Welcome back, as we again go to our mDecks Wheel of Harmony to pick at random one of these 12 harmonic
techniques. So, after we pick our technique we'll talk briefly about it describe what it is, and
maybe how it works, and then pick a jazz standard that we can apply it. And remember, it's from the
perspective of these 12 harmonic techniques, that we can truly understand how harmony works in jazz,
help us to memorize songs, help us to transpose songs and also, re-harmonize
on the fly. So having said that, let's spin the wheel and see what we come up with this time...
All right the subV! Let's do it. So, subV stands for: "substitute of the V chord", which means: "A chord
that you can replace a V chord with, be it primary or secondary." The subV is the only other dominant
chord in music that contains the same tritone as the V7. For example: If you have an E7;
the tritone is between the 3rd and the 7th, which are G# and D respectively. The
V is then Bb7, and the tritone in Bb7 is D and Ab7. So it is the same exact pair of notes -
Ab being an enharmonic of the G#. So the Bb7 is a great substitution of E7. One
important property of the subV is that it is a half step above the root of the target.
E7 is the V chord of an A chord, and it's a perfect fifth away. The Bb7 is the
subV of A, and it's a half step above. All right. So how do we use the subV in
a song? This is a very simple concept. And the only thing that we have to do is find a dominant chord
that resolves a perfect fifth down. In other words, find a dominant chord that resolves to its target
(or a chord with the root of the target.) So here I have Autumn Leaves as shown in The Jazz Standards
Progression Book, which is going to save us a lot of time, since the songs in this book show you the
entire harmonic analysis. And most importantly, it shows you the arrows and brackets analysis.
Remember, an arrow indicates a movement of a 5th on the base - from a dominant chord - which for
us today, is like a sign that says: "you can replace this chord with the subV". So, at one glance I
see all the chords where I could use a subV. Can we apply it on every chord that matches
our criteria? Yeah, you can, but you always want to consider balance. You don't want to overuse it.
Make sure your substitutions are worth it. Just remember, in context, the subV
offers an altered sound. We're going to take a look at this property later on. So, if I want,
I could replace this D7 - on the second measure of Autumn Leaves - with the subV of the bIII
(this g chord.) So this is how it sounds with the original chord - the d7 (the V7/bIII)...
...and this is how it sounds with the Ab7 - the subV of the bIII.
In Mapping Tonal Harmony these chords are very easy to find.
They're always on the opposite side of the V7 within the circle of fifths. So here's the bIII,
and here are the secondary functions of the bIII. You can see the subV is the chord
on the opposite side of the V7 /bIII. In our key of E minor, that's an Ab7.
A very important thing to notice, is that every subV is paired with the Lydian b7 scale.
This is because the subV is actually a V7 altered chord with a root a tritone away. Let
me show you. In our example, we're substituting the D7 with the Ab7, right? The Ab is
a tritone away from the D, and the guide-tones in the D7 chord - F# and C - are also the guide-tones
in Ab7. F# is the 3rd in D7 and the b7 - as it relates to the Ab7,
which of course, we can write enharmonically as a Gb. And the C, is the b7 in D7 and the 3rd
in the Ab7. So let's say we want to replace the D7 with D7alt, using modal interchange.
By the way, if you don't know what modal interchange is, we will eventually get to
it. It's in our wheel of harmony. For now, just know that you can always take a dominant chord
and pair it with the altered scale. So this is D7alt. Everything is altered in this chord.
If we look at the altered scale in Tessitura Pro, we can see this chord has a b9, a #9,
a b13 and even a b5 (which is also the #11). Also, this altered scale is the 7th
mode of Melodic Minor. And if we look here, we see that the Lydian b7 is also one
of the modes of the Melodic Minor. So the altered scale and the lydian fb7 are related modes.
And if we look at the related modes of D altered, by turning the graph around the circle of fifths,
in order to make Ab the root, we get an Ab lydian b7 scale!
So the D7 Altered has the exact same notes as the Ab7 Lydian b7. This is why I said the
subV is an altered version of the V7, and it is always paired with the Lydian b7
scale. So this set of notes - from the perspective of the Ab7 paired with a Lydian b7 - gives you
an Ab7 (9 #11 13). That's why when you look at every single
subV chord in Mapping Tonal Harmony, you see that they're all 7(#11) chords.
So when you use a subV, make sure to use voicings that work with the Lydian b7 scale.
In other words, use a 9, a #11 and/or a 13 as your tensions.
You don't have to use them all, but avoid using b9 #9 or b13.
Let me give you one tip: if you want to include all tensions use the major triad upper structure on
the 2nd degree of the subV. In our example play Bb major triad over the Ab7.
Okay, so here's Autumn Leaves using subVs
and remember, it's all about being honest and playing things that you like. As long as you follow
the rules I gave you - to play using the subV - your sound will be coherent and consistent. In this
video we used The Jazz Standards Progression Book that comes with all the jazz standards fully analyzed. Also,
Tessitura Pro, with all the scales and music and plenty of features to practice and study scales.
Also, Mapping Tonal Harmony Pro. I'll put a link in the description down below
if you want to check out any of these resources. Remember, you can always support our youtube
channel by getting any of our books or apps thanks for watching and don't forget to subscribe.