All voicing styles

Spread Voicings

Both Hands·Intermediate·Difficulty 3/5

What it is

Spread voicings place the root low in the left hand (octave 3) and the colour tones — 3rd, 5th, 7th — high in the right hand (octave 4-5). The wide gap between bass and treble creates an orchestral, full-bodied sound that fills the whole piano range.

How to build it

LH: root in octave 3. RH: 3rd, 5th, and 7th spread across octave 4-5. Two variations: warm (RH in octave 4) and bright (RH in octave 5).

When to use it

For solo piano performance where you need to fill the room without a band. In ballad introductions. When you want a lush, pianistic sound rather than a jazz combo sound. The wide register separation gives each note its own space to ring.

Examples

Dm7Spread
D3C4F4A4
G7Spread
G3D4F4B4
Try a ii-V-I with this style

Standards that work well with this style

Related voicing styles