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Jazz chord progressions aren't just formulas to memorize—they're the harmonic DNA that shaped an entire century of American music. When you understand these progressions, you're tracing the evolution from early New Orleans jazz through bebop's complex harmonies to the modal experiments of the 1950s and beyond. You're being tested on how musicians built on, borrowed from, and eventually broke free from these foundational structures to create new sounds.
These progressions demonstrate key concepts like harmonic tension and resolution, voice leading, substitution techniques, and modal versus tonal thinking. Each progression represents a different approach to the fundamental question every jazz musician faces: how do you create forward motion and emotional impact through harmony? Don't just memorize chord symbols—know what principle each progression illustrates and which era or style it defines.
The most essential jazz progressions create a sense of tension and release through dominant-to-tonic movement. This pull toward resolution is what gives jazz its sense of direction and allows improvisers to play "inside" or "outside" the harmony with intention.
Compare: ii-V-I vs. I-vi-ii-V—both end with the same ii-V-I resolution, but the turnaround adds the vi chord to extend the journey home. On an FRQ about harmonic function, the turnaround demonstrates how jazz musicians elongate progressions to create more improvisational space.
The blues provided jazz with its earliest harmonic framework and emotional vocabulary. These progressions connect jazz to its African American roots and remain central to the tradition regardless of style or era.
Compare: 12-bar blues vs. rhythm changes—both became "contrafact" frameworks where musicians composed new melodies over familiar harmonies. Blues emphasizes simplicity and emotional directness; rhythm changes showcase harmonic sophistication and technical virtuosity. Know which bebop musicians favored each form.
As jazz matured, musicians developed longer progressions that created richer harmonic journeys. These patterns often feature descending bass lines or circle-of-fifths motion that pulls the ear forward through multiple key areas.
Compare: iii-vi-ii-V vs. circle of fifths—the former is a specific four-chord pattern; the latter is the broader principle that explains why it works. Understanding circle-of-fifths motion helps you recognize patterns across different progressions and keys.
Jazz musicians constantly sought ways to add surprise and sophistication to familiar progressions. Substitution techniques allowed players to reharmonize standards and create fresh sounds over well-worn changes.
Compare: Tritone substitution vs. standard ii-V-I—the substitution adds chromatic color while preserving function. This technique became a hallmark of bebop sophistication and remains essential vocabulary for any jazz musician. If asked about bebop's harmonic innovations, tritone substitution is your go-to example.
By the late 1950s, some musicians felt constrained by chord-heavy bebop. Modal jazz shifted focus from rapid chord changes to scales and modes, opening new improvisational possibilities.
Compare: Modal jazz vs. bebop harmony—bebop packed maximum chord changes into every bar; modal jazz stripped harmony down to create space. Both approaches demand virtuosity, but of different kinds. This contrast illustrates jazz's constant tension between complexity and simplicity.
| Concept | Best Examples |
|---|---|
| Basic resolution/tension-release | ii-V-I, minor ii-V-i |
| Blues-based forms | 12-bar blues, rhythm changes |
| Turnarounds and cycling | I-vi-ii-V, iii-vi-ii-V |
| Circle of fifths motion | Circle of fifths progression, extended turnarounds |
| Substitution techniques | Tritone substitution, jazz ballad reharmonization |
| Modal approach | Modal jazz progressions |
| Bebop vocabulary | Rhythm changes, tritone substitution, minor ii-V-i |
| Pre-bebop standards | I-vi-ii-V, 12-bar blues |
Both ii-V-I and I-vi-ii-V end the same way—what harmonic function does the added vi chord serve, and why would a composer choose the longer progression?
How does tritone substitution preserve the essential sound of a dominant chord while changing the bass note? What interval do the two chords share?
Compare the harmonic philosophy of bebop (rhythm changes, tritone substitutions) with modal jazz. What problem was each approach trying to solve?
A jazz standard moves through the chords Cmaj7 - Am7 - Dm7 - G7. Name this progression and explain why it creates such effective forward motion.
If an FRQ asked you to trace the evolution of the 12-bar blues from early jazz through bebop, which specific harmonic techniques would you cite as evidence of increasing sophistication?