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Rootless Chord Voicings

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Rootless Voicings Tutorial

Rootless voicings are also known as left hand voicings or Bill Evans voicings so be aware that these three terms refer to the same thing. In this lesson we are going to cover what a voicing is, what makes it rootless, and why we use rootless voicings.

Free Downloadable Lesson Supplement

Download this free PDF containing rootless 251 progressions in all 12 keys:
rootless major 251s

DOWNLOAD PDF

What Are Rootless Chord Voicings?

Rootless voicings are an essential skill for the modern jazz pianist. To play a rootless voicing, we leave out the root of the chord and play one of the chord extensions instead so for example we could play the 3rd , 5th , 7th and the 9th could be the additional extension of the chord.

Rootless voicings achieve very smooth voice leading in the context of a rootless 251 progression. This reduces hand movement and will make your playing sound much more professional and sophisticated than root based voicings.

Rootless voicings are also useful in a solo piano context and are a great voicing choice to support soloing and improvisation in your right hand.

How Do We Play Rootless Chord Voicings?

A voicing is the way that we choose to spread out or arrange the notes of a chord on the keyboard. We learnt in the lesson on chord extensions that we can extend the chord past the octave to play the 9th, 11th and 13th .

To play a rootless voicing, we leave out the root of the chord and play one of the extensions instead so for example we could play the 3rd , 5th , 7th and 9th of the chord.

Why Do We Use Rootless Voicings?

Rootless voicings achieve very smooth voice leading in a 251 progression which has 2 main benefits:

  • The first is that the chords will flow from one to the next very smoothly which sounds great to the listener!

  • The second is that it reduces hand movement to a minimum so that you can move from one chord to the next very easily and focus you attention on soloing in your right hand.

Rootless voicings free up a finger for more interesting and colourful note choices such as a 9th, 11th or 13th which makes your playing sound more professional.

If you are playing in a jazz band, the bass player will have the root of the chord covered so there is no need for you to play it.

Rootless Voicings For Major Chords

To turn a major chord into a rootless voicing, we add the 9th and then drop the root. The alternative way to build a rootless voicing for major chords is to build a minor 7th chord off the major 3rd . In the key of C you would build a minor 7th chord of E which is the third.

Rootless Voicings For Minor Chords

We build minor rootless voicings in the same way as with major chords, we add the 9 and we drop the root. Remember that both major and minor chords share the same 9th. The alternative way to build a rootless voicing for minor chords is to go to the minor 3rd and build a major 7th chord. In the key of C minor we build a major 7th chord of Eb which is the minor 3rd.

How To Invert Rootless Voicings

There are two important inversions that you need to learn for rootless voicings: Type A and Type B.

  • The formula for Type A rootless voicings is 3-5-7-9

  • The formula for Type B rootless voicings is 7-9-3-5

Type A rootless voicings always have the 3rd on the bottom and Type B always have the 7th on the bottom. An easy way to get from Type A to Type B is to take the bottom two notes and put them on the top (or take the top two notes and put them on the bottom).

Why Invert Rootless Voicings?

You might be wondering why we invert rootless voicings and the answer is so that we can play them in the correct register of the piano. Rootless voicings sound best when played right in the centre of the piano (around middle C). If you play rootless voicings too low on the keyboard they will sound ‘muddy’ and distorted. If you play them too high they will sound very ‘thin’.

By inverting rootless voicings you can always play them on or close to the centre of the piano to get the best sound.

Rootless Voicings For Dominant Chords

Rootless dominant 7th voicings are a bit trickier than major and minor chords. We could voice them in the same way that we have voiced the major and minor chords. However, this would not voice lead smoothly in the context of a 251 progression.

Instead we substitute the 5th for the 13th. This creates tension and dissonance between the 13th and then b7th .

Lesson Downloads

  • file-icon
    Rootless Major 251 Progressions – 12 Keys File Type: pdf
    Download

Related Lessons

Major Voicing Variations

We explore the voicing options for major chords under each note of the Lydian Mode which is a common scale to play over major chords.

Intermediate19:48

Altered Jazz Chords in 251s

In a minor 251, the 5 chord will be an altered dominant chord. In this lesson we apply altered dominant chords to the major 251 progression.

Intermediate14:31

Minor Voicing Options

We explore voicings for each note of the dorian mode. Watch this and never again get stuck on what to play for minor chords!

Intermediate26:00

Practice Tips

  • You should practice rootless voicings most times you sit down to practice until you can play them in all 12 keys without mistakes.

  • Play the root of the chord in your left hand and then a rootless voicing in your right hand. Take this around the circle of fifth, then move up and down chromatically, then choose keys at random to test yourself.

  • Make sure you are analysing the notes you are playing and identifying the chord tones and extensions in relation to the underlying bass note.

  • Once you are comfortable with this, drop the root and play the rootless voicings with just your left hand. Repeat the above exercises.

  • It can be a challenge at first to visualise the chords without the root so stick with it!

  • The next step is to combine these chords into the rootless 251 progression.

Comments

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  1. Daniel Guerrero says

    February 22, 2017 at 7:43 pm

    I’m just starting to dive into this topic
    And I’m very excited about it
    Thanks for sharing!
    Greetings from Cancun Mexico

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    • Hayden says

      February 23, 2017 at 3:00 am

      Hey Daniel, that’s awesome… I hope you enjoy the lesson!

      If I can help you with anything just let me know πŸ™‚

      Cheers,
      Hayden

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  2. Jessica Hassibi says

    May 9, 2017 at 7:46 am

    Hey Hayden, at 7:45 following, why are you calling them 7th chords, instead of 9th chords? Jessica

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    • Hayden says

      May 9, 2017 at 8:27 am

      Hi Jessica… good question!

      You need to understand that jazz musicians will refer to chords as ‘7’ even when it contains other extensions and alterations. Think of this as shorthand. So if I was playing a C minor 11 chord, and a jazz musician asked me what chord i was playing, i could just say Cm7.

      In the same way, if you see ‘7’ on a lead sheet, this does not mean that you are just restricted to the 7th, in fact, this will often sound plain and so you have the creative freedom to add in additional extension/alterations as you see and hear fit.

      In some cases, you will see a very specific chord symbol, such as Cmaj13#11, in this case I would first try those specific alterations/extensions as they will either sound best, or be more inline with the composers original intentions.

      I hope this helps Jessica and if you would like me to elaborate on anything, just let me know πŸ™‚

      Cheers,
      Hayden

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  3. Simon Liao says

    August 16, 2017 at 10:28 pm

    Great video, thorough but not too slow! Can’t believe I never saw this before!
    Greetings from Sweden.

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    • Hayden says

      August 17, 2017 at 7:32 am

      Thanks Simon, I’m glad you found the lesson useful!

      Cheers, Hayden

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  4. SarahW says

    August 29, 2017 at 3:42 pm

    This is the first video I’ve watched – I’m impressed! And will definitely be looking at more material on the site.

    The only point I’d make is that sometimes ‘incorrect’ enharmonic equivalents are shown. For example when discussing the DMaj7 chords at around 5:15 the notes shown are D Gb A Db, when they should be D F# A C#. I know they sound the same, but when it comes to discussing how the third and seventh are the definiting notes of the chord, it’s important to recognise them as such.

    Anyway, it’s just a small point and doesn’t detract from the video being wonderful, but something you might want to take note of in the future…

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    • Hayden says

      August 30, 2017 at 11:42 am

      Thanks Sarah, great to hear you found the lesson useful.

      Yes my apologies for the enharmonic equivalents, most jazz standards are written in flat keys so I opted to go for all flats for the black keys. In hindsight I should have chosen to mix sharps and flats for theory lessons like this where we are going though many different keys.

      As you say it’s good to be able to recognise these enharmonic equivalents but I agree it can be confusing. I will make note and change this for future lessons.

      If I can help you with anything you are working on, feel free to comment or send me an email.

      Cheers,
      Hayden

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  5. Damon Cook says

    October 16, 2017 at 8:11 am

    thank you soooo much this is exactly what i needed

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    • Hayden says

      October 19, 2017 at 5:25 pm

      Hi Damon, my pleasure… I’m glad you enjoyed the lesson. Check out the jazz standard lessons in this course where we apply the voicings in context. Cheers, Hayden

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  6. Adam Powell says

    October 20, 2017 at 4:44 am

    Can’t seem to play the videos since the website update.

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    • Hayden says

      October 20, 2017 at 6:02 am

      HI Adam,

      Thanks for making me aware of this. Please can you try the following:

      1) Try a different browser
      2) Try a different device

      –> This will help us identify whether it is specific to the computer or device you are using.

      If it is, then try clearing your cache and your history. Sometimes your browser may be storing an older version of the site which is causing playback issues.

      I have also emailed you so reply to me whichever way is most convenient for you πŸ™‚

      Cheers,
      Hayden

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      • Adam Powell says

        October 20, 2017 at 4:19 pm

        When using the Safari browser I am having issues. Probably my flash player. I am fine watching videos using Chrome. Thanks again for your concern.

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        • Hayden says

          October 20, 2017 at 9:16 pm

          No problem Adam… thanks for letting me know about this, I will investigate further. Cheers πŸ™‚

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  7. Troy Tulloch says

    January 1, 2018 at 4:01 pm

    Very helpful. Well-paced too. Thank you.

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    • Hayden says

      January 1, 2018 at 8:10 pm

      Thanks Troy… glad you liked the tutorial πŸ™‚

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  8. cantabile says

    March 23, 2018 at 10:19 pm

    You stated that it is good to use rootless voicing so that you stay out of the way of the bass player. I don’t intend to play in a band. So would I have to play the tonic note in the melody somewhere. Thanks.

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    • Hayden Hill PianoGroove says

      May 9, 2018 at 10:15 pm

      Hey apologies for the late reply… I was not notified of this comment.

      If you are playing solo jazz piano, then yes, you would want to include the root in your voicings most of the time.

      That being said, it’s nice to sprinkle in rootless voicings here and there to add different textures to your arrangement. Another application could be if you are playing a left hand stride style…. a nice effect is to hit the root way down in the lower registers and then come with your left hand to play rootless voicings.

      There are a number of key reasons why we play rootless voicings, and why learning them is an important part of your musical development:

      1) You free up a finger for a more interesting note choice such as an extension or alteration

      2) Rootless voicings voice lead much more smoothly in a 251- it’s easy to play a rootless 251 without looking and so you can focus on your right hand lines.

      3) You will become familiar with extensions and alterations, if you don’t practice rootless voicings, chances are you will be sticking to simple root position 7th chords. Practicing rootless voicings will give you a much greater appreciation of the extended and altered tones available to you.

      I hope this helps you understand some different applications of rootless voicings. You should really spend the time to learn them!

      Cheers,
      Hayden

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  9. Anthony Goncalves says

    May 9, 2018 at 7:09 pm

    Sometimes I find a message in this lesson saying “html5: Video not properly encoded” !

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    • Hayden Hill PianoGroove says

      May 9, 2018 at 10:07 pm

      Thanks for letting me know Anthony… I have just updated the video software which should fix the issue.

      Please try logging out and back in again, and let me know if the issue persists.

      Cheers,
      Hayden

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  10. UrbanSmash says

    July 10, 2019 at 2:47 am

    πŸ”₯πŸ™ŒπŸΎπŸ˜ŽπŸ’« Brilliant, concise and easy to follow explanation. Bravo πŸ‘πŸΎ

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    • Hayden Hill says

      July 10, 2019 at 7:48 am

      Thanks glad you enjoyed the lesson. Cheers, Hayden

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  11. Ken Wade says

    December 18, 2019 at 4:57 pm

    I continue to get a freeze w/ 4 centered vertical lines moving up&down…not possible to undue and must close. Rootless voicing froze @ 8:55..happens frequently. Does anyone else have the problem?

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  12. Jacobs Andreas says

    March 22, 2020 at 2:58 pm

    so type A and type B is basically open and close position with left hand right?

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    • Hayden Hill says

      March 22, 2020 at 9:42 pm

      Hi Jacobs.

      I’m unsure on your exact question here, but I can try to explain the key points:

      – type A and type B contain the same notes, but in different orders

      – type A is 3-5-7-9

      – type B is 7-9-3-5

      – rootless voicings sound best when played around middle C, with the 2 positions (type A & B) we can always play our voicings in this register of the piano

      – there are other inversions, but the ones covered in this lesson are the most practical and useful to have ‘under our fingers’

      – Initially, focus on the numbers, try to visualise each scale degree when playing the voicings. I find it easy to see either the 3 or 7 on the bottom, and then it’s easy to visualise the rest of the chord

      – Eventually these voicings will become second nature when you see the chord symbol and our muscle memory does all of the work

      – Learning them in all 12 keys is a gradual process that can take multiple years. Progress onto other theory topics in the PianoGroove syllabus but revisit the drills and exercises in the practice series of this course

      Hope this helps! πŸ™‚

      Hayden

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