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How
To Create Unlimited
Original Chord Progressions
Using Chord Substitutions
Technique
#1:
The "What Other Chord?" Chord Substitution
 The
"What Other Chord?" technique is one of the best ways to
create a fresh harmonization of a familiar melody.
You
simply ask yourself: "In to what other chord will this melody
note fit?"
For example, the melody of Silent Night (if we play it in
the key of C) goes like this:
G A G E
In the original score,
the chord under this melody is C major. But are we obligated
to keep the original harmony? Not at all. If we decide to
go with C major on the first measure, we may want to change
the chord in the 2nd measure just for variety. But to what
chord?
That's where our "What other
chord?" technique comes in. We simply ask ourselves "Into
what other chord will this melody note -- namely E -- fit?"
Let's see: In the C chord, E is the 3rd of the chord, so:
E
is the root of the E chord, so we could try E, or Em, or
Em7, or any other kind of "E" chord.
E
is the 5th of the A chord, so we could try A, or Am, or
Am7, or any other kind of "A" chord.
E is the 7th of the F chord, so
we could try Fmaj7, or Fm/maj7, or F+/maj7, etc. -- any
F chord with an E in it.
E is the 9th of the
D chord, so we could try D9, or Dm9, or any D chord with
an E in it.
Get
the idea?
We
have a great course available that goes into all this
in great depth -- we've just scratched the surface here
-- so if you're interested, be sure and take a look at
"
Chord Substitutions!"
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