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 Jazz Chord Voicing for the stick 
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Post Jazz Chord Voicing for the stick
Does anyone use four note chords in the right hand often?

Beyond a few basic shapes, it seems as though the four note drop 2 and 3 chord vocabulary of the guitar does not extrapolate well to the stick right hand. I find the voicings awkward and need to use my thumb alot. It seems much more straighforward and common to voice chords with a maximum of three notes in each hand. Is this right?

This is leading me towards shell chords or walking in the left hand (1,3,7 and inversions) with upper extensions and alterations in the right hand, normally as a three note chord, typically a triad as a polychord.

Is the approached i've outlined what most stick players are doing for jazz chords? What other approaches to chord voicing are people using for jazz chords?

I'm especially interested in an improv setting where the chords need to be available on the fly, not composed in advanced.


Wed Dec 21, 2011 1:20 pm
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Post Re: Jazz Chord Voicing for the stick
That's what I use mostly. Left hand "shells" and 3 note right hand chords, occasionally 4 note right hand and yes, gotta use the thumb.

I think Steve Adelson has a good system for voicing jazz chords, you should check it out. I however don't use it. I would if I had the memory capacity. I find my own voicings based on jazz piano and just ear.

But again I HIGHLY recommend getting Steve's books and taking a Skype lesson from him, let him show you his system and then decide what you can use from it.

It sounds like Steve could really steer you in the right direction AND save you time discovering what he has already mapped out.

Great Topic

Brett


Wed Dec 21, 2011 1:59 pm
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Post Re: Jazz Chord Voicing for the stick
Ah just the stuff I've been working on lately.

Agreed that the left hand shell voicings with right hand triads forming extensions is a good way to go.

I've been working on ii-V-Is trying to get the best voice leading between the hands.

An example:

Dm: LH - 1-3 / RH - 5-7-9
G7: LH - 1-7 / RH - 9-3-13
CM: LH - 1-3 / RH - 5-7-9

And of course you can invert the right hand chords. I'm sure you guys already have this down, I'm just having fun mapping it all out and typing it here helps solidify it.

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Wed Dec 21, 2011 2:45 pm
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Post Re: Jazz Chord Voicing for the stick
There are numerous ways to achieve any "jazz" chord. There are two hands and lots of fingers. Most importantly, what notes do you want to emphasize. This is usually the highest note. I comp with subtitutions and inversions in a rhythmic and melodic way. Yes there is a way to organize this and still have the ability to be creative. Once you have a grasp of these concepts, it becomes natual like talking. The left hand does the walking and the right hand does the talking while the audience does the gawking


Wed Dec 21, 2011 10:18 pm
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Post Re: Jazz Chord Voicing for the stick
No moniker? how 'bout "Gawk Pie Hat"?

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Thu Dec 22, 2011 2:21 am
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Post Re: Jazz Chord Voicing for the stick
Check out Randy Vincent's (Sher Music Co.) Jazz Guitar voicings series - 1) Three Note Voicings and Beyond 2) Vol 1: the Drop 2 Book. He offers lots of geometry and emphasizes NOT to stretch too much to hurt yourself (some of the reaches are impossible). I use RH 4 note voicings quite a bit. They stack well. They alter well. 9ths and 6ths in abundance. And I try to leave the root out because I refer to it often enough in the LH. Learn a few basic shapes, then learn the other inversions, then keep them on hand for comping, all shapes transposed as required.
Shell voicings for all of the scale triads and 7ths are very important to learn, because you can build off them. They are lighter colored and often easier to deviate off of.
Not sure what a walking LH 1,3,7 example is, but it is useful to box the majors and minors from both sides of the root or octave, so that you can (learn how to) keep the LH not bumping into the RH.
Learning all of the triadal chord-scale inversions is also a great way to become more fluent, and to know where all the notes are. Especially diminished voicings. It is very important to know where all the notes are. 12 strings x 24 frets is a lot of notes, and the sooner you get them down, the better.
The most difficult thing I've faced is trying to LH comp like a pianist (like close voiced sus7ths and all of the shell colors, etc.), to set up tensions for RH soloing - while maintaining a bass line. I either intersperse RH comps (3 or 4 note voicings) between phrases, or throw in some upper two note LH 3/7 or sus type voicings while trying to keep the LH Root prominent.
Hope that helps...-Brian


Thu Dec 22, 2011 7:31 pm
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