BeBop Study: Lesson 2 Chord Tones And Diatonic Passing Tones Minor 7 Chords When you are improvising over a progression you are using the harmony as a road map for your ideas. In BeBop the chords and harmony can move very quickly and change keys often. These different approaches are a great way to use BeBop vocabulary over a series of chord changes. Nothing outlines and spells out the harmony more so than the Chord Tones. Only using Chord Tones would become very boring and predictable so the BeBop guys found a system of approaching these Chord Tones using a series of Scale and Chromatic notes. Throughout these lessons we will be exploring each of the Chords you will commonly find in Jazz and BeBop standards along with common turnarounds and cadences such as the II V I and the actual progressions based on the standards themselves. We will be approaching the Chord Tones from each of these chords by using Scales Tones/Passing Tones and Chromatic notes. Lesson 2 will focus on approaching the Chord Tones to the Minor 7 Chord from a scale degree above. We will be practicing these lessons in 3 different ways. For the Minor 7 Chord we will be using the Dorian Chord Scale. Scale Degree to chord Tone 2-1, 4-b3, 6-5 and 1-b7

 

Step 1 Single String Firstly we are going to study these Scale Degree From Above To Chord Tone Approaches across each single string on our instrument. I am demonstrating this over a C Minor 7 Chord but I want you to do this for all 12 Keys. There is no point being more comfortable in one key more than another so it’s really important to treat each key with the same amount of importance. All I want you to do is start from the lowest available Chord Tone and work up in order until you reach the highest Scale Degree From Above To Chord Tone Approach then descend back down the string. If we were thinking of the E String, our lowest chord tone for C-7 would be a G on the 3rd fret. We would approach that from the A on the 5th fret, next we would approach the Bb (6th fret) from the C on the 8th fret and so on. It is important to be able to do this on each string ascending from the lowest up to the highest without any mistakes and without stopping. Please note that this is NOT a technical exercise it is more of an Ear Training exercise. It will also get you playing this Approach Pattern in every position on the instrument. If you do make any mistakes just start the exercise again from the lowest string. Also, I recommend doing this whilst playing a sustained related Minor 7 chord or a drone from the Root of the chord. It’s very important to be able to hear the approach in context. Once you are comfortable with this exercise in all keys move on to Step 2. Step 2 Improvising over the whole range of the instrument Now that you have the sound of the approach in your ears and have it technically under your fingers it’s important to now improvise patterns using this approach pattern all over your instrument across all strings.

 

• I basically want you to be free with this concept and just try to be as musical as possible.

• Try experimenting with different orders of Chord Tones. • Start from a slow tempo and increase the increments until you reach a faster more

challenging tempo. • Play along with a sustained related Drone or Minor 7 chord. • Practice in all Keys. • Move on to Step 3.

Step 3 Improvise over a Cycle 5 Minor 7 Chord sequence For the final step I want you to practice this approach pattern over a Cycle 5 Minor 7 Chord Sequence. I have made an mp3 available for you to practice along with. Start from a slow tempo and increase the increments until you reach a faster more challenging tempo. Once you are comfortable with this move on to the next Approach To Chord Tone Lesson.