# Jazz chord voicings?



## Hybrid138 (Oct 26, 2010)

Is there a good site with alternate fingerings/voicings for chords. I'm trying out for jazz band next semester and I have my sheet music already and I'm trying to find easier/better ways to play it.


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## Mvotre (Oct 26, 2010)

if you are trying for a jazz band would be better to learn how to build said chords, so you can build your own versions.  Or its not a option??

if not you can get some of those huge chord dictionaries, or even some online program to help you out!


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## AvantGuardian (Oct 26, 2010)

I like this page for movable shapes:

Movable Guitar Chord Shapes - Synesthesiac.org

If you know movable shapes with the root on the 6th and 5th string for each of the main chord types (maj7, min7, dom7, m7b5, dim7), you should be able to get through most charts. If you're playing in a jazz band, you mostly need to focus on playing the 3rd and 7th in each chord. You can actually exclude the roots and fifths most of the time if you want. The bass player has the roots covered and the fifth isn't really played in a lot of jazz voicings.


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## Hybrid138 (Oct 26, 2010)

AvantGuardian said:


> I like this page for movable shapes:
> 
> Movable Guitar Chord Shapes - Synesthesiac.org
> 
> If you know movable shapes with the root on the 6th and 5th string for each of the main chord types (maj7, min7, dom7, m7b5, dim7), you should be able to get through most charts. If you're playing in a jazz band, you mostly need to focus on playing the 3rd and 7th in each chord. You can actually exclude the roots and fifths most of the time if you want. The bass player has the roots covered and the fifth isn't really played in a lot of jazz voicings.


Thanks this site looks really good.



Mvotre said:


> if you are trying for a jazz band would be better to learn how to build said chords, so you can build your own versions.  Or its not a option??
> 
> if not you can get some of those huge chord dictionaries, or even some online program to help you out!


I know how to build some chords and that does help me but I needed for help in finding alternative fingerings. There are times though where I don't know how to build the chord... quick a few


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## ivancic1al (Oct 26, 2010)

Avant guardian said it best, once you know what notes you need in the chord, and what chord tones that the bass/horn section will be covering, you can fabricate your own sparse/unique voicing, I'd recommend getting a real book or something similar with a lot of jazz standards in it, and playing through a lots of the songs, to get used to practicing your own chord voicings. Best of luck fellow jazzer!


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## Jtizzle (Oct 27, 2010)

There's some really easy movable 7th chords, but when you're playing jazz you go into crazy extensions and substitutions. I would say to use the regular 7th chords and get a teacher that can teach you jazz the right way, so he can explain the chord usage better. Comping in jazz has a lot to do with voice leading, and even when playing chords you should put some sense in what you're playing.

Hell, don't listen to me . Go watch Joe Pass's DVD on solo guitar. He explains chord voicings in a really cool way, and he uses the vi-ii-V-I progression as his example, which is the most common you'll find in Jazz.


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## StratoJazz (Dec 9, 2010)

Like the other posters have mentioned, it would be better to learn the theory on how to construct triads and 7th chords. That combined with an understanding of voice leading, you'll be an unstoppable chord machine.

However, if you need to learn some basic "grips"(which come in handy, especially when you're starting out) here are some popular ones.

In jazz, you'll see the ii-V-I progression *ALOT*. This example will be in C, however it can be transposed anywhere on the neck.

E--------x-----x------x---
B-------10----10-----8---
G-------10----10-----9--- Dm7 ---> G7 ---> Cmaj7
D-------10-----9-----9---
A--------x----10-----x---
E-------10-----x-----8---

Here is another example, it's harder to play, but once you get it, it's incredibly useful.

E------x----x-----x----
B------6----6-----5----
G------5----4-----4---- Dm7 ---> Bm7b5(G9) ---> Cmaj7
D------7----7-----5----
A------5----5-----3----
E------x----x-----x----

Another common progression is iii-VI-ii-V-I. In the Key of C, it would be

Em7 ---> A7 ---> Dm7 ---> G7 ---> Cmaj7

Visualize this simply as a ii-V in D, then a ii-V in C. *However, realize that only the last ii-V resolves.

*-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Try learning voicings that involve triads over bass notes. Ex. C/A is going to give you Amin7. Cm/Ab will give you AbMaj7.

When you start to visualize chords in this way, you can come up with more voicings for one particular chord.

Try inverting C major triad over the bass note A, you can get plenty of voicings that way. You may even find that a lot of your Drop 2 and 3 voicings can be created using this approach.

IF you look at the first tabbed example, you'll see that by applying this approach, that the chords are now:

F/D ---> Bdim/G ---> Em/C

Hey man, hope this helps. Don't hesitate to send me message if you didn't understand something here,
StratoJazz


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## Hybrid138 (Dec 9, 2010)

Thanks for all the tips guys. I know how to make most of the chords in my piece and i learned the others and made inversions of them


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## AcademiaNervosa (Dec 23, 2010)

If you play a dim7 chord and move any of the four notes down by a semitone, you will get a dom7 chord with the moved note as the root. On a six-string guitar there are three different movable shapes for the dim7 chord(based on the low E-, A-, and D-strings), so, by repeating this method, you now have 12 movable shapes for the dom7 chord.


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## kung_fu (Dec 23, 2010)

^^^^
Pat Martino FTW


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## AcademiaNervosa (Dec 23, 2010)

kung_fu said:


> ^^^^
> Pat Martino FTW


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