Only do this to a major 7 or minor 7 chord when it's the I chord.įREE RESOURCE: You can download my free ‘ Chord Symbol Reference Guide' which shows you ALL types of jazz chord on one page. In fact, you can ‘reharmonize’ any song and play a 6th chord instead of the 7th chord that’s written. In each of these chords, the 6th is played instead of the 7th (not in addition to the 7th).Ħth chords function the same way as 7th chords, but they have a softer sound. There are just two types of 6th chord that exist - major 6 chords and minor 6 chords: In addition to these 7th chords, 6th chords are sometimes used in place of a 7th chord. Here are the 6 types of 7th chord which exist:Ĭ major 7 (C E G B), can be written as ‘ CΔ’, ' C maj 7’, ‘ C ma 7’.Ĭ minor 7 (C Eb G Bb), can be written as ‘ C-7’, ’ Cm7’, ’ C min 7’, ‘ C mi 7’.Ĭ dominant 7 (C E G Bb), written as ‘ C7’.Ĭ half-diminished (C Eb Gb Bb), written as ‘ Cø’, ‘ C min 7 b5’, ‘ C-7b5’.Ĭ diminished 7 (C Eb Gb A), written as ‘ C✧’Ĭ minor-major 7 (C Eb G B), written as ‘ C min Δ’, ‘ C-Δ’. At the bottom of it all, there’ll always be a simple type of 7th chord. Virtually all types of jazz chord boil down to a 7th chord at their core.Ĭhord extensions can always be added (9ths, 11ths, 13ths) but these are just decoration on top.

The difference between 6th and 13th chords explained! ('C6' vs 'C13'). How to add chord extensions on top of these 6 chords (9ths, 11ths, 13ths).

The 6 types of chord that jazz is made of. Arrangers and non-pianists can also benefit from knowing these chords.In jazz, there are just 6 types of chord that really exist, and every complicated-looking chord can be boiled down to one of these simple chords at its foundation: Band directors could also give these handouts as a reference to their jazz pianists to help them learn to voice chords. For instance, a jazz pianist in a jazz band or jazz combo could keep these two handouts with the rest of their music for when they need to figure out how to voice a chord. In reality, you should know more than 1-2 voicings for each chord, but this handout is a solid reference for jazz pianists in need of some good voicings. Those left-hand voicings are useful when the pianist is 1) soloing with their right hand, 2) playing the melody, or when they are 3) playing bass lines in their left hand (like a jazz organist). The first handout is the Encyclopedia of Two-Hand Voicing. This handout is the second in a two-part series of reference voicings for the jazz pianist. This is an short “encyclopedia” with 1-2 voicings for most of the chords jazz pianists are likely to encounter. Two-Hand piano voicings are essential for jazz pianists when comping behind melodists and soloists.

Jazz piano chord charts