ii–V–I Chord Voicings for Jazz Piano (6 Ways to Play Them)

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Julian Bradley

Jazz Tutorial

Most jazz songs are built of 2-5-1 chord progressions, played through several different keys.

As a jazz pianist, it’s more useful to learn chord voicing patterns for the 2-5-1 - instead of isolated chord voicings which won’t necessarily flow from one chord to another.

In this article I’ll show you six ways to voice the 2-5-1 progression, all demonstrated in C.

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1. Closed Voicings

The first voicing pattern most pianists learn is to play the 2-5-1 using ‘closed position’ voicings - which means to simply play the 4 chord tones of each chord in ascending order - 1 3 5 7.

To play the 2-5-1 with closed voicings, it’s common to play the ii chord and I chord in root position (1 3 5 7), but then to play the V7 chord in 2nd inversion (5 7 1 3):

Dm7 = D F A C
G7 = D F G B
Cmaj7 = C E G B

This closed voicing pattern can be played in your left hand, while your right hand plays the song’s melody or plays a solo.

2. Shell Voicings

The simplest way to play a 2-5-1 is to use ‘shells’. Shell voicings strip the chord down to its 3 most essential notes - the root, 3rd and 7th.

There are two ways to play a chord as a shell: 1 3 7 or 1 7 3:

Position A (1 3 7):
Dm7 = D F C
G7 = G B F
Cmaj7 = C E B

Position B (1 7 3):
Dm7 = D C F
G7 = G F B
Cmaj7 = C B E

To play a 2-5-1 using shell voicings, alternate between ‘position A’ and ‘position B’.

You can either start on ‘position A’ (1 3 7) like this:

Dm7 = D F C
G7 = G F B
Cmaj7 = C E B

Or you can start on ‘position B’ (1 7 3) - like this:

Dm7 = D C F
G7 = G B F
Cmaj7 = C B E

If you can stretch a 10th then you’ll be able to play this in your left hand only. However most people will need to use their right hand to help with the position B voicings (1 7 3) which span a 10th. Use your right hand’s thumb to reach down and play the top note (the 3rd), while also playing any melody notes it has above:

Position B - A - B with right hand help:
Dm7 = D C F
G7 = G B F
Cmaj7 = C B E

3. Rootless Voicings (A - B - A)

Rootless voicings make up the majority of my jazz piano playing.

If you’re playing with a bass player, you can play rootless chord voicings in your left hand, while playing the melody in your right hand (because the bassist plays the root of each chord).

Or if you’re playing solo piano (on your own), you can play the root of each chord in your left hand, while playing rootless voicings in your right hand.

Here’s how I would voice the 2-5-1 if I was playing solo jazz piano:

Left hand: D - G - C
Right hand:
Dm7 = F A C E
G7 = F A B E
Cmaj7 = E G B D

For the ii chord (D min 7), simply find the chord’s minor 3rd (F), and then build a major 7 chord (F maj 7 = F A C E).

When the chord changes to G7 - simply move your 2nd to top note (C) down a half-step (to B) - while the rest of the notes stay the same.

Finally, when the chord changes to C maj 7 - find the chord’s major 3rd (E) and build a minor 7 chord (E min 7 = E G B D).

Whichever key you’re in, this is how you’ll need to count the intervals.

4. Rootless Voicings (B - A - B)

The previous voicing pattern can also be played in an inversion - like this:

Left hand: D - G - C
Right hand:
Dm7 = C E F A
G7 = B E F A
Cmaj7 = B D E G

For the ii chord (D min 7), take the F major 7 chord I just showed you - now play it in 2nd inversion (i.e. play the bottom two notes up an octave). That gives you C E F A, played over D in the bass.

When the chord changes to G7 - simply move your bottom note (C) down a half-step (to B).

Finally, when the chord changes to C maj 7 - keep your bottom note in place (B), but move the rest of your fingers down to the I chord’s 2nd, major 3rd and 5th (D E G). You end up with the same E minor 7 chord but this time you’re playing it in 2nd inversion - B D E G played over C.

5. Rootless Voicings with a V7♭9

Next let’s modify the previous rootless voicings:

The ii chord and I chord stay the same, but now let’s play a b9 over the V7 chord (G7b9) instead of a natural 9:

Left hand: D - G - C
Right hand:
Dm7 = F A C E
G7b9 = F Ab B E
Cmaj7 = E G B D

For the ii chord (D min 7), we use the same F major 7 chord - F A C E played over D.

When the chord changes to G7b9 - this time we move the two middle notes (A and C) down a half-step (to Ab and B) - while the outer two notes stay the same.

And then the I chord (C maj 7) is the same as before - an E minor 7 chord (E G B D) played over C.

And of course, we can apply this V7b9 variation to the B - A - B voicings as well:

Left hand: D - G - C
Right hand:
Dm7 = C E F A
G7b9 = B E F Ab
Cmaj7 = B D E G

In this case, place your fingers to the first chord (F maj 7 in 2nd inversion played over D). Then move the outer two notes (C and A) down a half-step (to B and Ab) - while keeping the inner two notes the same.

6. Minor 2-5-1 Voicings

All of the voicings we’ve looked at so far have been for the major 2-5-1 (because the vast majority of 2-5-1s in jazz are major), but let’s end with some voicings you can use for the minor 2-5-1.

First, here’s how you can voice a minor 2-5-1 in C minor using ‘closed voicings’:

Dm7b5 = D F Ab C
G7 = D F G B
Cm7 = C Eb G Bb

Again, we play the V7 chord in 2nd inversion to minimize hand movement and create a smooth sound.

We could play a minor 2-5-1 using shell voicings like this:

Position A - B - A:
Dm7b5 = D F C
G7 = G F B
Cm7 = C Eb Bb

Position B - A - B:
Dm7b5 = D C F
G7 = G B F
Cm7 = C Bb Eb

Or you could use more advanced chord voicings like this:

Left hand: D - G - C
Right hand:
Dm7b5 = F Ab C Eb
G7 = F Ab B E
Cm7 = Eb G Bb D

Or like this:

Left hand: D - G - C
Right hand:
Dm7b5 = C Eb F Ab
G7 = B E F Ab
Cm7 = Bb D Eb G

Practice Tip

Choose one set of chord voicings from today’s lesson, and practice it through all 12 keys (just play a ii-V-I in all 12 keys and apply the voicing).

When you are ready, challenge yourself to play the ii-V-I note-perfectly through all 12 keys. If you can do this, you have truly mastered that set of voicings.

Here are the six types of chord voicing we looked at today:

• ‘Closed position’ voicings (or ‘literal voicings’).

• Shell voicings.

• Rootless voicings (position A - B - A).

• Rootless voicings (position B - A - B).

• Rootless voicings with V7b9 chord.

• Minor ii-V-I voicings (closed voicings, shells, or rootless voicings)

I’m Julian Bradley, founder of Jazz Tutorial.

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