“Fly Me To The Moon” Spread Voicings
In the previous lesson we covered the first 16 bars of the tune “Fly Me to the Moon” which consists of the A and B Sections. We will now play through the 2nd half of the tune and create wider spread voicings that incorporate lower bass notes.
Creating Spread Voicings
For this lesson we voice the chords with our left hand one octave lower on the piano. We also play the root and 5th in our left hand to create a stronger foundation. Usually the right hand configuration can stay in the same place and we simply move our left hand 1 octave lower.
“Fly Me To The Moon” Chord Extensions
We touch briefly upon some extended chord voicings, such as including the 13th in our dominant chords. The 13th is the same note of the 6th note of the scale, but when the 7th is present, we refer to the 6th as the 13th.
We cover this theory and application in detail in our course on extended chord voicings and so don’t worry if it’s challenging to visualise the extended tones right now.
Related Lessons
We explore the key of Eb Major including the diatonic 7th chords and the common chord progressions such as the 251 and 36251 progression.
An important point with sus chords is that we often resolve the suspended 4th to turn the chord into a regular dominant 7th voicing.
In this lesson we are going to arrange the tune “The Nearness Of You” using simple voicings containing the roots, 3rds, and 7ths.
Practice Tips
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Experiment with Registers: Don't shy away from playing chords in different registers of the piano to discover new voicing possibilities.
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Embrace Finger Flexibility: Practice different fingerings for chords to improve spontaneity when playing and your ability to quickly visualise 3rds and 7ths. There is no 'one-size fits all' with jazz piano fingerings.
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Left-Hand Bass Notes: Playing the root and 5th in our left hand can be used to add depth to our chord voicings and overall performance.
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Revisit and Repeat: Regularly revisit each sections of the tune - particularly the ones that you find challenging. Remember to clearly visualise the 4 sections of the tune (A-B-A-C).
