Workshop 17 — “All of Me”: Secondary Dominants Everywhere, Turning a Simple Tune into a Functional-Harmony Laboratory
This workshop is ideal for consolidating secondary dominants.
“All of Me” sounds approachable, but harmonically it gives you repeated examples of:
- tonic moving to V/vi
- V/ii
- V/V
- dominant chains
- circle motion
- chromatic inner lines
- clear destinations for improvisation
The central lesson is:
Secondary dominants stop feeling like exceptions once you hear them as temporary arrows pointing to ordinary diatonic chords.
We’ll work conceptually in C major.
17.1Start with the tonicC major:17.2E7 → AmIn C major:17.3Hear the crucial altered noteE7:17.4Play only that lineLH:17.5A7 → DmNext common idea:17.6D7 → GG is V.17.7Put the chromatic lines togetherYou get:17.8This is the workshop in one sentenceInstead of memorizing:17.9Level 1 — melody onlyPlay the melody plainly.17.10Level 2 — roots onlyPlay:17.11Level 3 — plain triads/seventhsUse only the actual basic chords.17.12Level 4 — isolate every secondary dominantMake a list of the tune’s temporary dominants.17.13Level 5 — sing the destination before playing itPlay E7.17.14Level 6 — shellsFor E7:17.15Voice leading is much simpler than the chord names suggestFor example:17.16Level 7 — extensionsNow add color selectively.17.17E7♭9E7:17.18A13A7:17.19D9D7 + E.17.20Level 8 — dominant chainPractice:17.21Guide-tone chainThirds:17.22Why dominant chains sound so strongEach chord contains a leading tone to the next root.17.23Level 9 — simplify the chainCompare:17.24This is functional ornamentationSecondary dominants are not necessarily replacing the basic harmony.17.25Structural reduction exerciseTake:17.26Level 10 — melody compatibilityA secondary dominant can clash with a diatonic melody note.17.27Do not force the theoryA chord may be theoretically elegant but melodically poor.17.28Level 11 — target the altered third in improvisationOver E7:17.29Compare Em7 versus E7Em7:17.30Level 12 — one-note-per-chord soloChoose:17.31Now connect themE → G♯ → A/C17.32Level 13 — chromatic approach linesOver E7→Am:17.33Level 14 — motif through secondary dominantsChoose rhythm:17.34Level 15 — sequence the chromatic ideaYou can make the whole phrase sound intentional by repeating the same “lower note → leading tone → target” shape.17.35Level 16 — compingDo not hit every secondary dominant like an event.17.36Comping hierarchyApproach dominant: light.17.37Level 17 — rootless voicingsE7♭9:17.38Level 18 — tritone substitutionsNow add one.17.39A family of chromatic approachesOriginal:17.40Do not substitute all of themIf you replace every secondary dominant with a tritone sub, you destroy the clear dominant-chain character.17.41Level 19 — diminished equivalentsE7♭9 without root gives:17.42ExampleInstead of:17.43Level 20 — passing diminished versus dominantCompare:17.44Level 21 — turnaroundA natural turnaround in C:17.45Level 22 — bass designA root-position dominant chain:17.46Circle bass versus chromatic bassCircle:17.47Level 23 — choose one aesthetic per passageDo not mix every circle root with every chromatic substitute indiscriminately.17.48Level 24 — melody paraphraseFirst statement:17.49Level 25 — call and responseSecondary-dominant line:17.50Level 26 — swing versionThis tune works beautifully with light swing.17.51Ballad versionSlow it down and the dominants become more dramatic.17.52Bossa versionStable LH groove.17.53Level 27 — one chorus with no scale thinkingRule:17.54Level 28 — strong-beat altered thirdsOn each secondary dominant, place the altered third on a strong beat:17.55Level 29 — delay the resolutionOver E7→Am:17.56LikewiseA7→Dm:17.57Level 30 — common tonesNot every voice should move.17.58Level 31 — introA natural intro is a dominant chain:17.59Softer introCmaj7 → E7 → Am9 → Dm9 → G1317.60Level 32 — endingSimple:17.61Final C6/9LH: C-G17.62Practice loop 1 — secondary dominant ladderPractice:17.63Practice loop 2 — altered thirdsPlay only:17.64Practice loop 3 — chord-quality switchAlternate:17.65Practice loop 4 — tritone subsB♭7 → Am17.66Improvisation challenge 1One chorus:17.67Challenge 2Use the four chromatic leading-tone gestures:17.68Challenge 3Leave one whole secondary dominant mostly silent.17.69Challenge 4Use one tritone substitution only.17.70Challenge 5Play the same phrase:17.71Ear drill — identify destinationRandomly play:17.72Ear drill — major/minor third switchPlay E-G-B-D.17.73Ear drill — dominant versus tritone substitutePlay:17.74Arrangement architectureone short dominant chain.17.75The biggest conceptual pointA secondary dominant is not mainly:17.76The advanced version of the ideaEventually, you should be able to see:•Workshop 17 mini-test1. What is E7 in C major?