Using the 7th and the 3rd of the Chord Below the Melody

Our last “melody treatment” technique in this chapter will be to add the 7th and 3rd of the chord below the melody. The melody and supporting “7–3” voices may all be played in the right hand, or the 7th and 3rd may be “split” between the hands (often played by the thumb of each hand in this case). Using “7–3” voicings is a staple technique when playing jazz tunes and standards, as demonstrated on the following excerpt from “All the Things You Are.”

Let’s look at some of these voicings to see what is happening and how we can use them!

• On the Fm7 in measure 1, A♭ is the third of the chord, and the 7th of the chord is E♭ . We can then fit these two notes below the melody, all in the right hand. In the left hand, we have a root-7th interval, which is always a desirable support to the right-hand voicings in jazz styles.
• Exactly the same process is at work on the B♭ m7 chord in measure 2: the 7th and 3rd of the chord are A♭ and D♭ , which are placed below the melody note D♭ . Again, the left hand is playing a root-7th interval.

Notice that when the melody gets down to the middle C area, and is already a 3rd or 7th, we might just place the 7th below the 3rd in the melody (like in measure 9 on the Cm7 chord), or the 3rd below the 7th (like in measure 12 on the E♭ maj7 chord)—in other words, we’re just placing one note below the melody in the right hand, instead of two.

This “7–3” voicing technique is the most important foundation for my beginning-level jazz piano students. You need to know how to spell your four-part chords in order to easily access the 7ths and 3rds. Try these voicings out on as many jazz standards as you can, and make sure you have a large “tip jar” on top of your piano!