Here is a reference chart that lays out the notes and intervals for the g altered scale in comparison to the g mixolydian scale. Below you can find a selection of downloadable pdf files containing the. The easiest way to play altered scales hear and play. A scale is a series of notes pitches arranged from lowest to highest. Chord symbols implying the altered scale are g7alt. This pdf contains a minor 251 line transcribed from a chet baker recording.
Altered scale in e is a minor scale with flat second, flat fourth and flat fifth intervals. The easiest way to play the altered scale is to move up a half step from the established root and play the melodic minor scale. The only problem is that many players approach this sound with the same old scales and licks every time. This website uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website. T he dominant chord is one of the most versatile chords in the jazz repertoire, and its your best bet for adding harmonic tension and melodic interest to your lines. Really, any dominant chord resolving down a fifth g7 to c major can take the altered scale. Understanding scale degrees lets look at the c major scale. According to the broadest definition any chord with a nondiatonic chord tone is an altered chord, while the simplest use of altered chords is the use of borrowed chords, chords borrowed from the parallel key, and the most common is the use of. There are four common chords that you have to deal with. The lydian scale is the brightest of all the church modes, and has a distinct, modern flavor over a i. But not any kind of d it needs to be sharped or raised. When we change to c dominant scale, we change the 7th to a b7.
Transforming this often misunderstood scale from a mundane theory exercise into an invaluable melodic tool that you can start using in every solo. Remember, thats the other way you can think of the c altered scale as the db melodic scale from c to c. In essence, we are trying to retain any notes from one chord scale to the next successive chord scale. And this can get pretty boring thats why today were going to show you one of the most powerful techniques for.
Remember, if youre looking at a major scale, lower scale degrees 3, 6, and 7 to get the min. It is played over a v7 chord and is an interesting scale because every note that can be altered, is altered. The key to playing altered passing chords hear and play. F major in the key of c, but the lydian mode can also work well over a i chord. Altered chords are a special category of chords that as the name implies alter other chords. George shows you how to finger these on the piano and explains how altered harmony is a much more expressive device and compares and contrasts the altered scales with regular scales. Learn and improve your knowledge and skills with these youtube videos and mini classes. The altered mode is used over a v7alt chord or just a regular v7.
The use of the altered scale is by no means limited to where a chart explicitly calls for it. The above pentatonics can be altered by raising or lowering one member of the scale. Heres the correct way to spell the c altered scale the notes will essentially sound the same as the ones above just spelled to take into account the db melodic minor scale, ascending. This means that it comprises the three irreducibly essential tones that define a dominant seventh chord, which are root, major third, and minor seventh and that all other chord tones have been altered. G7 sharp 5, of c7 flat 9, etc use the altered scale with the same root note as the dominant chord, e. This is a favorite of stevie ray vaughn, billy gibbons, eric clapton and other blues players. Altered pentatonic scales play piano scales in all keys. Piano chord voicings for jazz combo the pianist has a few functions in a jazz combo. That lets me know this chord will have some kind of d in it. If you have any questions, comments or suggestions for topics or how i can make the lessons better then please let me know. That will be the major scale youll need to know 2 then basically raise the first and last notes of that major scale to get your altered scale.
The abbreviation alt for altered used in chord symbols enhances readability by reducing the number of characters otherwise needed to define the chord and avoids the confusion of multiple equivalent complex names. This is a very widely used scale thats worth exploring in a little bit more depth. Since it as its name applies contains many alteration it of used to create colour and supplies a great structure for colourful chords which well learn to build once were familiar with the scale. Plain dominant th chord th chord functions the same as a 7th chord in terms of progression. The most common scales when playing the piano, are major and minor scales. For example, altered locrian b4 that is identical to the locrian. Transcribing from solos is the most effective way to learn to improvise. Because each of these altered chords suggests a certain unique harmony, each demands a different scale to be used for each chord. Altered scales are used predominantly by jazz musicians to produce interesting tensions while improvising over dominant seventh chords. Pretty much the same letter as the 2nd tone of the scale shortcut d. Heres a simple cliche bebop melody that uses an altered scale the 7th mode. Here is the scale written out for an altered c7 chord. Notes, intervals and relations to other scales in the database. The chord most closely associated with this scale is em7b5.
Combe was debussys disciple and helped transcribe his new compositions as he played. Compare this to the dominant 7th chord with the scale steps 1 3 5 b7 this scale is sometimes referred to as the dominant 7th scale. A mode is a scale created by establishing a new root note within any preexisting scale. Starting from any key on the piano you can play a scale. The locrian scale emerged in the ancient greece together with other scales such as aeolian and dorian. In jazz, the altered scale or altered dominant scale is a sevennote scale that is a dominant. Altered scales contain the same notes as jazz minor scales played a semitone higher, so you only really have to learn one to play the other. Actually it is the 5th mode of the ascending melodic minor scale and otherwise known as aeolian dominant mode.
You can easily see them as 7 white keys, and 5 black. Cs relative minor pentatonic scale, a minor pentatonic, begins on the 6 th scale degree of the major pentatonic scale shown above. Why scales are important if you want to learn music. The altered scale also known as the super locrian, diminished wholetone, and dimwhit scale. Sep 26, 2016 thats why today were going to show you one of the most powerful techniques for playing v7 chords like a pro the altered scale. An altered chord is a chord in which one or more notes from the diatonic scale is replaced with a neighboring pitch from the chromatic scale. Altered modes, the specific case of the bartok scale. The two cases in question are the altered scale and the bartok scale. Rich perry had me practice using a couple notes of the altered scale by going through tunes and selecting pairs of altered notes to play on every chord as in the example below. As always you can download the examples as a pdf here. The altered scale is an excellent way to gain access to all of altered tensions of a dominant chord.
You could make up your own pairs selecting from the altered tensions. Piano guide learn how to play piano tutorials, guides. Melodic minor modes and altered scale the jazz piano site. In the previous article we started studying two particular cases among altered modes. The reason for the variation of the scale to include the word super is because the scale is altered five times compared to the major scale. First, he comps for, and interacts with, other players as they solo. This scale is a great option when playing dominant v7 chords that resolve down a fifth to a minor chord such as c7 to a f7.
Now, we are going to construct the scale for c minor 7th. The names were taken from regions or people the locrians once lived in central greece. The 16 most important scales in jazz updated learn. To my wife merry and our daughters eileen and suelynn the material of chapter one originated from my notes on how the late mlle. Therefore, he needs two different types of voicings. In jazz, the altered scale or altered dominant scale is a sevennote scale that is a dominant scale where all nonessential tones have been altered. Remember that altered modes are those built from a scale that is not major. This is the most important factor in choosing the best chord scale. If you want to study the examples i went over in the lesson you can of course also download them as a pdf here. The altered scale is actually a mode of melodic minor.
The natural minor scale is the naturally occurring diatonic scale with no altered scale degrees or added accidentals. The major 3rd helps to define either a dominant 7 or major chord sound. There are, for example, altered dominant seventh chords with a flattened or a sharp fifth. Compared to the locrian scale, the fourth is flatted and that the reason for this scale also being called altered locrian b4. One of the most widely used scales in jazz is the altered scale. Being able to construct a wide range of chords and voicings is an essential skill for the jazz pianist. C blues scale 6 notes c,eb,f,gb,g,bb 1,b3,4,b5,5,b7 v. The easiest way to play altered scales hear and play music. There is a scale called the altered scale which is a mode of the melodic minor and contains all these chord tones and will therefore work over any altered dominant chord. Altered scales include one or more notes that is lowered or raised compared to its main variation. Altered scale how to play and use it in your jazz improvisation. We already said, in the article melodic minor scale that altered scale of a chord can be made through a melodic minor scale one tone above this chord.
Diminished harmony chords that suggest diminished harmony also suggest the use of the diminished scale. The g altered scale contains the notes g ab bb b db eb f in example 3 i have taken each of these notes and let it resolve to a note on a c major chord, so ab resolves to g, eb to e or d etc etc. Altered scales are often used over altered seventh chords, e. Piano guide learn how to play piano tutorials, guides and. Many times, the melody may not give any clues in determining the best chord scale choice. It is crucial to both play these chords on the piano and spend a good deal of time.
Hindu the hindu scale is like a mixolydian scale with a b6. After having explored the first one in the previous installment, today well study the second one. The pdf below contains the melody written out in all the keys, but of. So if i want to play a c altered scale, what do i do. If you play it in a c major context you can probably hear it. The mixolydian scales are very easy to learn as you can see by comparing them with the major scales. Do you wish you knew some more interesting scales to use over them. Practicing altered dominant chords and scales youtube. There are almost limitless numbers of things you can do with a diminished scale, a topic for another discussion. This public document was automatically mirrored from pdfy original filename. Scales for jazz improvisation national jazz workshop. Dec 23, 2015 use the altered scale with the same root note as the dominant chord, e. Guitar scales guitar scales regardless what instrument you play, learning to play scales is a rite of passage.
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