Jazz Chord Essentials
Know your chords instead of copy-pasting shapes — every color, every inversion.
Most of us play chords without really knowing what we're doing — you grab a grip from a chart, it works, and the neck stays a mystery. This workshop rebuilds your chords from the ground up: how a 7th chord is actually built, what the four main colors (major 7, dominant 7, minor 7, half diminished) each sound like, and every inversion of each one on the 4th, 5th, and 6th string sets. Then the shapes go to work — voice leading between chords, diminished passing chords, shell chords, and upper structures — so the exercises tip into music. You'll sing what you play along the way, because the goal is to hear the chord from the inside, not just memorize where the fingers go.
30-day guarantee Lifetime access
Preview
See how it’s taught before you buy
What you get
- 53 focused video lessons
- 18 downloadable PDF worksheets
- Lifetime access + future updates
What you need
- A guitar
- Comfort with basic chord changes
- Optional: a metronome — most exercises are practiced in time
By the end
What you’ll be able to do
The curriculum
The road before you pay
Welcome
1 lessonRotem's welcome and the idea behind the workshop: think of a sound and create it on the guitar, one step at a time.
- 01Lets do this
Section 1 — Let's Understand It
12 lessonsHow chords are actually built — triads, 7ths, inversions, and the four main colors — with your ear and voice involved from the start.
- 01Introduction
- 02Introduction to the theory
- 03Why do you need to know this
- 04TAKE YOUR TIME please
- 05Chord Degrees
- 06ColorsTag the four chord colors
- 07Drop 2Why 1-5-7-3 fits guitar
- 08Listen — Cmaj7 & C7Sing do, mi, sol, ti
- 09Major & Minor — let's hear it
- 10What are 1-3-5 Chords
- 11What are 7th chords
- 12What are InversionsC slash E, explained
Section 2 — Fmaj7
5 lessonsAll four Fmaj7 inversions on the 4th, 5th, and 6th string sets, then connected across the neck and locked into time.
- 01Fmaj7 4th String
- 02Fmaj7 5th String
- 03Fmaj7 6th String
- 04Fmaj7 in Order of Inversions
- 05Fmaj7 in time
Section 3 — F7
5 lessonsOne note turns Fmaj7 into F7 — the same inversions on every string set, tracking the bass and top notes as you go.
- 01F7 4th String
- 02F7 - 5th String
- 03F7 - 6th String
- 04In Order on Inversions
- 05Know The Difference
Section 4 — Fm7
5 lessonsThe minor 7 inversions on each string set, played in time and then in order of inversion across the strings.
- 01CreateSlide major 7 into minor
- 02Fm7 - 4th String
- 03Fm7 - 5th String
- 04Fm7 - 6th String
- 05In Order of Inversions
Section 5 — Fm7b5
6 lessonsThe half diminished voicings on every string set, plus a first look at using them as substitutions over other chords.
- 01Starting Point
- 02Fm7b5 - 4th String
- 03Fm7b5 - 5th String
- 04Fm7b5 - 6th String
- 05Inversions In Order
- 06Half dim Substitution ideaE half diminished over C7
Section 6 — Make that music NOW
4 lessonsTurning the inversions into music by voice leading between chords in a small zone of the neck instead of jumping around.
- 01Make it Now
- 02Almost a songVoice leading starts here
- 03Cm7 & Gm7
- 04Cmaj7 & Fmaj7
Section 7 — More Essentials
6 lessonsDiminished passing chords, shell chords, dominant extensions, and the ii-V-I played with inversions and voice leading.
- 01Dim Passing ChordWalk the bass with diminished
- 02Dominant ExtensionsIncludes the Hendrix sharp 9
- 03II-V-I with inversionsBass walks F, F, E
- 04m6 to Dim
- 05Shell & ScaleShell plus one scale note
- 06Shell Chords & Beyond
Section 8 — Open Triads
4 lessonsMajor and minor open-position triads across the string sets, plus a challenge that weaves single melody notes between shells.
- 01Major 1-3-5 — in time
- 02Major 1-3-5 — open positionRotem's favorite guitar sound
- 03Minor 1-3-5
- 04Concept Challenge
Section 9 — Closed Triads
1 lessonClosed major and minor triads played in position up the neck, mapping the fretboard so everything else clicks.
- 01Major & Minor Closed Triads
Section 10 — Advanced Concepts
4 lessonsUpper structures — playing one chord over another to add extensions — over dominant, minor, and major chords, plus a closing word on how to practice all of it.
- 01C7 Upper Structure
- 02Cm7 Upper Structure
- 03Cmaj7 Upper StructureStacking thirds over Cmaj7
- 04THANK YOU
That’s the complete lesson list — nothing held back.
This is for you if…
- Players who can grab chord grips from a chart but couldn't build one from scratch
- Anyone comping with the same handful of shapes on every tune
- Players who want to know why a chord works, not just where the fingers go
Maybe not yet if…
- Players who don't yet know basic open and barre chords
- Anyone looking for soloing vocabulary — this is a harmony workshop
Students
What players say
“PLACEHOLDER — consented quote.”
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Buy the course
Jazz Chord Essentials
30-day guarantee · Lifetime access · Free preview lessons
Watch a lesson firstQuestions
Before you enroll
YouTube gives you scattered tips with no order. This is a sequenced path — each lesson builds on the last, with the practice material and the exact next step handed to you so you stop guessing what to work on.
The course page states the level plainly at the top. If you can already fret cleanly and play in time but feel stuck making real music, most of these are built for you. When in doubt, watch the preview lesson first.
Just your guitar and a way to play the videos. No paid software or plugins required. Anything optional (a looper, a metronome app) is noted in the course requirements.
These are self-paced. Fifteen focused minutes a day moves the needle more than a two-hour cram once a week. Every lesson is short enough to fit a real practice session.
Yes — you get lifetime access to the course and any updates to it. Learn at your pace, revisit lessons whenever a concept comes back around.
Yes. Every course has a free sample lesson so you can hear how Rotem teaches before you spend a dollar.
There's a 30-day guarantee. Work through it, and if it isn't the right fit, email for a refund. // TODO: confirm exact refund window & policy.