New Chord Dictionary for Guitar: Guitar Book & CD

Santiago grounds jazz guitar harmony in voice leading principles rather than rote memorization, which means your students actually understand why chords sound the way they do. The included CD lets them hear these voicings applied to real jazz standards and blues tunes immediately, collapsing the gap between theory and playing.

Methodical yet musical. Santiago respects the craft of voicing without drowning you in diagrams; you're building a language, not memorizing shapes.

Jazz guitarists moving beyond basic open and barre chords who want a systematic understanding of voicing construction. This resource serves students serious about comping in small ensembles and those preparing for jazz combo settings.

• Use the CD recordings to isolate specific chord qualities in context. Play along with one voicing at a time rather than trying to absorb all fingerings simultaneously.
• Work through the voice leading section before tackling the tension voicings; understanding smooth chord movement makes advanced voicings feel purposeful, not arbitrary.
• Apply the walking bass concepts to your comping patterns. This transforms your rhythm playing from static chord shells into conversational, interactive accompaniment.

Assign this as a supplementary text for jazz guitar students in your studio or ensemble program. The chapter on walking bass pairs especially well with instruction on bass-comping interaction in a guitar-bass-drums trio.

• Jazz chord voicing construction (shells, tensions, alterations)
• Voice leading across chord changes
• Reading and playing melodic minor harmony
• Walking bass patterns adapted for guitar
• Interpreting chord symbols with harmonic awareness