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This is a topic I wish I had covered sooner because there's a page on the website and two old videos still on YouTube. In those videos, you’ll see the old red drape background, me with a blue shirt and guitar, looking a bit younger (and maybe a bit heavier). These videos cover two concepts: the first explains how quartal voicings are built and where they come from, and the second explores their applications for minor seventh, dominant, and major chords.
Let’s do both in this podcast format, which allows me to go into more detail. For those unfamiliar, quartal voicings are chords built by stacking fourths, as opposed to the traditional thirds used in most chord construction. A famous example is the So What voicing from Miles Davis. Traditional chords might go C-E-G (stacked thirds), but a quartal voicing would stack fourths, like C-F-Bâ™-Eâ™.
For example, starting with a familiar D minor 7 shape at the fifth fret, you can turn it into a quartal voicing by simply removing one finger. You end up with D-G-C-F, which is essentially a D minor 11 chord. Running this shape through the scale is a common exercise. Personally, I like to deconstruct this idea further. One method I use is building the scale downward in fourths from a note, which can be done on single strings.
Start with a C note on the second string and play a C major scale: C-D-E-F-G-A-B-C. But instead of playing the scale linearly, focus on the fourths below each note. For example, below C is G, then D, and so on. This creates a beautiful voicing, perfect for chord melody arrangements.
There’s also the concept of inverting these voicings. If you take a fourth-based voicing like C-G-D and “invert” it (move the bottom note to the top), you end up with new shapes, such as G-D-C. This introduces a mix of intervals like seconds and fourths, resulting in fresh, modern sounds.
The idea can be expanded further by adding other intervals, like a fifth, to create new structures. For example, starting with pure fourths, you can build quartal-second or second-quartal voicings. These variations work beautifully in different modal contexts, like Dorian or Phrygian modes.
Using quartal voicings dynamically is about learning a method of comping where any chord from the scale will work in context. For example, quartal voicings built from the C major scale work not only in C major but also in modes like D Dorian or B Locrian. This versatility allows for fluid comping and improvisation.
In the second part of the podcast, I focus on quartal voicings for specific chord types: minor 7, dominant 7, and major 7. For minor 7 chords, voicings often come from the pentatonic scale, such as the shapes derived from C minor pentatonic. These voicings work well in Dorian contexts and are highly effective for modern-sounding comping.
For dominant 7 chords, the voicings are fewer but incredibly useful. Start with a shell voicing (root, third, seventh) and build from there. You can also use sus voicings or apply the quartal approach from the related minor 7 chord. For instance, G minor 7 voicings can often substitute for C7 in quartal harmony.
Major 7 voicings behave differently because of how fourths interact with the major scale. A common voicing might start with the root and build upward, incorporating the seventh or sixth to create lush, open sounds. These voicings are perfect for adding richness to your comping and melody work.
By experimenting with these concepts and practicing the voicings through different scales and modes, you’ll uncover a dynamic and modern approach to jazz guitar. Explore melodic and harmonic minor scales or even exotic scales to push these ideas further. Check out the sheet music and blog post on the website for more details.
Thanks for listening! If you’re ready to take your jazz guitar playing to the next level, visit JazzGuitarLessons.net. Let’s get back to practicing those voicings!
