The Science Behind Minor ii V i’s
Look folks, a ii V I in a major key is not the same as a ii V i in a minor key.
And I’m not just talking about the obvious fact that the major ii V I resolves to a major chord and the minor ii V i resolves to a minor chord.
The more subtle distinction is the ii chord.
You see, in a major ii V I, the ii chord is generally a minor 7 chord:
Dm7 G7 CMaj7
But in a minor ii V i, the ii chord is generally a half diminished chord aka m7b5:
Dm7b5 G7 Cm7
Why is that?
Well, because when determining chords in a minor key, the most common scale used is the harmonic minor scale:
1 2 b3 4 5 b6 7 or C D Eb F G Ab B
When you build a ii chord using that scale, you get:
D F Ab C
(C D Eb F G Ab B C)
Harmonic minor is called harmonic minor because it’s the scale from which chords (harmony) are derived, as opposed to the melodic minor scale, which is traditionally used for, you guessed it, melodic content.
Of course, in modern music, the harmonic minor scale can be used for melodies and the melodic minor can be used to create chords. But when it comes to yer basic ii V i’s, you’re gonna want to look to that harmonic minor scale for constructing your ii and V chords.
Alright, enough of this theoretical gobbledygook. Scale theory is important for understanding how chords are built and work together, but don’t stress too much about them when working on soloing.
You’re going to be much better off focusing on the chord tones (root, third, fifth, and seventh) and branching out from there.
Which is exactly why I created Chord Tone Magic – a collection of jazz etudes using only chord tones that don’t sound dumb and boring. Unfortunately, most chord tone solos sound pretty lame. Chord Tone Magic is the antidote to that improvisational plague.
You can learn more about Chord Tone Magic here:
https://go.jeffschneidermusic.com/chord-tone-magic
And once you’ve got the hang of improvising chord tone solos that actually sound good, you can fill out your soloing vocabulary with my newest collection of major and minor ii V I licks called Sick Licks – a six-book series organized by genre, skill level, and chord progression. There are 600 licks in all, and they will make your playing sound so much better, I’m excited for you just thinking about it.
You can learn more about Sick Licks and hear some samples here:
https://go.jeffschneidermusic.com/sick-licks
That’s all for now. Go shed your minor ii V i’s!
Jeff
