Finally, I’m completing my series on guitar chord voicings.

This is the last set. I have published a separate page that indexes all four of the voicings pages:

Jazz Guitar Voicings

The voicings below are drop-2 versions of the chords from the melodic minor series.  I described the interchangeability of these chords in an earlier article.  As for the drop-2 part, the general rule is that these are voiced on the four middle strings (a, d, g, b).

The “archetype” of the chord is made by taking the closed form voicing of a given chord (for instance, F, Ab, C, E) and dropping the second highest note by an octave (giving C, F, Ab, E).

This works out better for the major series; the melodic minor series takes a bit more goosing to sound right.  For instance, take a look at one of my favorites — the first voicing for Cm69 = C, Eb, A, D.  It has nothing to do with the traditional definition of “drop-2″, but fit in with the other chords so well I adapted it anyway.  That’s why this series is longer than the others.

As always, all the possible melody notes are harmonized on the highest string.  And remember, be a good partner for your bass player — keep your lowest note out of their range.  Your voicings will sound crisper if you give the bassist space.

Here’s the chart: