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Last
week we continued our study of chords. We had reviewed all the chord
types, then discussed inversions, and then finally voicing.
Notice that through voicing, we have:
1. Allowed the root to be implied (or played
in the right hand, or by another instrument in the group.)
2. Allowed the 5th to be implied (or as
above.)
3. Added two color tones, the 6th and the
9th.
4. Created a fourth construction, which
produces that contemporary, “open” sound:
There
is another benefit of voicing, and that is that they allow the
hand to move easily and smoothly from one chord to the next without
awkward jumps. For example, if I played the C, F7 and G7 chords
in root position, I would have to move my hand rapidly from here:
…to here:
…to
here:
…just
to be able to play the 12-bar blues in the key of C.
But
if I instead voice the three chords in the following manner, I can
move smoothly from one to another while at the same time achieving
the modern sound I am after:
All
chords can be voiced according to taste, and it is to the advantage
of every pianist to work out useable voicings in advance, so that
the hand moves easily to and from them during the course of a tune.
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