SUBSTITUTE SCALES+ CHORDS. A PLAYING EXAMPLE

Just have a listen. This guy is not explaining anything, he is just using substitute chords and scales over dominant chords.

In our workshop, lads and lasses, this is the sound to which we all might aspire. Some of you clever ones do so already.

We've got the following choices for substitute scales in dominant chords; alternate scales, tritone substitute scales, whole tone scales, diminished scales.

Geoff, what do you think about the following?

I'm not checking it on the keyboard at the moment, but from memory these chords and scales are not massively different from each other, maybe 1/2/occasionally 3 notes diffrence. Since there is a lot of chromatic movement anyway a bit of dissonance with a passing note is hardly going to matter one way or another.

1) The one common note they all have, outside the dominant scale is the Lydian +11 (+4).
2) The diminished scale is symmetric, therefore only three scales cover the entire range. Bliss. There are only three scales to learn.

If we are going to do Autumn leaves in all the keys, starting next Sunday why don't we all aim to at least know where is the Lydian for a start. The purpose is to force us all away from using just scales and arpeggios and to introduce some chromatic element.

Then perhaps the easiest to do would be a Diminished scale (starting a semi-tome above the root to make it fit)

Geoff I know you are an advocate of the diminished. What do you think if we start to get everyone at least thinking about it? I'm leaving space here for you four experts to use other scales if you want.

Geoff, any chance of your putting a diminshed scale on BIAB and sending it to us for practise? I know, I'm asking a lot here. Have you got a moment to do it?






The Jazz Smugglers band from Sussex

The Jazz Smugglers Sussex workshop


In this blog We will produce tips for jazz piano, and jazz guitar together with jazz saxophone. We will cover jazz chords, jazz guitar chords, and we will deal with jazz scales. We will cover jazz songs. This site is all about jazz improvisation.
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