If you learn only one thing in jazz harmony, learn the ii–V–I. It is in almost every standard: sometimes once, sometimes a dozen times in one chorus, moving through different keys. When a student tells me a tune “feels hard”, nine times out of ten the problem is a ii–V–I they can’t yet play without thinking.
This article is the drill I use in lessons. It goes in four steps, from the simplest voicing to the sound of a working jazz pianist. Every example plays, and every example has an All 12 keys button. Use it: a ii–V–I you can only play in C is not yet yours.
What is a ii–V–I?
Number the notes of a major scale from 1 to 7 and build a 7th chord on each. In C major, the chord on the 2nd note is Dm7 (ii), the chord on the 5th note is G7 (V), and the chord on the 1st note is Cmaj7 (I). Play them in that order and you have a ii–V–I: tension that builds on the ii, peaks on the V and resolves on the I.
The roots move up a 4th each time: D to G, G to C. That is why the progression feels so strong: it follows the circle of 4ths, the same path the bass takes in most standards.
| Key | ii | V | I |
|---|---|---|---|
| C | Dm7 | G7 | Cmaj7 |
| F | Gm7 | C7 | Fmaj7 |
| B♭ | Cm7 | F7 | B♭maj7 |
| E♭ | Fm7 | B♭7 | E♭maj7 |
| A♭ | B♭m7 | E♭7 | A♭maj7 |
| D♭ | E♭m7 | A♭7 | D♭maj7 |
| G♭ | A♭m7 | D♭7 | G♭maj7 |
| B | C♯m7 | F♯7 | Bmaj7 |
| E | F♯m7 | B7 | Emaj7 |
| A | Bm7 | E7 | Amaj7 |
| D | Em7 | A7 | Dmaj7 |
| G | Am7 | D7 | Gmaj7 |
Notice that the I of one key is followed in the table by the ii of the next: around the circle, each key is a 4th higher. Many tunes move like this too.
Step 1: shells, the skeleton
Start with two notes in the left hand: the root and one guide tone. Root + 7th on the ii, root + 3rd on the V, root + 7th on the I. The upper note moves C – B – B in C: a half step, then nothing. (If shells are new to you, start with my guide tones lesson.)
Dm7: D–C · G7: G–B · Cmaj7: C–B
Don’t skip this step even if it feels too easy. The point is to hear the guide tones, the 3rds and 7ths, moving by the smallest possible steps. Every richer voicing in this article is these same moving notes with colours added around them.
Step 2: rootless voicings, the sound of the records
Listen to almost any jazz piano trio from the late 1950s on and you will hear the left hand playing four-note chords without the root. The bass player plays the root; the pianist plays the 3rd, the 7th and two colour notes, the 9th and the 5th (or the 13th on a dominant chord).
Each chord has two shapes:
- A shape: starts on the 3rd. Dm7 = F–A–C–E (3, 5, 7, 9).
- B shape: starts on the 7th. Dm7 = C–E–F–A (7, 9, 3, 5).
In a ii–V–I you alternate them, A – B – A or B – A – B, and the hand stays almost still:
Dm7: F–A–C–E · G13: F–A–B–E · Cmaj9: E–G–B–D
Follow each voice: F stays F, A stays A, C falls to B, E stays E. Then F falls to E, A falls to G, B stays B, E falls to D. Each voice moves by a half step, a whole step or not at all. This is the whole secret of smooth jazz harmony.
Dm7: C–E–F–A · G13: B–E–F–A · Cmaj9: B–D–E–G
Step 3: two hands, for when you play alone
Without a bass player, the root is needed again. Split the chord: the left hand plays root + 7th, the right hand plays the 3rd and two colours above it. This full, open sound works for intros, endings and ballads, and it is a good way to learn which colour notes belong to which chord.
Dm9: D–C + F–A–E · G13: G–F + B–E–A · Cmaj9: C–B + E–G–D
On the V chord the right hand plays 3 – 13 – 9 (B – E – A on G7). That 13th is one of the most typical sounds of a dominant chord in jazz.
Make it swing: comping rhythms
A voicing held for a whole bar is not yet comping. Play the rootless voicings short, in the Charleston rhythm (beat 1 and the “and” of 2). Later, vary it: anticipate a chord on the “and” of 4, leave a bar empty, answer the melody. Start with this:
Dm7: F–A–C–E · G13: F–A–B–E · Cmaj9: E–G–B–D · Dm7: F–A–C–E · G13: F–A–B–E · Cmaj9: E–G–B–D
Step 4: the minor ii–V–i
In a minor key the chords change colour: the ii is half-diminished (m7♭5), the V usually gets a ♭9, and the i is a minor 7th chord. In C minor: Dm7♭5 – G7♭9 – Cm7.
A beautiful three-note version moves every voice by a step or not at all: C–F–A♭, then B–F–A♭, then B♭–E♭–G. Follow the bottom voice: C dips a half step to B, the 3rd of G7, and then another half step to B♭, the 7th of Cm7. Listen to the A♭, the ♭9 of G7: it falls a half step to G, the 5th of Cm7. And F, the 7th of G7, falls to E♭, the minor 3rd.
Dm7♭5: C–F–A♭ · G7♭9: B–F–A♭ · Cm7: B♭–E♭–G
The 12-key drill
Going around the circle of 4ths is the classic way, and the All 12 keys buttons above do exactly that. My favourite drill for students, though, goes down in whole steps: after the I chord in C, the next ii–V–I starts a whole step lower, in B♭. Six keys take you all the way round; the other six start on D♭.
Dm7: F–A–C–E · G13: F–A–B–E · Cmaj9: E–G–B–D
E♭m7: G♭–B♭–D♭–F · A♭13: G♭–B♭–C–F · D♭maj9: F–A♭–C–E♭
A four-week plan, ten minutes a day:
- Week 1: A – B – A in the first six keys (C, B♭, A♭, G♭, E, D). Slowly, metronome at 60, one chord a bar.
- Week 2: A – B – A in the other six keys (D♭, B, A, G, F, E♭). At the end of the week, when you feel comfortable, add a rhythm: the Charleston, or any of the five rhythms from my lesson on how to comp.
- Week 3: B – A – B in the first six keys, slowly again, one chord a bar.
- Week 4: B – A – B in the other six keys. At the end of the week, when you feel comfortable, add the rhythms again.
After the four weeks, add the minor ii–V–i, four keys a day.
Say the chord names out loud as you play. When you can do a whole round without stopping, you’re done with that step.
Mistakes I hear most often
- Learning shapes, not chords. If you know “the A shape” only as a hand position, a new key is a new puzzle. Name the notes: “G7, B shape: F, A, B, E.”
- Always starting with A. Some keys sit too low with A or too high with B. Choose the shape by where it falls on the keyboard.
- Too low. A rootless voicing starting below D3 sounds like mud. Move it up.
- Playing on every beat. Leave space. Comping is a conversation with the soloist, not a metronome.
- Only practising in C. Most standards live in F, B♭, E♭ and A♭. Practise there first if you can.
Questions students ask
Why is it written “ii–V–I” with small and capital letters?
Small Roman numerals mean a minor chord (ii = Dm7 in C), capitals a major or dominant chord (V = G7, I = Cmaj7). It is a quick way to name the progression in any key.
Do I need rootless voicings if I play alone?
Not always. Alone, the two-handed voicings of step 3 or shells under a melody often work better. Rootless voicings are the sound of the pianist in a band, and they are excellent training for your ears and hands either way.
How do I use this on a real tune?
Find the ii–V–Is in the chart and mark them with brackets. A tune like “Autumn Leaves” is almost nothing else, which is why it is such a good first standard.
What comes next
The rootless voicings of step 2 are the heart of the modern jazz piano left hand. Go deeper with Bill Evans left-hand voicings, and fit the drill into a 20-minute daily practice routine.
Recommended listening
Tunes built on ii–V–Is, major and minor. Listen for the chords moving smoothly under the solos.
- “Tune Up”, Miles Davis Quintet · Cookin’ (1956): Red Garland, piano
- “Four”, Miles Davis Quintet · Workin’ (1956): Red Garland, piano
- “Airegin”, Miles Davis Quintet · Cookin’ (1956): Red Garland, piano
- “Moment’s Notice”, John Coltrane · Blue Train (1957): Kenny Drew, piano
- “Joy Spring”, Clifford Brown and Max Roach · Clifford Brown & Max Roach (1954): Richie Powell, piano
- “Solar”, Bill Evans Trio · Sunday at the Village Vanguard (1961)
- “Witchcraft”, Bill Evans Trio · Portrait in Jazz (1959)
- “Blue Bossa”, Joe Henderson · Page One (1963): minor ii–V–i; McCoy Tyner, piano
- “Recorda Me”, Joe Henderson · Page One (1963): McCoy Tyner, piano
- “Stablemates”, Miles Davis · Miles: The New Miles Davis Quintet (1955): Red Garland, piano