Improvising over V7 chords

I think it’s important to have some personal ways of approaching different musical situations. As an example, here are a few of my go-to “big picture” approaches for approaching V7 chords in a jazz context.

Obviously, there are infinite ways to approach nearly anything in music. I recommend picking few that seem natural and make immediate sense as good place to start.

• Mixolydian: (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, Dom7)
• Major Blues: Basically Mixolydian but approaching the Maj3 from the min3. (C-Natural to C# in A7)
• Minor Blues up a 4th. Playing Dm blues over the A7 chord. Then resolving to D Maj. (If Dom 7 chord is a I chord, such as a blues, you can use the same approach — Dm blues over D7 and the resolving to major.
• Mixolydian + #11 sound: (1, 2, 3, #4, 5, 6, Dom7)
• Altered Dominant: (1, b9, #9, 3, b5, #5, Dom7)
• Maj7 down a whole step. Playing Gmaj7 sounds over an A7 chord
• Maj7 up a half-step. Playing Bbmaj7 sounds over A7 chord
• Dorian up a 5th. Playing E dorian over A7
• Augmented triads: starting on either the 1, 3, or #5
• Diminished triads: A diminished triads over A7

Also, there are different ways of naming or talking about the list above. But I think it’s a good to rename them so they’re meaningful to you. For example, you won’t find “Mixolydian + #11” in any text book, but for me that makes more sense than lydian dominant. Use whatever helps you make better music.

And, of course, ultimately the goal is to forget about all of this and simply play. But having a personal understanding of some approaches will help you get to that point.