Appendix VI - Lesson 21

Diminished and Augmented Resolutions

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Appendix VI - Lesson 21 TEF's

Notes to Appendix VI - Lesson 21

Lesson 21 is about using either diminished or augmented chord forms as substitutes for dominant harmony.   Let's review from our study of diminished chords from Volume 1.  Diminished chords have two main functions:

  1. Passing Chords:  We insert a diminished chord form between two other chords to transition from one to the other.

  2. The upper four notes of a Dominant 7b9 chord.

It's the 2nd use we are considering in this lesson.  A V9 chord has five tones.  The upper four are actually a vii7 chord.  For example, in the key of C, the V9, a G9, comprises G, B, D, F, and A.  In that same key, the vii7, a B 1/2dim7, comprises B, D, F and A.  It is called by musicologists a 1/2 diminished chord because it only has one diminished 5th interval among the notes.  It is probably more commonly known by guitarists as a B min7b5.  If we take the 1st inversion of it, which would be D, F, A, and B.  It is also called a D min6.    We play either of these forms and our bassist plays a G, then, that's right, you guessed it!  The audience hears a G9 harmony.  If we take that 1/2 diminished chord and flat the 7, continuing with our example, it would be B, D, F, and Ab.  This chord is what musicologists refer to as a "doubly diminished chord" (it has 2 diminished 5th intervals:  B to F, and D to Ab).  We guitarists just call it a diminished 7.  Since any note of that chord can be the root, let's make the Ab the root.  Ab is also a G#.  So we guitarists can play a diminished 7 chord form on the #5 of any scale (G# in our example), and our bassist plays the natural 5 note (G, continuing with our example), and our audience hears a G7b9 (G, B, D, F, Ab). 

Mickey points out that often we have the exact same chord form in a tune, but it will be used two different ways:  as a V7b9 and as a passing chord.

About the Exercises:  We have three exercises that are recalled from Lesson 11:

  1. Exercise 51 explains the point about one chord form used in two different ways in the same tune using the G7b9 and B dim7 as examples.  Note that actually the B dim7 can be called B, D, F, G# or Ab dim7.  As explained in the lessons from Volume 1, Mickey never uses the name diminished 7.  This can cause a bit of confusion as there are diminished triads.

  2. Exercise 52 shows that same diminished 7 chord form used in a symmetric cycle as dominant harmony.  The A. variation melody notes are 1/4 notes, F to D to B.  That's a natural to use a B dim or B dim7 in a descending symmetric cycle.  In the B. variation uses a trick made popular by one of the true founders of modern Jazz, Johann Sebastian Bach, by inverting and reversing the melody notes to B, D, and F, and then continues the minor third cycle by adding an Ab which strongly resolves into the G note of the C Maj9 tonic in the next measure.

  3. Exercise 53 shows a 7+5 chord form also in a symmetric cycle as dominant harmony.  Note that the melody notes are 1/4 notes, B and G.  Mickey rewrites that to be B to A to G, and puts a G7+5 chord in a symmetric cycle.  If one wanted, that progression could also be analyzed as G7+5 to G9-5 to G7+5.

I have created one TEF with the three exercises together.

In Summary:  We can use symmetric cycles of both diminished and augmented chords in V - I resolutions.  One must remember that, like most techniques, these resolutions work best when used tastefully and sparingly.  Like the old Brylcreme Hair Tonic commercials of the 1960's, remember "A little dab'll do ya!"

Let's "cycle" that fun!!