261. THE JAZZ HARMONIC PERSONALITY THE DIFFERENCE OF USING MINOR CHORDS (SADNESS THROUGH BLUE NOTES) IN EARLY WESTERN JAZZ COMPARED TO OTHER POP AND FOLK MUSIC AND EASTERN (GYPSY) JAZZ.

THE DIFFERENCE OF USING MINOR CHORDS (SADNESS THROUGH BLUE NOTES) IN EARLY WESTERN JAZZ COMPARED TO OTHER POP AND FOLK MUSIC AND EASTERN (GYPSY) JAZZ.


Incorporating minor chords in major chords is ofcourse the way that we feel sadness after or before we  feel happy.

POP OR OTHER FOLK MUSIC METHOD

In most of the usual pop and folk music in various cultures , the use of minor chords ,in a song e.g. which jas as part of major chords the main triad 5M-1M-4M of a diatonic scale (e.g. in C major G major-C major-F major) is to shift the triad of the lower relative minor chords in the same diatonic scale   3m-6m-2m  (e.g. shifting from the triad of  G major-C major-F major to the triad E minor A minor D minor).

EARLY WESTERN JAZZ METHOD

But in early jazz the incorporation of minor chords e.g. in a song which is utilizing the triad of majors 5M-1M-4M of a diatonic scale (e.g. in C major G major-C major-F major) is by shifting to the same root minor chords 5m-1m-4m (e.g.  G minor-C major-F minor). It is not necessary that the are used all 3 minor chords maybe only one or oly two of them. This essentially means that instead of the middle notes of the major chords:  B for G major E for C major and C for F major they are used the 

Bb, Eb , Ab (which by the way are all notes of the Eb major scale). Which is equivalent to the notes 

Bb, Eb G#. Notice that two of them  the Eb and G# are 2 of the first 4 Blue notes of the C major scale as described in post 245.

We repeat here the main definitions and concepts of Blue notes.

We remind the reader that in the online notes here we call a sequence of 7 interval that sum-up to 12 semitones a mode and all cyclic permutations of it as the scale that the mode belongs.

As it was mentioned in post 40 the order of how much harmonic is  an interval (and interval is more harmonic than another means that the two notes have a  greater number of common harmonics or overtones) the order of "harmonicity" is

8th>5th>4th> major 3rd>minor  3rd

The first 4 blue notes of the diatonic scale are  by definition the neighboring by one semitone notes to the interval of 5th c-g thus g# f# around g and c# around c and the same with the best next interval of major 3rd c-e thus d# or c# again . This gives the maximum shift from an harmonic interval to one with dissonance thus chromaticity. 

There cannot be other as first 4 notes other than the above 4 blue notes for the first 2 best intervals (5th and major 3rd) around the roor note .

The 1st blue note (5#) may make also the 4M chord 4m, so making the basic triad 5N 1M 4M, to 5M 1M 4m. Also the 2nd blue note 2# or 3b allows, for a 1 minor chord too. making therefore the triad 5N 1M 4M to  5M 1m 4M  or   5M 1m 4 m. This is met quite often in Early jazz as method to add sad  minor chords to the main happy triad of major chords.

EASTERN (GYPSY) JAZZ METHOD

In this type of jazz, there also used 2 of the 4 first Blue notes of the diatonic scale which are the 2# or 3b and 5#, in other words the same two blue notes of the early Western jazz. Nevertheless the way that they are used is by substituting the 2 with 2# and 5 with 5# , thus creating the double harmonic minor scale 6-7-1-2#-3-4-5#-6 . Therefore they are introduced as a new chromatization of the natural minor scale, which goes with further changes inthe chords of the original diatonic scale.

The 5# makes the 3m to 3M , 

the 2# makes the 7dim to 7M, 

IN SUMMARY BOTH EARLY WESTERN AND EASTERN (GYPSY) JAZZ MAY MAKE THE NEXT 7 TEMPORARY CHANGES IN THE CHORDS OF THE DIATONIC SCALE DUE TO THE 4 FIRST BLUE NOTES 

3m becomes 3M
7dim becomes 7M
5M becomes 5#dim
2m becomes 2M
6m becomes 6M
4M becomes 4m or 4dim
1M becomes 1#dim

Obviously not all of these changes occur necessarily simultaneously in a single song. maybe only few of them. And usually at least 50% of the time the chords are the normal of the diatonic scale. Other ways to organize them and perceive them are as triads of harmonic pairs of chords (see post 215  IMPROVISATION OVER A PAIR OF CHORDS . TRIADS OF HARMONIC PAIRS OF CHORDS. ). This awareness of these alterations of the normal chords of a diatonic scale (by blue notes) allows for a consistent and rich system of harmony for composing and improvising early jazz type of jazz.

AS WE MAY NOTICE THIS SYSTEM OF HARMONY WITH THE FIRST 4 BLUE NOTES (AND  5TH BLUE NOT 6#=7b  MAY BE ADDED) IS ESSENTIALLY A METHOD TO PLAY SOONER OR LATER IN THE MELODY ALL THE 12 NOTES OF THE FULL CHROMATIC SCALE STARTING FROM THE 7 NOTES OF THE DIATONIC SCALE AND RETURNING TO THEM AGAIN.

CONVERSELY ANY MELODY WHICH STARTS AS MELODY OF A DIATONIC SCALE AND THEN EVOLVES WITH ANY TURN AND ANY MOVE INSIDE THE 12-NOTES FULL CHROMATIC SCALE CAN BE COVERED OR ACCOMPANIED WITH THE NEXT ALTERNATIONS OF THE CHORDS OF THE DIATONIC SCALE. IN WESTERN JAZZ IT IS CONCEIVED AS ALTERATIONS DUE TO THE BLUE NOTES WHILE IN EASTERN JAZZ AS ALTERATIONS DUE TEMPORARY CHANGE OF THE NATURAL MINOR TO ONE OF THE CHROMATIC MINORS (HARMONIC, DOUBLE HARMONIC , NEAPOLITAN , PARACHROMATIC MINORS ETC) THIS MAY BE CALLED CHROMATIC TONAL MUSICAS CONTRASTED TO MULTI-TONAL MUSIC OR ATONAL MUSIC.

Steps of the chromatic scale/Harmonic Personality

1

1#

2

2#

3

4

4#

5

5#

6

6#

7

JAZZ PERSONALITY

1M(ajor) or 1m

1#Dim or 6M

2m(inor) or 2M(ajor)7

7M

3m or 3M(ajor)7

4M or 4m or 4Dim

2M7

5M7 or 5m

5#Dim or 3M7

6m or 6M7

5m

7Dim or 7Major7

Another wayto order the chords is as an arc in the wheel by 4ths

1) 7Dim or    7Major7

then

2) 3m or 3M(ajor)7

then

3) 6m or 6M7

then

4) 2m(inor) or 2M(ajor)7

then

5) 5M7 or 5m

then

6) 1M(ajor) or 1m

then

7) 4M or 4m or 4Dim