How to Outline Chord Changes
(Improvisation on "Autumn Leaves")

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The true sign of being able to outline chord changes is if someone can hear what the changes are just from your RH single-note improv lines, without your LH chords spelling it out.

We examine a few different techniques I used to outline the chord changes in the first 2 A's of "Autumn Leaves":
1) Targeting 3rds
2) 3579 Arpeggios (esp. to help bring out sidestep 2-5's)
3) Ami7b5 - use of the Cry Me A River Lick
4) D7ALT - Ebmi 5321 shape to bring out the D7ALT colors
5) Gmi6 - highlighting the 6th

The second level is to key in to how we can outline the changes in a musical way. A few techniques to look out for:
1) Triplets: key in to how triplets are being used to break up the 1/8th note line
2) Accents: key in to not just what notes are played but HOW they are played (which notes are ghosted, accented, etc). Notice how the notes that are accented are often the high point in the line.
3) Rhythmic Phrasing (esp. the common ending phrase over the final Gmi6).

This excerpt is from "Autumn Leaves" as played by Bijan Taghavi at 2/25/23 Solo Sessions @ Dan's Studio in Cave Creek, AZ. To watch the FULL CUT, click HERE.