#1
JAZZ GUITAR CHORD CHART p i c k u p j a z z . c o m
2Edition nd
Copyright © 2016 | Sam Blakelock
Congratulations, your search for a practical chord chart is over. Within the pages of #1 Jazz Guitar Chord Chart (Second Edition), you will find all you need to master jazz guitar chords. Be sure to check out Quick Start Guides to instantly expand your chordal pallete, otherwise browse to any chord type you wish to explore.
This Second Edition is an opportunity for me to add new material and fix a few errors from the first edition, published two years ago. The new ideas and chord shapes you’ll find come directly from my time spent in NYC studying my Master of Music in jazz guitar. I was very lucky to learn from two masters; Paul Bollenback and Lage Lund.
This free eBook is my opportunity to share the knowledge I was generously given. Thanks for reading it, please feel free to share it with your friends!
All the best ~ Sam Blakelock
#1
Copyright © 2016 | Sam Blakelock | pickupjazz.com
JAZZ GUITAR CHORD CHART
Table of Contents I. Key II. Quick Start Guides Top 10 Beginner Jazz Guitar Chords Top 5 Modern Chord Voicings III. Chords
(updated)
Major - Most essential Major Chords *new* - Major Chord Chart
Minor Dominant Altered Dominants Suspended Dominant Half Diminished | Diminished I V. Understanding Chords What is a Chord? 6 Fundamentals of Jazz Guitar Chords *new* What are Rootless/ Multi-Function Chords? How to Construct Minor Chords - Lesson *new* V. Chord Formulas VI. Useful Resources
extra: 10 Turnaround Licks & Chords
Copyright © 2016 | Sam Blakelock | pickupjazz.com
#1
JAZZ GUITAR CHORD CHART
Part I Key Root Note Note Don’t play string Root (don’t play) Numbers indicate which finger to use
3 4
2
1
The Root Note TARGET this white circle on your chosen root note. e.g. this is F# Maj7
#1
Copyright © 2016 | Sam Blakelock | pickupjazz.com
JAZZ GUITAR CHORD CHART
Part II Quick Start Guides
Top 10 Easy Jazz Guitar Chords
Here are my top 10 jazz guitar chord voicings I recommend beginner jazz guitarists learn. These chords will enable you to play almost any jazz standard. Awesome, right? I recommend you have a basic understanding of bar chords before attempting these chords.
maj7
min7
min9
dom9
m7b5 or half diminished
dom13
dim7
dom7#5 or dom7b13
#1
Copyright © 2016 | Sam Blakelock | pickupjazz.com
JAZZ GUITAR CHORD CHART
Part II Quick Start Guides
Top 5 Colorful Jazz Guitar Chords Want some chords with a little zing and zap? I am happy to share with you a few of my secret jazz-guitar-chord-weapons. Swap out plain chords for these ones and you will immediately sound more sophisticated and ‘jazzy’ (if that is a term). open strings
m9 ‘pinky stretch’
Am9 (open string)
You can also use this as a major7 voicing with the relative major chord. e.g with this voicing on Am9, it also works as C maj7. That half-step crunch is now the root and 7th of the maj7 chord. Cool, right?
5th fret stretch that pinky (4th) finger!
The Charmeleon Chord This awesome chord can take on 6 different functions depending on which root note you use
dom13b9
Pick any white diomand as your root note. In RED is the chord you are now playing.
min6
susb9 maj7#11 m7b5 add4
Listen to the b9 , mmm This note is always played but doesn’t have to be the root note.
The Modern Chord
min b13
dom13 dom7#9b13
This is another multi-use chord often used by modern guitarists (and probably over used by me!)
maj7 add9 maj13#11 min11 maj add4 Copyright © 2016 | Sam Blakelock | pickupjazz.com
#1
JAZZ GUITAR CHORD CHART
Part III Chords
Essential Major Chords These 8 chords are the most used major 7 chord chapes. Make sure you know all 8 then move on to the next page.
#1
Copyright © 2016 | Sam Blakelock | pickupjazz.com
JAZZ GUITAR CHORD CHART
Part III Chords
Major Chords major = maj = ∆
maj7
Stretch that pinky (4th) finger!
maj9
maj6
A good rhythm voicing ala Freddy Green
maj69
maj7#5
maj7#11
A very modern sound.
maj7#11 chords use the Lydian Mode.
maj9#11
‘The Modern Chord’
maj69#11
This chord’s function changes depending on which root note you choose. You have three options:
maj9 maj13#11 A Quick Definition of Major Chords
maj add4 add6
A major chord is any chord with a root, major 3rd, and perfect 5th. Major chords may have an added 7th, which must be a major 7th. Common extensions on major chords include a 6, 9, 11, #11, 13th. Common major chords include: C, Cmaj7, C6, Cmaj9, Cmaj7#11, Cmaj69, Cmaj7#5
Copyright © 2016 | Sam Blakelock | pickupjazz.com
#1
JAZZ GUITAR CHORD CHART
Part III Chords
Minor Chords min7
min9 chords are often used instead of min7 chords in jazz.
min9 Bit of a stretch but totally worth it.
Stretch that pinky (4th finger)!
min6
min69
Dorian mode chords
min11
My favourite minor voicing.
min-maj7
min-maj9
‘The Modern Chord’ This chord’s function changes depending on which root note you choose. You have three options:
min7b13 (This root note is played) min11 (this root note isn’t played)
A Quick Definition of Minor Chords A Minor chord is any chord with a root, Minor 3rd, and Perfect 5th. Minor chords may have an added 7th, which may be a Minor 7th or a Major 7th. Common extensions on Minor chords include a 6, 9, 11, Common Minor chords include: Cminor, Cminor7, Cminor9, Cminor11, Cm69, Cminor6 A minor chord cannot have a major 3rd.
Copyright © 2016 | Sam Blakelock | pickupjazz.com
Super hip voicing.
#1
JAZZ GUITAR CHORD CHART
Part III Chords
Dominant Chords A Quick Definition
dom7
A Dominant 7 chord is any chord with a root, major 3rd and b7 (diminished 7th). e.g. C7 = C E G Bb dom9 cho Common extensions on Dominant chords include 9th, 13th and 11. These extensions can be altered to increase the tension on a dom7 chord: for example b9, #9, b13, #11 Common Dominant chords include: C7, C9, C13, C13sus, C7#9, C7b9, C7Alt Dom7 is short for Dominant 7 C7 = C Dominant 7
Same shape as a min7b5 chord.
dom13
My favourite dominant voicing!
#1
Copyright © 2016 | Sam Blakelock | pickupjazz.com
JAZZ GUITAR CHORD CHART
Part III Chords
Altered Dominant Chords b5 = #11 b13 =#5 dom9#11
dom7#11
dom13#11
#11 chords are most often used with the lydian dominant mode. A triad off the 2nd, see it?
dom7b9
dom7#9
HENDRIX CHORD
dom7#5#9
The most common Altered Dominant chord voicing.
dom7#5
The upper part of dom7b9 is a dim7 chord.
dom7#5b9
dom7b9#11
dom13b9
13b9 chords are awesome! Use them with the half-whole diminished scale. You can always move 13b9 voicings up/down minor thirds (just like dim7 chords). Copyright © 2016 | Sam Blakelock | pickupjazz.com
dom7#11#9
A triad off the b5, see it?
#1
JAZZ GUITAR CHORD CHART
Part III Chords
Suspended Dominant Chords dom7sus4
Use sus7 chords with the mixolydian scale.
dom13sus
dom9sus4 dom11
Susb9 Chords susb9
Use susb9 chords with the Susb9 scale - the second mode of the melodic minor.
sus13b9
#1
Copyright © 2016 | Sam Blakelock | pickupjazz.com
JAZZ GUITAR CHORD CHART
Part III Chords
Half-Diminished Chords m7b5
m7b5sus4
m9b5 Use with the Locrian #2 scale. (Way hipper than normal m7b5 chords).
Note: any min6 voicing can be played as a m7b5 voicing (and vise versa). Just play a min6 chord a minor 3rd interval above your m7b5 root. e.g. Bm7b5 = Dm6
Diminished Chords dim7
Use with the whole-half diminished scale.
Note: any notes in a dimished chord can be a root note. Awesome, right? You can also move any dim7 voicing up or down minor thirds (3 frets).
#1
Copyright © 2016 | Sam Blakelock | pickupjazz.com
JAZZ GUITAR CHORD CHART
Part IV Understanding Chords What is a Chord? A chord is created by stacking up notes from your chosen a scale on top of a root note. Cmaj7 e.g you can stack up notes above a C using the C Major Scale to create Cmaj7
The most important notes of any chord are the Guide Tones; the 3rd and 7th. Why? Because those two notes define the chord as either major, minor or dominant. If you keep stacking up notes in thirds onto any chord you create the full, complete chord with all available extensions. Cmaj13 - full chord Can you see the 3rd and 7th (your guide tones)? What other extensions can you see? As guitarists, we can’t play this mega-chord so we pick, chose and rearrange these notes to create jazz guitar chords. Extensions are our colour notes (9,11,13) which add flavor to our guide tones (3,7) and core (root, 5th).
#1
Copyright © 2016 | Sam Blakelock | pickupjazz.com
JAZZ GUITAR CHORD CHART
Part IV Understanding Chords The 6 Fundamentals of Jazz Guitar Chords #1: Jazz Chords: Not Only Used in Jazz Whether you are playing pop, rock, funk or reggae, jazz guitar chords can adapt to virtually any style of music. So even if you aren’t strictly a jazz guitar player, this ebook will be of great value to you.
#2: Rock and Pop Chords: are NOT Used in Jazz The second fundamental is the opposite of #1. Rock and Pop Chords: are NOT NO Used in Jazz You can’t use big clunky pop barre chords, rock power chords, or even simple open string chords in a jazz setting.
#3: Barre Chords = Very Handy For Jazz Although your usual plain barre chords will be out of place in jazz the majority of jazz guitar chords are made by barring the guitar neck with your finger. This means your ability to play simple barre chords is a great start, nice job. Barre Chords = Very Handy For Jazz
#4: Know How To Transpose Chords Transposing means keeping the same chord shape and moving it up or down the neck to a different root note.
#5: Maintain A Chord’s Function, Change its Color A Cmaj7 and a Cmaj9 have the same function but they have a slightly different musical color one has just a major 7th and one has a major 9th, but both are Cmajor chords. But take for example: Cmaj9 and C9: these two chords have a similar color (the 9) but they have different functions and therefore CANNOT be substituted for each other. We don’t have many rules on pickupjazz but here is one for: Swapping Chord Colors is Great! But Never Swap Chord Functions
#6 Build Your Bag of Chords, Know How To Use Them As you develop your ear and your guitar skills, you will develop a bag or repertoire of chords colors that at any time you can pull out on the fly.
#1
Copyright © 2016 | Sam Blakelock | pickupjazz.com
JAZZ GUITAR CHORD CHART
Part IV Understanding Chords Why are some Chords Rootless? Most often the bass player will be playing the root. Removing the root from a chord voicing frees up your fingers to play more interesting upper extensions.
What are Multi-Function Chords? Many of chords in this eBook can take on multipile uses. This means you can play the exact same shape but change the root note to create a totally new chord. e.g. Am9 = Cmaj7
min11 In this chord, you don’t play the root note (diamond), leaving your fingers free to play the b3, b7, 9,11 - much more colorful notes!
These chords share the exact same notes therefore any voicing you know for Am9 can be used for Cmaj7 and vise versa. Wow, suddenly your chordal vocabularly just doubled! Check it out: Amin7 = C6 Amin9 = Cmaj7 Am11 = Cmaj9 Am69 = G#7Alt, Bsusb9, F#m7b5 Amin-maj9 = Any ‘A Melodic Minor’ chord Adim7 = Cdim7, Ebdim7, F#dim7, Ab7b9, D7b9, F7b9 Am7b5 = F9, Cm6 Can you discover any others?
#1
Copyright © 2016 | Sam Blakelock | pickupjazz.com
JAZZ GUITAR CHORD CHART
In this segment you will construct a Minor from the ground up. You’ll start with a single root note, add a triad, add a 7th and finally add some color notes. Step 1. Find Your Root Note The root note is the tonic or home note of a given chord. For example the root note of C Minor 7 is C. Unlike the piano, on the guitar we have many different places to play the same C note. For example:
Step 2. Create Your Triad Chords can be created on top of any root note by stacking up other notes on top of it. Play all these notes at once and you play a chord. The simplest chord is a triad, which you can create by adding two more notes onto your chosen root note. For example:
#1
Copyright © 2016 | Sam Blakelock | pickupjazz.com
JAZZ GUITAR CHORD CHART
Step 3. Expand to a 7th Chord Once you have the foundation of your house (the triad), it is time to add in a fourth note: the 7th (think: the walls and windows). This new note adds further complexity and color to your triad. Whereas triads may sound simple and pure, having that 7th note adds an extra level of harmonic complexity and emotional power. So in order to create a Minor 7th chord, on top of your Minor triad you need to add a ‘Minor 7th note’. For example:
Adding the note Bb above our simple triad creates a Cmin7 chord. The note Bb is a minor 7th interval above the root – C. What if you wanted to create a Minor 6 chord? For min6 chords, substitute a ‘major 6th’ for the Minor 7th. For example, in a Cmin6 we would have the note A on top of our triad.
#1
Copyright © 2016 | Sam Blakelock | pickupjazz.com
JAZZ GUITAR CHORD CHART
How to Construct Minor Chords PAGE 3 How To Read Minor Chord Symbols Minor chords can be written in many different ways. All of these mean the same thing: C Minor 7 CMin7 C-7 CMinor6 = Cm6 CMinor69 = Cm69 CMinor11 = Cm11 C minor-major 7 = Cmin-maj7 Cm7add 4 = Cminor 7th with an added 4th A Clarification: The Difference between Minor7 and Minor 7th difference between a Minor 7th interval It is important you can understand the di and a Minor7 chord. It can be confusing, right? Minor 7th: an interval between two notes. e.g. there is an interval of a Minor 7th between C and Bb. Minor7: Is a 4-note chord, e.g. CMinor7 Chord Minor 7 vs Minor 6 vs Minor 9: What’s the Difference? In lesson 1, ‘The Beginner Guide to Jazz Guitar Chords’, you learned that you the performer have the ability to choose which extensions (or flavor) of chord you would like to play. This harmonic flexibility is what makes Jazz interesting to play and listen too.
#1
Copyright © 2016 | Sam Blakelock | pickupjazz.com
JAZZ GUITAR CHORD CHART
Part V Chord Formulas Below are formulas for every chord type. You should memorize and (more importanly) accustom your ears to each chords unique sound.
#1
Copyright © 2016 | Sam Blakelock | pickupjazz.com
JAZZ GUITAR CHORD CHART
Part VI Useful Resources Congratulations on making it through #1 Jazz Guitar Chord Chart! As an added bonus, I have attached a PDF of 10 Turnaround licks and chord shapes for you to explore. Thank you for downloading my ebook. See you around at pickupjazz.com and remember to keep learning and have fun! ~ Sam Blakelock | pickupjazz.com
#1
Copyright © 2016 | Sam Blakelock | pickupjazz.com
JAZZ GUITAR CHORD CHART
Bonus Material Below you will find a collection of bonus PDF’s on various chordal topics. Enjoy!
‘Autumn Leaves Easy Chords’ ‘Autumn Leaves Small Chords’ ‘Blue Bossa Style Chords’ II V I Shell Chords 10 Jazz Guitar Turnaround Licks
Autumn Leaves Small Chords ° # &
A‹7
D9
GŒ„Š7
CŒ„Š9
™™44 w w ™ 5 ™ 5
w w w
w w
w w w
5 5 4
4 4
3 4 2
¢⁄ F©‹7(b5)
B7(b13)
E‹9
#w w w
nw w w
w w w
™™
8 8 7
7 7 5
7 7 5
™ ™
B7(b13)
E‹9
E7(b9)
#w w w
nw w w
nw #w w
10 9 10
8 8 7
7 7 5
6 7 6
A‹7
D9
GŒ„Š7
CŒ„Š9
° #w w & w 10 9 10
¢⁄ F©‹7(b5)
° #w w & w ¢⁄ # & V V V V
V V V V
V V V V
V V V V
Use the same chord shapes as above F©‹7(b5)
B7(b13)
E‹9
E¨9
D‹9
D¨9
#w w w
n˙˙˙
b˙˙˙
˙˙ n˙
b˙˙˙
8 8 7
7 7 5
7 6 5
5 5 3
5 4 3
° #w w & w 10 9 10
¢⁄ F©‹7(b5)
B7(b13)
E‹9
# & V V V V
V V V V
V V V V
Copyright © 2015 | Pickupjazz
V V V V
Minor 9 Shape White circle is root note. Cm9 = 3rd Fret
Maj7 Shape Dbmaj7 = 4th Fret
m7b5 Shape Dm7b5 = 5th Fret
Fm9 = 8th Fret Ebm9 = 6th Fret
7b13 Shape G7b13 = 3rd Fret
Dom13 Shape Ab13 = 4th Fret
copyright © 2015 pickupjazz.com
II V I Jazz Guitar Chords pickupjazz.com 0010_CH_L
Shell Chord FAQ 3rd 7th
} Shell
Create Your Own
{
{ {
} }
+ Altered Dom
+ Color
Shell II V I
Root (not played)
- Shell = 3rd and 7th of Chord - Root not played - A shell is the core sound of a chord - Can be in any octave. Usually added color extensions are above the 3 + 7.
{
Root 6th String
copyright © 2015 pickupjazz
Root 5th String
10 Jazz Guitar Turnarounds Pickupjazz
B¨Œ„Š7 G‹7
C‹7
° bb 4 ˙ b˙˙ & 4˙ ˙ n˙
F7
˙˙ ˙
B¨Œ„Š7
G‹7
C‹7
˙˙ ˙
10 8 10
¢⁄
8 8
7
° bb ˙ bb˙˙˙ & ˙ n˙ 7 7
8 7 8
9 10 8
C‹7
7 5
F9
8
G7(b9)
C‹7
8 8 7
9 10 9
7
F9
F9
B¨Œ„Š7
œœ w œ b œ œ œ nœ
6
5
8
8
5
8
8
8
C‹7 F9 œ b œ n œ nœ œ œ œ œ # œ œ œ œ œnœ œ œ
8 8 7
G7(b9)
9 10 8
7
7
7
6 7
D‹7(b5)
˙˙ ˙˙ b˙ n˙ 8 8 8
7
6
5
C‹7
6
8
5
6
° b b ˙˙˙ ˙˙ & b ˙ n˙
5
8
œbœ œ œ œ œ œ nœ œ
7
9 10 10
5
5
8
B¨Œ„Š7
¢⁄
D‹7(b5) G7(b9)
8 8
6
˙˙ ˙˙ ˙ n˙ 8 8 8
8
7
8
B¨Œ„Š7 G7(b9)
B¨Œ„Š7
œ 6
7 7
F7
œ w œ œœœ œ œ œ œ œœ œœœœ
8 11 8
9 10
B¨Œ„Š7
w
8
7 10
10 8
7
10 9
¢⁄ 10
B¨Œ„Š7 Bº7
° bb ˙ b˙ & ˙ n˙ n˙ n˙ 7 7
8 7
C‹11 F7(b9)
b˙ b˙˙˙ ˙˙˙ ˙ 6 8 8
¢⁄ 7
7
8
7 8 7 8
B¨Œ„Š7
Bº7
C‹11
F7(b9)
B¨Œ„Š7
bœnœbœ œ b œ n œ œ œ œ œ œ œ w œ œn œ œ 5 5
6
8
6
5 8
5
6 7
Copyright © 2015 | Pickupjazz
8
8
7 9
8
6
5
2
D‹7
D¨º7
C‹11 B7(#11)
° bb ˙˙ n˙ & ˙ bb˙˙
D‹7
b˙˙˙ ˙˙ ˙ ˙ n˙
5 10 10
9 8
6 8 8
10
9
8
6 8 7 7
D¨º7
œœœ
C‹11
B7(#11)
BŒ„Š9
œ œbœnœ œ œnœbœ œ nœbœ œ œ w
6
5 6
5 7
8
6
5
6
6
8
7
6
5
5 7
¢⁄ D7(#9)
D¨9
C‹9
° bb n˙˙ b˙˙ & #˙˙ nb˙˙
B9
D7(#9)
D¨9
C‹9
B9
‰ œJ œ bœ nœ bœ œ œ nœ œ bœ
n˙˙ n#˙˙ n ˙˙ n ˙˙
œ b œ bœ œ œ 3 4
¢⁄
6 5 4 5
4 4 3 4
3 3 1 3
2 2 1 2
6
˙˙ ˙
6 7 7
¢⁄
B¨Œ„Š7
5 6
3
2
4
4
3
6
3
D¨Œ„Š7
G¨Œ„Š7
BŒ„Š7(#11)
B¨Œ„Š7
b œ bœ œ œ œ œ b œ bœ œnœ œ œbœ w ‰ œœ J
6 8 8
10 8 9
4
6
5
˙˙ b˙˙˙ b˙ n˙
6 5
4 3
B¨Œ„Š7 D¨Œ„Š7 G¨Œ„Š7 BŒ„Š7(#11)
° b ˙˙ & b n˙ ˙
4
6 5
7
6
9
7
8
7 8
6
8
6 8
6
8
9
7
D13 n ° b #˙˙˙ &b ˙
D7(b13)
G9(“4)
b ˙˙ ˙ ˙
G7(b9)
C‹9
n˙˙˙ ˙
b ˙˙ n˙˙
˙˙˙ ˙
12 11 10
11 11 10
10 10 10 10
9 10 9 10
8 8 12
10
10
¢⁄ D13
G¨9
bn˙˙ bb ˙˙ 9 9 8 9
F9(“4)
F7(b9)
bn˙˙˙ ˙
b˙˙ n˙˙
8 8 8 8
7 8 7 8
8
D7(b13)
G9(“4)
G7(b9)
C‹9
G¨9
F9(“4)
F7(b9)
œ n œ œ b œ œ œ œ œ œ œb œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ b œ œ œ œ bœ ˙ ° bb ‰ J #œ #œ œ œ˙ œ˙ & 10
10 12
10 11
10 11
10
10 10 8
9
8 11 9
7
8 10 11
9
8 10 11
6
2 4
2 4
7
7
11
¢⁄ Copyright © 2015 | Pickupjazz
4
C‹7 A7(b13) D‹7(b5) G7(b9)
C‹7
A7(#9)
D‹7(b5)
G7(b9)
C‹7
œœ
° bb ˙ #˙˙ n˙˙ ˙ & b ˙ ˙ b ˙˙ n˙˙˙ ˙ n˙
‰ j œ œ j nœ œ œ œ œ œnœ œ #œ J
œ œœœœ ˙
4 3 4 3
¢⁄
6 6 5
6 5 6 5
3
6 4 6 5
3 5
3
5
5
5 3
3
6
6 3 4
4
5 5
6
4
5
C‹9
A7(b13)
° b ˙ & b b ˙˙ ˙ ¢⁄
#˙˙˙ n˙
3 3 1 3
C‹9
6
8
8 6 6 5
G7[äÆ]
b ˙˙ n˙˙
˙˙ n b˙ b˙
6 6 5
6 5 4
5
4
A7[äÆ] A7[áÆ]
° b œ œ nœ #nœœœ &b b nœ 8
A¨13
œœ œœ
œœ œœ
8 6 6 5
6 6 6 5
6 4 4 3
A¨13
G7[äÆ] G7[áÆ]
bbœœ bbœœ bbœœ œ œ nœ n œœ œœ œœ 3 5
4
6 4 4 3
¢⁄
6 4 4 3
C‹9
nœœœœ œ >
4 4 4 3 3
Copyright © 2015 | Pickupjazz
3 4 5 6
˙˙ ™™™ ˙˙ ™ 3 4 5 6