Lesson: Jazz Improvisation with Major Seven Chords

In this lesson, we're going to put together the work we've done on major seven chords, seventh chords, and minor seventh chords. We will apply these concepts into two contrasting tunes and explore their practical use.

Tune 1: Pearly White

Overview

• The first tune is called Pearly White.
• It's based on "Mack the Knife" by Kurt Weill, made famous by Frank Sinatra and various crooner-type singers.
• The tune itself is very simple, consisting of two eight-bar sections that I've labeled A and B.
• Overall, it forms a 16-bar structure that repeats.

Chord Progression

• Section A:

  • G Major 7 (use a G major scale)
  • A minor (use the A Dorian scale)
  • D7

• Section B:

  • E minor (shift tonality slightly down)
  • A minor 7
  • D7
  • Back to G

There are more chords here than we've used previously, but they should be familiar and comfortable for you to play.

Sample Solo

I've written a sample solo for Pearly White as a starting exercise. However, the ultimate goal is to improvise on your own.

• Solo Structure:
  • First Chorus:
    • Simple, closely follows the melody.
  • Second Chorus:
    • A bit more scalic and busier with more notes.
  • Third Chorus:
    • Build up the energy, more emphatic rhythmically. The rhythm section will hopefully pick up the energy here as well.
  • Fourth Chorus:
    • Incorporates bluesy touches to add grit and tension to the solo.

Performance Structure

• The tune will run the heads twice.
• Followed by four choruses of solo.
• Concludes with two heads to finish.

Remember to revise your scale choices and chord tones as we go through this lesson!