Re: Quicky about naming a chord

Joey Goldstein wrote:
> antalabel1@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 wrote:
>> On Mar 15, 3:06 pm, Joey Goldstein <nos...@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote:
>>> antalab...@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 wrote:
>>>> On Mar 15, 11:35 am, Joey Goldstein <nos...@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote:
>>>>> antalab...@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 wrote:
>>>>>> I'm having trouble picking an appropriate name for this chord:
>>>>>> Notes; C#/Db D#/Eb G B
>>>>>> Its for jazz, and I'm putting it on a lead sheet, so I'm wondering
>>>>>> which chord would be the simplest to use.
>>>>>> key of Cmaj btw.
>>>>>> Is it: G+/Db, Dbm7b5sus2, Cmin(maj7)/Db, Emin(maj7)/Db,
Abmin(maj7)/
>>>>>> Db, etc, etc.
>>>>>> They all look really awkward to read (as a guitar player, anyway).
>>>>>> Anyone have anything simpler?
>>>>> I'd have to see more of the context.
>>>>> What are the two chords immediately preceding it and the two chords
>>>>> following it?
>>>>> Just based on the intervals though, it might be Eb7#5/Db.
>>>>> -- 
>>>>> Joey Goldstein
>>>>> <http://www.joeygoldstein.com>
>>>>> <http://homepage.mac.com/josephgoldstein/AudioClips/audio.htm>
>>>>> joegold AT sympatico DOT ca
>>>> Alright so its:
>>>> Emin7  Ebmaj7#11  |  D7sus(13)  G+/Db  |  Cmaj7      |
>>>> G+/Db is what I've named it, for now.
>>> In that case then it's functioning as Db9b5(no 3rd).
>>> Assuming that you're playing it like this:
>>> X 4 1 0 0 X
>>> with b as your melody/top note... then I think there are other
voicings
>>> of Db7 with B on top that would sound better there.
>>> Try this:
>>> 9 8 6 0 0 X
>>>
>>> -- 
>>> Joey Goldstein
>>> <http://www.joeygoldstein.com>
>>> <http://homepage.mac.com/josephgoldstein/AudioClips/audio.htm>
>>> joegold AT sympatico DOT ca
>>
>> The way im playing it now is like:
>>
>> X 4 5 4 4 3
>>
>>
>> Anyway, from the responses i gather that G+/Db, Eb7+, and Db9b5(no
>> 3rd) are all fine choices. Joey (and other guitar players), which
>> would you prefer to see on a lead sheet?
> 
> No, in this instance it is not Eb7#5.
> It is functioning as a partial voicing of SubV7 in the key (i.e. a 
> tritone substitute dominant chord substituting for G7) or as an altered 
> partial voicing of V7 with an alternate bass note.
> You could use either of the following chord symbols to indicate this:
> Db9(b5)(no3rd), G+/Db,
> But G+/Db is probably the better choice, IMO.
> Which chord symbol you pick has nothing to do with whether or not a 
> guitar player or some other instrumentalists will be the one reading it.

> It just has to make sense. And usually if you have a choice between two 
> chord symbols that make sense, but one of them takes up less room on the

> page, we choose the the one that takes up the least room.
> 
> But again, why you'd want to use this particular voicing here is 
> questionable. Why are you doubling the G and omitting the F? Without the

> F the cadential feeling is much weaker.
> X 4 3 4 4 3
> would probably be stronger.
> 
> Also, what grip are you using for the chord that you are calling 
> "D7sus(13)"? Why are you omitting the F from this chord?
> 
> Actually, what are the grips for all the chords in the progression
please?
> 

And you may not realize this, but your progressions is really just a 
slight reharmonization of the classic Imaj7 VIm7 IIm7 V7 Imaj7
progression.

Cmaj7 and Em7 are what is called like-function substitutes for one 
another. In C major, C, Em and Am are all said to have Tonic function in 
the key (although Em and Am are much more ambiguous and may function 
differently depending on the specifics of the progression). Basically 
they have a lot of common tones and can often be swapped for each other 
without changing much more than the root movement. You're using Em7 
where Cmaj7 usually goes. Consider this: Cmaj9 is just Em7/C.

VIm7 is often changed to a dom7 chord with the same root (i.e. Am7 
bercomes A7). The functional analysis of this chord is not "VI7", it's 
"V7/IIm" (V7 of IIm, i.e. the V7 chord in the key of D minor). This 
implies that a secondary key, the key of D minor, is active at this 
point. V7/V is often substituted by its tritone sub, Sub7/IIm (A7 is 
subbed with Eb7).

V7 is often substituted with its SubV7 (G7 is subbed with Db7).

So now our root motion is:
E Eb D Db C
just like your chord progression.

You're using Ebmaj7 rather than Eb7, which is also a fairly common move 
too. In the key of C major, Ebma7 is looked at as a borrowed chord from 
the key of C minor, btw.

So, the more usual way this progression usually pops up is:
Em7 Ebmaj7 Dm7 Db7

You're using partial voicings of both Dm7 and Db7, by omitting the F 
from both chords, and I'm not sure this is *really* what you want to hear.

Some of the other typical ways that the root movement of a I VI II V 
progression gets varied via the introduction of tritone subs and the 
changing of the  quality of the various chords are:

Cmaj7 Am7    Dm7    G7  C
Emaj7 A7     D7     G7  C
Emaj7 Eb7    Ab7    Db7 C
Cmaj7 Am7    Ab7    G7  C
Cmaj7 Eb7    Abmaj7 G7  C
Cmaj7 Ebmaj7 Abmaj7 Dbmaj7 C

Etc. etc. etc.

-- 
Regards
http://www.joeygoldstein.com