chord progression
A chord progression is a sequence of chords, the harmonic path a piece follows. Musicians usually describe progressions with Roman numerals so they can be moved to any key: the 12-bar blues is built on I, IV and V (in C: C, F and G, usually as seventh chords), while the jazz ii–V–I in C […]
chord voicing
A chord symbol tells musicians which notes belong to a chord; the voicing is how they actually lay them out. The same Cmaj7 (C–E–G–B) can be played in close position, with all four notes packed within an octave, or spread across the keyboard, for example with C and G in the left hand and B […]
comping
Comping is the accompaniment that a pianist, guitarist or organist provides behind a soloist or singer. The word is generally explained as short for “accompanying”, and possibly also linked to “complementing”. It is not a fixed part: the player chooses chord voicings, often rootless because the bass already supplies the root, and places them in […]
dominant seventh chord
A dominant seventh chord combines a major triad with a minor seventh. Its name comes from the dominant, the fifth note of a major scale: in C major the chord built there is G7, spelled G–B–D–F. Chord charts write it simply as a letter plus 7, so “C7” always means C–E–G–B♭, never a major seventh. […]
Dorian mode
The Dorian mode is the scale obtained by playing the white keys of the piano from D up to the next D: D–E–F–G–A–B–C–D. Moved to C it becomes C–D–E♭–F–G–A–B♭. It sounds minor because of its flat third, but compared with the natural minor scale its sixth note is a semitone higher (A instead of A♭ […]
extended chords
Extended chords keep stacking notes above a seventh chord, past the octave. The 9th is the second note of the scale placed an octave higher, the 11th is the fourth and the 13th is the sixth. Starting from C7 (C–E–G–B♭), adding D gives C9; adding D and A gives the dominant 13th sound. In chord-symbol […]