit well under your fingers, not having the root as a guide can be tough to get a hold of at first. Even though you aren't playing the root in these shapes, you might want to visualize a root that is found close by on the neck to these shapes in order to be able to grab them quickly and easily during a musical performance or jam situation.

You can read more about these great-sounding shapes by visiting my "How to Build Rootless Chords for Guitar" article page.

Click to hear audio for this jazz blues chord study.

Jazz Blues Chords For Guitar – Rhythms

As a companion to the Jazz Blues Chords for Guitar Studies written out above, here are 8 of my favorite jazz rhythms that you can use to expand upon these studies in the woodshed.

Feel free to focus on one single rhythm during a jazz guitar practice routine, or move between two or more rhythms to create various combinations in the practice room.

The goal should be to bring as many of these different rhythms into your playing, but to do so in a way that doesn't sound too busy or non-related. So, focusing on one or two rhythms for several choruses of chordal study is a great way to work these ideas in the practice room, no pressure to learn and play them all at once.

As you can see, by combining a few different jazz guitar rhythms with one or more of the chord studies above, you can produce countless variations on these harmonic ideas when applying them to a musical jam or performance situation.

Click to download the PDF for the "How to Play Jazz Blues Chords For Guitar – 5 Studies" lesson.

Do you have any questions about this how to play jazz blues chords for guitar lesson?

If so, please visit the Matt Warnock Guitar Facebook Page and I'll be glad to help you out with any questions you may have.

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5 Easy Drop 2 Chord Exercises For Jazz Guitar - Matt Warnock Guitar

Posted: 09 Aug 2011 03:00 AM PDT

5 Easy Drop 2 Chord Exercises For Jazz Guitar | MattWarnockGuitar.com | MATT WARNOCK GUITAR

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5 Easy Drop 2 Chord Exercises For Jazz Guitar

Drop 2 Chords are some of the most popular and important chords for any jazz guitarist to have under their fingers, which is why it is essential that you work Drop 2 Chord Exercises out in your jazz guitar practice routine.

Used by many of the greatest jazz guitarists of all time, including Wes Montgomery, Sheryl Bailey, George Benson and many more, Drop 2 Chords fit well under our fingers, sound great and are easy to manipulate, making them ideal for chord soloing, comping and chord melody playing.

Drop 2 Chords are built by stacking four notes together, on adjacent strings, with the following interval patterns:

Root Position: R-5th-7th-3rd
1st Inversion: 3rd-7th-Root-5th
2nd Inversion: 5th-Root-3rd-7th
3rd Inversion: 7th-3rd-5th-Root

Notice how the 3rd and 7th, as well as the Root and 5th, are always next to each other in these voicings.

This knowledge will help you memorize Drop 2 Chords, as well as understand the theory behind how they are built.

If you are new to these chords, or just want a refresher, check out my page on Drop 2 Chord Voicings for Jazz Guitar to learn more about these easy to play and fun to use chords.

So, how do we practice Drop 2 chord exercises?

If we know them already or if they are new to us at this point. Here are a few of the ways I like to practice Drop 2 Chord exercises on the guitar:

Play each inversion of a chord, say G7, on all string sets,
Do this exercise in 12 keys and for all chord types, Maj7, m7, 7, m7b5 etc
Play one chord type, say G7, in one position through all 12 keys, using different inversions for each new root so you don't move your hand more than a fret or two in either direction
Chord Scales: Playing all of the Drop 2 chords for any scale across a string set, for example, all of the drop 2 chords for the C Major scale on the bottom four strings
Comp through a tune without moving your hand out of one position, forcing you to use different inversions for different chords, do this for all of the possible positions for the first chord in the tune. For example, if you are practicing an F blues, work all of the chords within a four-fret span starting on every inversion on each string set for F7, this will give you 12 different places on the neck to comp the chords to the tune without moving your hand, one for each inversion of F7 with 6th, 5th and 4th string roots

These are just some of the ways we can practice Drop 2 Chord exercises.

These chords are essential learning for any jazz guitarist so stick with them until you feel you have a firm grasp on how they sit on the guitar and how they function in the tunes that you're working on.

Purchase the "30 Days to Better Jazz Guitar Ebook" with 20 pages of extra material and 5 never before published bonus lessons!

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Do you have a favorite Drop 2 chord exercise for jazz guitar? If so share it in the Drop 2 Practicing thread at the MWG Forum.

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Jazz Guitar: Pentatonics Part 5 - Dominants, Altered Dominants and ...

Posted: 28 May 2014 11:00 AM PDT

And finally, here's what we saved for dessert: applications on dominant chords, half-diminished (minor 7 flat 5) chords and on altered dominant chords … in fact, this is simply the follow up to Part 4, where we applied interesting pentatonic options on major and minor chords only. We saved the "darker" chords for Part 5, to make the posts (and videos) shorter.

Advice: if you didn't do so already, I highly recommend you read the beginning of the Pentatonics: Part 4 article here … Simply put, we have to be careful when attempting to apply pentatonic scales to chords in jazz guitar improvisation. Read the introduction, and then come back here to work on applications.

Pentatonic Scales on Dominant Chords

I have five favorite applications here. There are two suspended dominant (sus4 or 11) sounds, two unaltered dominant sounds (no altered extensions) and one dominant #11 sound (aka lydian dominant).

• On Suspended Dominant Chords
(Suspended D dominant chord: Here's a play-along of 4 x 8 bars of D7(sus4))

Use the minor pentatonic from degree v or degree ii.

First, the degree v application is simply the related "ii chord" of an existing ii-V cadence. So, if you want a suspended sound on the V, stay on the minor pentatonic of the ii. For example, in Am7-D7, if we want a D7(sus), just use A minor pentatonic.

Next, the application using the minor pentatonic from degree ii is simply a suspended sound with the added bonus of a 13th (aka 6th degree). A bit more modern. Use Em pentatonic on D13(sus) … it is still just one note away from Am pentatonic.

• On Unaltered ("Plain") Dominant Chords
(Plain D dominant chord: Here's a play-along of 4 x 8 bars of D7)

Use the dominant pentatonic from
degree i or minor pentatonic from degree vi.

First, the application with degree i … is a very obvious one. On D7 chord, use D7 pentatonic.

Next, the application using the minor pentatonic from degree vi clearly outlines a dominant 13th type of sound. This should note come as a surprise: on D7 chord we use Bm pentatonic … which is simply D major pentatonic!

• On Dominant Chords with a #11
(Lydian dominant D chord: Here's a play-along of 4 x 8 bars of D7(#11))

Use the dominant pentatonic from degree ii.

This is clearly one note difference from the above "Use Bm pentatonic on D7″ … now we use E7 pentatonic instead. The one note difference (A to G#) is the #11 of the D7 chord.

Pentatonics on Minor 7th (b5) Chords

This is, perhaps, the hardest pentatonic application to hear. (It is the hardest for me anyways!) The minor seventh flat five chord (aka half-diminished) makes itself hard to love in some situations.

Choices will become more obvious when dealing with complete progressions, if you wish to extend your knowledge / playing in this way. But for now, the suggested application work well on a static F#m7(b5) vamp.

But why F#m7(b5) and not any other m7(b5) chord ??!

I wanted us to keep using some of the pentatonic scales we have been using … in familiar keys. For instance, Am, Em, Bm and D7 pentatonics. They all fit on F#m7(b5) here…

Use the minor pentatonics from degrees biii, iv, bvii
or use the dominant pentatonic from degree bvi.

At this point, you probably have a fair handle on applying different pentatonic scales to the same chord or sound. I will simply list the applications with degrees outlined. And here is a play-along of 4 x 8 bars of F#m7(b5).

Here's my "beef" with the pentatonic application for the F#m7(b5) above: none of them include the natural 9th degree. Furthermore, only two of them include the flat fifth!!! However, we clearly hear the natural 9th on minor7(b5) chords played by Jazz pianists from the 1960′s and on. Think Herbie Hancock. In summary: this means that the above list of suggestions is incomplete. You'll have to do your own research.

Pentatonics on Altered Dominants

This is the easiest and hardest one at the same time! In fact, ANY pentatonic can work on an altered dominant (as long as it "lands" on a proper resolution.) So, all in all, take the suggestions here with a grain of salt.

The neat thing about pentatonics here, is that we can pick and choose a scale that clearly outline the altered notes we really want to hear, for instance: b9, #9, b5 (aka #11), #5 (aka b13). Here are my suggestions:

Use the minor pentatonic from degree biii or dominant pentatonic from degree bvi or the dominant pentatonic from a tritone up.

And here is a play-along of 4 x 8 bars of F#7(altered).

This first choice really is "perfect" in terms of outlining the altered tones. We have the b7 along with all the alterations (that is sharp and flat ninths and fifths!)

The second choice is "equivalent" to the first one, but now, the 3rd is present along with all altered tones.

And lastly, differing only by one note from the Am pentatonic application above, we have this, a simple trade off: we have the root (tonic) of the F#7 instead of the b9.

It's worthwhile exploring for other altered dominant pentatonic possibilities. This chord type lends itself to very high degrees of chromaticism. All twelve notes are an "acceptable" choice for altered dominants!

Even if you wind up not using some of the applications you work on, at least, you'll give your brains and fingers a little workout.

About Resolving Altered Dominants …

And one last though: rarely will you find yourself in playing situation where you just sit on an altered dominant chord for an extended period of time. Most often than not, you will resolve back to something. For instance, after F#7(alt), you could here some sort of B chord (B minor of B major for instance).

It would be wise to practice with backing tracks that have that type of resolution. Say, 4 bars of F#7(alt), then 4 bars of Bm. So you can also apply the stuff you learned in Pentatonic Part 4 on the B minor chord!

Check out iReal Pro (for Mac), you can create these type of accompaniment very easily… and it's cheap too.

That's it!

I hope those 5 articles on pentatonics can help you develop your own ideas and concepts in improvisation. Remember, whenever you're in doubt, go back to the basics. Less is more. Go back to learning the minor pentatonic and dominant pentatonic shapes over the fretboard (part 2) and working on simple fun patterns (part 3).

Practice well and develop your own sound and concepts!

Read the previous posts in the series: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3 and Part 4 here …

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Jazz Guitar Rootless Chords - Bb Blues Video Lesson ...

Posted: 20 Dec 2013 06:05 AM PST

Jazz Guitar Rootless Chords - Bb Blues Video Lesson | MattWarnockGuitar.com | MATT WARNOCK GUITAR

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Jazz Guitar Rootless Chords – Bb Blues Video Lesson

Learning how to play jazz guitar chords can sometimes seem like a daunting task. But, there is a quick shortcut that you can use to turn any large chord you already know, or alter chords that you learn in the future, to double your chord knowledge in one quick step.

By taking out the root of many common jazz guitar chord shapes, you will create small, rootless jazz guitar chord shapes that will produce the sound for the chord you want, without taxing your hands with large shapes, or getting in the bass players way at the same time.

In this jazz guitar video lesson, you will learn how to take the chords for a Bb jazz blues progression and transform them from large, root-based shapes, into smaller, rootless jazz guitar chord shapes, doubling your chord vocabulary without having to learn anything new in the mean time.

Jazz Guitar Rootless Chords Video

Here is the tab for the jazz guitar rootless chords used in the video above. Try learning them in the key of Bb first, and then take them to other keys of the jazz blues in order to expand upon them in the woodshed.

As well, you can take any larger chord shape that you already know, such as the ones I sampled at the end of the video, and practice removing the root notes in order to create smaller, rootless chords for any shape you know.

Check out these rootless chords this week in the practice room and see how they can add to your jazz guitar chord vocabulary, and makes things easier on your fretting hand at the same time.

Do you have a question or comment about these jazz guitar rootless chords? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.

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How To Play And Practice Rootless Jazz Guitar Chords ...

Posted: 23 Apr 2013 07:15 PM PDT

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How To Play And Practice Rootless Jazz Guitar Chords

When learning how to play jazz guitar chords, we often begin with voicings that contain the root as either the lowest note in the grip, or as a part of a 4-note chord inversion.

Though these chords are an important step in the learning process of any jazz guitarist, we often get stuck with only using root-based chords in our comping and chord soloing/chord melody playing, not knowing where to turn next in order to expand our jazz guitar chord vocabulary beyond these shapes.

In this jazz guitar lesson, you will learn how to simply and quickly adapt root-based voicings to produce rootless jazz guitar chords that will bring a new harmonic sound to your jazz guitar comping vocabulary, without having to learn a series of new chord shapes in the process.

Heard in the playing of Wes Montgomery, Jim Hall, Ed Bickert and many other legendary players, rootless voicings are a commonly used and important harmonic tool that can take any jazz guitarist's chord work to the next level.

So, to begin, let's take a look at Major ii V I chord progressions uses two different sets of rootless jazz guitar chord voicings to outline each chord in the progression.

Click to download the PDF for the Jazz Guitar Chords – Rootless Voicings for Guitar Lesson

Rootless Jazz Guitar Chords – Major ii V I

The first example we will look at uses Drop 3 Jazz Guitar Chords as the basis for our rootless chord voicings.

In the first two measures you can see the original Drop 3 chords for a ii-V-I-VI progression in the key of G major.

To create rootless voicings of these chords, I simply removed the lowest note, the root, from each chord, which you can see/hear in the second half of the example below.

Click to hear the audio for this example.

You can use this approach, playing a full voicing and then removing the lowest note, the root, to create rootless chords, with any chord shape you know.

As an example, here is a ii V I Major Key Chord Progression in the key of C using Drop 2 chords as the basis for each rootless chord, which are found in bars 3 and 4 of the example.

Click to hear audio of this example.

Once you have worked through the above examples, at a variety of tempos and keys across the fretboard, practice taking any Drop 2 or Drop 3 chord shape you know, removing the root, which creates a rootless chord voicing.

You can practice this approach with static chords to begin, before using rootless chords with chord progressions such as the ii V I examples above, and then taking them to jazz tunes you know or are learning in the woodshed.

The goal of these exercises is to quickly and easily be able to see the root of any chord, build a shape above that root, but don't use the root itself in that chord. This can be tough to do, so take your time, but once you have this skill in your pocket it can be an invaluable resource when comping in a jazz guitar situation.

Rootless Jazz Guitar Chords – Minor ii V i

As well as building rootless voicings in Major ii V I progressions, you can practice the same technique to build minor key rootless chord voicings, which you can see in the examples below.

To begin, in the first example I have used commonly played Drop 3 Jazz Guitar Chords as the basis for rootless chord voicings in the key of G minor.

Again, in the first two bars you can see the original Drop 3 chords, followed by the rootless voicings in the last two bars of the progression.

Practice these shapes in 12 keys, and with different jazz rhythms and rhythmic patterns, before building your own rootless chords based off any Drop 3 chord shapes you already know.

Click to hear audio of this example.

As was the case with the major examples, you can use any chord voicing to create a rootless chord shape when applying this ideas to Minor Key ii V I Jazz Guitar Chords.

In the following example, I used Drop 2 Chords to build rootless chord voicings. Again, I simply removed the root, lowest notes, from the chords in bars 1-2 to create the rootless chords in bars 3-4.

Take this approach to other shapes you know, Drop 2, Drop 2 and 4 etc., to see how building rootless chords applies to multiple chord shapes that you already know.

Click to hear audio of this example.

As you can see, building ii V I chord progression, in major and minor keys, is relatively easy to do if you already have a few Drop 3 and Drop 2 chords under your fingers.

But, the goal of this or any jazz guitar exercise is to be able to take this knowledge and apply it to a real-life situation such as a tune you know or are working on currently in the woodshed.

So, let's take our rootless chords and apply them to one of the most commonly played jazz standards, Summertime, and see how they fit over a tune in a musical situation.

Rootless Jazz Guitar Chords – Summertime

To help get you started in bringing rootless jazz guitar chords into a practical situation, here is a chord study that uses these voicings over the popular jazz standard Summertime.

Practice this chord study with a metronome, backing track and on your own to hear how these chords sound both in a solo situation and with harmonic backing. Go slow and take your time with these rootless voicings when first exploring them in the woodshed.

Once you have this chord study under your fingers, at a variety of tempos and possibly in a few different keys, write out your own chord study over Summertime or another jazz standard that you know or are working on in the practice room.

Click to hear audio of this example.

Rootless Jazz Guitar Chords Practice Guide

Once you have worked out the four examples provided in this lesson, here are a number of different approaches you can take in the practice room in order to further integrate rootless chords into your jazz guitar playing in a seamless and organic fashion.

1. Sing the root of each chord as you play the rootless voicing on it's own or through a ii-V-I chord progression.
2. Play the original root-chord followed by the rootless voicing for any chord or chord progression you are working on to build an aural comparison of the two approaches.
3. Practice visualizing any root on the 6th, 5th or 4th string and then playing a rootless voicing on top of that root without playing the root itself.
4. Write out 5-10 chord studies over various jazz standards you are working on in the woodshed, using only rootless chords for each study.
5. Repeat the above in 12 keys and at various tempos and/or positions on the neck.

Sometimes learning a new harmonic color on the guitar is as easy as adapting something you already know, such as removing the root from a chord to produce a rootless chord voicing.

Take these rootless chords into your woodshedding this week and see how removing the root of any chord can simplify the voicing, keep the underlying harmonic color and bring some Ed Bickert/Jim hall sounds to your playing all at the same time.

Have a question or comment about this lesson? Post it in the How to Build Rootless Jazz Guitar Chords thread at the MWG Forum.

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