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Identify Chords Instantly with This Method

Training your ear is important as a jazz musician, not only for improvising, but also for learning tunes and composing as well. Being able to have a strong understanding of what chords are and how they work lets you move more freely throughout your playing.


Today, we’re going to look at some larger and more complex chords and try some strategies for how you can hear the differences between these. We’ll look at hearing the chord as a harmonic entity, but also unlocking the chord for its structural tones. Plus, we’ll look at the chord in an emotional and physical sense. 


But before we get going, all these concepts and more can be found in Dr. Joe Gilman’s Jazz ear training course with Jazz Lesson Videos. And if you want to hear any of the examples we discuss today, make sure to check out our accompanying YouTube video, Identify Chords Instantly with this Method.


Now let’s get listening!


Contents


Major 9 chord

Our maj9 chord is common in jazz, particularly. It’s used as a substitute for a major chord, but particularly the tonic. 

One of the first things we want to do with a chord is what we call “unlocking” it—meaning we break it down and hear each of the notes. A great way to do this is to play the chord and sing each of the tones in it. In a maj9 chord, we have 1, 3, 5, 7, and 9, or a maj7 chord with the 9 added. 

Next, you’ll want to play this chord off of different pitches. 


So we’d have:


Cmaj9: C, E, G, B, D

Ebmaj9: Eb, G, Bb, D, F

Abmaj9: Ab, C, Eb, G, Bb


And so on. Playing your arpeggios of these chords off each of the notes will also help you internalize the sound. 


But now let’s look at this chord from another perspective. How does it make us feel? 

The maj9 chord is resolved and at rest. It’s got a calming, peaceful sound to it, and can often be used to end a tune as the final chord.


Major 9 #11 chord

Our next chord is similar, but has a little extra spice—the maj9#11 chord. 

Like before, let’s unlock it, playing each of the notes—1, 3, 5, 7, 9, #11, and singing each of them individually. Also note the intervals between the chord tones.

Cmaj9#11: C, E, G, B, D, F#


So beyond just the standard C chord, we can also see a few other chords inside of this one—like a Gmaj7 chord or an Em9 chord. We can also look at this as a stacked C major and B minor chord. Now try playing arpeggios of these chords to get a stronger feeling for them. 


Finally, how does this chord make us feel?

This one is definitely brighter than the last one—it feels a bit shinier and has a sparkling sort of character to it. It has a spacier, almost floating quality. This can also be used as a final chord, but it’s a brighter final chord for sure. This also occurs naturally on the IV chord, so it sounds at home in that context, too. 


Major 7 #5 chord

Our next chord is pretty different from the previous ones. While it’s still a maj7 sound, we’ve dropped the upper extensions in choice of an altered tension—the #5. You might also call this an augmented major 7 chord or +maj7.

Let’s start by unlocking it. In C, we have C, E, G#, B. It’s a very startling sound, and it’s very intense. It really wants to resolve, but it’s not completely clear how it wants to do it.

Try singing along with each of the pitches and running through the arpeggios. 

This chord is also somewhat non-functional, as you would not expect to hear it in a ii-V-I or anything like that. This chord may lend itself as a passing chord, and it exists naturally in the harmonic minor scale as the bIII. 


Dominant 13 #11 chord

Last up, let’s look at the 13#11 chord. Unlocking it, we can run through the tones, 1, 3, 5, b7, 9, #11, and 13. Now why is the #11 preferred to the 11? Since we have the major third present, the natural 11 is a half step apart, and therefore can cause a bit more dissonance. The #11 gives a bit more space between those notes and allows a unique sound.

After we go through the arpeggio and sing the notes, let’s have a look at a D13#11 chord.


D13#11: D, F#, A, C, E, G#, B


Notice anything about this chord? The upper structure of this chord is that maj7#5 chord again! We basically have D major stacked with C+maj7. You can also look at this as Dmaj7 stacked with E major. 

How would you describe this chord’s sound? It has an attractive, warmer sound than what we had before. It works great as a tritone sub or a backdoor dominant.



We’ll see you next time!


 
 
 

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