Jazz Chords Part III Index

What is a tag ?
What is a back door progression ?
What are chord tones and guide tones ?
What are chord extensions ?
What is an altered dominant ?
What is an inversion ?

What is a tag ?

A tag is an added section of music that helps finalize the

performance of standards or even jazz tunes. Usually referred to as
tag ending by jazz musicians. In the classical world, the term coda
is usually employed to describe this concept in the musical form.

The harmonic and melodic material found in common tags is drawn

from the last few bars of music in the tune and is repetitive in nature.
A good rhythm section can usually wing a decent tag by repeating
the jazz chords of the last 2, 4 or even 8 bars or the song. This is
how jazz musicians create a coda from thin air!

Heres a common example of repeating the melody and the chords

from the last few bars of music on a jazz standard. To end the tune
Days of Wine and Roses in F, we proceed to repeat bars 29-30
three times before ending on the tonic chord. Like this:
Sometimes, the tag can be used as a whole new section to improvise
over before definitely ending a piece: the rhythm section loops the
chord changes of the tag and the soloist keeps on improvising (until
everyone feel its time to end the piece, on cue.) Heres a common
example of tagging just a chord progression to improvise over as an
ending. To end the tune Stella By Starlight, we

play bars 29-30 as usual

avoid the I chord in bar 31 and play III chord (Dm7)
instead
play turnaround progression starting that III chord
improvise for a little (or for very long!) on the repeated
turnaround
we cue the ending (on the tonic chord, Bb).

In short, avoid the I, go to III instead and loop the III-VI II-V to take
a solo over Thus creating two II-V cells a whole step apart! A
Montreal jazz veteran (saxophonist Dave Turner) once told me that
at some jam sessions, this type of III-VI II-V tagging thing with
multiple horn solos could last longer that an entire tune!

There exist many more ways to end tunes with tags or different
codas. Investigate! See what you like.
What is a back door progression ?

Similar to ii-V-I cadence, the back door progression consists of the

chords IVm7 bVII7 I.

In C major, it spells out: Fm7 Bb7 Cmaj7. Like in the first fews
bars of the Tad Dameron tune Ladybird.

Some like to say its a minor-third-up type of chord substitution.

Because Fm7 Bb7 is a minor third higher than Dm7 G7 (all in C
major). Personally, I just like to call it a back door progression.This
device is often used in standards progressions, jazz compositions, in
arranging, in comping, in improvisation, etc.

A common example of using the back door in improvisation is to

purposely superimpose the scales and arpeggios from the back door
while the accompanying jazz chords are a normal ii-V-I. On a ii-V-I
in C use the scales from Fm7 Bb7, like this:

Superimposition of this kind is reminiscent of the minor ii-V

sound as the Fm7 Bb7 comes from the key of Eb major. C
minor is the relative minor of Eb major! So the superimposed scales
of Fm7 Bb7 create a C natural minor sound. Please note that you
can do the same while comping! (can you?)
But why name it the back door ? We call this progression a back
door because it resolves to the I by coming from the bVII which
is a whole tone below. Its coming from behind the tonic, hence
the term back door.

What are chord tones and guide tones ?

Chord tones are the notes contained in a chord. For example, a C

major 7th chord has the notes C, E, G and B (1-3-5-7) as its chord
tones.

Guide tones, on the other hand, are the third and seventh of a chord.
For example, a C major 7th chord has the notes E and B (3-7) as its
third and seventh. See improvisation lesson using guide-tones.
What are chord extensions ?

Simply put the chord tones above the 7th exclusively. Namely the
9th, the 11th and the 13th, even if they are altered. Jazz chords
usually contain one or more extensions. For example, basic chord
tones and extensions on a Cmaj7 chord:

Exceptions:

7ths are sometimes considered as an extension in classical theory.

Sometimes, the 6th is part of the chord (example, Cm6) and is NOT
perceived as a 13th, therefore, the 6th (mis-interpreted as a 13th) is
not always an extension.

Available extensions depends on chord families. See the Chord

Extension Finder Technique here.

What is an altered dominant ?

Simply: A dominant 7th chord with one or more tension notes. As

soon as one alteration exist in a dom 7th chord, we can use the term
altered dominant to describe it. Its common amongst jazz
chords. The alterations are usually created by the presence of an
altered (meaning a sharp or a flat) 5th and/or 9th. For example :
G7(#9, b5) is an altered dominant chord.
Their exist many categories of altered dominants as they come
from many different harmonic regions: melodic
minor modes, harmonic minor modes, other synthetic modes, the
symmetrical diminished scale, etc. The available alterations for
dominant chords are:

b9
#9

b5
#5

#11
b13

Heres a series on article on dominant chords, sounds and

scales and heres a chord chart for altered dominants.

Important note: The chord-scale that is called the altered scale

(aka super locrian) is the one that supports a chord with ALL
possible alterations. Meaning the b9, #9, b5 and #5.

What is an inversion ?

Jazz musicians generally employ the term inversion when talking

about the voicing in which a chord is being sounded.

But, in a traditional (almost classical) sense, a chord inversion

means to have another chord member in the bass voice instead of the
root. For example, a C major triad contains the notes C, E and G.

Play with the C note in the bottom, we say its in root position

When E, the third, is in the bass its called a first inversion

When G, the fifth, is in the bass, its called a second inversion

For that kind of sound, jazzmen would use the symbols C, C/E and
C/G respectively.

So, in jazz then ?

In a jazz sense, the term inversion can merely mean the same notes
disposed in a different way. For example, we would say that those
are the four inversion of the C major 7th (in a drop-2 voicing):

As you can see, the same four notes of C major 7th can be sounded
in many different ways. And this applies to any or all jazz
chords. But it seldom happens that jazz musicians use the
nomenclature second inversion or third inversion. You can say
that you know all of your inversions of this-or-that chord, but the
role of the lowest note has been delegated to the bass instrument
anyways.
You never hear that at a jam session: Ok guitar player, play the C
major 7th in bar 12 in the second inversion, okay? It doesnt
matter since the bass player takes the final decision in playing the
lowest note anyways!!!

Final Note : you get the same amount of available inversions as the
number of notes contained in any of the jazz chords (because all the
notes present in the chord can be played as the lowest note.)

Hence, a three-note chord (triad) can be in root position, first

inversion or second inversion

or a four-note chord (seventh chord) can be in root position, first,

second or third inversion

or a five-note chord (a seventh chord with added 9th) can be in

root position, first, second, third or fourth inversion

Allright I think were actually done here!

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