Harmonic Clichés

by Peter Spitzer

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(This article is excertped and adapted from Jazz Theory Handbook by Peter Spitzer.)

Chords support melody not just with tonal color, but also by providing a sense of movement. In this article, we will consider some "harmonic clichés" that account for the vast majority of chord movements in jazz (&cliché" as used here carries no negative connotation). Most of these harmonic devices are found in traditional classical music as well.

You should learn to recognize these progressions by sound, as well as on paper. You can play them yourself, and have someone else play them while you listen and try to identify them. (The CD that accompanies the book from which this article is taken also includes examples of the progressions.)

With each harmonic cliché are listed a few standard tunes that use it. Be sure to check out these tunes; most of them are readily available in fake books.

This article discusses only two common harmonic progressions. See Jazz Theory Handbook for more, including II V I, Circle of fifths within a key, Deceptive cadences, Common tones, and more.

1. V to I

The most fundamental chord movement is from V to I.

The V chord (or V7) produces a feeling of tension, moving to a feeling of rest with the I chord. This tension is caused by the fact that V7 contains an unstable interval, namely the d5 between the third and seventh. The d5 tries to resolve by moving along the half steps of the key, to the root and third of the I chord.

The listener feels a sense of satisfaction when the V resolves to the I. This motion is the basic harmonic driving force in virtually all Western music.

Remember that the only place a dominant seventh chord naturally occurs in a major key is on the V. This means that if you hear a dominant chord, your ear will probably pick it up as a V and expect a resolution to I. (An important exception is in blues, where I and IV could also be dominant.)

Applications to improvising:

• Since the basic force guiding harmony is the feeling of V (tension) to I (rest), your ideas will almost certainly follow the flow of tension and rest in the tune you are playing.
• If you emphasize the tonic note over the V chord (C over a G7 chord), you are sounding the "resolution" note over the tension chord-in a way, contradicting the flow of the progression.
  
  Also, the tonic (C) lies a half step above the third of the V chord (B), and thus is somewhat dissonant.
• Because the V exists to produce tension, usually no harm is done by playing "tension" notes, or extensions (like #9 or b13), over the V. In fact, this only enhances the inherent tension of the V. To say that "anything goes" over the V is basically valid.

The example below shows a possible solo line over a V to I progression, using the tensions b9 (Ab), #9 (Bb) and b13 (Eb) over the V chord. The V chord, as played under the line, could include these tensions, but this is not strictly necessary. You might note that this line relates to an upper structure Eb triad, played over the G7.

2. Circle of Dominants

When a V resolves to its I, the chord roots move up a perfect 4th-for example, G7 to C. This is exactly the motion that you will see as you move clockwise along the circle of fifths (the same as "down a perfect 5th").

Chord roots moving in this way produce a strong, directional sound. If the chords are all dominant, we will hear a chain of resolutions, each V resolving into the next V. Here is an example of "circle of dominants" motion:

Among the countless standards that use this cliché, check out Don Redman's "Gee Baby, Ain't I Good to You" and Duke Jordan's "Jordu."

Application to improvising:

• If you track the thirds and sevenths of each chord in this progression, you will see that they form two lines that descend chromatically. These guide tone lines define the tones that drive the chord sequence. You may want to use the guide tones in a solo; in any case, you should always be aware of them.

Here are the guide tone lines for the above example:

3. II V I

V to I (tension to release) is often prepared with the II chord (neutral-sounding), resulting in a II V I progression. This is a fundamental building block of jazz harmony.

II V I can be used as a phrase ending (cadence), or to establish a new key center. You will also often see II V, moving elsewhere, rather than resolving to I.

In a major key, II V I will look like: m7 dom maj7. In minor, it will look like: m7b5 domb9 minor. If you see one of these sequences, with roots moving along the circle, it will be a II V I.

Here is an example with two II V I sequences in major:

Below is an example with three minor II V sequences, and a surprise resolution to major:

For other examples of II V I in major, see Joe Henderson's "No Me Esqueca," Clifford Brown's "Joy Spring," or David Raksin' s "Laura." For minor II V examples, see Luis Bonfa's "Gentle Rain" or Thelonious Monk's "Round Midnight." Indeed, most jazz standards use this progression in some way. If you feel up for a little educational research, try to find standard tunes similar to the above examples!

Applications to improvising:

• A simple approach to improvising over a II V I is to use the single scale that contains all three chords. For example, over Gm7 C7 Fmaj7, you could use an F major scale. Although this technique is a bit limiting, it can be effective, if you use your ear.
  
• The active ingredient in a II V is the movement of the seventh of the II chord to the third (leading tone) of the V. For example, in Dm7 G7, the active tones are C to B. This is called a "guide tone line." When you are learning to improvise on a tune, try using the guide tones.
  
• Because II V, or II V I, is such an essential building block, musicians often memorize melodic licks for soloing, or chord voicings for "comping" (i.e., accompanying), to fit the progression, practicing them in all 12 keys. For example,
  

This article discusses only two common harmonic progressions. See Jazz Theory Handbook for more, including II V I, Circle of fifths within a key, Deceptive cadences, Common tones, and more.