Free Jazz Piano Lesson #30: 3-Part ii-V-i Voicings

Please check out my series on 2-part shell voicings before continuing this lesson.  Many questions you have may be easily answered there.  Check out the 10 etudes and exercises here Complete List of Free Jazz Piano Lessons.

In my previous lessons on jazz shell voicings, we used only two notes per voicings.  The voicings contained two out of three of the most essential identifying notes of each chord.  These notes are the root, third, and seventh.  The root remains played in each chord because it is the most essential tone when identifying chord quality.


In this week's lesson we are going to update our knowledge of shell voicings by adding a single note to each voicing.  The rule we will follow is simple.  If a voicing does not contain the seventh of the chord, add the seventh.  If the voicing does not contain the third, add the third.  That's it!  Simple right?  Check out the free .pdf and play through the exercise for a more full understanding of how this works.

I'm a firm believer that jazz voicings do not have to be complicated to be effective.  The more notes you add to a voicing, the more you put yourself (or another soloist) in a box while improvising.  Practice improvising over tunes while utilizing two and three-part voicings.  I guarantee you will become a better linear improvisor.  You're basically forced to!

I have included tips for practice within the .pdf of this free jazz piano lesson.  Don't be afraid to also try any of the suggestions I have given in previous lessons.  Enjoy and thanks for watching.

Free Jazz Lesson #30:  .View the free .pdf here.
YouTube Link:  Free Video Jazz Lesson #30 "3-Part Shell Voicings"