Workshop 19 — “On Green Dolphin Street”: Modal Vamps, Pedal Points, Functional Harmony, and Switching Between Two Different Ways of Thinking

This workshop is about a major jazz skill:

How do you switch between static/modal harmony and fast functional harmony inside the same tune?

That is a different challenge from everything we just did.

The main lessons are:

• modal/static harmony over a pedal
• dominant and sus colors without immediate resolution
• listening to bass as a tonal anchor
• improvising when the chord does not change
• then abruptly switching back to ii–V functional thinking
• creating contrast between “horizontal/modal” and “destination/functional” sections
• using the same motif across both

The central lesson is:

Some sections ask “what color can I explore here?” and others ask “where is this harmony going?” You need both mindsets.