Upper Structures Pagina 1 di 6
The Jazz Piano StudyLetter
JPSL Home Page
Upper Structures
[from JPSL No. 9]
Note: this page contains links to MIDI files, which depend on the sound card in your computer. You
need an appropriate plug-in to play them. I wish there was one that could play them immediately,
without opening a separate control window, but I haven't been able to find such a thing.
We have mentioned upper structures many times in these pages. Here is a more complete overview
of the topic. Upper structures, abbreviated U.S., are triads played in the right hand which have a
different root from the left-hand chord. Consider this familiar example:
[Ex. 1]
[Click for MIDI file]
The chord here is C7(b9,13). The C# is really Db (the flat 9) and the A is the 6th or 13th of the
chord. However, the top three notes, the upper structure, form an A major triad. The ear hears the
triad as a unit, while at the same time the individual notes retain their harmonic function within C7.
Sometimes this sound is referred to as "polytonal", or being in two keys at once, but this isn't correct;
much more than this is necessary for creating a truly polytonal effect, something rare in jazz. In an
upper structure all the tones must be explainable as normal harmonic tones of the underlying chord.
The upper structure may be a major or a minor triad, although most teachers speak only of major.
Other types of triad, though, tend to lose their identity as triads and the resulting chord is simply a
complex voicing.
Upper structures are usually considered over dominant 7th chords. But they can occur over other
types of chords also. Usually only normal (diatonic or altered) tones of the underlying chord are
available; but in certain particular voicings an outside tone may be used effectively.
There's no set way to refer to upper structures. I suggest using numbers, from 2 to 7, to specify the
root of the triad in terms of the underlying chord scale.
U.S. tend to be conceived downward from the melody note. Let's consider dominant 7th U.S. from
this point of view. Since any triad has 3 positions (root, third or fifth on top), there are potentially 6
upper structures for each melody note (3 for major, 3 for minor). Omitting any voicing containing the
"avoid" notes ( 4 and 7 ) which clash with the 7th chord tones, we can have, under a root melody
note:
[Ex. 2]
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Upper Structures Pagina 2 di 6
[Click for MIDI file]
The triads 4 maj. and mi. contain F natural; and 1 maj. is omitted because it contains only chord
tones of C. Actually, the 6 mi. (A mi.) U.S. hardly qualifies, since the 6th degree virtually sounds
like a chord tone.
Four structures can be built under b9:
[Ex. 3]
[Click for MIDI file]
Skipping to #4:
[Ex. 4]
[Click for MIDI file]
If you continue to explore the upper structures this way, you'll find there are a total of 32, not
counting the 3 major triads of the root. There are five major U.S. that are very common:
[Ex. 5]
[Click for MIDI file]
These should certainly be learned in all keys. Note that U.S.#2, #4 and 6 use notes of the diminished
scale; #4 and b6 use notes of the altered scale. U.S. 2, on the other hand, derives from the lydian
dominant mode and tends to be used in non-V dominant situations (see the discussion of Lydian
Dominant in Issue 6, p. 62). These two minor U.S. are also very typical:
[Ex. 6]
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Upper Structures Pagina 3 di 6
[Click for MIDI file]
These are all natural, first-choice voicings for their appropriate melody notes; but be sure to explore
all the other upper structures. A common device is to play arpeggios using upper structures. Most
pianists can play triad arpeggios readily, which makes it easy to do something like
[Ex. 7]
[Click for MIDI file]
Upper structures can be played in sequence:
[Ex. 8]
[Click for MIDI file]
The following is something of a cliche:
[Ex. 9]
[Click for MIDI file]
Here the upper structures belonging to diminished harmony are trailed with a tritone underneath.
Major Chords
If we use a lydian scale for major harmony, there are 4 upper structures available:
[Ex. 10]
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Upper Structures Pagina 4 di 6
[Click for MIDI file]
(U.S. 3 mi. is limited to chord tones.) The major scale, in its nature, is not hospitable to alterations;
but there is a possible exception, the raised 9th, which can give an upper structure on 7 maj.:
[Ex. 11]
[Click for MIDI file]
The ear is the final judge, and this chord, though "dissonant", still sounds like a major 7th chord.
Similarly, if the major 7th is present, a minor 7th can also be used in a suitable voicing.
[Ex. 12]
[Click for MIDI file]
Such voicings would be used at the end of a tune or in carefully selected harmonic contexts!
Minor Chords
In the dorian mode, several familiar upper structures enhance the "modal"quality of the scale.
[Ex. 13]
[Click for MIDI file]
I've observed that the use of 2mi is in favor among players today, as long as the chord is not part of a
II-V progression. It has a suspended flavor:
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Upper Structures Pagina 5 di 6
[Ex. 14]
[Click for MIDI file]
The already juicy minor-major 7th chord, or tonic minor, has several rich upper structures:
[Ex. 15]
[Click for MIDI file]
A very common altered voicing for the tonic minor uses a raised 11th in a 7-maj. US.:
[Ex. 16]
[Click for MIDI file]
Notice the doubled leading tone (A) as well as the doubled #11 (E) in this particular voicing. Yow!
I could go on describing upper structures used with other chords such as half-diminished (U.S. 7),
diminished, and so on; but these can be found through exploration. By far the majority of them are
used with dominant seventh chords. An exercise by jazz teacher Dan Delaney (see No. 8, p. 86) uses
a string of arbitrary notes, randomly drawn from all 12 tones; the student plays suitable upper
structures under those notes over a given chord, e.g.
[Ex. 17]
[Click for MIDI file]
As shown, "avoid" notes can be skipped over. You can write down a page of melody notes to create
your own version of this exercise. It should be executed at sight, without memorizing.. By practicing
a variety of keys you will quickly master the most common upper structures.
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