So What chord

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Opening measures of Miles Davis's composition "So What" of 1959. The two chords in the treble clef are parallel So What chords (Listen)

In jazz music, a So What chord is the name given to the particular 5-note chord voicing employed by Bill Evans over the head of the tune "So What".

The terminology is used extensively in Mark Levine's landmark work The Jazz Piano Book, wherein he describes a range of uses for which the voicing might be employed. Frank Mantooth dedicated two chapters to this voicing under the name "Miracle Voicing" in his work "Voicings for Jazz Keyboard."

From the top note downwards, it consists of a major third followed by three perfect fourths, and is identical to the standard tuning of a guitar minus the top E. It can also be thought of as a five-note quartal chord with the top note lowered by a semitone.

Apart from its obvious use within the jazz standard "So What", the chord can be employed in other contexts. It is an effective voicing for a minor 11th chord, where the top note forms the fifth of the chord. It can also be used as a Major7#11 chord if a bass note is used that is a tritone away from the top note, or as a simple Major7 chord if the bass note is a major seventh away from the top note.

Other jazz recordings that make extensive use of the chord include McCoy Tyner's "Peresina" and Gary Burton's "Gentle Wind and Falling Tear."

[edit] References

Levine, Mark "The Jazz Piano Book" 1989 Sher Music Co., Petaluma, CA ISBN 0-9614701-5-1

Mantooth, Frank "Voicings for Jazz Keyboard" 1986 Hal Leonard Publishing Corp., Milwaukee, WI ISBN 0-7935-3485-2