Skylark Tutorial
Welcome to this jazz standard lesson on Skylark by Hoagy Carmichael.
Written in Eb Major, the tune follows a 32 measure A-A-B-A form. We’re going to start the tune with some simple voicings, as outlined on the lead sheet. This will give us a basic understanding of the harmony and the melody.
We will enhance our arrangement, creating more complex harmonies and melodies and we will also reharmonise parts of the tune.
Many of the rehamornisations I use are from the recordings I have listened to, which highlights the importance of this in your musical development as a student of jazz piano.
Related Lessons
We start the lesson by recapping the basic theory behind sus chords and then explore them in context of major and minor 251s
Upper structure triads are complex sounding altered dominant chords. They will add texture and sophistication to your playing.
Slash chords contain 2 bits of info, the 1st letter indicates what chord should be played & the 2nd letter specifies the bass note of the chord.
Practice Tips
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Some notable recodings of the tune are the Kenny Barron version, both solo and trio versions. The recordings by Mulgrew Miller are also worth checking out and have wonderful bluesy and soulful vibe.
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You can find links to these versions below and also in the PianoGroove Forum… be sure to check them out.
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Whilst you can learn lots from piano lessons, nothing can replace regular listening to jazz and it’s an essential part of your development.
Hayden, I just got back from a trip to Paris and southern France (wow! my first time and experience of a lifetime). But being in a relaxed state and driving through Provence, the song “SkyLark” started playing in my head (constantly). So when i got back, i have been obsessively playing your lesson on SkyLark –which i love the harmonic choices. And I have a couple of questions. In the second measure, isn’t the slash chord Eb/G really a iii minor? Wouldn’t you consider the step wise progression as I maj, ii minor, iii minor and IV major? Is there a reason to think of this as a slash chord and not as a diatonic iii minor? (i know i’m probably missing something…). The 2nd question is about the A7 in the 3rd measure. Would i think of this as some kind of tritone sub? because it is a half step above the Ab7? I reviewed the Tritone video and i’m still not completely clear. Hope you are doing well. Thanks in advance for your responses. Regards, Lonnie
Hi Lonnie 👋
That’s awesome… it sounds like a wonderful trip and a beautiful song to have in your head during the trip 🙂
To answer you questions:
Yes the Eb/G could be viewed as a iii minor chord. Slash chords are used for 2 purposes:
1) To imply a specific bass note movement, often chromatic.
2) To imply a specific colour over the chord.
In this case, I would say that both situations apply. If you look at the notes of an Eb triad over G-, we get the b6, root, and b3, of G- … this implies the natural minor scale, or Aeolian mode, with the presence of the b6 (Eb).
In this case, the slash chord Eb/G makes it easier to read and interpret this. I would interpret it as a simple way to find this voicing.
Then regarding the A7 – this is simply a dominant chord a half step up from the target chord. We covered this relationship in the lesson on Passing Chords here: https://www.pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/slick-dominant-passing-chords/ – I remember you commented on this lesson.
Any chord can be proceeded by a dominant chord a half step up to add additional harmonic interest.
I hope this helps and any further questions just let me know.
Cheers,
Hayden
Thanks Hayden, I remember what I learned and then i lose it with a new song. <sigh> One day it will all stick. In the meantime, I am loving your arrangement of SkyLark and am learning to play it. Thanks again.
Another brilliant rendition to add to my Eb playlist. So open and airy.
Thanks Adam, I’m glad you liked the lesson.
Yes this is a beautiful tune and it will be a wonderful addition to your song repertoire.
Cheers,
Hayden