how to play play
This adventurous approach to voice leading might or might not turn you into a voicing superhero, but it will enable your fingers and expand your mind by Mitch Haupers ave you ever watched a professional dog walker when they’re walking three, three, four four,, or even five five dogs at a time? Can you imagine trying to control three three or four leashed animals with minds of their own and a will to go wherever wherever they want at any given given time? For For most of us, this would would be complet completee chaos. The spectacle often begs the question: “Who “Who’s ’s walking whom?” But this is what the process of learning voice leading feels like for many players, especially improvisers. This aspect of harmony requires developing the ability to hear multiple voices within chords and to guide those voices to create create melodic lines within chord progressions. progressions. The skill could also be compared to the artistry of a professional puppeteer working a marionette marionette — there’s more more to it than meets the eye, and it takes a lot of practice to make make it look so easy. World-renowned jazz guitarist Mick Goodrick has tackled the problem (in classic X-men style) with an immense two-volume set (soon to be three) entitled Mr. Goodchord’ Goodchord’ss Almanac of Guitar Voice-Leading Voice-Leading for the Year Year 2001 and Beyond . Don Don’t ’t let the the title fool fool you; this method method may have been written by a guitarist, but it’s it’s aimed at any musician who is interested in exploring harmony and voice leading, includi including ng keyboardists, keyboardi sts, composer composers, s, and arrangers. In a nutshell, Mick has provided us with every possible three- and four-part diatonic chord that exists within a seven-note scale (triads, sevenths, seve nths, hybr hybrids, ids, quart quartal al voicings, voicings, and spread clusters clusters). ). He shows you how to move from any possible possible inversion using many many voicings, to any
H
Mr. Goodchord’s Keyboard Chord Decoder: What’ss with all these Ds and DDs? What’ When working with different types of voicings, it’s handy to borrow the terminology used by by arrangers. An arranger will look look at a four-note seventh chord in close voicing (4WC, or four-way close voicing) and they’ll number the notes, in their mind, from top to bottom — regardless of the inversion. Here we have a Cmaj7 in root position (a), first inversion (b), second inversion (c), and third inversion inversio n (d). Note that the numbers next to the chords refer only to the note order from top to bottom; no functional functional or intervallic information is implied.
a)
1 2 3 4
b)
1 2 3 4
c)
1 2 3 4
d)
1 2 3 4
With the chord tones numbered, arrangers will take certain notes and drop them down an octave (D) or two octaves (DD). With any of the inversions shown here, you can take the second note from the top and drop it an octave, and you’ll have a drop 2 voicing (D2). If you take the third note down an octave, it’s a Drop 3 (D3). You can drop more than one note note at a time. See Example 1 for examples of drop voicings and how they’re named. ILLUSTRATION © 2003 RICK EBERLY
other possible chord or voicing within the scale. That partially explains why each volume exceeds 300 pages, yet covers only the chords within the major, harmonic minor, and melodic minor scales — in the key of C ! And he does it without a speck of standard music notation. It’s a phenomenal system, and many keyboard players find it to be of tremendous value (Russell Ferrante and Lyle Mays, to name but two). We’ve hatched this article to provide an easy introduction to the system, and to give you enough material to work on for quite some time. Even though we show you everything in complete cycles and progressions in C major, by all means start transposing the material and experimenting with it right away. The examples in this article are not meant to be exercises, but springboards.
Mr. Goodchord’s Keyboard Chord Decoder: What’s a TBN? Mr. Goodchord has a few ways of looking at triads and their relationship to a bass note, so there are a few unique terms that crop up. Seventh chords can be thought of as a triad over a bass note (a), separated by a third; Mr.Goodchord uses standard seventh chord terminology for these. When a triad and bass note have a fifth between them (b), Mr.Goodchord calls it a TBN I (triad over bass note I).When a triad and bass note are separated by a seventh (c), Mr. Goodchord calls it a TBN II. a)
c)
Em/C
Cycle 2 M Cmaj7, Dm7, Em7, Fmaj7, G7,Am7, Bm7b5 Hm Cm-maj7, Dm7b5, Ebmaj7#5,Fm7, G7, A bmaj7, Bdim7 Mm Cm-maj7, Dm7, Ebmaj7#5,F7,G7,Am7b5, Bm7b5 Cycle 4 M Cmaj7, Fmaj7, Bm7b5, Em7,Am7, Dm7, G7 Hm Cm-maj7, Fm7, Bdim7, E bmaj7#5, Abmaj7, Dm7b5, G7, Mm Cm-maj7, F7, Bm7b5, Ebmaj7#5,Am7b5, Dm7, G7 Cycle 6 M Cmaj7,Am7, Fmaj7, Dm7, Bm7b5, G7, Em7 Hm Cm-maj7, Abmaj7, Fm7, Dm7b5, Bdim7, G7, E bmaj7#5 Mm Cm-maj7, Am7b5, F7, Dm7, Bm7 b5, G7,E bmaj7#5 Cycle 7 M Cmaj7, Bm7b5,Am7, G7, Fmaj7, Em7, Dm7 Hm Cm-maj7, Bdim7, A bmaj7, G7, Fm7, E bmaj7#5, Dm7b5 Mm Cm-maj7, Bm7b5, Am7b5, G7, F7, Ebmaj7#5, Dm7 Cycle 5 M Cmaj7, G7, Dm7, Am7, Em7, Bm7b5, Fmaj7 Hm Cm-maj7, G7, Dm7b5, Abmaj7, Ebmaj7#5, Bdim7, Fm7 Mm Cm-maj7, G7, Dm7, Am7 b5, Ebmaj7#5, Bm7b5, F7 Cycle 3 M Cmaj7, Em7, G7, Bm7 b5, Dm7, Fmaj7, Am7 Hm Cm-maj7, E bmaj7#5, G7, Bdim7, Dm7 b5,Fm7, Abmaj7 Mm Cm-maj7, Ebmaj7#5, G7, Bm7 b5, Dm7, F7, Am7 b5
b)
seventh
G/C
TBNI
Bdim/C
TBNII
The Mother Lode
At the heart of the system are progressions — Mr. Goodchord calls them cycles — that encourage you to experience both the harmonic and melodic aspects of the progressions as you play them. We use six different cycles for each seven-note scale, which means we cover every possible way of moving from one chord to another within a given key. The six cycles aren’t numbered 1 though 6 in order, however; they’re named according to the ascending root movement of the cycle. Cycle 2 uses root movement of an ascending diatonic second, Cycle 3 moves chords by ascending diatonic thirds, Cycle 7 uses root movement of a seventh, and so on. In the key of C , here are the Cycles for the major scale (M), the harmonic minor scale (Hm), and the melodic minor scale (Mm). See chart at left. When you’re experimenting with voice leading over these cycles, use voice movement that is as smooth as possible without moving in
Ex. 1. There are many ways to voice a chord, and arrangers know them by name. Knowing these will come in handy when we start working our voice leading magic. Each of these takes a particular inversion of a close-voiced Cmaj7 chord and redistributes the notes in a particular way. In 1a, we take the second note from the top and drop it down an octave for a drop 2 (D2 for short, in this article). In 1b, take the third note from the top and drop it an octave; this is drop 3 (D3). Drop the second and third notes in 1c down an octave to get a drop 2, 3 voicing (D2,3). In1d, drop the second and fourth notes for a drop 2,4 (D2,4). And finally, drop the second note two octaves and the third note one octave for a double-drop 2, drop 3 (DD2D3). Note how I used different inversions in the close-voiced chords, yet I ended up with C in the bass for every drop voicing. The trick is to know which close-position chord in which drop voicing will put the note you want in the bass.
a)
1 2 3 4
b)
c) c)
d)
1 2 3 4
1 2 3 4
1 2 3 4
e)
1 2 3 4
Ex. 2. This gives you an idea of how you can take a voicing through each of the cycles described in the text. Each measure contains the first three chords of one cycle. Here we’re taking a close-voiced triad through the cycles of C major. a)
C
b)
Dm
Em
C
c)
F
Bdim
C
d)
Am
F
C
e)
Bdim Am
C
f)
G
Dm
C
Em
G
Cycle 2
Cycle 4
Cycle 6
Cycle 7
Cycle 5
Cycle 3
how to play
• Play the chord in one hand while arpeggiating with the other • Play over different grooves • Break up the notes between hands (one note in the left and three notes in the right, and other such combinations) • Play the voice leading in different directions
Mr. Goodchord
parallel motion with the chord roots. Smooth voice leading means moving to the closest available note from chord to chord. See Examples 2 and 3 to see how you can play close and open position triads through each of the cycles. In the Almanac itself, we use our own text-based notation system to write out the voicings to use over each cycle. We call it the Universal Notation System, since anyone who knows where the notes are on their instrument and who can read Roman letters can understand it. See Example 4 for an example of a 4WC voicing running over Cycle 4 of the C harmonic minor scale. Example 5 shows the same thing in standard notation. Example 6 takes a D3 seventh chord voicing through Cycle 4 in C major. What’s an 4WC and D3? See the sidebar, “Mr. Goodchord’s Keyboard Chord Decoder: What’s up with all these Ds and DDs?” Mick Goodrick and I often refer to this body of material as either “The Mother Lode,”“The M-Lode,” or simply,“All This Stuff.” There’s almost no end to the ways you can work with it and apply it. Here are some ideas of how to get going with it. • • • • •
Play all the notes at simultaneously in both hands Play all the notes at once, split the voices between hands Arpeggiate the chords in the left hand Arpeggiate the chords in the right hand Arpeggiate the chords with both hands in varying registers
Examples 7 through 20 are examples of how you can apply different rhythmic approaches to a variety of cycles, in both standard notation and in our Universal Notation. These illustrate the just a few of the millions of possibilities open to improvisers working with the M-Lode. Though they’re written in C major, feel free to change an E to E b and play in C melodic minor, or change the E s and As to E b and Ab and play in C harmonic minor. Example 21, in C harmonic minor, shows you how you can use the sustain pedal to let the chords blend. Example 22 is an excerpt of a composition by Mick Goodrick himself. As improvising musicians, we can benefit greatly from fully exploring and expanding our harmonic vocabulary, which is one of the aims of this material. Rest assured that your soloing will also benefit from your voice leading practice. When we perform,the harmonic choices we make are often influenced by what we hear happening in the moment — a process of harmonic reaction. At other times, we choose according to what our ears tell us could or may happen — a harmonic prediction. Most of the time, we only play what we know, staying well within our harmonic vocabulary comfort zone.How often do we take harmonic risks when we play? Would there be some benefits to practicing risk-taking? Continued on page 50 ➥
Ex. 3. Here we take an open-voiced triad through the first three chords in the cycles in C major. a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
f)
C
Dm
Em
C
F
Cycle 2
Bdim
C
Cycle 4
Am
F
C
Cycle 6
Bdim Am
C
Cycle 7
G
Dm
Cycle 5
C
Em
G
Cycle 3
Ex. 4. Here the scale is C harmonic minor, we’re using seventh chords in four-way close voicing, and were taking the voicings through cycle 4. We’re also using the Mr. Goodchord Universal Notation System. Standard music notation doesn’t quite do justice to all that is contained within the Mr. Goodchord system. To start with, not all musicians can read notation. Our thinking was that any and all musicians who know where the notes are on their chosen instruments would be able to use this system. The arrows represent direction of movement between voices (either up or down). The dashes represent common tones between two adjacent chord tones (and therefore no movement between chords in that voice). The vertical stacks of note names are the chord structures, and the names above them are the standard chord symbols. Cm, maj7 B G Eb C
Fm7 Ab F Eb C
Bdim7 Ab F D B
Ebmaj7#5 G Eb D B
Abmaj7 G Eb C Ab
Dm7b5 F D C Ab
G7 F D B G
Ex. 5. Here is Example 4 in standard notation, using the most basic rhythm. Note that common tones between chords can be re-played, as between bar lines here, or they can be held, as with the lower notes within each bar.
4 4 Cm, maj7
Fm7
Bdim7
E maj7 5
A maj7
Dm7 5
G7
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how to play Mr. Goodchord
Ex. 6. This example shows D3 seventh chords moving through cycle 4 of the C major scale. The repeat signs surrounding the voice leading work the same way as they do in ordinary music notation — simply repeat what is between them. This is in “long form,” which means you have to play through the cycle a number of times before you arrive at the original voicing you started with. This may be two, three, or even four times through, depending on the chord type and cycle.
■ ■
Cmaj7 Fmaj7 Bm7b5 Em7 ∞ ∞ G F F E ∞ E E ∞ D D B ∞ A A ∞ G ∞ C ∞ C B B
Am7 Dm7 ∞ E D ∞ C C ∞ G ∞ F ∞ A A ∞
G7 D B F G
Cmaj7 Fmaj7 Bm7b5 C C ∞ B B ∞ A A ∞ ∞ E E ∞ D G ∞ F F ∞
Em7 Am7 ∞ B A G G D ∞ C E E
G B D G
Bdim Dm B A D D F F
Em G B E
∞
Dm7 A ∞ ∞ F C ∞ ∞ D
G7 G F ∞ B D ∞
■ ■
Ex. 7. Check out the cycle 3 triads (open voicing) in C major.
■ ■
C E G C
∞
∞
Em E G B
∞
G D G B
Bdim Dm D D F F B A
∞
∞
∞
F C F A
∞
Am C E A
∞
C C E G
∞
Em B E G
∞
∞
∞
∞
F A C F
∞
Am A C E
∞
C G C E
∞
∞
G G B D
Bdim Dm F F B A D D
∞
∞
∞
F F A C
Am E A C
∞
∞
■ ■
Ex. 8. Here is one possible rhythmic realization of Example 7. This goes through just one cycle; when you play it, continue through the full form.
12 8 12 8 etc.
Ex. 9. Here’s another approach to Example 8.
Ex. 10. This is cycle 6 with open triads in C major. As in cycle 3, there is only one moving voice. This means that the other two voices are common tones.
■
C E
■
G ∞
C
Am F E ∞ F ∞
A
A
C
C
Dm F A ∞
D
Bdim G G F ∞ ∞
B
B
D
D
Em G B ∞
E
C G ∞
∞
C E
Am A
F A
C
C
E
∞
F
Dm Bdim A ∞ B ∞
D
D
F
F
G B D
∞
G
C C
Am C
E
E
E
G
G
Em B
∞
∞
∞
A
F C ∞
Dm D
Bdim D
G D
F
F
F
G
G
A
A
B
B
∞
∞
B
∞
Em E
∞
■ ■ ∞
Ex. 11. This is one way to play Example 10.
12 8 12 8 etc.
Ex. 12. This takes the cycle 3 progression of Example 7 and adds a bit of cross-hand fun.
12 8 12 8 L.H.
etc.
➥
how to play Mr. Goodchord
Ex. 13. Let’s try out open triads over cycle 5 in C major. ■
∞
■
∞
C E
G D
∞
G C
∞
F Bdim ∞ B A
Dm Am Em ∞ ∞ B D C
G
∞
F
B
∞
A
∞
E
∞
D
∞
C
G
∞
F
F
E A
∞
∞
∞
C G
G G
C
∞
B
E
∞
D
∞
Em Bdim F E ∞ D ∞ C
Dm Am ∞ E F A
∞
D
∞
A
∞
G
C
∞
B
F
∞
B
F
∞
C ∞
A
∞
G
C
∞
B
E
∞
D
G
∞
G
Dm A
∞
F
Am Em Bdim A ∞ G ∞ F
D
∞
C
F
∞
E
B
∞
E
∞
F∞
■
B
∞
A∞■
D
∞
C
Ex. 14. You could set off the single common tone against the two moving tones like this; note that this lends itself well to three-bar phrases, as the voice leading repeats every three chords. This starts on the last chord in the cycle.
4 4 4 4 etc.
Ex. 15. Cycle 4 is known as the Circle of Fifths outside of Mr. Goodchord’s workshop. Open voicings, C major. ■
C ∞ E
∞
■
G
∞
∞
Am Bdim Em F ∞ G ∞ A
F F
C
A
∞
B
C
∞
D
B
∞
C
∞
E
E
Dm G B A ∞ ∞
D
D
∞
F
G
∞
∞
C C
∞
E G
F C
Bdim Em ∞ D ∞ E
∞
F
F
∞
G
∞
A
B
B
∞
Am Dm G ∞ E ∞ F G ∞
A
A
∞
C
D
∞
C G
B
∞
D
F Bdim A ∞ B
∞
∞
C
C
∞
E
∞
F
∞
Em Am Dm B ∞ C ∞ D
D
∞
E
E
F
∞
G
A
∞
G D ∞ ■
F
∞
G
A
∞
B
∞
■ ∞
4 4 44
Ex. 16. This realization of Example 15 is similar to that in Example 14, but you can hear how the different cycle gives it a whole different sound.
etc.
Ex. 17. Cycle 7 covers a lot of keyboard real estate quickly. Start higher or lower on the keyboard, or transpose up or down an octave to accommodate. ■ ■
∞
C E
Bdim Am G F ∞ A ∞ B
∞
∞
G
∞
B
∞
C
∞
D
F ∞
C
∞
Em E
Dm C F ∞ G
∞
∞
C
∞
D
∞
F
∞
G
∞
A
∞
E
G
∞
A
∞
B
∞
D
∞
∞
C
∞
E
Bdim Am B ∞ C
∞ ∞
D
∞
F
G
F
∞
D
∞
F
∞
Bdim Am G D ∞ E ∞ G
Em Dm C A ∞ C G ∞
∞
E
∞
G
∞
A
∞
B
∞
A
∞
B
∞
C
∞
E
∞
F ∞
A
∞
Em Dm B ∞ D ∞ ■
∞
D
∞
E
∞
F
∞
A
∞
B
∞
C
∞
E
∞
F ∞ ■
∞
F
∞
G
∞
B
∞
C
∞
D
∞
F
∞
G
∞
A ∞
4 4 4 4
Ex. 18. This alternating staccato texture sounds good over Example 17.
etc.
Ex. 19. Cycle 2 provides us with a classic example of conjunct/disjunct voice leading,since we’re moving our voices in the opposite direction of the root movement. C E
Dm Em D ∞ B
∞
F A
∞
G G
∞
Am Bdim C ∞ ∞ C E D
Em Dm ∞ A G
∞
F F
∞
G D
Am Bdim C ∞ ∞ B G C
Em F Dm F ∞ E ∞ C
G ∞
B
∞
Am Bdim A ∞ F∞
■
∞
■
∞
G
∞
F
∞
E
∞
C
∞
B
∞
A
∞
F
∞
E
∞
D
∞
B
∞
A
∞
G
∞
E
∞
D
∞
C
∞
A
∞
G
∞
F
∞
D
∞
C
∞
B∞
∞
C
∞
A
∞
G
∞
F
∞
D
∞
C
∞
B
∞
G
∞
F
∞
E
∞
C
∞
B
∞
A
∞
F
∞
E
∞
D
∞
B
∞
A
∞
G
∞
E
∞
D∞
∞
∞
∞
∞
4 4 4 4
■ ■
Ex. 20. This is a staccato treatment of Example 19.
etc.
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how to play Mr. Goodchord
We’re not telling you how or where to play these chord structures on your instrument. The whole idea is to provide you with all the possibilities within the three scale types, so you don’t have to think
about how to arrive at these chord structures. Hopefully, this will free you to spend more time experimenting with different ways to play them. In the second part of this article, we’ll work more with four-part chords, as well as some quartal and cluster voicings. Take all the time you need to work with this material and enjoy it! ➥
Ex. 21. Because of the presence of so many common tones, moving one voice and sustaining the voices in cycle 6 is relatively easy. This etude explores the relationship between common tones and moving voices. Play slowly enough to achieve a sense of the chord progression. If you have a real piano, utilize the combined effect of both the damper and sustain pedals to emphasize the moving voice while maintaining the chord structure beneath.
6 4 6 4 5 4 4 4 5 4 4 4 1
L.H.
5
Ex. 22. Mick Goodrick wrote this piece 15 years ago (excerpt shown below) after subbing for Bill Frisell on a tour with Bass Desires. This “pre-Mother Lode” composition contains many of the voicings and chord types that eventually made their way into the voice leading books. There are triads, TBN 1 and TBN 2 chords, and seventh chords. The first chord of the piece is an example of a DD2D3 voicing (C/F). Note the inclusion of seventh chord voicings that have a flat ninth between the seventh of the chord and the root note — what a great sound! Play through the voice leading in C major, cycle 6, using TBN 1 and D2,4, as well as DD2D3. You’ll hear some similarities to this piece.
Rubato 1
( )
9
Excerpts copyright ©2003 by Mr. Goodchord Publications from Mr. Goodchord’s Almanac of Guitar Voice-Leading for the Year 2001 and Beyond. All rights reserved. Used by permission.
how to play Mr. Goodchord
Mr. Goodchord’s Advice This article has only hinted at the incredible amount of information presented in the Almanac of Guitar Voice Leading . The first two volumes total over 600 pages of material (triads, seventh chords, and TBN I and TBN II in Volume 1, three- and four-part quartal voicings and spread clusters in Volume 2) — and this is just using the major,melodic minor,and harmonic minor scales in C . Volume 3, due out later this year, will discuss alternative and chromatic voice leading,relate these concepts to the eleven other keys, introduce new scales, and present new ideas for other uses of this material. To keep things simple, we focused this article on stuff from Volume I, namely triads and seventh chords. The second installment of this article (to appear in Keyboard in the near future) will go farther into how the material can help you discover new ways of approaching your voicings. So with so much stuff to work with, where do you start? How do you proceed? Our advice is to work on this material without trying to learn it. In fact, try not to learn it. This way, you eliminate any self-imposed pressure. You just have the experience of going through the material.You’ll discover your own way through it. That will be enough. Self-discovery is one of the most meaningful ways to learn.Have you ever been the first to walk through an open field after a fresh snowfall? We want your experience with Mr. Goodchord to be kind of like that. If you followed someone else’s tracks through the snow, you might miss the opportunity to wander on your own. As you explore, if you make a mistake, it’s okay; in fact, maybe you’ll find something more interesting than what’s in the exercise. In that case, continue your “mistake” through the voice leading pattern. You could also look at it this way: what one person finds useful while playing through this material may not seem valuable to someone else at that point in time. Over the past few years, I have presented this material to many keyboard players and each time we’ve discovered something new in it. Have fun with your own discoveries! k Mitch Haupers is an Associate Professor at Berklee College of Music. He specializes in teaching ear training,rhythm, harmony and free improvisation. You can read more about his teaching, projects and hear mp3s of his free improvisation quartet at: www.berklee.edu/news/2001/02/mhaupers.html. For more information on Mr. Goodchord, visit www.mrgoodchord.com.
_
h o w t o p l ay
M r . Go o d c h o r d Go e s Ke y b o a r d , Pa r t 2
Break down harmonic walls! M ake melodic leaps over imposing chord structures! N ow we follow this
potent voice leading system into quartal territory
by Mitch Haupers r. Goodchord’s back! I n the f ir st part of thi s seri es (Sept.’03), weintr oduced you to M r. Goodchord and the fact that hi s M r. Goodchord ’s Almanac of Gui t ar Voice-Leading for the Year 2001 and Beyond is not just for guitari sts anymore.Weapplied the system to tri ad-based materials(tri ads,sevenths, and hybrid voicings). This time around, we’ll dig into quartal (voicingsbuilt in fourt hs) and cluster voicings(voi cings buil t i n seconds), and giveyou a gli mpseof the rich world of chords and li nesavailable when you apply Mr. Goodchord’s voice leading to these somewhat ambiguous and beguil ing sounds. We’ll also give you t wo exploratory voice leading lessons, one from Yell ow jackets keyboardist and composer Russ Ferrante, and another fr om Boston-based pianist and composer Vardan Ovsepian. Mr. Goodchord ( a.k.a Mick Goodrick, jazz guitarist) insists that his two (soon to be three)-volume set isnot a method book.In fact,he thinks of these volumesasnon -method books. The books supply every possible voicing and every possible way of moving it within thethreescaleswe use, and let you explore the material to your heart’s content. It’s natural to want to j ump into thi s material and play the chord str u ctu res harm oni call y. But don’t for get to arpeggiate it , too. You r melodic development will be enhanced, and it will give asense of harmonic continuity to your li nesand soloing.To get used to these newer- sounding four-part chord families, pick any two voi cesand play them through the cycl e,t h en pick another combination of two voicesand do it again.Each four -part chord hassix possibl e combinations of two voices. Breaking the four- part chords down wil l help you to understand the intervals of the chords,as well asto hear the indi vidual lines withi n the progression and how they relate to each other. After you work with this voiceleading material for a while,you’l l see that chord families can be viewed as different ways of experiencing the scale from whi ch they arose. For example, if you play t hrough all the
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Mr. Goodchord’s Keyboard Chord Decoder: What’s with all these Ds and DDs? Just as he o r she would do with a seventh chord, an arranger will look at a four-part quartal chord in close voicing (4WC, or four-way close voicing) and they’ll number the notes, in their mind, from top to bottom — regardless of the inversion. Here we have a four-part quartal chord in root position (a), first inversion (b), second inversion (c), and third inversion (d ). Note that the numbers next to the chords refer only to the note order from top to bottom; no functional or intervallic information is implied.
1 2 3 4
1 2 3 4
1 2 3 4
1 2 3 4
With the chord tones numbered, arrangers will take certain notes and drop them down an octave (D) or two octaves (DD).With any of the inversions shown here, you can take the second note f rom the top and drop it an octave, and you’ll have a drop 2 voicing (D2).If you take the third note down an octave, it’s a Drop 3 (D3). You can drop more than one note at a time. See Example 1 for more examples .
four-part chord f amil iesof C ma jor/D2 in thefollowing order: sevenths, TBN 1 (triad over bass note 1; G over C ), TBN 2 (t riad over bass note 2; Bdim over C ) , four-part quartal voi cings, and then spread clusters, you may feel more famili ar wi th t he sounds of the fir st t wo famil ies (sevenths and TBN1). Once you work wit h t he material for some ti me, you’ll soon real i ze they’re all just the C major scale. You’ll noticethat we offer very few chord nameshere.Thereason isthat the names one might use get complicated (Cma , for example). j9, no5th With these particular voicings, names could easil y tend to li mit how they can be used.They revolve around structures of fourthsand seconds,and they’remore ambiguoussoundi ng than the structuresbased on thir ds.And ILLUSTRATION © 2003 RICK EBERLY
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in many cases,t hey’re more flexible in terms of their multiple functions. The type of voiceleading we use here is called disjunct. The roots are not always in the lowest voice of the chord, and the principlesof economy ofmotion apply, meaning that stepwiseand small leaps to thenearest chord tone in the next chord are the general rule. You’ll see how this gets really interesting when we get i nto the lessons from Vardan Ovsepian and Russ Ferrante. This type of voice leading sounds very different than parallel motion or running a constant structure through a scale.One isn’t better than the other, or even moreimportant to learn .They’re equally useful. By t heir nature, quart al chords are made up of fo urt h interval s, wh ereas cluster chords are built of seconds. Thiscertainly i sevident i n D2 voicings in four-part quart al voicin gs and fo ur-way closevoi cings in spread clu sters (see M r. Goodchord ’s Keyboard Chord Decoder: What’s with all these Ds and DDs?on page 50). If you haven’t played these much before,t h ey can sound vague and disson an t ,m aybe even a bit confusi ng. One of the great insights you can gain wi th thi s voice leading approach is that, depending on the inversion, four- part quartal voicings and spread clusters can sound almost consonant by vir tue of the vertical order of intervals. Give Examples 1–8 a try. Vardan Ovsepian hails from Armenia and has applied his classical trainingto his composing,improvising,and jazz playing.H is first record,
Abandoned Wheel (Fresh Sound), explores the contrapuntal possibilities
of solo piano; keeping both hands in motion, he avoids the cliché sound of a comping left hand under a soloing right hand.He delvesinto thi smore traditional approach to the keyboard on his second record with quartet, Sketch Book (Fresh Sound) — but he applies his own interpretation of the Mr. Goodchord materials. SeeExamples8–14. Russell Ferrante needs no introduction in this magazine. As the keyboardist /composer /co-founder of theworld-renowned band, Yellow , jackets Russisknown for hisheartfelt solos,adventurouswriting and his signature voicings. One of the keys to Russell’s great voicings is his ability to create unique sonorit iesfrom simple str uctures. His voicing rule of thumb i s to try and build chords wi th no dou bl i ngs. For brai nstor ming ideas, playing ballads,and coming up wit h those expressive orchestr al intros, thi s discipli ned approach is well worth exploring. Examples 15–19 show exerci ses that Russ has devel oped after spending some time with the Mr. Goodchord voice leading material. Clearl y,voice-leading is his language,something he excels in; just listen to his tunesand solos. It ’s inspir ing that even seasoned pros are getti ng new insights from and are findi ng uses for thi s information.Enjoy the ti me you spend worki ng with M r. Goodchord and lo ok for another installment in the near future.k
Ex .1 . Each of thesetakes a part icular in versi on of a cl ose-voiced four- part quartal chord and r edistributes the notesin a part icular way. In 1a, we take the second note from the top and dr op it down an octave for a drop 2 (D2 for short). In 1b,take the thir d note from the top and drop it an octave; thi s is drop 3 (D 3). Dr op the second and third notesin 1c down an octave to get a drop 2 and 3 voicing (D 2& 3). In 1d,drop the second and fourth notes for a drop 2 and 4 (D2& 4). And fi nall y, in 1e,drop the second note two octaves and the third note one octave for a double-drop 2,drop 3 (DD 2D3). Note how I used dif ferent inversions in the close-voi ced chords, yet I ended up with C in the bass for every drop voicing.The t ri ck is to know which close-posit ion chord i n whi ch drop voici ng will put the note you want i n the bass. a)
b)
c) 1 2 3 4
1 2 3 4
d) 1 2 3 4
e)
1 2 3 4
1 2 3 4
Ex .2 . Thi s gives you an i dea of h ow you can take a quart al vo icing through each of the cycles. Each measure contai ns the first three chords of one cycl e.See if you can complete each chord cycle by referr ing to the complete cycles as spelled out i n the September issue. Here we’re taking a close-voiced thr ee-part quart al voicing thr ough all the cycles of C melodic mi nor. a)
b)
cycle 2
cycle 4
c)
d)
e)
f)
cycle 6
cycle 7
cycle 5
cycle 3
Ex.3 .Herewe take three-part fi fth chords (t he spread counterpart of three-part quart al chords) thr ough the fir st three chords in the cycles in C melodic minor. a)
b)
cycle 2
cycle 4
c)
d)
e)
f)
cycle 6
cycle 7
cycle 5
cycle 3
Ex .4 . Here we take three- par t quartal voicings (spread) t hrou gh cycle 2 in C m ajor, using t he Mr . Good chord Uni versal Nota ti on System, in which the arr ows represent di recti on of m ovement between voices (ei ther up or down ). The dashesrepresent common t ones between t wo adjacent chord tonesthat don’t move. The vert ical stacks of note namesare the ch ord str u ctu res. Once you’ve been t hrou gh i t a couple ti mes, play through it over a D or A pedal poi n t. This will put you in D dori an mode, and since there aren’t any avoid not es i n dori an, pretty much anyth ing and everyt hin g you pl ay wi ll work very ni cely. Arpeggi ate t he quart al voi cin gs to come up w it h some rea ll y cool melodies. Â n n
D G C
D E A
B E F
G C F
G A D
E A B
C F B
C D G
A D E
F B E
F G C
D G A
B E A
B C F
G C D
E A D
E F B
C F G
A D G
A B E
F B C
n n
Excerpts copyri ght ©2003 by Mr. Goodchord Publications fr om M r. Goodchord’s Alm anac of Guit ar Voice-Leadin g for the Year 2001 and Beyond. All r ight s reserved. Used by permi ssion. w w w .k e yb o a r d m a g . c o m
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h o w t o p l ay Mr. Goodchord Ex .5. Here the scale is C melodic minor, we’re using four- part quart al chords in drop 2 voicing, and were taking the voicingsthrough cycle 2. 5b shows you the same progression in standar d notati on,usin g the most basic rhyt hm. Note that common tonesbetween chords can bere-played,as between bar li nes here, or they can be held, as with t he lower n otes withi n each bar.
Eb B F C
D G F C
D G Eb A
B F Eb A
B F C G
A D C G
A D B Eb
Ex .6. Thi s example shows a drop 2 fou r-part quartal voicing movi ng through cycle 4 of the C melodic minor scale. The repeat signs su rroundi ng the voice leading work the same way asthey do in ord inary music not ati on — sim ply repeat wh at i s between them. This i s in long form , wh ich means you have to play through the cycle a nu mber of ti mesbefore you ar ri ve at t he ori ginal voicing you started wi th. Thi s may be two, t hree, or even four t i mes throu gh, depending on the chord type and cycle.
n n
Eb B F C
Eb D A A F Eb B B
D C G G Eb D A A
C F D G
B F C G
B Eb C F
A A Eb D B B F Eb
G D A Eb
G C A D
F C G D
F B G C
n n
Ex. 7. Enough theory for the momen t.T h esevo icing typesshow up i n the real world al the ti me. In fact, they’re quite simi lar to the kin d of t hings McCoy Tyner pl ays, such as these voicings simi lar to those in the last two ba rs of “I Wish I Kn ew,” from John Coltrane’s, Ballads (M CA ). In 7a,note that his quar - tal voicings move through the scale in parallel moti on so that the cycle 2 motion ascends wit h the root al ways in the ba ss, as you would predict.Also, look at t he complicated chord symbols needed to descri be the quartal voicings. Now check out t he altern ati ve voici ng in 7b. The notes are the same, but t he vo ic - ing i s different, which completely alters the sound of the pro gression. In 7c, we use three-part fift hs. In 7d, we use disjun ct vo ice leadi ng.
Ex .8 .Here’s another cool real world example. Keyboardist /composer Russell Ferrante descri besthe idea behind his voicing choice in thi s excerpt from “Coal Mi nor Blues” as sixths coll apsin g in to four ths. It ’s interesti ng that t he first chord is a spread cluster ( G,A, Bb, C ) and the second is a four-part quartal voicing ( Eb, Ab, Db, Gb ), yet both are functioning as I major and I min or, respectively, as thi s is over an Eb pedal. Russ wi ll have more to say a lit tl e later.
Ex.9 . Thi s is an excerpt from the head to “ Rooms,” which is on Vardan Ovsepian’s CD Sketch Book (Fresh Sound ). He makes extensive use of M r. Goodchord voicings in i t. The first four bars are thr ee- part quartal voi ci n gs superi mposed over fi fths, whi ch creates minor elevent hs over cycle 5. 1
Fm7,11
Cm7 13
Gm7,11
Dm7 13
Am7,11
Em7 13
Bm11
 Excerpts copyri ght ©2003 by Mr. Goodchord Publications fr om M r. Goodchord’s Alm anac of Guit ar Voice-Leadin g for the Year 2001 and Beyond. All r ight s reserved. Used by permi ssion.
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h o w t o p l ay M r. Goodchord Ex.10.This exampl e shows D2 spread clust ers moving through cycle 2 of the C major scale.Thi s example led piani st Vardan Ovsepian t o discover t hat the moti on of voice leading is as im portant as the actual pit ches in the chart.These spread clusters can be seen as combinat ions of alternati ng thi rds and sixt hs, shown in shades of blue in the first two ch ords. Using the same moti on, Vardan substi tutes dif ferent intervals in the ri ght and l eft hands as well as introducing modulati ons away from t he di atonic scale to come up wi th int erestin g voice leading vari ations, which you’ll f ind in the subsequent examples.
n n
E C B D
F A G E
D B A C
E G F D
C A G B
D F E C
B G F A
C E D B
A F E G
B D C A
G E D F
A C B G
F D C E
G B A F
n n
Ex.11.This vari ati on uses alt ern ati ng fifth and second i ntervals in t he same moti on as Exampl e 9. In thi s case, we get the same tri ad twice over di fferent bass notes. C/F
C/D
Bdim/E Bdim/C
Am/D
Am/B
G/C
G/A
F/B
F/G
Em/A
Em/F
Dm/G
Dm/E
Ex. 12. Here the same voicin gs are played down a whole step each bar, and stil l results in the same tr iad twice over di fferent bass notes.
Ex. 13. Based on Example 11, in thi s progression Vardan makes every other chord mi nor. C/F
Cm/D
B /E
B m/C
A /D
A m/B
F /B
F m/G
E/A
Em/F
D/G
Dm/E
Ex. 14. In thi s variat ion, Vardan makes the int ervals of the left hand (seconds and fourths) di fferent from t hose in the ri ght hand (t hirds and sixt hs). C/F
Em/A
Bdim/E Dm/G
Am/D
C/F
G/C
Bdim/E
F/B
Am/D
Em/A
G/C
Dm/G
F/B
 Excerpts copyri ght ©2003 by Mr. Goodchord Publications fr om M r. Goodchord’s Alm anac of Guit ar Voice-Leadin g for the Year 2001 and Beyond. All r ight s reserved. Used by permi ssion.
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h o w t o p l ay Mr. Goodchord Ex.15.Russell Ferrante of the Yellow jackets has always been adventurous when i t comesto voicings. But he’salso one of the many top pl ayers who have embraced M r. Goodchord, and who have applied their own creativity to the materi al. Here is a hybrid of cycles3 and 6, using cl osethree-part quartal voicings.
Ex. 16. This example uses the same voice leading as Exampl e 15, but Russell shif ts between C and Db every t wo chords.
Ex. 17. Russell ’s always lookin g for interesti ng ways to appr oach melody; here’s how he plays Exampl e 16 as a melodic exercise. 3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
Ex.18. Polytonality and polychords are favori te t echniquesfor Russell. Here he takesthree-part quart al voicingsin cycle 6, C ma jor, in the ri ght hand and superi mposes them over a descendi ng bassli ne in Ab (a) and E (b). a)
b)
etc.
Excerpts copyri ght ©2003 by Mr. Goodchord Publications fr om M r. Goodchord’s Alm anac of Guit ar Voice-Leadin g for the Year 2001 and Beyond. All r ight s reserved. Used by permi ssion.
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h o w t o p l ay M r. Goodchord
Ex.19.Thi s is the in tr o to Russell’ s tune,“Coal Minor Blues,” whi ch appears on the Yellowjackets’ Blue Hats CD. Thi s is a great exampl e of how Russell combi nes sevent h-chord voicings and quar tal voicings, and how he uses passing tones. Intro 1
5
“Coal M inor Blues,” written by Russell Ferrante.© 1997 Teeth Music,LaVi era Music, and Kalabash Music.All rights reserved.Used by permission.Excerptscopyright ©2003by Mr. Goodchord Publications from M r. Goodchord’s Alm anac of Gui tar Voice-Leading for the Year 2001 and Beyond. All r ights reserved. Used by permi ssion.
M it ch Haupers is the managing partn er of M r. Goodchord Publicati ons (www.mr goodchord.com) and an Associat e Professor at Berkl ee College of M usic (www.berklee.edu/news/2001/02/mhaupers.html).
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