Chapter 8: Upper structures

Although upper structures can be grouped with the previous chapter, they are worth particular attention. We’ve been studying scales and modes that can be played over dominant 7 chords, and here we have chords that can do likewise.

An upper structure is a triad that sits on top of a dominant 7, thereby adding extensions and alterations to that dominant 7.

I’ll describe each upper structure by its interval from the root. All the examples will be based on C⁷.
So, for example, an E^b minor triad will be upper structure bIII (III = 3 in roman numerals).

Upper structures work well when the dominant 7 is rootless. However, there are some exceptions, which I’ll deal with first.

Fig 124 illustrates two upper structures: bV and bII minor. These two triads are G^b major and D^b minor. I have inverted them to create more effective piano voicings.

Notice that each upper structure in fig 124 is in a pair. The first chord sits above a rootless C⁷ and the second above a rooted C⁷. This pairing is to demonstrate the need for a rooted C⁷. For, without the root note (C), the resulting chord remains unaltered. By rooting the C⁷, the altered notes come into being.

The following upper structures work well with a rootless dominant 7.

I minor, II major, bIII major, #IV minor, bVI major, VI major.