Hi Arranger Keyboard Friends!

I just found a link to a "jazz piano" website which explains the concept of "rootless" piano chord voicings:
http://www.jazzoasis.com/Lessons/Piano/Basic%20Chord%20Voicings.htm

The "rootless chord voicings" recognized by the Technics & Yamaha arranger keyboards are a slight variation to the traditional jazz piano rootless voicings outlined in this article, but they still follow the same principle of including the 3rd and 7th of the chord plus a chord extension note (9th, 11th, or 13th), while leaving out playing the root of the chord altogether. Thus, only the auto-accompaniment bass instrument (acoustic bass) plays a bass line which includes the "root" of the chord.

As I mentioned in another thread, checkout any of Diana Krall's albums, she displays a wonderful example of rootless chord piano playing/comping. http://allmusic.com/cg/x.dll?p=amg&sql=1DIANA|KRALL

Scott

Here is my undertanding.

In a piano-bass-drum trio, the bass normally plays the root. If the piano player doubles the root, the sound will be heavy. So for a lighter, more airy, sound, the pianist omits the root.

Well, that's a start. I am not quite sure why it is the 3rd and the 7th that define the chord, or why the 9th is added, or why the 5th can be replaced by a 13th. I would have thought the 5th was pretty important to the sound of the chord. So what about it, Scott?

Clif,
The 5th degree of the scale is called "Dominant" for a reason. The interval is very strong to the Western ear and creates a "waveless" powerfull tone when combines with the tonic(root).
Piano tuners often use 5ths to tune a piano. They are clear, easy to hear and cycle back to the starting note......eventually.
ie: C - G - D - A - E - B - F# - C# - G# - D# - A# - E# - B#(C again!)
The tonality is determined by the third more than anything, and then the "COLOR" of the chord is enhanced by the 7th, and any other intervals used.
I understand Scott's method, although I nevr use it - you see I AM the bass player most of the time, so the root is my friend. My left hand playes better bass lines than many guys I know with both hands. It's my second priority in my sound.(first is vocals-ALWAYS)
what ever your "bag" is..... there is an arranger that will compliment your playing style. Find the one that fits....and use it! It's silly to waste time wishing that any one manufacturer will cater to your specific needs, so go where the needs are already addressed. I gave up a long time ago on Rhodes making a 30lb keyboard that was a "real" Rhodes, so now I just live with the limitations that exisis inside the ROM of whatever I'm playing. Life is choices - don't miss out just because there are so many of them.

Clif,
The 5th of a chord is the least important note in determining a chord's color and is usually the first note to eliminate when you run out of fingers (haha) and want to include chord extension tone colors like the 9th, 11th, 13th, etc. Then we get into altered extensions like b9; #11, b13. But that is covered in a later chapter

The example of 5ths that Uncle Dave is referring to relates to the "Cycle of Fifths". Check out the following Cycle of 5ths Chart: http://visionmusic.com/keyscycle.html

Scott

I had an alcoholic uncle who had trouble with cycle of fifths.
Rootless chords aren't much good in Country music, because country people all know where there roots are. Seriously, in most of the music I play, the piano bass line is SUPPOSED to mirror the bass line.
But my keyboard recognizes the rootless chords whether I care or not.
DonM

Thanks Uncle Dave and Scott

So, if I have this right, the fifth is so strongly suggested by the root, that it can be left out. So does this mean there are no rootless augmented or diminished chords?

P.S. Although I am not a good musician, I did get A's in Music Theory and Music History in college. Harmony was covered, but nothing specifically for jazz. Also, one of the guitar books I worked through was Mickey Bakers Jazz Guitar, which is about it as far as my knowledge of jazz goes.

P.P.S. I like DonMs explanation of the cycle of fifths best