I’ve talked about voice leading with guide-tones and using chromatic surrounding/approach tones here on LJS before, and now I want to combine these two concepts and apply them to “There is No Greater Love.”
The goal is to use chromatic surrounding tones to approach 3rds and 7ths, which we’ll hit on beats 1 and 3 of each measure. This bebop technique is a great way to add chromaticism to your lines while still voice leading in a way that clearly outlines the chord changes.
Check out the exercise with the additional variations and use it as a template for trying this improvisational strategy on other tunes!
Using some of these concepts, what other variations can you come up with?