The meaning of ii-V-I in jazz, and a breakdown of the 2-5-1 chord progression.
Have you heard the song “Sunday Morning” by Maroon 5? Or the jazz standard “There Will Never Be Another You”? If you have, you know what a ii-V-I is! No, the roman numerals are not part of some secret ancient code to a porta-potty. ii-V-I or 2-5-1, represent chords in a key; the 2nd chord in a key, the 5th chord in a key, and the 1st chord in a key (the numbers represent scale tones). If we are in C major, this would translate to Dm7-G7-C^7. If you are wondering why the chords are minor 7th , dominant 7th ,and major, read this article on modes: https://tetyanaharaschuk.wixsite.com/tetyana/post/modes-of-the-major-scale
The 2-5-1 progression is an extension of the classic 5-1 (dominant-tonic) harmony, a.k.a. the skeleton that makes up all of western music (meaning that all western music can pretty much be simplified into dominant chords and tonic chords). 2-5-1 is the most common progression in jazz, and a lot of other music, second only to 4-5-1 (and variations), which is common in European classical music like Bach. Both of these progressions are very clear, in the sense that they establish the key. If I play 2-5-1 or 4-5-1 it is easy for you to sing the major scale that they come from. This clarity makes these progressions super useful, because your brain can identify what is happening in the music and follow it. This is one of the reasons that the blues form is so unique; it does not have a “1”, technically, and it never resolves, because the 1 in blues is a dominant 7th quality, implying that it should resolve to a major chord, but it does not. Maybe that is why it’s so cool.
2-5-1 can be found in songs at different “lengths” for example: as 2-5 in one bar (2 beats per chord) and 1 in the next bar (4 beats), or 2 and 5 can each have an individual bar (each get 4 beats) and 1 would have 2 bars (8 beats). Usually, the 1 chord is twice as long, probably because it feels comfortable to hear that resolved sound, but sometimes there is another chord in the 2nd bar of the 1, to set up the next chord.
In jazz, the 2-5-1 progression can appear in multiple different keys within one song. An example is Giant Steps by John Coltrane, which uses the 2-5-1 progression in 3 different keys, within a 16-measure form. Other common examples include Stella By Starlight by Victor Young and All The Things You Are by Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein II. The latter actually has a 6-2-5-1 progression, this just means that instead of just being a 2-5-1, there is a 6-chord added before, to extend the 2-5-1, to create even more tension before resolving to the 1.
Although the 2-5-1 was first derived solely from the major modes, jazz musicians started recreating the 2-5-1 to be more interesting. They began using chords and modes from the melodic minor scale and diminished scale to create minor 2-5-1 progressions like in Stella by Starlight. They also added tension and created a sense of surprise by mixing chords from major, minor and diminished scales within the 2-5-1.
Unlike the previous 2-5-1 which was all from C Major, this 2-5-1's chords each come from a different scale.
That’s it for now! I challenge you to find the three ii-V-I progressions in Giant Steps, they happen in 3 different keys! First you can look for the major chords, and then see if you can spot the minor ii and dominant V before!
If you have questions, email me! tetyanahar@gmail.com
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