BookatlasPiano Rabbit Hole: Improvisation Theory & Practice
507 / 18210 · Module 12 — Secondary Dominants: How to Make Chords Pull Toward Other Chords← prev⊞ allnext →

12.49A useful improvisation exercise

Loop:

Cmaj7 | E7 | Am7 | A7 | Dm7 | G7 | Cmaj7

Do not use one C-major scale blindly over everything.

Why?

Because E7 contains G♯.

A7 contains C♯.

Instead, begin with chord tones.

Over E7:

E G♯ B D

E G♯ B D

Over A7:

A C♯ E G

A C♯ E G

Target the altered 3rds:

G♯

and:

C♯

because they explain the secondary dominants.