28 LearnMusicTheory.net High-Yield Music Theory, Vol.

4: Jazz Theory

Section 4.2.1
FOUR-NOTE VOICINGS:
MAJOR, MINOR, DOMINANT
Voicing Voicing is which chord notes to play and where to play them. The most
Four-note voicing common chord voicings, four-note voicings (or rootless voicings) use the
Rootless voicing third, fifth, seventh, and ninth. They can be played in the left hand of the
piano when playing with a bass player, or in the right hand with the left
hand playing the chord root underneath. They are also the basis for many
jazz arrangements.

7/9 surrounding Think of sevenths and ninths as a pair of notes surrounding the root. For a
patterns major seventh chord, the ninth is a whole step above the root, and the
seventh is a half step below. For minor seventh and dominant seventh
chords, both the seventh and the ninth are a whole step away from the root.
The examples below use D as the root.

Maj 7th Maj 9th D²Þ

&
#w +&w whole step
= & w
#w
half step above D 7/9
below D
Min 7th Maj 9th D7 or D-Þ
& w
whole step
+&w = whole step
& w
w
7/9
below D above D

Voicing minor To voice minor seventh chords, start with the minor seventh 7/9 pattern
seventh chords and add the third and fifth (3/5). The 3/5 can be above or below the 7/9, so
the lowest note will be the seventh or the third. Keep the lowest note
between middle C and the C an octave below so the chord doesn’t get too
high or too low.

D-7 D-7
œœ œœœ
? œœ œœ œœœ ? œœ œ
œ OR
7/9 + 3/5 = 7/9/3/5 7/9 + 3/5 = 3/5/7/9
 LearnMusicTheory.net Volume 4, Chapter 2: Voicing II-V-I Changes 29

Voicing major Voice major seventh chords like minor sevenths: start with the 7/9 major
seventh chords seventh surrounding pattern and add the third and fifth above or below.
Again, the lowest note will be the third or the seventh, and should be
between middle C and the C below.

D^7
D^7
œ œ # œœ œ # œœ
? #œœ #œ ## œœœ ? #œ #œœ
OR
7/9 + 3/5 = 3/5/7/9
7/9 + 3/5 = 7/9/3/5

Voicing For major-minor seventh (dominant seventh) chords, jazz players usually
dominant play the thirteenth (=sixth) instead of the fifth. Otherwise, the process is
seventh chords identical to voicing minor seventh chords and major seventh chords.

D7
œ
D7
œ œ œ œ œœœ
? œœ #œ # œœœ ? #œ # œ
OR
7/9 + 3/13 = 7/9/3/13 7/9 + 3/13 = 3/13/7/9

Stack-of-thirds When the third is voiced on the bottom, the third, fifth, seventh, and ninth
voicing form a stack-of-thirds voicing. Some authors call this Type A voicing. For
Type A voicing major seventh chords and minor seventh chords, the stack-of-thirds
(3/5/7/9 without the root) will be the opposite of the chord quality (major
for minor, minor for major). Consider:

w w
&# w
# & w
D²Þ D-Þ
w
w w
w
3,5,7,9 spells 3,5,7,9 spells
an F# min7 chord an F maj7 chord
30 LearnMusicTheory.net High-Yield Music Theory, Vol. 4: Jazz Theory

Stack-of-thirds For dominant sevenths with the third on the bottom (stack-of-thirds
pattern for voicing or Type A voicing), the pattern is a perfect fourth a half step below
dominant chords the 7/9. Remember the fifth (here A) from the “stack-of-thirds” pattern is
replaced by the thirteenth (=sixth, here B) when jazz players play dominant
sevenths.

w
& # ww
D7
w 13th not 5th
P4 a 1/2 step below 7/9

Pair-of-thirds When the 7/9 pair is on the bottom, a “pair-of-thirds” voicing pattern
pattern results: the 7/9 third and the 3/5 third. Some authors call this Type B
Type B voicing voicing. For minor sevenths, the 7/9 and 3/5 are each major thirds with a
whole step between. For major sevenths, the thirds are minor with a half
step between. Again, notice the thirds are the opposite quality of the chord:
major for minor sevenths and minor for major sevenths.

major 3rd
D²Þ minor 3rd D-Þ
& ## w
ww
w & w
ww
w
major 3rd
minor whole step half step
3rd

Pair-of-thirds For dominant sevenths (major minor sevenths) with the 7/9 on the bottom,
pattern for the pattern is a perfect fourth a whole step above the 7/9.
dominant chords
D7
& #w
13th not 5th
ww
w
P4 a whole step above 7/9

Four-note voicing To voice minor seventh, dominant seventh, or major seventh chords:
summary 1. Keep the bottom note between middle C and the C an octave below.
2. Do not include the root in the voicing.
3. Either the third or the seventh goes on the bottom.
4. Use the correct 7/9 surrounding pattern (see above).
5. Use 3/5 for major seventh and minor seventh chords; use the third and
the thirteenth (=sixth) for major-minor (dominant) seventh chords.