‼️‼️‼️QUESTIONS: Most of the common questions coming up from this video have been answered in this follow up Q&A video: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-5ozHrpUCuPg.html
So, to state this another way, on a one chord play a one chord. On a 4 chord, play a one chord. On a minor chord, play it's relative major. On a half diminished, play a 2 chord. On a five chord, play a 2 chord. And on an altered dominant, just play a minor 6maj7 a half step sharp of your root. Is that correct?
I had spent two years in the music program at CCNY. Then moved to the Jazz performance program at NYU. Someone brought me to Barry's class. I got SO MUCH out of that one night at Barrys, that I dropped out of NYU the next day. I was working on a harmony book for guitar with Barry. I asked him where this whole thing came from. He told me "You're not going to believe this, Steve. I dreamt it" It really becomes obvious if you hang with it a while
maybe it wasn't 50+ years ago, but if you can't make it online now on your own, you're not gonna make it big with a music degree. i don't understand what the purpose of getting one is with the resources that are online and available to everyone now--videos like this are a prime example.
@@Farvadudethere’s a lot that you learn in an academic environment that may not seem directly related to exactly what you want to do but certainly will connect the dots sooner or later. Stuff like this is great as a supplement but isn’t necessarily a replacement
@@Farvadudegood luck finding an actually structured guide for free tho online. It's hard to get the right order of things, and not get a ton of redundant info you already know, over and over again. University programs are structured thoughtfully(usually...) to make sure you're getting the next information that's relevant to what you already know, and makes sure you have prerequisite knowledge for more advanced things.
I've been thinking along similar lines regarding Am7 is a tonal anagram of C6, this just blew my mind and gave me a whole lot more to ponder. Thank you.
Yes, at the end of the day this is a voicings video, but the real gold is in how we think of these chords and how we approach them, not so much about the notes themselves
11:40 yeah I pretty much learned the core of Jazz harmony with "Autumn Leaves". It contains so much information to draw inspiration from. Thanks for this video! Barry was truly a master of his craft.
I'm an R&B/Rock guy but I have a natural curiosity about Jazz. The fact that I could understand this lesson is encouraging for me and also a credit to this instructor and Barry Harris.
I've seen and heard a lot of mumbo-jumbo in other tutorials of B.H.'s teachings, but this is about the first really ineligible and practicable thing I've seen and heard yet! This is something I can put into use immediately! Thanks so much!
With you C maj 7 you play an open Maj 7th in your left land with a closed voiced C th in your right hand. As for the G 6th over an open C maj 7 it's really really just adding a maj 9th to the C maj 7. It seems to be about dividing the voicings up between the hands. Barry's sound is very smooth. Your explanations are very good.
Nice clear take on things! Helpful unpacking the Harris language in a way that is further translatable/relatable to what we already know. Cheers, Daniel
I find it way easier to think of C plus G B D E as a C major 9th chord, which is it's actual function. Not an e min 7th is a Cmaj 9 and e min 9th is a Cmaj 9 #4 and G 6th is C maj 9 and A minor is C 6th an F# min 7th is a C 13 Flat 5....this goes on forever and is a system that if extended to the 12 keys groans under it own weight.
Agreed if you’re thinking of harmonic function. Here he is describing practical application in terms of what ‘chord’ to put in your right hand. It’s a common way to think when actually playing (this chord over that chord equals your chord!). It doesn’t seek to describe function, but aims to simply make construction of the chord easier to remember in the moment.
What Barry did was to make 6th chords a part of a symmetrical scale that incorporates all the inversions of the 6th chord plus all the inversions of the diminished chord related to the dominant chord in the 6th chord’s key: C6/Diminished scale is CEGA plus BDFAb. When you memorize his four basic chord scales, 6th/dim, minor 6th/dim, Dominant/dim, and Dominant 7 b5/dim, you have the makings of every chord type within those scales. He taught how to “borrow” notes from the next scale tone up to create scales which matched other chord types. There is a pleasing dissonant to consonant movement with these scales because they alternate dominant to tonic sounds. I am well versed in the traditional Jazz and Classical theories to analyze standards and chords over scales, but switched to Barry’s way of analyzing tunes because it allowed me more facility over chords and chromatic usage in my improvised lines, it seems easier to get results with for me.
The only reason you say you find that easier is because you haven't fully gotten it yet, and you're thinking language before reality. Think reality before language and you'll see there are way fewer 'things' to consider. It's just sets of notes. Ignore chord names.
With you, Tim. When I was first learning these voicings, I thought of the C Major 9 as a sort of "thicker" or "denser" version of the C Major 7. If I thought of it as anything in terms of triads, it was as G over C, the simplest way to think of it. In my own playing (and in different contexts), I think of the sixth chord as a "cousin" of the 13th chord. I know Harris didn't like chords higher than the seventh, but I do.
His way of approaching single lines is directly tied to what musicians of his day actually played. It was quite liberating when I was taught his approach because I was locked up in modes and Aebersold. It wasn't good.
Great video, and a nice tribute to Barry. Just curious as to why you'd use a traditional dominant voicing on the minor ii V i, as opposed to the altered voicing you demonstrated earlier. Thanks!
Holy shit - I’m only 4 minutes in, and I immediately had to go try this. Not only was the perfect 6 chord shape easily available on my chosen instrument, I’d been using it under the pretext of it being an inverted 7th chord with the third in the bass (not technically wrong) Def in for the rest of the video
Very very interesting. Never thought about it that way. I was doing it all the time without thinking but couldn't tell you what i was doing, now i can. thanks for the explanation 😊👍
First I was thinking you was mistaking at 10:40 about dm6 at the top for domain but no that's domain for 6 on 5. It's also cool to see G bass + Abm6 at the top as altered domain sound so jazzzzy ☺️
A lot of the are just nice rootless voicings of the original chord but with a 9th. A bit part of what makes them nice is having 9th and the 3rd so close together. These are very standard Jazz piano voicings. It's a nice hack, but to be honest I don't think it's much easier than understanding the theory behind these voicings. Edit: Oops! He totally address this in the video, sorry! Shouldn't have commented before watching the whole thing.
I had the same thought that it would be easier to just learn 9th inversions for the chord rather than translate to the 5th which is an extra step that might slow you down. Are you saying that was addressed in this video?
@@JoshWalshMusic thanks to you! Really well balanced and power video. I'm starting to jazz and study again after some years, this kind of content I need
Thanks for the great ideas. But regarding your "6th on the 5th" - for the maj chord - how is that different from playing the chord as a maj9? For the Cmaj7 example, a G6/C = Cmaj9. And for the dominant, using your C7 example, a Gm6/C seems like a regular C(dominant)9. If so, then can't this lesson just be "add the 9"? Isn't it more complicated to think in 2 steps, finding the 5th and then playing a 6 of it? [LOL - RIGHT AFTER I TYPED THIS HALF WAY THROUGH THE VIDEO, YOU ANSWERED MY QUESTION ... OK - I SEE YOUR POINT]
I’ve commented on this a few other places in these comments too. There’s more thing we build from this point, so this is the beginning of the idea. Not the end. Thanks for the comment.
Thank you for making these videos. They are incredibly clear. Nevertheless, I am confused about V-6 scale over a dominant chord. The V-6 of G7, for example, is D-6. The diminished chord that starts on its Maj7 is C#dim which includes E, G, and A#. If we put these two chords together and serialize them into a scale, we get D, E, F, G, A, A#, B, and C#. Over G7, these notes spell, V, VI, bVII, I, II, #9, III ,and #11 relative to the root, G. Two of those notes are already "outside", altered notes over G7. Adim also includes two "inside" notes, G and E (I and VI), which do not yield an "away" feel relative to G7. In the Book "The Barry Harris Harmonic Method for Guitar" (my instrument), Alan Kingstone lists two more 6th/dim scales in addition to major and minor 6 diminished. The book also lists a dominant/diminished and dominant b5 diminished. These latter two scales are constructed the same way: The four notes I, III, V (or bV), and b7, and the four notes of a dim7 chord starting on the maj7. This yields only one "outside" note, the passing tone between the I and bVII (descending) that we hear Charlie Parker play over unaltered dominant chords. Does Barry offer any guidance about which one to select when we see a dominant chord in the lead-sheet. Is one more suitable for a functional dominant, and the other more suitable for a non-functional dominant, for example? Eagerly awaiting your response.
Lawrence, this is a very thoughtful comment. You are right, there are actually 2 more 6th dim scales, used for the dominant. Frankly, I haven’t used the flat-5 one all that much myself (yet). I struggle a bit with the idea of comparing the notes of Barrys scales against traditional teaching. In so many ways they largely overlap to a similar outcome. But, as you say, in so many other ways they differ as well. To me it comes down to the way it sounds. After all theory only exists to try and explain what we hear. But I have to say, Barrys methods sound more “authentic” to me most of the time, in ways that I can only describe from the perspective he shared. There’s an immense amount of wisdom in his videos, but we’ve lost the source. I wish we had access to ask him these questions.
This was a great formula and video, This is the most concise way Ive seen the Barry Harris system explained and taught. Thank you. But weren't Django and the gypsies always doing this?
I think a simpler way of looking at this is you are just adding the 9 and omitting the root (rootless chord since the bass player has that covered). This is the case for all these chords except for the 1 chord.
Hey Carl - yes this is true. However, this is just step 1 of Barry’s system, and further steps build on top of this. So you are totally correct that these are generally just rootless 9 chords, but when you get into 6th dim movements and borrowed diminished notes, you’ll want to do that from the substitute key. Totally appreciate your comment. Thanks for being a subscriber.
Wow what a piano tone! Are you using a plugin or is it developed in post or something? Thanks for the video I liked it all but the sound of the piano at the beginning really drew me in.
@@mathmusicstructure so glad to have you as a subscriber, and looking forward to seeing you in the comments. And when you finally see that sponsorship come through, I’ll look for you specifically! Haha.
Quick question regarding the V chord that resolves to a minor tonic: The m6 sub on the 5th creates a natural 9 on the V chord. Isn't it a bit weird resolving that chord (essentially a V79 chord) to a minor tonic? Not just for my ears, but I find it hard to hear examples of the bop giants go with that sound, as usually they use the b9 sound (or m6 sub on the b2 of the V). Did Barry Harris ever talked about that particular situation? Thank you for a great video btw, really well put and explained,
Good stuff! And now the important question: How do you get the 2 camera angles (overhead and front facing)? I don't think I've even seen Chick or Herbie use the overhead view - Which should be a given. And finally Finale (I think) . I've been free-basing , I mean Cubasing for a long time now. I may need to reopen Finale and see how it feels again (minus the learning curve)🙄
Can you make a Cheat sheet LIST of the 6th on the 5th Rules for playing in Major keys and also in Minor keys because it gets confusing which 6th chords to play because the rules are different for major keys compared to minor keys.
@@JoshWalshMusic Thanks that would help me out a lot because I don't know which add 6 chords of for the 2-5-1 for major keys and 2-5-1 for minor chords since the add 6 chords change the rules.
This seems like an overly complicated way to basically find additional voicings. Moreover, you contradict yourself in that after suggesting a Cmaj6 in place of Cmaj7 when it’s a tonic, your Gmaj6/C takes away the the sixth, A, and puts back the seventh, B. I have heard explanations of Barry’s method of adding a #6 to a major scale, and the additional chord options this offers that is quite interesting.
I never learned any of this from Mr. Harris because every time I sat down to play, he would go over to the phone booth in his studio and make phone calls.
Why is the b7 (Bb) dropped to the 6th (A) in the left hand in the min 6th example, but the maj 7th (B) is left in the left hand in the major 6th example?
Players preference. If you play a Gmajor6 on the fifth for a Cmajor 7th chord, the major 7 (B) is in the chord. If you treat the 1 chord as a 6th chord instead of a 7th, then we don’t need a substitute on the fifth at all. Ie. For a 1 chord C maj could be Cmaj6 or G6/C. It’s your choice. This is also true for the minor you asked about. 1 chord Cmin could be Cm6 or Eb6/C. Your preference, but only the first has an A in it.
Interesting that you're not flatting the 6th on the minor 6th chord. I find the major/minor feel of a chord is obviously most stated by the 3rd, but to only a slightly lesser degree by the 6th. Perhaps that's more noticeable in the scale than in the chord, though?
Hello, I really enjoyed the video. Quick question tho in regards to the 5 chord types(Maj, Min, Dom, Dim, Half Dim. Where would Sus and Augmented chords fall in that list? Thanks again.
Hi, I'm confused, you create a Cmaj7 using a BarryG6 with a 1 (C) in the bass for the fourth? Why not play the BarryC6 with a fourth in the bass to make an Fmaj7? Wouldn't the fifth be a G7 a Barry Dmin6 with a 5th in the bass (G)?
I’m not sure I’m totally following your question. - A major 7 chord can be voiced as a major 6 on the 5 (two borrowed dim notes). So a G6 over C functioning as a C maj 7 - As you indicated, you could do the same thing over the 4. C6 over F functioning as F major 7 - You are also correct in saying that you can use Dm6 over G to function as a G dominant. So, I don’t think you are confused. It sounds to me like you got it right! I just put up a new video that talks about this a bit more. See the pinned comment at the top of this videos comments. Thanks for the thoughtful comment.
Hey Brian. We aren't re-harmonizing the tune, so the bass plays the chord changes as written. The 6th on the 5th is Barry's way of thinking on top of those chords, not substituting them. Great question, glad to have you here!
People are always looking for a magic formula in jazz that allows you to sort of paint by numbers. Follow these steps and you will sound like jazz. What you're playing here are simply inversions so why clutter up the thinking? Taking the crux of it, a Gm6 over C7 literally is a C9 chord. . C9 = CEGBbD and Gm6/C = CGBbDE so you are literally just keeping the root the same and doing an inversion of the rest of the chord. Why is this amazing? It's very obvious that the upper extensions of one chord can contain another chord. CM6 contains Am7; CEGA=ACEG , AN INVERSION! The ii, IV and vi all contain each other as do the I, iii and vi. These are NOT substitutions but INVERSIONS so why clutter up the thinking?
I totally hear you on this. Do what is most intuitive for you, of course. The point of this video was for me to share things the way I learned from Barry. He didn’t think about extensions or alterations at all, from my understanding. Also… he builds more on this thinking in his later teaching and develops these substitute chords more.
Josh, very good information. What do you use to show your hands on the keyboard? Is there a way to talk to someone on the phone or via Zoom meeting while doing that? My nephew called me out of the blue to ask me to teach him piano.
Hey Anthony. Sure, I use my setup to do live zoom calls and workshops. It’s not for the lighthearted. I have 2 cameras, a high quality dslr on the front and a 4k webcam (Logitech Brio) overhead. For Zoom you can use OBS to bring in both cameras, and turn that into a single “virtual camera” that Zoom will be able to see. My setup is quite a bit more sophisticated than that, but using 2 decent webcams with OBS is the fastest way to get there.
@@JoshWalshMusic Thanks so much for the reply. At this point all I want to be able to do is to have my nephew hear what I'm playing and see my hands on the keyboard while we talk, so I can get away with one camera. I already have a good Shure mic for professional podcasting that I do. I was thinking also of getting one of those programs that show what notes you're playing and even chords on a grand staff. My Kawai MP7se has a UBS output, as does my Nord Electro 6.
This is really cool! But I have to ask: why? Are we meant to play a 6th chord on everything because of its color, or is there more theory behind it? I've been learning about Barry's 6th diminished scales and it brought me here.
In a sense it’s just a 9th chord, if you’ve learned traditionally. This is Barry’s alternate way of getting to that same end. But Barry also builds upon this in interesting ways. You mentioned 6th diminished. So in that example, Barry would say you could play the 6th diminished that belongs to these chords on the 5th. Playing Gm6dim scale over C7, for example. Great question. Check out my Barry playlist here on the channel. I have several more videos you may find interesting on this and 6th diminished.
@@JoshWalshMusic I will definitely check them out. I'm also a member of Open Studio Pro so my head is buzzing with all this theory. I practiced 7 hours today and I'm not done.
maybe i'm confused a bit but isn't the rule that when a min7 chord is the 1 chord, we sub it with a min6 chord with the same root? so in that 2-5-1 that goes Gm7-C7-Fm7, doesn't that Fm7 function as the 1? but you sub it with the "maj6 that's a minor 3rd above " rule
Good question. There’s a big difference between minor 6 and minor 7. A minor 7 chord isn’t a 1 chord in a minor key, a minor 6 is. When you want minor 6 (1 chord) you just play minor 6. But if you want minor 7, you can play a maj6 a minor 3rd higher. Eg. Abm6 is the same as Fm6.
OK I see what you're saying thanks! btw - i've always only played classical music, but for some reason this barry harris wisdom has really piqued my interest. cuz it seems to enable more fluid bass-melody flow. do you know any resources for applying these ideas in more classical ways? is it even sensible to think about that? @@JoshWalshMusic
@@DanDanDan-c2w check out Labrynth of Limitations here on RU-vid. He knows Barry’s methods exquisitely well, and from a classical guitar perspective. 10/10 recommendation.
Isn't a G Major 6 chord with C in the bass just a C Major 9 chord and the And the Eb major 6 with C in the bass is still a C min7, and then the Gmin 6 with C in the bass is a C9 chord etc.
all clear, but I lost you at around 9:22, it looks like you are doing diatonic scale tone 6th chords, but I can't see/hear what you are doing? Can you get into it either in the comments a bit more or in a vid response, either way will be great. I lived around the corner from barry's workshop in the west 20s I think it was the jazz cultural center, in the 80's. I was a bit intimidated as I was just starting the piano after years of being a drummer, so I was always in the peanut gallery. Did learn the dim 6 drop2 for locked hands, which I use all the time, but a lot of the rest felt very "rules" based which I wasn't really up for at that time.
Hi Eric. I was just playing major 6 and then minor 6 by root up the scale. Not diatonic to any key, just demonstrating roughly half of the chords one at a time. Eg. C-, D-, E-, F- etc. I am jealous of your proximity to Barry’s workshops!
@@JoshWalshMusic I had this same question, wondering if applying blanket 6 chords, non-diatonicly through a tonality is a Barry thing or just an exercise suggestion. I was also wondering if Barry would apply his method through a key changing the 6 chord to the diatonic mode of a scale as in Major for I, minor6 for ii ect. or is that contrary to Barry's concept? It seems like he's breaking away from the limitations of diatonic harmony suggests. Any response is greatly appreciated.
@@mathuwhycough6591 Hey. I was just using this as an example, or more of a demonstration really. Barry definitely teaches this diatonically using the 6th dim scale. I just put up some new info on that today you may find helpful: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-6KnyY2iD-CM.html
