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Planed Mediants

Cmaj9 (Mediant Cycle) — jazz piano voicing

Cmaj9 for mediant planing (to Emaj9, Abmaj9). Written in C. Below it, 26 transcribed voicings from the pianists it defines, both hands, note by note.

The shape

Cmaj9 for mediant planing (to Emaj9, Abmaj9)

Planed Mediants

Stored in C so it moves to any key; each note carries its role and its name.

The hands, in full

26 transcriptions across 4 players, oldest first.

Contemporary era still life for Esbjörn Svensson: frost on the inside of a dark window, one warm light beyond it.

Esbjörn Svensson

b. 1964 · Sweden

Nordic Atmosphere · Nordic + Modal

Nordic atmosphere - E.S.T. open triads, soft pedal wash, electronic texture

Cadd9 arpeggios

E.S.T. open fifths with arpeggiated 9 in RH

LH C–G | RH E–G–D (arpeggiate)

Add9 Arpeggios

Cmaj9 → Bbmaj7 → Fmaj9 → G13sussequence

LH open fifths, RH 6/9 with gentle motion

Nordic 6/9

Also reaches for Cmaj9#11 (Lydian Pad) and Dm11 'So What' Voicing.

Contemporary era still life for Aaron Parks: a window's amber reflection lying across the closed lid.

Aaron Parks

b. 1983

Cinematic Lydian · Cinematic + Quartal

Contemporary lyricism - fluid quartals, chromatic mediants, wide 6/9 chords

Fmaj9 → G13#11 → Cmaj9sequence

Cinematic Lydian with D triad over C

Cinematic Lydian

C pedal: Emaj9 → Dmaj9 → Cmaj9sequence

Chromatic descent over C pedal

RH E–G#–B–F# → …

Pedal + Mediants

Also reaches for Cmaj9#11 (Lydian Pad) and Dm11 'So What' Voicing.

Contemporary era still life for Shai Maestro: a single unlit candle stub on dark wood.

Shai Maestro

b. 1987 · Israel

Israeli Lyricism · Romantic + Rootless

Israeli melody - soft 6/9 grip, inner counterpoint, singing soprano

Cadd9

Israeli melody with airy 5/8va spread

Add9 Lyricism

Am9 → Cmaj9 → D6/9sequence

Romantic arc with triads, open 9/6 top

Romantic

Pedal poems: C pedalsequence

Deep pedal drone with Fmaj9 shapes

Pedal Poem

Cmaj7 Israeli open-fifth

Israeli open-fifth voicing with add9 melody on top

Triple LH (root/5/8va) + open RH triad with 9 on top

Israeli Open

Cmaj7 wide spread sus2

Single-note pedal LH + wide sus2 RH with 5-9-3-13 spread

Single root pedal + airy spread = signature ECM transparency

Wide Spread

Cmaj9 classical voice-led

Classical voice-led - shell LH, ascending 9-5-7-3 RH

Classical Voice-Led

Am9 wide pedal

Wide Am9 - root/5 LH, full 4-note triad+9 RH

Wide m7

Dm11 sparse haiku

Sparse haiku Dm11 - single LH bass, 5-note RH with 11 on top

Single bass note + 5 RH notes = breath-like density

Haiku Sparse

Cm9 classical sigh

Classical-style m9 - shell LH, b3-root-b3-b7 ascending RH

Doubled b3 in RH gives the lyrical sigh

Classical m9

G7sus13 sparse

Sparse sus13 - single LH root, 4-note quartal RH (b7-9-4-13)

Sparse Sus

C7sus open-fifth + 9

Open-fifth sus dominant - root/5 LH, b7-9-4-5 RH (low register)

Low RH register keeps the sus dominant intimate

Open Sus

G7 minimal shell + lyric top

Minimal shell - tritone LH, 5-9-5 lyrical top

Minimal Lyric

Bm7b5 open spread

Open half-dim - root/b5 LH, b7-b3-b5-b7 RH with octave doubling

Open Half-Dim

Dm7b5 sparse over pedal

Sparse half-dim - root/b5 LH, b3-b7-b3 RH (3 notes only)

Tritone LH + 3-note triadic RH = airy half-dim

Sparse Half-Dim

F#m7b5 classical voice-led

Voice-led half-dim - root/b5 LH, b7-b3-b5-b7 with classical phrasing

Classical Half-Dim

C#dim7 bell-like passing

Bell-like passing dim7 - single bass + 4-note RH with octave-doubled b3

Bell Diminished

Bdim7 tritone substitute

Tritone-sub dim7 - root/b5 LH, bb7-b3-b5 sparse RH

Tritone-Sub Diminished

Fdim7 minor approach

Minor-key approach dim7 - root/b5 LH, b13-b3-b13 RH

Minor Approach

C7alt octave-spread RH

Wide-spread C7alt - root/b7 LH, 3-b13-b9-#11 ascending tensions

Each adjacent RH note is a tritone or major-3 → angular Mehldau-adjacent

Wide Altered

G7alt sparse classical

Sparse classical alt V - 3+b7 LH, b5-b7-b9-b5 RH with octave double

Sparse Altered

D7alt wide spread minor

Wide alt V/ii - 3+b7 LH, Eb minor triad in RH (= b9-#9-b13)

Minor-Triad UST Altered

Also reaches for Cmaj9#11 (Lydian Pad) and Maj7 Rootless A.

Contemporary era still life for Jacob Collier: a tangle of cables resolving into one clean loop on a bedroom floor.

Jacob Collier

b. 1994 · UK

Reharm Genius · Polychords

Polychords and micro-color, layered 3rds/4ths with triadic extensions

Cmaj9 with A triad (13 on top)

Cmaj9 with RH A triad (13 on top), RH adds #11 via D triad; layered 3rds/4ths

RH adds #11 via D triad; layered 3rds/4ths

Polychords

Also reaches for Maj7 Rootless A.

Also in their vocabulary

1 more reach for it. Their notes are printed on the rarer grip each one plays.

Take it to the key you are working in

Everything above is in C, and nothing is held back — the notes are the notes. What a page cannot do is move the shape into the key of the tune on your stand, or run your own progression through it and play the result. That is what the Reharmonization Engine in the app is for.

Built from the app's own data: the grip from masterVoicingGrips, who plays it from pianistVoicingStyles, and every transcription frompianistExactVoicings. Nothing on this page was written about these pianists for the website.