Diminished Harmony Secrets: Expand Your Diminished Harmony Vocabulary Infinitely

Jake Reichbart·
5.0 (3 reviews)
·INTERMEDIATE·Solo Jazz Guitar·1 lesson
As we all know, the diminished scale is unique in its symmetry, we have all moved the diminished chord up and down the neck in minor thirds as a substitute for a 7b9 chord. But what if there was a method to be able to add countless, literally hundreds or even thousands of great sounding diminished voicings to you vocabulary? This lesson will show you how. The diminished scale, starting with the half step, (i.e. a Bb against a root of a A in the context of A7, as an example) will produce the 1, b9, #9, 3, #4, 5, 13 and 7, NONE of these being an avoid note. It stands to reason, then, that practically any random combination of these notes - with the variables being how many notes in the voicing, which of the 8 notes are included and on which strings - will produce a viable "correct" voicing for a 7th chord with a diminished scale flavor, the only limitation being your taste, whether you like the sound of the voicing... Put in those terms, coming up with a method to organize and learn such voicings could be daunting. This lesson will put you on this path by offering a clear, methodical and logical way to produce an initial voicing, to then move it in minor thirds, demonstrating the often neglected "in-between" voicings, thereby created a complete series of 8 scale-chords, then move on to INVERTING the initial voicing, creating three additional new fingerings of the same chord type, then moving THOSE new shapes in minor thirds along with THEIR in-between voicings, and repeat... Virtually limitless. Regardless of your level, you will come away from this lesson with new chord voicings you can use right away!

Course Content

Lessons

  • Diminished Scale Secrets Full Class + Download1581

Reviews & Ratings

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John Duncan
Verified Purchase
6/15/2019

"Very useful"

Thanks, Jake! I enjoyed this lesson and put the ideas to work right away!

Robert Minchin
Verified Purchase
6/14/2019

"Excellent information"

This is a really interesting class showing possibilities with diminished chords. Jake gives a well presented and organized class. It gives me some very interesting and modern sounding chords and a system I can use to come up with my own application of his concept. I'll be working on this concept for daily. Just what I was looking for to expand my harmonic sound.

George Cole
Verified Purchase
6/14/2019

"Diminished Harmony Secrets"

Beautiful sounds! A side benefit is the voice leading...very cool :) The video got cut off at the end...whats up with that?

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About the instructor

Jake Reichbart
Jake Reichbart won WEMU-FM’s Emily Remler scholarship for best jazz guitarist in 1991. Since then, he has been among the busiest guitarists in the greater Detroit region. As a sideman, he appears on countless recordings and jingles and has performed alongside Motown legends and jazz greats alike, logging over 4,600 live gigs. Reichbart’s passion, though, has always been solo guitar, citing Joe Pass, Tuck Andress and Tommy Emmanuel as his main influences, while creating a unique voice of his own. He can arrange for the guitar nearly any tune imaginable, drawing from any and every musical style. His CDs 16 Songs and Long Ago and Far Away have received nominations for best jazz recording at the Detroit Music Awards and have garnered rave reviews from such prestigious publications as All Music Guide, Just Jazz Guitar, and Cadence, as well as from numerous radio stations across the US and abroad. He has performed for two US presidents, the Michigan Governor's Inaugural Ball three times, and for countless other similar events. His instructional DVDs are distributed by the largest publisher in the world, Hal Leonard Corporation and he was featured on the front cover of the May 2012 issue of Just Jazz Guitar magazine, which included a lengthy interview and a transcription of one of his arrangements. Jake cites his most enjoyable solo work as being the “restaurant guitarist,” creating long-term relationships and enjoying a loyal following. For the past 20 years, he has been performing on Wednesday evenings at Ann Arbor’s most famous restaurant, The Earle.