Upper Structure Voicings | How to Create Rich Sounding Chords

For most beginning piano students, it's exciting when you start creating music at the keyboard with chords. It's especially satisfying when you can break through the boredom that plagues most beginners. I want to share a concept with you called "upper structure" voicings. It's a concept that applies to chords and how to voice them in a way that's simple but creates a more sophisticated sound.

An upper structure chord is by definition a chord voicing in which the uppermost part exists as a Major or minor triad. This creates a more complex chord voicing and at the same time has the visual simplicity of a simple Major or minor chord.

I've found that any chord can have some aspect of this upper structure concept. Let's look at the most basic of chords: the Major triad. We'll choose C Major.Here, we have C as the root, E as the Major 3rd and G as the 5th. Pretty simple, right? But if we isolate just the two top notes of this triad, what might it appear to be?Here, we have C as the root, E as the Major 3rd and G as the 5th. Pretty simple, right? But if we isolate just the two top notes of this triad, what might it appear to be? Does this look somewhat familiar as the root and minor 3rd of an E minor triad?

Let me just say that one could argue that this isn't the definition of an upper structure chord and I'd agree, but technically, this is the concept.

A better example of the definition of this type of voicing would be the following example.As you can see, this A minor 7 chord actually has a C Major triad in the uppermost pitches of it. This clearly demonstrates that a Major chord can be transformed into a minor chord with this concept.

This Am7 or C over A example is an apparent example of an upper structure voicing. But it is of course not the only example we could look at. Let's try another one.This A flat Major 7 chord is the opposite of our first example. The upper structure chord is a C minor chord. This is what transforms this chord into A flat Major 7.

So far, we looked at examples of Major 7 and minor 7 upper structure chords. These chord voicings are beyond simple Major and minor triads. But how can this upper structure chord concept take us further to more sophisticated harmonies?

Now let's take a look at some chord voicings with the upper structure triad first.

If you're familiar with diminished triads, you're aware that they just consist of a minor triad with a flatted 5th.Now if we take this E diminished triad and add a C to the bass, we transform it into a C dominant 7th chord.

Now let's create an upper structure voicing that's quite a bit more sophisticated. Let's take a D flat minor chord in our right hand.Now if we take this D flat minor triad and add a C and to the bass with a B flat, we transform it into a C7 flat 9 sharp 5 chord.This is C7 flat 9 sharp 5 chord with of course a D flat minor triad upper structure voicing. Can you see the benefit of recognizing upper structures to create more advanced and professional sounding chord voicings? It makes them easier to execute.

We'll look at one more upper structure voicing and give you the chance to determine what the actual chord could be.

Here's a simple E flat minor triad. There's many possibilities to create an upper structure voicing.  So I'll give you a hint for the upper structure chord I have in mind.  Let's construct a chord in which one of the notes in the upper chord is the flatted 7th of the bass note. What note would you play in the bass?You're correct if your answer was C. With the hint I gave you, it may have been a little too obvious.  So we have C minor 7 flat 5.