The Complete Jazz Theory Course - Jazz Chords/Scales & More

Discover how to color minor seven chords: add the 9th (often omitted), the 11th (F in C) with a b5 form Cm7b5 (half-diminished), and the 6th (A) with b6 (Ab).

Explore major scale modes from C major form chords. Ionian to Cmaj7; Dorian to Dmin7; Phrygian to Emin7; Lydian to Fmaj7; Mixolydian to G7; Locrian to B half diminished.

Explore the 2-5-1 progression in jazz, linking dorian, mixolydian, and ionian modes to minor seven, dominant seven, and major seven chords, with key examples in C and E.

Discover common jazz progressions beyond 2-5-1, such as 5-1, 1-6-2-5 with A7 substitution for Am7, 3-6-2-5, 1-2-3-4, and 1-4, plus the v of v pattern circling the circle of fifths.

Explore jazz chord progressions, including 2-5-1 and 3-6-2-5 patterns, with practical examples from Satin Doll, Take the A Train, and Yesterdays, and learn circle of fifths insights.

Explore improvising over a 2-5-1 in c, identifying avoid notes on major 7th chords and using dorian, mixolydian, lydian, and ionian scales to create tensions and resolutions.

The lecture explains natural, harmonic, and melodic minor scales, their links to major keys and leading tones, and their use in harmony and jazz improvisation.

Explore melodic minor harmony through the first mode, forming a C minor major seventh chord from 1st, 3rd, 5th, and 7th notes, learn its substitute in II-V progressions and improvisation.

Explore how the fourth mode of melodic minor builds lydian dominant harmony, producing 7#11 chords like F7, and learn to improvise over them using the mode from melodic minor.

The 6th mode of melodic minor runs from a to a and fits half diminished chords. Known as locrian #2, it has a natural 9th for improvising over half-diminished harmony.

Explore D half-diminished voicings in a 2-5-1 progression and learn to think key, not chord, since the same voicing works across chords in the melodic minor key.

Explore the diminished harmony across whole-step and half-step scales, building F diminished from root, minor third, diminished fifth, and diminished seventh, and apply voicings to 7b9 chords.

Used sparingly in jazz harmony, there are two 6-note whole tone scales, and they yield chords like C7#5 or C7#11#5.

Explore how the blues scale, a minor pentatonic with a #4 passing note, uses C and F blues scales and relates to pentatonic choices on jazz progressions.

Learn bebop scales: dominant, dorian, mixolydian, major, and melodic minor, and how chromatic passing notes on the beat deepen the C7 and II–V harmony.

Explore slash chords, where a triad or seventh chord over a bass note creates voicings and tense colors; analyze examples like E/F and C/D to reveal alterations and sus chords.

Explore scales that fit slash chords, such as C/C and Db/C, pairing major triads over bass with modes like lydian, dorian, and altered; build a practical scale table.

Learn reharmonization techniques using tritone substitution and chromatic root motion in a 2-5-1 progression. Apply on the spot or ahead of time.