Lydian Dominant Strategies.pdf

S E S S I O N S Lydian-Dominant Strategies B Y

F7

Ex. 1a

G A R R I S O N

#

F7 11

Ex. 1b

F E W E L L

HERE’S A SHARP WAY TO BRIGHTEN your lines when improvising over dominant7th chords: Raise the fourth degree of the Mixolydian mode (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, b7) by one half-step, and you’ll get a scale known as Lydian b7 (1, 2, 3, #4, 5, 6, b7). Sometimes called the Lydian dominant, this scale will give your lines a hipper sound without wrenching you out of the basic dominant-7th tonality. Spiky 7ths. For examF13 ple, Ex. 1a is an F Mixolydian lick. By simply raising Bb to Bn, you’ll transform 4 3 this into an F Lydian-b7 3 2 1 E x . 1 b ). Try each line (E 1 1 phrase over an F7 vamp to G appreciate the difference 3 one note can make. 2 1 The melodic-minor 5 7 3 2 1 connection. A quick way to generate Lydian b7 sounds is to play a melodic-minor scale (1, 2, b3, 4, 5, 6, 7) starting on the dominant-7th chord’s fifth degree. This creates cool tensions—9, #11, and 13—against the chord. For example, play C melodic minor (C, D, Eb, F, G, A, B) over F7. Chord-over-chord. See how the C melodic- minor scale contains a G major triad (G, B, D)? Spinning G arpeggios over F dominant chords, as in Ex. 2, is a quick-and-dirty way to conjure the Lydian-b7 sound. Play this line slowly at first, then turn it into a double-time, sixteenth-note funk groove.

ö ww ö ö b ö ö nwww b 44 ö ö ö ö ö ö b ö w ö (n)ö ö ö ======================= & bw bw 3

3 1

2

T A B

3 1 4 2

4 1

3 5

3 4 6

2 3 5

6 5 7 6

1

4

2

2

3 5

F13

1 3 2 4 1

3

1

3

3 1 4 2

3 4 6

4 5

6 4 7 6

#

F9 11

² ³³³³ n ööö ö # ö ö n ö ö b ö ö ö ö b ö b 4 ä ö ö ö ö ö ( ö) ö nö ö ä öö .. ============================= & b 4 b öj ö n ö bö ö n ö bö . ö b ö ú 3

Ex. 2

4

1

3

2

4

1

1

4

3

6 10

1

1

1

3

3

1

3

4

G T A B

2

1

9

G

7 10 8

7

10

G

7 8 10 (8) (8) (7)

7

9

8

9

10

1

G

12

12 8

7

9

10 6

F7

ö ö ö nö ö ö ö nú ö 4 ö ö J ö ö ö b b ö n ö ö î ( ) ö ======================= & 4 Ex. 3

4

2

1

8 10 6 T A B

7

1

8

7

4

7

10

3

3

4

2

1

2

2

1

1

4

8

10

9

10

12

9 10

12 10 12

ö n ö ö bö n ö ö bö ö ö ö ö ö nö ö 4 î ö bö ú ====================== &b4

Ex. 4

F7

4

1

2

1

3

2

1

2

3

1

4

1

2

10 7 T A B

8

7

6 8

7

6

5

6

7 5

4 7

5

4

3

F7

bö n ö ö ö bö ö ö ö ö bö b ö n ö ö b ö ö b ö 4 n ö ö b ö ö ö ä öj nö ö ö î ============================= &b4 n( )ö b ö ö Ex. 5

3

2

1

1

4

2

1

1

1

3

2

1

4

1

4

3

1

3

1

1

1

4

3

11

10

2

1

3 7 T A B

8

7

6

5

8

6

5

4

4

7

6

5

5

8

5

6 10

9

7

10

8

8

9 10

11

S E You can expand this chord-over-chord idea by stretching the G triad into a G7 (G, B, D, F ). Featuring G and G7 arpeggios, Examples 3 and 4 are typical blues licks. First, check out how they sound over a G7 chord, then give your ears a twist by playing the same lines over F7. Finally, jazz up your Lydian b7 lines even more by adding Ex. 5). choice chromatics (E Lydian-b7 strategies. To summarize, here are three ways to create a raised-4 (or #11) sound against a dominant-7th chord: • Play a Lydian b7 scale from the target chord’s root. • Work through a melodic-minor scale starting from the chord’s fifth. • Arpeggiate a major triad (or dominant 7) whose root is a whole-step above the target chord. Get familiar with each strategy, and remember to look at the bright side of dominant harmony. g Garrison Fewell juggles touring and teaching at Berklee College of Music. Hear his introspective lines and round, dusky tone on A Blue Deeper Than Blue, Are You Afraid of the Dark?, and Reflection of a Clear Moon (all on Accurate, Box 390115, Cambridge, MA 02139).

S S I O N S