Piano Week 08: Pentatonic over changes

Weekly Focus

Week 08 focuses on using pentatonic language over changes with intent, so lines stay singable while still tracking harmony.

Success this week means you can choose one pentatonic option per chord family and keep that map coherent through a full form.

Repertoire & Chord Map

Primary application is Misty, with My Romance as transfer material. Keep phrasing vocal and avoid adding extra chromatic material unless intentional.

Core functional loop:

Imaj7 | vm7 I7 | IVmaj7 | ivm7 bVII7 Imaj7 vim7 | iim7 V7 | iiim7 VI7 | iim7 V7

Pentatonic rule set for drills:

• maj7: major pentatonic from root
• m7: minor pentatonic from root
• 7: major pentatonic from 5th

Daily map task: keep one pentatonic choice per chord family for an entire chorus before changing options.

Supplementary Listening & Ear Training (Required)

Use this track as the ear-training backbone for “Pentatonic phrasing over changes”, then transfer what you hear to piano the same day.

Weekly listening pick:

• C Jam Blues — Oscar Peterson Trio

Why this track now: It highlights time feel, groove consistency, and comp pulse, which matches Week 8’s goals.

Ear tasks (10–15 min, at least 3 sessions this week):

1. Listen once without the instrument and name the key center by ear (major/minor/modal). Then verify the key at piano.
2. Find one cadence or arrival point, then play: root + shell ii-V-I (or closest functional equivalent) in that key.
3. Lift a short 4–8 bar fragment by ear, play it slowly, and record ~30s so you can compare your hearing vs. the recording.

Extra challenge (optional): transpose your lifted fragment to the weekly priority ladder when possible (F → Eb → G → Bb → C).

End-of-Week Reflection

Which pentatonic mappings are now dependable under tempo, and which still blur the harmony? Keep one stable mapping as default vocabulary and isolate one weak mapping for Week 09 warmup.