Question about Substitution

[cjbass1]

Hey Adam! I'm wondering if you can shed some light on substitutions and creating tension within songs/improvised solos.
Is there a good practice workout that we should know and go about? How do you go about knowing what works as the substitution? Thanks so much!

 

[adamnitti]

Hey Adam! I'm wondering if you can shed some light on substitutions and creating tension within songs/improvised solos.
Is there a good practice workout that we should know and go about? How do you go about knowing what works as the substitution? Thanks so much!

hi cjbass!

thanks for the post. this might be tough to address in a single thread, but the short answer is that i generally practice more conceptual stuff than anything else. instead of working out various licks or whatever, i instead establish some compatible harmonic relationships between the chords and my desired 'color' and go from there. most substitution ideas that introduce tension do so because of the tension that is created against the chord tones that you are playing over. as you have identified already, some ideas are going to sound more 'inside' than others. but the concepts that you derive can be based on a variety of things... from imposed or borrowed harmonic ideas to purely geometric ideas that create symmetric shapes on the fingerboard that are designed to create tension before a resolution. for example, i like to use a lot of substitution ideas that come from melodic minor, diminished, pentatonic, and harmonic minor-borrowed shapes and sounds. each idea or concept i might use is designed to impose a particular sound over a chord, that might step outside the basic harmonic framework that's already there. for example, over a dominant 7 chord, i might utilize a phrase that combines notes from a min maj9 arpeggio built from the b9... this would create an altered dominant sound, because it would impose the b9, 3, #5, root, and #9, thereby creating color and dissonance. if the dominant chord is acting as the V, moving to the I, this is a great idea for building tension that is then resolved over the I chord...

a prime example of a more 'geometric', or shape-inspired approach would be something like a half step displacement idea in which you step from inside to outside and back to inside again simply by moving your idea a half step above or below in order to create tension. as simple as this sounds, a lot of players use this to create momentary dissonance or tension that they will then resolve. i actually like to do this a lot with pentatonics or displaced chord tones, moving the shapes a half step away and then back again. i also like to do this by displacing particular ideas using minor 3rd distances...

as you can imagine, this is a topic that can extend volumes and is hard for me to answer in a single thread, but i hope this at least sheds some light on the subject.

 

[kevbass5]

hi cjbass!

for example, over a dominant 7 chord, i might utilize a phrase that combines notes from a maj min9 arpeggio built from the b9... this would create an altered dominant sound, because it would impose the b9, 3, #5, root, and #9, thereby creating color and dissonance. if the dominant chord is acting as the V, moving to the I, this is a great idea for building tension that is then resolved over the I chord...

hey adam
love the thread. i don't mean to be disrespectful by jumping in like this, but i don't want people to get confused. i know you meant to say a min maj9 chord instead of maj min 9. which to clarify for people, built on the b9 of C7 would be Db, E, Ab(G#),C and Eb

 

[SteveC]

I feel pretty good when I throw in a tritone substitution. I really need to read/learn more theory - and I have a BS in Music Ed. I'm not that bright I guess.

 

[adamnitti]

hey adam
love the thread. i don't mean to be disrespectful by jumping in like this, but i don't want people to get confused. i know you meant to say a min maj9 chord instead of maj min 9. which to clarify for people, built on the b9 of C7 would be Db, E, Ab(G#),C and Eb

kevbass5-

thanks so much for pointing that out.... this is what happens when i don't get any sleep!!!

should be fixed now in the thread...

 

[cjbass1]

Hey adam, thank you for getting back to me. I have one more question. When you say you borrow ideas from melodic minor, or harmonic minor, do you mean those main scales or also the modes that go along with them? Thanks!

 

[adamnitti]

i'm talking about the modes that go along with them, used specifically over particular chord types in order to achieve a mood or sound.