Barry HarrisThe method

Chris Parks · Stage 6: Line devices

5-4-3-2 in Minor

Episode 37 · 7:37 · On YouTube · In the lesson player

Chris gives Barry’s 5-4-3-2 rules in minor, using A minor (A minor 6): each starts on the fifth, runs down to a given degree and ends with its own turn. He practises them through keys and shows how they become ready-made phrases on a minor turnaround such as Love Me or Leave Me.

Step by step

  1. 0:40Think of minor as the minor 6 sound, here A minor 6.
  2. 1:22Rule for 5: hit 5, drop to the major seventh and up to the tonic, then 4, then flat 3.
  3. 1:48Rule for 4: from 5 run down to 4, hit the second, back up to 4, then flat 3.
  4. 2:15Rule for 3: from 5 run down to 3, jump to the lower fifth and come up a major triad.
  5. 2:38Rule for 2: from 5 run down to 2, then go from the major seventh chromatically up to 3, with a triplet.
  6. 3:17Play all four in a row, then move them to D minor, G minor, C minor and so on.
  7. 4:04Use them on a minor turnaround, as in Love Me or Leave Me.
  8. 4:43Combine them: start on the 6, walk chromatically to 5, then string several rules together and end on the minor 6.

Chords and notes in this video

Tap a time to jump to it in the video.

Line1:22
𝄞♯
C4EACDA♭
  1. E
  2. G#
  3. A
  4. D
  5. C
Line1:22
𝄞
C3BCDE
  1. E
  2. D
  3. B
  4. D
  5. C
Line2:02
𝄞♯
C4EBC5A♭
  1. E
  2. G#
  3. B
Line2:02
𝄞♯♯
C4ABCA♭B♭
  1. G#
  2. A
  3. A#
  4. B
  5. C

Barry’s own words on this

6.8 The 5-4-3-2 (and 4-3, 5-4-3-2-1) phrases4.3 Minor14.2 Every key, every degree, every way

In the course

Move it in fourths5-4-3-2 in minorMake your own vocabularyFreedom and your own voice

Transcript

  1. 0:00Hello and welcome to episode 37 of Things I’ve Learned from Barry Harris. Today I thought we would discuss the rules for what Barry calls 5-4-3-2, only this time we’ll do it in minor. In one of my original episodes, I think it’s episode 3, I have the rules for 5, 4, 3, 2 in major. And in this particular one, I thought we would discuss it in minor. Now by minor, I really am talking about, like, if we’re saying A minor 6.
  2. 0:40Or any time you have a minor, you know, a song that starts on a 6 chord usually. Or if the bridge goes to the 3 minor or something like that. So there we go, there we have our minor. Now, the rules are, starting with 5, it’s going to be 5, and we’ll do A minor. So this is where your fingering is for A minor, and if you want to think about it, A minor 6, which is kind of important. That’s 8-6.
  3. 1:22So here we go. The rule for 5 is you’re going to hit 5, then you’re going to come down and grab major 7 to tonic. So, and then you’re going to hit 4, and then flat 3. So there’s 5. Again, 1, 2, 3, 4. Okay, now the rule for four would be, again starting on five, running down to four. Now you’re going to hit second.
  4. 2:02Then go back up to four. Then flat third. So four would look like this. Again, starting on five. Then you have the rule for three, which would be starting on five, running down to three. And now we’re going to jump down to the fifth, to the lower fifth, and come up a major triad. So that would be this. 2 would be 5 going down to 2
  5. 2:42and then major 7 chromatically up to 3 but with a triplet so once again here’s 2 now I’ll do 5 first Here’s four. Here’s three. Here’s two.
  6. 3:17Now if we put them all together, which he likes to do, you do all of them, you say. So now that’s the rules for 5, 4, 3, 2, N minor. So again, I would practice them here like this. I’ll just do a couple. I’m going to go A minor, then I’m going to move to D minor, and then you can even move to G minor, to C minor, and so on. But this is the way you really know it. So if we start, we say 1, 2, 1, 2, 3, 4. Now D.
  7. 4:04Oh, sorry. D again. And so on then. G minor. And so on. Now, the question is, how are we going to use these? Because these are great exercises to feel, but you have to say to yourself, when am I going to use them in a song? So let’s say we were playing, let’s say, Love Me or Leave Me or something like that, which is just a basic, starts off with a basic turnaround in minor.
  8. 4:43I don’t think it’s in A minor, I actually think it’s in C minor, it’s in the key, V flat, but anyway, let’s just say that it’s in A minor. So that’s a perfect example of where you can use these. So I just, that one I think I did five. Oh, I did five and then I did three. Let’s say if we started on the 6 and walked down chromatically to 5. And then let’s walk down all the way to 4 and do 4.
  9. 5:28Which is a nice phrase. That’s starting on the 6, but we’re going to do the 4. So there’s 5, 4, and then we’re going to do 2, 4, 3. And then I even did three and I ended on a minor six. Nice idea for a phrase, a nice minor phrase. Might want to put a triplet in. Also nice.
  10. 6:02But again, these are all little things that you start to put together to make part of your improvisation arsenal, so to speak. So that now when a time comes when you’re playing over a nice minor chord, boom, there you go. You already have a bunch of these already in your hands. That’s the best part of, again, I know I say this all the time, but that’s the best part of Barry’s method is that he gives you these little things to practice. and then from it, they can blossom into much bigger things.
  11. 6:40And the things that I choose to do with them are going to be different than the things that you choose to do with them, which is the beauty of improvisation. It’s not just like, okay, here’s this one phrase. Now we’re all going to do this one phrase. Now we all sound the same. It’s much bigger than that. And again, that’s the thing that I love about Barry the most is that through his teaching, that really brings out the individual. It really shows you off for who you are by taking these rules and saying,
  12. 7:12okay, what can I do different with them? Anyway, I’ll make this a short one, and I’m going to get back to working on movement. Perhaps the next couple will be about movement again. Hope you enjoyed this episode, and have fun practicing your 5-4-3-2 rules for minor. Till next time.