Tritone Substitution and Scales

This Jazz Piano Tutorial is about the scales you can use over a dominant chord with a tritone substitution.

One of the most common chord substitutions in Jazz is the Tritone Substitution. This is a way of substituting Dominant 7 chords. So a G7 would become a Db7 (the root note is a tritone away). They work because the guide tones (3rd & 7th) are the same in both chords.

G7 = G B D F
Db7 = Db F Ab B

Ordinarily over a II-V-I in C Major you would just improvise using the C Major scale, or the equivalent modes. But what if the chord progression was 1/2 a bar of G7 and 1/2 a bar of Db7? Or if someone was comping and you didn’t know which chord they were going to play?

Db Mixolydian doesn’t quite fit over the G7 chord; and
G Mixolydian doesn’t quite fit over the Db7 chord

You have a number of options when improvising over G7 and/or Db7:
- Play G Mixolydian but avoid the C
- C is an avoid note for G7 and Db7 – so just omit it
- Scales that fit over G7 and Db7
- Wholetone Scale = G A B Db Eb F
- Dominant Diminished Scale = G Ab Bb B Db D E F
- Ab melodic minor = Ab Bb Cb Db Eb F G
- AKA G Altered Scale
- AKA Db Lydian Dominant
- D melodic minor = D E F G A B C#(Db)
- AKA Db Altered Scale
- AKA G Lydian Dominant

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[PIANOSTYLE]

just noticed I was subscribed but didn't ring the bell.. I didn't used to know what it did. Nice lesson.. I do a simplified version of this on a two five one.. all root positions Four note chords.. d f a c.
db f ab b c e g b.. Great lesson my head hurts ..

[thejazzisthis]

Thanks I talked to my music teacher at school about tritone substitution when I learned it at my piano lessons and she made fun of me, now I have something to show her!

[anthonyschrayer]

Why does the Db Mixolydian work over a Db7 chord? It has that Gb which is a flat 9th above the F, the guide tone (3rd) of the Db7 chord.

[carloscruz]

I´ve got a question, how did you figured out those were the scales to use in this case (tritone sub)? Is there an analisys so we can get an answer obout what scale use over a given chord o chords like the example you have made in this video?

[hansolo]

Lydian Dominant AKA Mixolydian #11, right?
Excellent tutorials, very well structured and comprehensive. Thanks a lot!