Cadences

Major ii-V Progression

The building block of jazz harmony: a minor 7th chord on the 2nd degree moving up a fourth to the dominant 7th on the 5th.

Tempo 120 BPM

Practice in all 12 keys

Bar 1: Dm7 ii7
Bar 2: G7 V7

Rootless Shells Guide tones Rooted shells Rooted Drop 2

Four-note rootless voicings in their two forms, with the 3rd or the 7th on the bottom, played over the root.

Customize each chord

Meter: 4/4
Bars: 2

Almost every standard is strung together from ii-Vs, many of which never arrive at their I chord, or move on to a new key instead. Hear the pair as one unit of tension: the 7th of the ii chord falls a half step to become the 3rd of the V. Practice spotting ii-Vs on lead sheets, and play them in all twelve keys with the 3rds and 7ths moving by step.

Reharmonize Analyze these changes

Tritone substitutes

Dm7 Db7

Each dominant 7th that resolves down a fifth becomes the dominant a tritone away, which shares its 3rd and 7th, so the bass moves by half steps.
Backdoor dominants

Fm7 Bb7

Each V7 resolving to a major chord comes in by the back door from bVII7, with iv7 for its ii, borrowed from the minor key.

Reharmonize Analyze these changes

Tritone substitutes

Backdoor dominants