tips & tricks for the rhythmically & harmonically-challenged
Posts tagged Autumn Leaves
Analyses of Minor Key Songs
Jan 31st
Who would have thought that the coming Chinese New Year has brought some inspiration to my current blog post! Well, to be specific it’s the little ditty which I know only as “Gong Xi, Gong Xi, Gong Xi Ni-ah! Gong Xi, Gong Xi, Gong Xi Ni!”
And the reason I’m writing about this is because it’s in minor key! Have a look at my transcribed lead sheet with a lightly jazzed up chord progression:
And here’s a little jazzy rendition of the piece:
Gong-Xi-Gong-XiA quick scan and listen to the song will uncover that the melody is clearly from the harmonic minor scale and so are the accompanying chords. So we can safely say that this piece is a classic example of a song composed in the harmonic minor key. It’s also very interesting to note that a supposedly festive and celebratory tune is written in a minor key, which is usually reserved for a more solemn and darker mood.
Chords used are the Imi (Ami), IVmi7 (Dmi7), IImi75b (Bmi7b5), V7 (E7) and bVIma7 (Fma7). These are actually very common chords in pop and simple jazz tunes. The major key equivalent would be I, IVma7, IImi7, V7 and VImi7. When looked from this perspective, learning chords and chord progressions in minor keys are not that daunting, right?
Let’s look at another song in minor key: Oasis’ “Wonderwall” (Sheet music and video clip used here are for educational purposes only.)
The original key of this piece is F#minor, specifically in F# Natural Minor. All the melody notes and chords are generated from this scale. The chord progression is in 2-bar phrases and these are repeated a number of times.
Here are the chord phrases used:
Intro:Imi-bIII-bVII-Imi (x4)
Pre-Verse: Imi-bIII-bVII-Imi (x3)
bVIma7-bVII-Imi
Verse 1/2: Imi-bIII-bVII-IVmi (x4)
Pre-Chorus: bVI-bVII-Imi (x2)
bVI-bVII-bIII-Imi-IVmi
Chorus: bVI-Imi-bIII-Imi (x3)
bIII-bIII6 (1st ending)[Repeat from Verse 2]
bIII-Imi (2nd ending)
bVI-Imi-bIII-Imi (x5)
bVI-Imi-bIII-Imi (x7)
bVI-Imi-bIII-Imi
So far, both pieces have remained within the appropriate minor scales.
Finally, let’s take a look at a minor composition that employs the natural and melodic minor keys. (Lead sheet and short music clip here for educational purposes only.)
I play a simple ballad arrangement here so that you can hear the movement of the chords and main minor melody line:
Autumn-LeavesThe song is in the key of E minor. Just by looking at the melody of the song, we can see that it uses a combination of the scales of E natural minor (second line, 1st bar melody notes C & D) and E melodic minor (second line, 3rd bar melody notes C# & D#).
But because jazz standard tunes can usually be broken down to II-V-I chord progressions, the first four chords, i.e. Ami7-D7-Gma7-Cma7 actually form the IImi-V7-Ima7-IVma7 of Key of G major (the relative of E minor); and the F#mi7b5-B7-Emi is the IImi7b5-V7-Imi of Key of E minor. Hence, you hear the fluidity of the melody notes moving from natural minor (or related major) to melodic minor and back and forth.
So learn up all three minor scales and their diatonic chords and play some great music today!
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Jazz Up Your Rhythms – Rhythmically Rephrasing Melody Lines
Jun 11th
This time around I would like to tackle one of the more important elements in playing a jazz tune, that is, to rhythmically rephrase an existing melody.
If you play from lead sheets, you will often notice that the melody line to a number of jazz standards usually consists of quarter and half notes, e.g. Autumn Leaves. This is because these lead sheets were mainly conceived for the singer, who is given the basic shape of the melody, without constraining how the singer would like to phrase the line. Likewise, other instrumentalists are free to explore the rhythms and contours of the melody.
This is how Autumn Leaves sounds without any rhythmic enhancement:
Autumn-Leaves-(original-lead-line)
When we start interpreting the piece, especially in swing style, we need to “jazz up” the rhythmic aspect of the melody. The most basic approach to this would be to apply anticipations and delayed attacks. [For a thorough discourse on anticipations, please go to my previous posts here and here.]
A delayed attack (DA) is just the opposite of an anticipation. Instead of pushing the beat ahead, you pull back, according to the rhythmic feel of the song, i.e. in 8ths or 16ths, straight or rolled, or even laying back as long as a quarter note sometimes.
With that in mind, let’s jazz up the melody of Autumn Leaves!
Take note of the analyses — how I mix the bag up by using anticipations and delayed attacks, and also shortening or holding on to notes.
On this first take, I maintain the 4-to-the-bar left hand comping pattern as in the earlier example, so you can hear how the melody line now differs with the application of a few rhythmic tweaks here and there 
On the second take, I play a simple walking bass line in my left hand, while playing the melody and light chord-comping in my right.
Autumn-Leaves-(rhythmic-lead-performance)Rhythmically rephrasing melody lines is an essential part of interpreting jazz. Remember you don’t have to constantly anticipate or delay the attack of a note — as the example shows, some notes are played as is while others get rhythmically modified. Sometimes singing or vocalizing the melody helps us make the phrasing of the line much smoother and less mechanical. Give it a try!
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Harmonic Rhythm – The Natural Flow of Chord Changes
Mar 18th
Hmm…the blog post title sounds like a mashup of my two favorite musical elements! Well, it is…but leaning more towards the rhythmic aspects of when and where chords move. In other words, harmonic rhythm refers to the rate of chord change or how often one chord progresses to another.
Most songs or compositions are written in a form in which the total number of bars is divisible by two. Hence, we naturally tend to hear and feel music in 2-bar phrases. For example, a standard 32-bar song form can be thought of as a structure of four sections with eight bars each. Refer to the lead sheet of “Autumn Leaves below”:
This torch song has a classic A-A-B-C form, where each letter represents an 8-bar phrase. Within this 8-bar phrase, we can further subdivide it into a 4-bar phrase and then a 2-bar unit. The odd-numbered bars within each 8-bar phrase, i.e. Bars 1, 3, 5 & 7, are considered strong bars while the even-numbered ones, i.e. Bars 2, 4, 6 & 8, are considered weak bars, hence, forming a “Strong-Weak, Strong-Weak, Strong-Weak, Strong-Weak” dichotomy within the 8-bar musical phrase. This means that a chord on a weak bar will always have a natural pull back to a strong bar, or a tendency to move towards or resolve into a chord in the strong bar.
This is why it is common to see II-V-I progressions that fall on a 4-bar “Strong-Weak-Strong-Weak” phrase. Chords I and II are commonly found on odd-numbered or strong bars, while the V7 chord with its natural need to resolve is usually found on the weak bars.
Examples from “Autumn Leaves” are the following progressions: Ami7/// D7/// Gma7/// //// and F#mi7(b5)/// B7/// Emi/// ////. You will also notice the duration of each chord before it changes, i.e. Chords II and V have the exact same number of beats (4 beats each) while Chord I usually has twice as many (8 beats).
This principle also holds true when the phrase breaks down to a basic 2-bar unit. A II-V-I progression within a 2-bar phrase usually sees Chords II and V getting two beats each while Chord I lasts for four beats. Within a 2-bar phrase, Beats 1 and 5 are the strong beats, while Beats 3 and 7 are the weak beats. Refer to the lead sheet of “Blue Moon” above.
Two-bar phrase examples from “Blue Moon” are the following progressions: Fmi7/ Bb7/ Eb/// in Line 5 and Abmi7/Db7/ Gb/// in Line 6. You will also notice the duration of each chord before it changes, i.e. Chords II and V have the exact same number of beats (2 beats each) while Chord I usually has twice as many (4 beats).
This applies to all contemporary music. It is common for chords to change every two beats within a 4/4 bar or measure, or sometimes a chord may last for a whole bar or two. Refer to Daniel Powter’s “Bad Day” below:
The 2-bar phrase with its harmonic rhythm is consistent with the “Strong-Weak” concept that we have been discussing, i.e., Eb5/Absus2/ Bbsus///, the chords on Beats 1 & 3 last for two beats each, while on Beats 5, the chord duration is twice as long, four beats.
For music in 3/4 time, it is very common to see a chord lasting for a whole bar, or if there are two chords, they will always be placed on Beat 1 and Beat 3. Refer to Miles Davis’ version of’ “Someday My Prince Will Come” above:
The whole piece has only chord changes on every first beat of the bar, except for one. Look at the last line: the first chord Cmi7 on F bass lasts for two beats and changes to F7 on Beat 3. Also check out this classic A-B-A-C form in terms of its harmonic rhythm. The “Strong-Weak” principle is strictly adhered to.
Occasionally, you will come across some pieces that break this “Strong-Weak” rule of harmonic rhythm. However, this does not happen consistently and eventually “rights” itself along the way. For example, take a look at the very popular “Fly Me to the Moon” below:
The progressions: Ami7/// Dmi7/// G7/// Cma7/ C7/ and Fma7///Bmi7(5)///E7///Ami7/A7/. The G7 and E7 chords in both these 4-bar phrases are definitely prominently on the strong bars while the resolution chords Cma7 and Ami7, respectively, are on the weak bars. Furthermore, both dominant 7th chords occupy four beats to their counterparts’ two – truly a reverse of what we have learned. These are occasional exceptions to the rule.
You will notice that eventually at the close of the 4-bar phrase, the C7 (on the weak bar and beat) does resolve to the FMa7 on the strong bar, and so does the A7 to the Dmi7. The following next two four-bar phrases “right” themselves by employing the natural harmonic rhythms: Dmi7/// G7/// Cma7/// Emi7/ A7/ and Dmi7/// G7/// Cma7/// Bmi7(b5)/ E7/.
So make the most of this knowledge that you have about harmonic rhythms and ensure that your chord changes fall on the correct places within the bar!
(All music sheets used here are only for educational purposes.)
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Top 5 Pieces For a Beginner Jazz Pianist
Nov 12th
Learning how to play jazz piano for the first time is exciting yet very intimidating if one starts with the wrong songs. Selecting pieces that are melodically pleasing, rhythmically simple, harmonically easy (as in the chord changes) and all structured within a straightforward form is very important if a beginner jazz pianist is to gain any significant performance result.
Hence, the following pieces all comprise the elements just mentioned above and, in my opinion, are very suitable for any novice jazz player. Interestingly, these pieces will eventually have to be among the standard tunes in any true jazzer’s repertoire.
The five songs are: (listed in alphabetical order)
- 1. Autumn Leaves: Beautiful melody in simple rhythms; II-V-I chord changes in the key of G major and its relative E minor; 32-bar AABC form. This is a “must know” jazz standard, often played in ballad and/or medium swing style. It is also common to find this song represented in G minor.
2. Blue Bossa: Descending melody line with lightly syncopated latin rhythms; II-V-I in C minor and Db major; 16-bar AB form. This piece is great in two ways: it is a great introduction to bossa nova style and also chord changes in minor key.
3. Fly Me to the Moon: Another beautiful descending melodic line with a rhythm that can be interpreted in swing or latin; mainly diatonic and related chords from C major; another 32-bar ABAC form. An old Sinatra favorite and, of course, repopularized by Michael Buble, this song not only has a catchy melody, but the chord progression also moves beautifully in the cycle of fifths.
4. So What: Simple modal melody in the bass in flowing 8th rhythms; D Dorian modal chords; classic 32-bar AABA, starting with 16 bars of D Dorian, moving up a half step to 8 bars of Eb Dorian and back to the last 8 bars of D Dorian again. Miles Davis’ popular piece is an excellent thesis in modal studies. The beginner will learn the concept of “less is more.”
5. Summertime: A classic Gershwin blues melody in simple rhythms; mainly diatonic and related chords of D minor; 16-bar AB form. Another great minor piece and also a “must know,” with a bluesy tinge. There is an opportunity to learn about line clichés and applying them to chords Imi and IVmi.
For each song, learn the melody and play through its chord progression. Pay attention to the form and structure of the song. If possible, commit all these to memory. It will be well worth the effort and time and you will appreciate knowing the song inside out, especially once you start the improvisational aspect of jazz piano-playing!
I have been teaching piano for more than 20 years. Although classically-trained, I have always loved contemporary music. I grew up in a household filled with all types of music, from classical to jazz, Pavarotti to Sinatra, Goldberg to Grusin, pop, rock, etc. Currently residing in Singapore, I conduct private piano lessons in pop and jazz music to students of all ages, ranging from music enthusiasts, piano teachers to professional musicians. I also write a blog especially for pianists who find themselves rhythmically and harmonically challenged, and also on other interesting music and piano-related stuff.
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