BookatlasPiano Rabbit Hole: Improvisation Theory & Practice
6736 / 18210 · Workshop 50 — “Nefertiti”: Repetition as Development, Harmonic Motion Under a Fixed Theme, Metric Ambiguity, and Learning to Change the Background Instead of the Melody← prev⊞ allnext →

50.8Level 4 — same melody, different harmonic functions

Take the motif:

G-A-F-E♭.

Try it over:

Cm9

Cm9 = C E♭ G B♭ D

Fm9

Fm9 = F A♭ C E♭ G

A♭maj7

A♭maj7 = A♭ C E♭ G

G7♭9

Not every note will be equally consonant.

That is useful.

Some become:

  • chord tones
  • extensions
  • passing notes
  • suspensions

The melody itself does not need to change.