{"id":14953,"date":"2023-08-20T07:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-08-20T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/?p=14953"},"modified":"2023-08-18T09:52:46","modified_gmt":"2023-08-18T16:52:46","slug":"chord-voicings-101","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/chord-voicings-101\/","title":{"rendered":"Chord Voicings for Beginners"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Did you know the same chord can sound a dozen different ways? That\u2019s the magic of chord voicings. Voicing refers to how you arrange and distribute the notes of a chord across the keyboard. As a beginner, you probably learned chords in closed voicing, but there are also open voicings, rootless voicings, and more!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Here\u2019s an introduction to chord voicings on the piano for beginners.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-rank-math-toc-block\" id=\"rank-math-toc\"><p><strong>Table of Contents:<\/strong><\/p><nav><ol><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#closed-voicings\">Closed Voicings<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#open-voicings\">Open Voicings<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#shell-voicings\">Shell Voicings<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#rootless-voicings\">Rootless Voicings<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#drop-2-voicings\">Drop-2 Voicings<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#drop-2-and-drop-4-voicings\">Drop-2 and Drop-4 Voicings<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#a-note-on-voice-leading\">Voice Leading<\/a><\/li><\/ol><\/nav><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:10px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<span class=\"blue-text-block\"><center><h2 style=\"font-size:22px\"><b>\ud83c\udfb9 Your Go-To Place for All Things Piano<\/b><\/h2><p>Subscribe to <i>The Note<\/i> for exclusive interviews, fascinating articles, and inspiring lessons delivered straight to your inbox. Unsubscribe at any time.<\/p><iframe class=\"email-form-include\" src=\"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/weeklyemail\" frameborder=\"none\"><\/iframe><\/center><\/span>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:10px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"basic-chord-voicings\" style=\"font-size:32px\"><strong>Basic Chord Voicings<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"closed-voicings\" style=\"font-size:28px\">Closed Voicings<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>This is likely the first type of chord voicing you\u2019ll learn. Closed voicing is when you play the notes of a chord close together, within an octave. Here\u2019s the C major <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/pop-piano-chord-progressions\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">I-V-vi-IV progression<\/a> in closed voicing with an extra root note in the bass.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.musora.com\/musora-cdn\/image\/quality=85\/https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/16130109\/close-voicing-1024x238.png\" alt=\"C-G-Am-F chord progression in close voicing on grand staff.\" class=\"wp-image-14954\" style=\"width:840px;height:195px\" width=\"840\" height=\"195\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/16130109\/close-voicing-1024x238.png 1024w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/16130109\/close-voicing-300x70.png 300w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/16130109\/close-voicing-768x179.png 768w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/16130109\/close-voicing-1536x357.png 1536w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/16130109\/close-voicing-2048x477.png 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 840px) 100vw, 840px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"open-voicings\" style=\"font-size:28px\">Open Voicings<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Open voicing is when we spread the notes of the chords across a wider distance. This creates a fuller, more complex sound.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"241\" src=\"https:\/\/www.musora.com\/musora-cdn\/image\/quality=85\/https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/16130854\/open-voicing-1024x241.png\" alt=\"C G Am F chord progression in open voicing on grand staff.\" class=\"wp-image-14955\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/16130854\/open-voicing-1024x241.png 1024w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/16130854\/open-voicing-300x71.png 300w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/16130854\/open-voicing-768x181.png 768w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/16130854\/open-voicing-1536x362.png 1536w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/16130854\/open-voicing-2048x483.png 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"shell-voicings\" style=\"font-size:28px\">Shell Voicings<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Sometimes, too many chord tones can sound muddy, especially if you&#8217;re accompanying yourself with chords in your left hand and the melody in your right. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>One way to cut down on the muddiness is to use shell voicings. This is when you use the bottom and top notes of a chord and \u201coutline\u201d it. It\u2019s a more open, sparser sound and is common in jazz.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Here\u2019s an example of a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/251-chord-progression\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">ii<sup>7<\/sup>-V<sup>7<\/sup>-I<sup>7<\/sup> progression<\/a> in C major. The left hand plays shell voicings (root and seventh) while the right hand plays a simple scale. Notice that by retaining the root and seventh, we preserve the core quality of the chord.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.musora.com\/musora-cdn\/image\/quality=85\/https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/16131737\/shell-voicings-1024x309.png\" alt=\"251 shell voicing example on grand staff with five finger scale in right hand.\" class=\"wp-image-14956\" style=\"width:768px;height:232px\" width=\"768\" height=\"232\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/16131737\/shell-voicings-1024x309.png 1024w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/16131737\/shell-voicings-300x91.png 300w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/16131737\/shell-voicings-768x232.png 768w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/16131737\/shell-voicings-1536x464.png 1536w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/16131737\/shell-voicings.png 1739w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" style=\"font-size:32px\"><strong>Advanced Chord Voicings<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>There are endless ways to arrange chords to make interesting sounds. Once you\u2019re comfortable with closed, open, and shell voicings, try these techniques.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"rootless-voicings\" style=\"font-size:28px\">Rootless Voicings<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Rootless voicings are exactly what they sound like: playing chords without the root note! This technique was made famous by legendary jazz pianist <a href=\"https:\/\/www.allaboutjazz.com\/musicians\/bill-evans\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Bill Evans<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Here&#8217;s a ii<sup>7<\/sup>-V<sup>7<\/sup>-I<sup>7<\/sup> chord progression in C major, with the root notes included:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"198\" src=\"https:\/\/www.musora.com\/musora-cdn\/image\/quality=85\/https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/17110001\/rootless-voicings-roots-1024x198.png\" alt=\"Dm7 G7 Cmaj7 chord progression on treble clef staff with root notes circled and labelled.\" class=\"wp-image-14961\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/17110001\/rootless-voicings-roots-1024x198.png 1024w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/17110001\/rootless-voicings-roots-300x58.png 300w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/17110001\/rootless-voicings-roots-768x149.png 768w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/17110001\/rootless-voicings-roots-1536x298.png 1536w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/17110001\/rootless-voicings-roots.png 1734w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Now here&#8217;s a typical <em>rootless <\/em>ii<sup>7<\/sup>-V<sup>7<\/sup>-I<sup>7<\/sup> chord progression in C major. We often substitute the root note with an extension tone, like the 9th. Typically, rootless dominant 7th chords are played as 13ths.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"180\" src=\"https:\/\/www.musora.com\/musora-cdn\/image\/quality=85\/https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/17111136\/rootless-voicings-1024x180.png\" alt=\"Dm9 G13 Cmaj9 progression in treble clef staff with 9ths and 13th circled and labelled in red.\" class=\"wp-image-14962\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/17111136\/rootless-voicings-1024x180.png 1024w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/17111136\/rootless-voicings-300x53.png 300w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/17111136\/rootless-voicings-768x135.png 768w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/17111136\/rootless-voicings-1536x270.png 1536w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/17111136\/rootless-voicings.png 1749w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Why use rootless voicings? In a jazz band, pianists often play the middle register while the bass player is in charge of the bass line. So, rootless voicings can help a band space out its sound without doubling on root notes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"drop-2-voicings\" style=\"font-size:28px\">Drop-2 Voicings<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>A drop-2 voicing is when you take the second-highest note in a chord stack and drop it by an octave. For example, take this I-V-vi-IV progression in C major. The arrow points to the note that is second-highest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"156\" src=\"https:\/\/www.musora.com\/musora-cdn\/image\/quality=85\/https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/17120349\/drop-2-no-drops-4-1024x156.png\" alt=\"Cmaj7 G7 Am7 Fmaj7 chord progression on treble clef with arrows pointing to second highest note.\" class=\"wp-image-14967\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/17120349\/drop-2-no-drops-4-1024x156.png 1024w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/17120349\/drop-2-no-drops-4-300x46.png 300w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/17120349\/drop-2-no-drops-4-768x117.png 768w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/17120349\/drop-2-no-drops-4-1536x234.png 1536w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/17120349\/drop-2-no-drops-4-2048x313.png 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>We&#8217;ll drop this note to create an open, drop-2 voicing. Like this:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"235\" src=\"https:\/\/www.musora.com\/musora-cdn\/image\/quality=85\/https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/17122137\/Drop-2-1024x235.png\" alt=\"Drop 2 voicing of above progression on grand staff. Cmaj7\/G, G7, Am7\/G, Fmaj7.\" class=\"wp-image-14968\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/17122137\/Drop-2-1024x235.png 1024w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/17122137\/Drop-2-300x69.png 300w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/17122137\/Drop-2-768x176.png 768w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/17122137\/Drop-2-1536x353.png 1536w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/17122137\/Drop-2-2048x470.png 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"drop-2-and-drop-4-voicings\" style=\"font-size:28px\">Drop-2 and Drop-4 Voicings<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Similarly, we can drop <em>both<\/em> the second and fourth highest notes to create drop-2 and drop-4 voicings. This creates an even more open sound.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.musora.com\/musora-cdn\/image\/quality=85\/https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/17133156\/drop-2-and-4-1024x246.png\" alt=\"Drop 2 and drop 4 voicing diagram on grand staff with arrows and labels showing which notes are dropped in Cmaj7 G7 Am7 Fmaj7 progression.\" class=\"wp-image-14969\" style=\"width:840px;height:201px\" width=\"840\" height=\"201\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/17133156\/drop-2-and-4-1024x246.png 1024w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/17133156\/drop-2-and-4-300x72.png 300w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/17133156\/drop-2-and-4-768x184.png 768w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/17133156\/drop-2-and-4-1536x369.png 1536w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/17133156\/drop-2-and-4-2048x492.png 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 840px) 100vw, 840px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"a-note-on-voice-leading\" style=\"font-size:32px\"><strong>A Note on Voice Leading<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>You may notice that I sometimes use inversions to write these chord progressions. While these techniques can work with root position chords, using inversions ensures good <strong>voice leading<\/strong>. Voice leading is when we try to transition between chords as smoothly as possible, moving our hands as little as we can.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We hope this post gives you a taste of the voicing opportunities that await you at the piano. Go try them out!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:10px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<span class=\"blue-text-block\"><center><h2 style=\"font-size:22px\"><b>\ud83c\udfb9 Learn Piano With Real Teachers<\/b><\/h2><p>The best way to learn piano is with real teachers, but not everyone has the time and money for a private instructor. At Pianote, you can get real feedback from real experts\u2026all from the comfort of your own home. Explore our Method and community yourself with a free 7-day trial.<\/p><p><\/p><a class=\"join\" href=\"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/trial\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">TRY PIANOTE FOR 7 DAYS<\/a><\/center><p><\/p><\/span>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:10px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>What are chord voicings? Discover how you can make your chords more interesting and take them to the next level with these simple techniques.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":49,"featured_media":14975,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[507],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14953","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-chord-theory"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14953","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/49"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14953"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14953\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14983,"href":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14953\/revisions\/14983"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/14975"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14953"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14953"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14953"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}