Beginner Jazz Piano Lesson: Chords, Intervals, and the ii–V–I Explained

If you’re looking for a beginner jazz piano lesson that actually gives you a clear roadmap, this is it.

Jazz piano can feel overwhelming at first, but the truth is that nearly everything you’ll play comes from a small number of core skills.

In this lesson, you’ll learn:

How to count intervals (the foundation of all jazz harmony)
How to build seventh chords from all 12 notes
How to play the ii–V–I progression in every key
Plus, a set of beginner arranging techniques that instantly make your playing sound more professional

Make sure to watch the embedded video above — the visual and audio examples will help these ideas click much faster.

Step 1: Learn to Count Intervals (The Foundation of Jazz Piano)

The very first skill every jazz pianist must master is interval counting.

An interval is simply the distance between two notes. In jazz, you are constantly thinking in intervals rather than note names. Every chord, voicing, and progression is really just an interval pattern.

The Most Important Intervals for Beginners

Here are the key intervals you should learn first:

Half step – the smallest possible movement on the piano
Whole step – two half steps
Minor third – a whole step + a half step
Major third – two whole steps
Perfect fourth
Perfect fifth
Tritone (three whole steps)

These intervals are enough to build nearly every jazz chord you’ll encounter as a beginner.

Why the Perfect Fifth Is the Most Important Interval

If you only learn one interval at first, learn the perfect fifth.

There are only 12 fifths, and each one is a simple two-note pair:

C → G
G → D
D → A
A → E
E → B
B → F♯
F♯ → C♯
C♯ → G♯
G♯ → D♯
D♯ → A♯
A♯ → F
F → C

Once you memorize all twelve fifths, building chords becomes much faster because most chords contain a natural fifth.

Thirds: How Jazz Chords Are Built

Jazz chords are stacked in thirds.

Major third = two whole steps
Minor third = whole step + half step

For example:

From F♯, a major third is two whole steps up
From B, a minor third is a whole step plus a half step

Once you’re comfortable counting thirds, chord construction becomes logical instead of memorized.

Fourths, Tritones, and Sevenths (Quick Tips)

Fourths are just fifths reversed (C up a fifth is G, G up a fourth is C)
The tritone is three whole steps and can be found by going up a fifth and coming down a half step
Minor 7th = up an octave, down a whole step
Major 7th = up an octave, down a half step

As a beginner jazz pianist, you don’t need to obsess over sixths yet — they’re much less common.

Step 2: Build the 4 Essential Seventh Chords

Almost every jazz tune uses combinations of just four chord types. Learning these as interval patterns is essential for any beginner jazz piano lesson.

Major 7 Chord

Example: Cmaj7 = C E G B

Interval pattern:

Major third
Minor third
Major third

How to build it:

Find the root and fifth
Add the major third (two whole steps up)
Add the major seventh (up an octave, down a half step)

Practice this from all 12 notes.

Minor 7 Chord

Example: Cm7 = C Eb G Bb

Interval pattern:

Minor third
Major third
Minor third

How to build it:

Find the fifth
Add the minor third (whole step + half step)
Add the minor seventh (up an octave, down a whole step)

Every beginner should aim to play all 12 minor 7 chords comfortably.

Dominant 7 Chord

Example: C7 = C E G Bb

Interval pattern:

Major third
Minor third
Minor third

How to build it:

Find the fifth
Add the major third
Add the minor seventh (up an octave, down a whole step)

Dominant 7 chords are always the V chord in jazz harmony.

Half-Diminished Chord (Minor 7♭5)

Example: Cø7 (Cm7♭5) = C Eb Gb Bb

Interval pattern:

Minor third
Minor third
Major third

How to build it:

Build a minor 7 chord
Flatten the fifth
Keep the minor seventh

This chord is essential for minor keys and ii–V–I progressions in minor.

Free Resource: Download my 'Chord Symbol Reference Guide'

Shows you all types of Jazz chord notated clearly on one page - including 7ths, 9ths, 11ths, 13ths.

Step 3: Learn the ii–V–I in All 12 Keys

The ii–V–I progression is the backbone of jazz.

In the key of C major:

ii = Dm7
V = G7
I = Cmaj7

This progression appears in almost every jazz standard.

How to Recognize a ii–V–I Quickly

Look for:

A minor 7 chord
Moving up a fourth to a dominant 7 chord
Resolving down a fifth to a major 7 chord

The key of the progression is always determined by the I chord.

Simple ii–V–I Voicing for Beginners

To voice a ii–V–I efficiently:

Play the ii chord in root position
For the V chord, move only the top notes to the root and major third
Do the same for the I chord

This approach keeps your hand movement minimal and sounds very professional.

Minor ii–V–I (What Beginners Should Know)

Minor ii–V–Is are less common, but important:

ii = half-diminished
V = dominant 7
I = minor 7 (or minor 6 / minor major 7)

You can voice minor ii–V–Is using the same approach as major ones.

Beginner Jazz Piano Arranging Techniques (Sound Advanced Fast)

Once you know chords and ii–V–Is, you can start arranging.

Shell Voicings

A shell voicing uses:

Left hand: root
Right hand: 3rd and 7th

There are two positions:

Position A: 3rd on top
Position B: 7th on top

Shell voicings are perfect when the melody note is the 3rd or 7th of the chord.

Left-Hand Root and Fifth Movement

Instead of holding the root:

Play root for two beats
Then fifth for two beats

This works on:

Major 7
Minor 7
Dominant 7
Half-diminished chords

It adds motion and sounds much more musical.

Add a Flat 9 to Dominant Chords

To instantly sound more “jazzy”:

Take any dominant 7 chord
Add the note a half step above the root

This works only on dominant chords and creates beautiful tension.

Ripple Chords for Texture

When a chord has many notes:

Roll or “ripple” them instead of playing them all at once

This works especially well when combining:

Shell voicings
Flat 9s
Melody notes

Simple Jazz Endings for Beginners

Ending a Major Tune

Play root + fifth
Then alternate the major 3rd and major 7th with the pedal down

Optional: add a chromatic reharmonization before the final chord.

Ending a Minor Tune

End on a minor 6 chord, arpeggiated upward across octaves

Final Thoughts for Beginner Jazz Piano Players

If you focus on:

Counting intervals
Building seventh chords
Playing ii–V–Is in all keys
And applying a few arranging techniques

You’ll have a rock-solid foundation for jazz piano.

Make sure to watch the embedded video, download the free resources linked below it, and continue to the next lesson where we add 9ths, 11ths, and 13ths to these chords.

This is how jazz piano really starts to open up 🎹

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