Stuart Smith
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- An interlude on shorthand and anomalous notations
Basic chord typesThe harmonic vocabulary of jazz consists of seven basic types of chords together with some “tension” notes and alterations. As in traditional harmony, jazz chords are built up in thirds from a root pitch; however, in jazz each basic chord consists of four different tones (bare major and minor chords are used sparingly in jazz, but they are common in current pop music.) The seven basic chord types are the following: Major seventh 
Sixth 
Minor sixth 
Minor seventh 
Dominant seventh 
Diminished seventh 
The use of accidentals is often haphazard in jazz, and enharmonic spellings abound. It is rare to find a double sharp or double flat when these would be the correct accidentals. In the chord on the right above, for example, A replaces the Bê which would be the correct spelling of this note. Half-diminished seventh 
These seven chord types are sufficient to account for all of the distinct harmonic functions found in jazz. Here are the basic diatonic jazz chords in C major: 
The list of basic diatonic chords in C minor is considerably longer because of the possibility of using either the natural or raised sixth and seventh scale degrees in minor: 
Note that EëmajÏ…Í is not included in this list even though it is diatonic. The reason is that in jazz harmony as presented here, any chord containing an augmented fifth is considered to be an altered chord rather than a basic chord. For a complete list of all of the basic jazz chords, see Appendix A: Jazz Chord Dictionary. An interlude on shorthand and anomalous notationsSeveral shorthand and anomalous chord notations are in common use: Sometimes a shorthand notation is used for chords with tensions. For example, CÑ denotes a CÏ chord with added major ninth; CÉË denotes a CÏ chord with added major thirteenth; CmajÑ denotes a CmajÏ chord with added major ninth; CmÑ denotes a CmÏ chord with added major ninth. The diminished seventh chord is indicated with the „ symbol or dim. C„Ï and CdimÏ, for example, both denote the chord C EÓ GÓ BÒ. This usage does not follow the rules given above, but it is standard practice. The half-diminished seventh chord is often indicated with the ƒ symbol. CƒÏ, for example, denotes the chord C EÓ GÓ BÓ. This usage does not follow the rules given above. This is apparently the reason that the mÏÓÍ notation for the half-diminished seventh chord has become standard: this notation follows the rules. On the other hand, mÏÓÍ suggests that the designated chord has an altered (i.e., lowered) fifth. This is often not the case since the half-diminished seventh chord is diatonic in both the major mode (as VII) and minor mode (as II). The dominant seventh chord with augmented fifth is sometimes indicated as, for example, C+Ï. This notation puts the alteration of the fifth, +, before the Ï instead of after. This notation is common and musicians are not confused by it. Download 1.17 Mb. Share with your friends:
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