chord changes
Shifting harmonic foundations
Chord changes are the moments in a piece of music where one chord shifts to another, or the pattern of such shifts throughout a song.
Musicians study chord changes to understand harmonic movement: The chord changes in that jazz standard are tricky.
A song's chord changes define much of its character—simple three-chord progressions feel different from complex jazz harmony.
- pianoKeyed percussion instrument
- guitarFretted stringed instrument
- compingImprovised chordal accompaniment
- dissonanceLack of harmony
- progressionSequential forward movement
tonality · modulation · substitution · arpeggio · tonic · turnaround · harmony · cadences · intervals · circle of fifths · music · accompaniment · lead sheet · counterpoint · songwriting · improvisation · playing by ear · arranging
- folk music skillsfingerpicking, strumming, flatpicking, fiddling, clawhammer
- songwriting termssongwriting, lyrics, melody, melodies, hooks
- jazz educationjazz composition, ear training, sight reading, jazz standards, jazz history
- jazz techniquesbebop, blue notes, comping, improvisation, licks
- lead sheetslead sheets, melody line, lyrics, key signature, time signature
- improvisationimprovised, impromptu, ad lib, freestyle, ad-lib