...and the circle of fifths. Andy Honeybone rotates.

"INDIANA JONES and the Temple of Doom" is a well-known film title. "Bud Powell and the Circle of Fifths" perhaps doesn't have quite the same familiarity but is distinguished by being the sub-title of this month's piece. So who is this Powell and what is this circle business? Sounds like something out of a Dennis Wheatley novel.

Earl 'Bud' Powell (1924-66) was a pianist who evolved a minimal left-hand style to accompany single note right-hand improvisations in the manner of a saxophonist or trumpeter. Along with Thelonius Monk, Powell was at the head of the bebop piano league.

The circle of fifths has little to do with black magic. It is a graphic representation of the inter relationships of the various musical key signatures. The "key clock", as it is also known, is particularly useful in planning or analysing chord progressions. We'll find out why it's paired with the piano style of Bud Powell as we go on.

The dominant seventh chord has a lot to answer for. Let's refresh the grey matter by restating that a dominant seventh such as B7 (B, D#, F#, A) contains a non-scalar tone [A] — that is, a note which does not appear in the basic major scale. The added seventh is in fact a flattened seventh and the origin of this note can be traced to the scale named next anti clockwise on the circle of fifths. Hence the dominant seventh has strong directional tendencies and is responsible for the strong anti clockwise pull of key resolving to key around the circle.

So what does the clock look like? At the top is C with F to the left and G to the right. You may be aware that the key signatures of F and G are one flat and one sharp respectively. Key signatures are the pattern of accidentals (sharps and flats) which are correct for the starting position of a major scale. The clock is built up by adding one additional accidental at each further step-flats on the left, sharps on the right. Anti clockwise from the top we have C, F, Bb, Eb, Ab, Db, Gb, B, E, A, D, G and back to C.

Chord progressions can be thought of as paths around the circle. These paths follow various rules depending on the style of music.

The most simple is concerned with the classical harmony of folk songs, anthems, hymns and "the classics". Harmony in these pieces is basically found to involve the left- and right-hand immediate neighbours of the home key (tonic). Clockwise motion gives the dominant which has a tendency to push the harmony anti clockwise back to the starting tonic. Anti-clockwise key selection gives the sub-dominant which pushes clockwise back to the tonic. What we are discussing here, in elevated terms, is the three chord trick (G, C and D, and so on).

An elaboration of the basic scheme includes jumping back (clockwise) by a quarter of a circle (ie C to A) and then coming back home anti clockwise via the intermediate keys (D and G). You should note that it is up to you (and the melody) to dictate the nature of the chord (major, minor, diminished, etc) given the root note from the circle.

There is a limit to how far back you can jump before you appear to be jumping forward. Stick to less than half way and the attraction of the tonic will pull you home. You can always fiddle about en route and temporarily miss out one step, but the harmony will be stronger if you return to that step and complete the sequence. Further deviations include starting the piece away from the tonic and including surprise chords which would not normally be found on the anti clockwise route home.

When two key centres are used, the routes around the circle become more complex. This development is a concept of romantic harmony and is further characterised by the second key centre occurring anti-clockwise ahead of the first. This prevents attraction of the second key path to the first key centre. To heighten the effect of two key centres, the melody over each is often similar.

Trying to find patterns within the circle for impressionist and modern progressions is more difficult. Once you are in the realms of four key centres and using, then skipping, alternate pairs of circle positions, analysis is a headache. Should you be writing a song, though, the circle of fifths could help you map out some devilish changes.

Are you still there, Bud? Taking bass notes anti-clockwise from the circle, play against them a descending chromatic scale beginning a major third higher. Do the same playing the chromatic scale starting on the minor seventh. This demonstrates that in a circle of fifths, from one position to the next, the third becomes the seventh and the seventh becomes the third. For example, bass note C moves to F, melody note E to E. The E is the third in C major and becomes E, the minor seventh in the chord of F major. And so the process repeats around the circle.

These sparse two-note intervals are the essence of the Bud Powell style. Only root and third, or root and seventh, appear in the lefthand. The first interval implies a major or dominant chord but the second may accompany dominant, minor or half-diminished (minor seventh, flattened fifth). The major seventh may also be used. It is the role of the righthand to supply melodic material to resolve ambiguity.

Fingering for these left-hand intervals is thumb and little finger for the sevenths, and thumb and index for the third. The roots of the sevenths should climb no higher than the octave below middle C. The style is not one of rhythmic left-hand jabs but consists mainly of on-the-beat minims (two beats). Another characteristic device is to add movement to descending chromatic dominant seventh progressions by inserting before each a minor or half-diminished chord. This is classic circle-of-fifths stuff, but uses the alternate so-called minor-dominant-minor version starting on a minor seventh rather than a major third.

Brief but to the point, I hope. Listening to the man in action will do you far more good than protracted verbiage from me. "The Amazing Bud Powell" volumes one and two on Blue Note should suit. Be careful of his solo and trio work because the style described above prevails more in a group context.

This month's chord is a major ninth with an augmented eleventh. The right hand is a major seventh shape, but the (B) bass note turns the (A#) into the major eleventh, the (C#) into the ninth and the (F) into the augmented eleventh. Note: an eleventh must be supported by a ninth. Try it.

Bass note: B
Bmaj9 (11)