Skeleton Voicings

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The simplest voicing we will consider is the skeleton voicing. This type of voicing is just the chord itself in root position but with some notes left out. Above are four common forms of the skeleton voicing. The root is always included on the bottom, and the seventh or third or both are usually included as well:

[EXAMPLE]

Skeleton voicings are most commonly used in the left hand by keyboard players while soloing with their right hands. These simple voicings provide a solid harmonic foundation over which a melody can be played:

[EXAMPLE]

Even when a chord symbol appears to call for extensions or alterations, they are rarely included in the voicing. The primary exception is that if the chord calls for a raised fifth, the unaltered fifth would not normally be included in the voicing. If a fifth is included, it would be raised:

[EXAMPLE]

These voicings are especially appropriate when there is no bass player, as the voicing includes the root of the chord at the bottom, and the voicing is usually played fairly low in the range of the instrument as compared to other voicings, which more typically are played around middle "C". The reason we leave notes out is that a full four note chord played so low on the instrument would sound muddy:

[EXAMPLE]

When using these voicings over ii-V-I progressions, or any situation where the root moves upward by fourth, one can alternate between forms with the seventh on top and the form with the third on top. This yields a nice descending line on the top of the voicing:

[EXAMPLE]

The form of the voicing with the third on top tends to sound muddy and somewhat empty, however, especially when played low on the keyboard:

[EXAMPLE]

Therefore, many pianists opt to rely more on the forms with the seventh on top. This does not yield such nice voice leading, but the overall sound is more balanced:

[EXAMPLE]

These voicings are most appropriate for tonal music with relatively simple chord progressions, such as swing and bebop. They were commonly used by musicians such as Bud Powell and Horace Silver. When playing music with more complex chords, the color tones becomes more important than the roots, so any of the other voicing styles discussed in following sections may be more appropriate.

Here is an example of how a pianist would typically use skeleton voicings in an improvisation:

[EXAMPLE]

Copyright 2000 Outside Shore Music
Authored by Marc Sabatella

Skeleton Voicings