Level 2 · Lesson 16
Reharmonization
Diatonic substitution, tritone substitution, modal borrowing, parallel harmonisation — transforming chords under an intact melody.
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Pause Culture · Reharmonization & jazz impressionism
Bill Evans (1929–1980)
Evans plays Autumn Leaves on his first solo album (1956) and the listener recognizes the familiar melody — but the chords have changed. FMaj7 became Fm, G7 became Db7. Without alte…
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À retenir : Reharmonization is not virtuosity — it's listening. Before substituting a chord, ask yourself: can the melody still be heard? Does the new chord say something the original could not?
What is reharmonization?
Reharmonizing a progression means replacing some or all chords with others — while keeping the melody intact. The fundamental condition: each melodic note must be compatible with the new chord (root, third, fifth, seventh or extension).
Golden rule: before validating a substituted chord, verify that each melodic note is 1, 3, 5, 7 or an extension (9th, 11th, 13th) of that chord. If a note 'floats in the void', choose a different chord or technique.
The 4 main techniques
Voice leading: a technically correct reharmonization can sound abrupt if inner voices make large leaps. Always prefer stepwise motion (half-step, whole step) for inner voices — a quality criterion as important as melodic compatibility.