Harmony Clinic for Harpists

Presented By

Felice Pomeranz

Expanding Your Harmonic Horizons

2016 American String Teachers National Conference Tampa, Florida

Felice Pomeranz Professor of Harp Berklee College of Music

Boston, MA, USA fpomeranz@berklee.edu

Publications used as resources from Felice's Library of Teaching Materials Jazzy Beginnings - DVD Harp in the Band, Volume 1 - Play along CD and Workbook Berklee Harp - Berklee Press Publication, May, 2016 Release

Please ask yourself the following questions:

• Do I want to learn pieces more quickly?

• Do I want to reduce my practice time?

• Do I want to learn pieces more efficiently?

• Do I want to improve my memorization of pieces?

• Do I want to reduce my dependence on pedal markings?

Reasons to Improve your Harmony "Chops" (Knowledge)

Expanding Your Harmonic Horizons

2016 American String Teachers National

Conference Tampa, Florida

Felice Pomeranz Professor of Harp Berklee College of Music

Boston, MA, USA fpomeranz@berklee.edu

Please ask yourself the following questions: (continued)

• Do I want to know where I am in a piece at all times?

• Would I like to be able to read lead sheets?

• Would I like to be able to modulate and transpose music more

easily and without fear?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, then you need to

practice your chords, and chord progressions in all keys!

Reasons to Improve your Harmony "Chops" (Knowledge)

Expanding Your Harmonic Horizons

2016 American String Teachers National Conference

Tampa, Florida

Felice Pomeranz Professor of Harp Berklee College of Music

Boston, MA, USA fpomeranz@berklee.edu

Chart for the Circle of FifthsThe circle of fifths is an arrangement of

all twelve notes of the chromatic scale,

each note a 5th lower than the preceding

one.

• As you go around the circle, think of

each note as representing a key, the

key you are going to practice next.

• Choose a new set of keys each day and try modulating clockwise and also counter-clockwise through several keys. Use with practice routines, chord progressions, and motivic ideas.

• Jazz players practice the cycle counter-clockwise (C, F, Bb, etc.), to create the V/V

or dominant/tonic resolutions which commonly occur in Jazz chord progressions. For example here is the harmony from the B section of "I Got Rhythm" by G. Gershwin:

| D7 | D7 | G7 | G7 | C7 | C7 | F7 | F7 || Bb

Expanding Your Harmonic Horizons

2016 American String Teachers National Conference

Tampa, Florida

Felice Pomeranz Professor of Harp Berklee College of Music

Boston, MA, USA fpomeranz@berklee.edu

Progressions Using Smooth Voice Leading

Expanding Your Harmonic Horizons

2016 American String Teachers National Conference

Tampa, Florida

Felice Pomeranz Professor of Harp Berklee College of Music

Boston, MA, USA fpomeranz@berklee.edu

q = 44 - 120

@Felice Pomeranz 2005 – Jazzy Beginnings. ASCAP

Progressions in Rhythm

Expanding Your Harmonic Horizons

2016 American String Teachers National Conference

Tampa, Florida

Felice Pomeranz Professor of Harp Berklee College of Music

Boston, MA, USA fpomeranz@berklee.edu

@Felice Pomeranz 2005 – Jazzy Beginnings. ASCAP

Variations using the I IV V I Progression

Expanding Your Harmonic Horizons

2016 American String Teachers National Conference

Tampa, Florida

Felice Pomeranz Professor of Harp Berklee College of Music

Boston, MA, USA fpomeranz@berklee.edu

@Felice Pomeranz 2005 – Jazzy Beginnings. ASCAP

@Felice Pomeranz 2005 – Jazzy Beginnings. ASCAP

Variations using the I IV V I Progression

Expanding Your Harmonic Horizons

2016 American String Teachers National Conference

Tampa, Florida

Felice Pomeranz Professor of Harp Berklee College of Music

Boston, MA, USA fpomeranz@berklee.edu

Berklee Harp (excerpt)

By: Felice Pomeranz

Major Triad Exercise in Parallel Motion

Hands Together: I IV V I

Play this pattern with two hands in parallel motion. Parallel motion is two hands moving in the same direction by the same intervals. The hands are an octave apart. They retain the 4-3-2-1 fingering throughout the exercise. Use a metronome, and play slowly and evenly. It is fine to practice hands separately first. Put your hands together when you are comfortable with the pattern.

Expanding Your Harmonic Horizons

2016 American String Teachers National Conference

Tampa, Florida

Felice Pomeranz Professor of Harp Berklee College of Music

Boston, MA, USA fpomeranz@berklee.edu

@ Berklee Harp – Berklee Press, 2016

Major Triad Exercise in Parallel Motion

Hands Together: I IV V I q = 44 - 120

Expanding Your Harmonic Horizons

2016 American String Teachers National Conference

Tampa, Florida

Felice Pomeranz Professor of Harp Berklee College of Music

Boston, MA, USA fpomeranz@berklee.edu

@ Berklee Harp – Berklee Press, 2016

Major Triad Exercise in Contrary MotionHands Together: I VI II V I

Another progression used extensively in jazz and popular music is I VI II V I. There are many new colors in this progression with the addition of the VI and II chords. The VI and II chords in the major keys are always minor triads.Step 1: Play this new progression in parallel motion. Begin hands separately and then try hands

together.Step 2: Once you are familiar with this pattern try this progression with hands in contrary motion.Step 3: Play this progression in a new key each day.

Expanding Your Harmonic Horizons

2016 American String Teachers National Conference

Tampa, Florida

Felice Pomeranz Professor of Harp Berklee College of Music

Boston, MA, USA fpomeranz@berklee.edu

@ Berklee Harp – Berklee Press, 2016

Major Triad Exercise in Contrary MotionHands Together: I VI II V I

Expanding Your Harmonic Horizons

2016 American String Teachers National Conference

Tampa, Florida

Felice Pomeranz Professor of Harp Berklee College of Music

Boston, MA, USA fpomeranz@berklee.edu

@ Berklee Harp – Berklee Press, 2016

Jazzy Beginnings:

An Introduction to Jazz Harp (excerpt)

By: Felice Pomeranz

Know Your Seventh Chords!

Play And Recognize!

Expanding Your Harmonic Horizons

2016 American String Teachers National Conference

Tampa, Florida

Felice Pomeranz Professor of Harp Berklee College of Music

Boston, MA, USA fpomeranz@berklee.edu

@Felice Pomeranz 2005 – Jazzy Beginnings. ASCAP

Jazzy Beginnings:

An Introduction to Jazz Harp (excerpt)

By: Felice Pomeranz

Dominant Seventh Arpeggios

Do exercises around the Circle of Fifths: 1) | C7 | G7 | D7 | A7 | ...

2) | C7 | F7 | Bb7 | Eb7 | ...

3) | C7 | D7 | E7 | F7 | ...

4) | C7 | Db7 | D7 | Eb7 | ...

Expanding Your Harmonic Horizons

2016 American String Teachers National Conference

Tampa, Florida

Felice Pomeranz Professor of Harp Berklee College of Music

Boston, MA, USA fpomeranz@berklee.edu

@Felice Pomeranz 2005 – Jazzy Beginnings. ASCAP

Jazzy Beginnings:

An Introduction to Jazz Harp (excerpt)

By: Felice Pomeranz

Expanding Your Harmonic Horizons

2016 American String Teachers National Conference

Tampa, Florida

Felice Pomeranz Professor of Harp Berklee College of Music

Boston, MA, USA fpomeranz@berklee.edu

@Felice Pomeranz 2005 – Jazzy Beginnings. ASCAP

Expanding Your Harmonic Horizons

2016 American String Teachers National Conference

Tampa, Florida

Felice Pomeranz Professor of Harp Berklee College of Music

Boston, MA, USA fpomeranz@berklee.edu

Bonus Exercise:

Play this arpeggio series slowly at first. Increase your speed as you become more familiar with the pattern. Lever harps: Play the major seven chord as written. When playing the dominant 7(9) and minor 7(9), play left hand in the first beat and continue with the right hand, adjusting the accidentals with your left hand. Pedal and lever harps: Play a new ninth arpeggio each day!

@ Berklee Harp – Berklee Press, 2016

Expanding Your Harmonic Horizons

2016 American String Teachers National Conference

Tampa, Florida

Felice Pomeranz Professor of Harp Berklee College of Music

Boston, MA, USA fpomeranz@berklee.edu

@ Berklee Harp – Berklee Press, 2016

Chord Symbol LegendWhen speaking about progressions such as D-7, G7, CMaj7, you would say the name of the chord the way it is listed in the pronunciation column of the table above. Say "seven" rather than "seventh".

If you are talking about chord quality, then say "seventh" as in: "This is a minor seventh chord". See the Chord Type column of the table above.

Expanding Your Harmonic Horizons

2016 American String Teachers National Conference

Tampa, Florida

Felice Pomeranz Professor of Harp Berklee College of Music

Boston, MA, USA fpomeranz@berklee.edu

@Felice Pomeranz 2005 – Jazzy Beginnings. ASCAP