Inversions & Voicings
Chord inversions, slash chords, voice leading, and upper-structure voicings.
15 articles
Guides — 1 guide
From the books — 14 articles
Dominant Seventh Chords and Inversions
Construct the dominant seventh chord, decode why a bare 7 suffix signals it, and practice its inversions in both hands from every root.
Minor Seventh (With Flatted Fifth) Chords and Inversions
Flatten the fifth of a minor seventh to form the half-diminished chord, meet the diminished interval, and practice its inversions.
Minor Seventh Chords and Inversions
Build the minor seventh chord and its inversions, one of the most commonly used four-part chords in pop, jazz, and beyond.
Major Seventh Chords and Inversions
Step beyond triads into four-part chords, building the major seventh chord from a C major scale and learning to read its Cmaj7 symbol and inversions.
Introducing “Slash Chord” Symbols
Read slash-chord symbols like "C/E" that tell you to put a chord tone other than the root on the bottom, a staple of popular sheet music.
Voice Leading Between Inversions
Connect chords smoothly by following the inner melodic lines, learning how stepwise motion between voices keeps progressions sounding seamless.
Inverting Minor Triads
Apply the same inversion process to minor triads, starting with C minor and writing out first and second inversions by hand to cement the skill.
Inverting Major Triads
Reshape the C major triad into first and second inversions, then learn to invert major triads across every key without changing the chord.
What Are Inversions and Why Do We Use Them?
Discover why chords sound smoother and sit easier under the hands when you move a note other than the root to the bottom through inversion.
Using the 7th and the 3rd of the Chord Below the Melody
Master the jazz staple of voicing the 7th and 3rd of a chord below the melody, demonstrated on the standard "All the Things You Are."
Using Right-Hand Triads with Single Notes in the Left Hand
Arrange Sarah McLachlan's gospel ballad "Angel" in 3/4 with right-hand triads over a static left hand, while learning add9 chords and bass-note walkdowns.
Applying the Techniques to Songs
See comping techniques at work on real songs, starting with the Beatles' instantly recognizable "Let It Be" piano figure and its octave doubling and upper-structure voicings.
Introduction to “Upper Structure” Triad Voicings
Learn upper-structure voicings — playing a triad over a bass root — as a faster, easier way to grab big four-part and larger chords while comping.
Adding Triads in the Left Hand
Accompany the melody of "Buffalo Gals" with full left-hand triads, practicing the 5-3-1 fingering and the back-and-forth hand shifts between F and C chords.