Barry Harris Voicings
In this 5 minute masterclass, we’re going explore a concept known as the “Barry Harris Voicings”. If this is a new area of study for you, be sure to check out the related lesson below on “Block Chords” & “Drop 2 Voicings”
Find more discussion on Barry Harry voicings in the community area: https://www.pianogroove.com/community/t/barry-harris-voicings/3120
The Major & Minor Bebob Scales
These voicings mainly derive from the major6 or minor6 Bepop scale are a major scale or a melodic minor scale with added chromatic note between the 5th and the 6th note.
Major/Minor 6th Chords: Closed Position & Drop 2
The chords we will be working with during this masterclass are Major 6th chords and Minor 6th chords. We will be using closed position voicings, meaning that the notes of the chord are inside a single octave.
However, all of these ideas, concepts, examples work great with the drop 2 as well. If you’re not familiar with the drop 2, check out the related lessons below.
3 Applications For The Same Voicings!
After harmonising the major and minor bebob scales, we will then explore the other applications of the same voicings. We will demonstrate how these voicings can be used in the following harmonic relationships:
- The Relative Minor Application
- The Related 2 & 5 Chords
- The -7b5 Connection
There Will Never Be Another You
These voicings are a great tool for soloing, and especially for harmonizing melodies. We will take the first 8 bars of “There Will Never Be Another You”, and harmonize the melody using only the Barry Harris voicings that we have covered in this lesson.
Lesson Downloads
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Block Chords Intro File Type: pdf
Related Lessons
Diminished 7th chords are not as common as major, minor and dominant chords and so you don’t see them as often in jazz standards.
In this lesson I explain what drop 2 voicings are, how to construct them and how to practice drop 2 so that you are familiar with them in all 12 keys.
Block chords are used for harmonising a melody line by moving the notes of the chord in parallel, following the same rhythm as the melody.
Practice Tips
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Find more discussion on Barry Harry voicings in the community area: https://www.pianogroove.com/community/t/barry-harris-voicings/3120
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First, harmonise the major and minor bebob scales to get familiar with the sets of voicings.
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A simpler step would be to drill through the inversions of the 6th chords, and then drill through the inversions of the related diminished chords. Then put them both together.
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Remember that any of the 'closed position voicings' can be turned into 'drop 2 voicings' to achieve a different 'colour' and 'texture'.
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To create a 'drop 2 voicing', simply take the second note from the top of the voicing, and instead play it at the bottom with your left hand. Check out the related lessons above for more information.
The drop two example has one incorrect chord. The ACG over an E in the base. You have ACF. ACEG is a major C6 and you drop the E in the base and all that remains is the ACG.
Hi Marina,
Thanks for letting us know… we will fix this typo and re-upload the lesson.
We also have a “Barry Harry Voicings Part 2” here: https://www.pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/barry-harris-voicings-part-2/
Cheers,
Hayden