The Major Scale
With
Ollie WestonOllie Weston works through the major scale on saxophone, using G major to build a triad and the major seventh chord that sits on top of it.
What's in the course
51 lessons (2h 9m) · 1 free
01. Introduction + leaving town demonstration
Free lesson3:02
02. The Blues Scale
2:48
03. Swing Quavers
1:42
04. Combing the Blues Scale and Swing Quavers
3:57
05. Playing through the Blues form using root notes
1:18
06. Writes Your Own Blues
0:59
07. Leaving Town Blues - Improvise
4:13
08. Improvisation recap
0:49
01. Introduction to Minor 7th Chords
3:32
02. Dorian Scale Workout
1:40
03. Minor 7th Chord Lick
2:22
04. Minor Pentatonic Patterns
3:51
05. Minor Pentatonic Workout
1:52
06. Pentatonic vs Blues Scale
1:59
07. So Far so Good - Introduction
1:09
08. So Far so Good - Head
1:37
09. Minor Chord Extensions
2:45
10. Rhythmic Ideas
2:13
11. So Far so Good - Performance with Solo
3:50
01. Introduction to Modes
6:09
02. Diatonic Modes Exercise
4:04
03. Modes with a Static Root
1:58
04. Modes with Static Root Exercise
1:06
05. Modes with Static Root Recap
0:34
06. Phrase Exercise for Modes
1:07
07. Phrase Exercise for Modes (Demonstration)
1:29
08. Song Examples
1:56
09. First Impresssions - Chords and Harmony
4:06
10. First Impresssions - Performance
4:06
11. First Impresssions - Introduction and Analysis
3:30
Lesson transcript
Introduction to Major Seventh Chords in Jazz
In this lesson, I'm going to introduce one of the most common chord types in jazz: the major seventh. This chord accompanies a major scale and is often used at the end of pieces.
Chord Context in G Major
Let's discuss this in the context of the G major scale:
- G is 1
- A is 2
- B is 3
- C is 4
- D is 5
- E is 6
- F# (because we're in G major) is 7
- Back to the root: G
Sounding the Chord
It will sound like this, but since we're in jazz, I'll play it swung.
To create a chord, we're going to focus on certain notes of the scale. If we tried to play all those notes at once, it would sound a little clashy and too many notes too close together.
Making a Triad
So, I'm going to focus on the root, third, and fifth to make what's called a triad.
If you've ever played an arpeggio, that's what you would play. It would sound like this:
[Insert Sound Example Here]
As I mentioned, we can't play more than one note at a time on a saxophone, but on a piano, a triad of G major played all together would sound like this:
[Insert Sound Example Here]
This is a very familiar sound found in tons of music, from Bach to the Beatles. Many artists have utilized major triads to outline major keys.
Adding Color to Chords
Jazz musicians like to add extra color and detail to their chords. The first step in doing that is to add a seventh on the top.
So, I'm going to add my seventh note, which is F#, to the top of the chord, creating what we call G Major 7. It will sound like this:
[Insert Sound Example Here]
The Sound of G Major 7
It's a lovely, warm, soft-sounding chord that appears very often in jazz.
To clarify, we're playing the root, third, fifth, and the seventh of our G major scale to make a G major 7 chord.
Chord Tones and Passing Tones
I'm going to refer to these as the chord tones, because they're the notes that your chordal instrument (your piano, guitar, or even vibraphone, if you have one in your band) would play as a chord of G Major 7.
The notes in between:
- A (the second)
- C (the fourth)
- E (the sixth)
I will call these passing tones.
These passing tones are also really, really useful for creating major melodies and major solos.
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Meet your guru
Meet your guru
Since graduating from the Leeds College of Music (BA Hons) and the Guildhall School of Music (Post Graduate Diploma in Performance), Ollie has built a busy and varied career in music. As a saxophonist he has performed in live and studio settings with artists as diverse as Amy Winehouse, Tim Minchin, Bonobo, Frank Turner, the London Jazz Orchestra, the Hackney Colliery Band, the Ambient Jazz Ensemble and the Nelson Riddle Orchestra. He is also the co-leader of the jazz quartet 'Time Is Of The Essence', and composes and arranges material for this and other ensembles.
Ollie is active in music education, currently as course leader for the jazz department at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama (junior school), where he runs jazz ensembles, big band and theory classes. He has written a series of 'Exploring Jazz' books for Schott Music that are published worldwide and feature on exam syllabuses in the UK. Ollie has also run workshops for Oxford University, Pro Corda Strings and BABSWE, as well as the Guildhall School of Music summer schools.
In his Exploring Jazz Saxophone courses, Ollie takes you from getting started right through to soloing confidently over songs and chord sequences, building the improvising skills that put a real jazz player's vocabulary at your fingertips.
