ProProach!
Lesson #1 of 25 


A pro's approach to playing a Major 7th chord...

Using Cmaj7 as our example...

The basic Cmaj7 chord, in its root position, is played like this:

C E G B

Here's what it looks like:


Now, this chord certainly sounds fine on its own, and there will be many times where you will choose to play it this way. But a true piano stylist wants options. Nothing can replace having the flexibility to approach playing chords in several ways.  So let's consider one example...

Here's one way a pro may approach this chord:

Cmaj7:

* with your left hand (pinkie and thumb), play the C and B (the 1 and 7 of the chord)
* with your right hand (thumb and index finger), play the E and G (the 3 and 5 of the chord)
* in addition, with your right hand pinkie, add the D above this G (the D is the 9 of the chord)

                              D
                              G
Right Hand            E 
_________     =   _________
                              B
Left Hand              C

The resulting chord is: Cmaj9 in open position

Here's what it looks like:



Now play the original Cmaj7 in its basic form shown at the top of this page... then play this chord voicing above. Listen, listen, listen to the difference... This is a super cocktail piano voicing, but also can be used in many other situations.

It works great if your melody includes that D! Also is great if you are simply playing the Cmaj7 as part of a turnaround or if you are
simply improvising with it.

Take this chord voicing formula and apply it to any major seventh chord.

The formula is:
                              9
                              5
Right Hand            3
_________ =  __________
                              7
Left Hand              1

Consider, for now, transposing this chord voicing to Fmaj9... then go back and forth between the Cmaj9 and Fmaj9. By the way, what you are playing is known as a I - IV chord progression in the key of C Major (Cmaj9 is the I and Fmaj9 is the IV).

As you play each one, break the chords up by playing them one note at a time, changing the order in which you play them. Do this with the sustain pedal on your piano depressed as you play each chord - wow, that sounds nice! You could have a lot of fun with just this much as you get more and more creative with it!

CLICK HERE FOR A VIDEO DEMONSTRATION

Here is an example of how this Fmaj9 could be applied to a typical lead sheet. Below is an excerpt from Antonio Carlos Jobim's
Girl From Ipanema. The lead sheet will usually show a chord symbol for Fmaj7. The melody note is the 9 of Fmaj7. Therefore, this Fmaj9 chord voicing works perfectly:

Please make the most of this lesson... if it comes rather easy to you, that means it's a great time to transpose it to other keys as you did with the Fmaj9. On the other hand, if it seems a bit challenging, understand that you are exposing yourself to new concepts with this program and there is no rush when it comes to assimilating the material here! Just stay with the lessons and review them... things will "click" for you!

In Lesson #2, we're going to take this a step further and apply it to another actual chord progression you can expect to see in music time and time again!

In Lesson #3, we will put this chord voicing to use in an actual playing situation, using excerpts from two very popular standard songs!

I'm excited for you... I have had so much fun putting this all together, and I consider it a pleasure as well as a privilege that you are going to join me for the next 24 weeks! (By the way, I'm going to send you all the lessons at once so that you'll have them available for your convenience. I just want to suggest that you spend some time with each lesson before proceeding to the next. Naturally, it's entirely up to
you when it comes to how you choose to apply yourself. It's just fair to say that this program was designed to be utilized in the manner suggested. I've received numerous emails from people confirming that following this suggestion was warranted and led them to wanted to take themselves through the lessons again and again : ))

I'm on your side. Please enjoy every moment at that piano or keyboard of yours... and as you do so, remember...

Always...

ALWAYS...

PLAY WITH PASSION!


Musically,

Dave

P.S.

I know you're going to have a great time with this program. You are absolutely going to have a ball discovering what you really are capable of. Thank you for your participation with ProProach!