Kindof like how we are living through the results of sin and now that we know it's results we will be even happier in heaven than if we never knew because we have that contrast.
Yeah which is a really good idea. Music with Miles (formerly Native Construct) really raised the bar with the Modal Interchange video. No doubt, that is the inspiration behind this - which I'm all for. The thing is, Miles incorporates the music into his examples so there is no clash with the background music whatsoever.
I totally agree. It is incredibly irritating and distracting. The use of a subversive trivialising background beat has all the fake bonhomie of piped music in a supermarket. This ghastly dumbing down has spread like contagion everywhere - in shops, concourses, banks - anywhere where people gather and wait. It insults the very intent of the thesis the man is presenting - a completely different sound world working towards a completely different intention - to distract rather than educate. It is the equivalent of the hyped up male or female who is already overstimulated sitting on a train or bus nodding their knees up and down to alleviate their inability to relax and re-distribute. Ok for them but does everyone else have to be distracted by it as well? Please - re-record this interesting clip without the distraction of insidious beat and tinkly sounds - it is totally inappropriate and insulting.
@@andycopland3179 I have no background knowledge about all these technical terms, so throughout the video, I was either trying to make sense of things or completely confused.
@@morningsky8045 no, it isn't in my opinion. Music theory isn't really some stifle rules, it's more like a tool to use how you wish. I'm a self taught guitarist, too (except I had basic guitar lessons for like 3 months in which I learned how to play the pentatonic scale) and I thought for most of the time (like 9 years) that music theory will decrease my creativity. Actually knowing what you do (at least at a slightly more than basic level) can enhance your playing. It's fun to get to know new stuff (like how chords behave with different notes and why), which chord progressions you like the most and how to use them or make them more exciting to you. I kinda became a whole new guitarist after beginning learning all this stuff.
Morning Sky your comment shows that you know nothing about theory. Theory is a tool to help you understand how music works. It doesnt tell you to play this or that. It only explains music
As someone who is a music theorist, I really appreciate you giving people accurate information and not oversimplifying so much as to be inaccurate or lazy. I did not learn anything new in this video necessarily, but it felt great to be taught something well on UA-cam. There are far too many channels that pump out sophistry. Thank you!
@TacoTacoTacoTaco You have a lot of good points. I don't subscribe to the negative harmony school myself although I recognize that it is possible to flip harmony across the dominant and recreate music which functions differently than what people have been traditionally raised. I've actually been experimenting heavily with alternative harmonic systems with varying levels of gravity, myself, and if you email me I would love to share it with you (anamericancomposer@gmail.com). I don't view "negative harmony" as some sort of science but instead I recognize that it allows people to begin looking at harmony differently. Certainly, anyone with proper voicings and voice leading can make just about any chord a dominant of another chord, to greater or lesser success. I don't teach negative harmony to my students. If they were to come across it, I would tell them that it is simply a different way of approaching function, which is really all it is. My positive comment to the video maker was that he at least taught the concept correctly and didn't oversimplify terminology to make the typical intellectual popcorn that you see everywhere on UA-cam.
@TacoTacoTacoTaco You reference how Db, E and G can all serve as dominants (Bb can, as well). This is Bartók's axis theory. Why aren't you harpooning axis theory as pseudoscience? Isn't it also just another way of approaching harmony? (My alternative harmonic theory is loosely based on axis theory, incidentally.)
@TacoTacoTacoTaco Hey, no need to apologize. You should look at some of the videos on Signals Music Studio. I've torn him apart. And no, according to Batrók's theory any chord with a root based on a diminished seventh of the dominant (enharmonic spelling aside) will have more or less equivalent dominant function. G7-C, E7-C, Db7-C and Bb7-C all are fundamentally "V7-I". There truly is a fluidity to harmony, though. If we apply this same logic to the secondary dominant we get [D, F, Ab, B] as secondary dominants. It follows logically, as, besides with B, all of these tones when approached with traditional harmony are generally followed by a dominant chord. The humorous thing to try, then is, when you create the tree of tertiary dominants: [A, C, Eb, F#]. So, C is a tertiary dominant of C!
Hello I am here to defend neg harmony. although this video doesn't really have anything to do with it. Also there is a looot of nonsense on music yt about it. But just to clarify, If a sound is "already explained" by theory, it doesn't mean negative harmony failed to come up with a new thing, because its main thing is the relational component of the two sounds it mirrored.
I have always LOVED the sound of a ii half diminished 7 chord. I’m studying contemporary theory in college now so it’s fascinating that that correlates to the clock inversion of a V7. Great video.
This explains so much of what I find important in composing music, and what I take away from music that I love, written by other composers! You won't find a better, or more easy demonstration of the interactions between these two very important chord clusters. I play by ear. I cannot read music (or if I do, it will take me hours of time to get through it) so having these explanations laid out in front of me, makes it so much easier to grasp the relationship between these two beautiful chord structures in Western music. Now, imagine all of the other similar characteristics to be found in the dozens of other mixed scales of tones. Think about it long enough and it becomes mind-blowing! I have so much more to learn!!!
these notes provide mix emotions. like youre sad because the old man died in the movie but happy at the same time because he will not suffer anymore from his sickness.
Just so you know, the subdominant is called so because it is a fifth below the root, not because it leads to the dominant. It's the same with the mediant and submediant: the submediant is a third below the root
I've always known this, but I never saw that very interesting "conversion chart" -- another nice way to see things. Every barbershop quartet singer knows this chord, (as well as its incarnation as a rootless ninth in positions of III7, VI7 and II7), yet few know (or care) how to read music. However, we inevitably go one step further, especially if a fifth guy is walking by: replacing the root of iv6 with ITs fourth, creating a rootless bVII 9! Either the bass does it himself by jumping down from the root, or that fifth wheel walking by adds it below everyone else just to be cheeky (which is about the only time such intrusion is welcome). In any case, I find it intriguing that both the Bb9 and the Fm6 -- only one jump away from each other -- behave in exactly the same way as the amen chord. It's definitely blue-collar, but as delicious as a good meat loaf.
@Sydney Bean Hey Sydney! I may be a little late on this response but I hope it helps. :) So the iv6 in C Major is Fmin6 (F Ab C D). You can add another voice at the bottom singing a Bb to make it a VII7add9 (Bb F Ab C D). This use of a secondary dominant chord is super common in jazz and is often referred to as a backdoor cadence (VII7add9 -> I). It makes use of modal interchange and borrows that Bb chord from the C minor scale. And, if you wanted to go the negative harmony route, you get a Bb7add9 chord by flipping a G7add9 (G B D F A) over the axis he talked about in the video. Hope this helps haha. It's tricky trying to explain the theory behind stuff like this. I couldn't tell you why this specific cadence works, but it does in certain contexts.
For those arguing about music theory's effect on song writing: A layman song writer: Let me play this chord to see how it sounds. A music theorist song writer: I now need to create a sense of XX in my song so I must use chord YY. A master falls somewhere in between.
You're assuming that someone who understands music theory writes music like a robot. Theory knowledge simply gives you more tools in your bag, it doesn't inherently remove your creative and experimental freedom.
@@newpairofboots I highlighted the extremes and theorized that perfection sits in between. I did not make the assumption you described. If you also believe that perfection sits in between the extremes then we agree.
@@smittymcjob2582 The thing is - someone with great theory knowledge could be the person who writes music by experimenting with chords, and someone lacking theory knowledge could write music using formulas. It's not really a sliding scale like you described, especially because there are so many more ways that songwriting happens. Sometimes the song feels like it writes itself, or you feel inspiration from another composer. Or sometimes what you write might even be an accident. Or sometimes you may dream of melodies and lyrics. There is no perfect way of songwriting, and even if there was it's not a linear sliding scale between merely two (of probably thousands of) mentalities/tactics for writing.
The minor vi is actually a rootless dominant 7 chord in fact 4 different dominant seven chords. Play the chord over the V (G) and listen. Also play notes min 3 away still work E,G,Bb or Db half-diminished chords are minor sixth chords with sixth in the bass. Rootless voicings are something that defy classical notating.
I really like that you display the music and the sound when you say minor scale, mixolydian etc. Really good learning tool to get a feeling for the sound and how its is written.
Great explanation, thank you. For what it's worth, I appreciate the slower speaking pace, as some of these concepts take a (long) while to fully grasp. Thanks again!
There are places I remember all my life, though some have changed. Learning the piano, my first introduction to the minor 4th was in The Entertainer by Scott Joplin, 18th measure. I was really young at the time and didn't know anything about music theory, but it's one of those things that reaches out and grabs you. Even without the vocabulary or the foundation to put it in context, there's something very important happening there. You just know it.
So, let's simplify this: The V7 (G7) chord has a stronger tendency to resolve than a V (G) chord because of the 7th. The 7th (F) is a tritone (b5th) away from the third (B). That tritone screams out for resolution. In the same way, the iv6 (Fm6) chord contains a tritone: Ab vs D. This b5th relationship demands resolution as well, and this tension is resolved the same way but from a subdominant function.
As cool as negative harmony is, it is simply a theory, not a scientifically proven fact of music. I've spent plenty of time studying negative harmony and ultimately my conclusion is that's just a neat trick to do if you want a different route in a chord progression. However, when analyzing music, I would never, ever state that the reason a chord is what it is is due to negative harmony. It makes analyzing music more complicated, which is why we traditionally stick to using modal interchange as an explanation. I have a slight problem with how you explained the chord in context to modal interchange. You described its origin, which certainly helps, but you did not describe how or why it sounds good other than "modal interchange". You later explained why it sounds good, but it was in the context of negative harmony. The reason the chord sounds good is due to voice leading. Let's take a look at why the voice leading works: In the F-6 chord (in the key of C major), the F resolves down to E, the Ab resolves down to G, the C stays where it is, and the D can resolve down to C or up to E. That's the most basic explanation, and rightfully how it should have been explained in the first place. Functionally, it works as modal interchange. Theoretically, it works as negative harmony. Traditionally, it works as voice leading. Nothing more.
Great comment. The theory seems interesting, but ultimately a little too abstract to be practical. It reminded me of an old article about "architect astronauts" that was pretty funny www.joelonsoftware.com/2001/04/21/dont-let-architecture-astronauts-scare-you/
I think he explained the subject with "negative harmony" to make it sound more interesting and appealing, so he gets more views, even when there is a much simpler explanation.
@@briandaurelle1013 There aren't really any scientifically proven facts, except for why fifths, thirds, fourths, and all of the intervals sound relatively consonant to our ears. Everything else is just theories created through observation.
Very impressed that 815,000+ have watched this. I wonder how many were interested but have no background to understand what in blazes this lad is explaining.
Finally... I have wondered about negative harmony and watched videos about it before, but it never got through to me. You, however, made it click. Thanks :)
I think talking about negative harmony is overcomplicating it, the chord just sounds good because it has stronger voice leading back to the tonic. It's like using the V7 chord instead of v in a minor key (G7 instead of G- in C-).
The more technical explanation isn’t necessarily over complicating things, it’s nice for those who enjoy studying theory and want a deeper understanding of it. He provides a simple explanation as well for those who aren’t really interested in a more complex explanation.
But that statement is wrong. It doesn't have stronger voice leading, it has the exact same voice leading (interval-wise) just flipped around the axis of the fifth. Similar sound, but darker feeling.
I like how you played the lento of the chopin nocturne at start and end of the video...just how it comes at the beginning and the end of the actual piece.
With the 'basics' that was explained it essentially just shows the 6th degree of the tonic major is being flattened which would also be known as harmonic major and just borrows from that. I don't think it needs excessive explanations like this video but it is very informative.
Hey m@n what you're explaining here is just Stellar IMO I understood so much stuffs just watching your vid ...things that i was guessing by ear 4 years in my music which actually gravitate around Neo-Soul/Jazz Fusion/New-Funk Im so glad i found your channel ...finally some Music Theory which make sense the context of real music applications
Man, you really have some quality content here! I came to your channel via the feroe islands video, and when I looked ad your number of subs, I assumed that it was 976K, but now I look again, it is only 976. I don't say this often, but I honestly think you deserve that 1 million views (I for sure know worse channels that have that many subs). I can just imagine the time and research you put into this. The script is amazing and very informative. Only point is that the audio quality is a bit low, but that is probably only noticeable since the rest is such high quality, especially for your first video's on the channel! Keep up the great work and your channel will blow up!
Negative harmony seems like a bit of a stretch, only because most people do not listen to music in this way. If we all grew up with listening to serialistic music, then maybe this theory would be more practical. However, this does not mean people should not explore the concept of negative harmony and play with the moods that it creates. I think it could be a highly effective tool, and probably help push society into internalizing different approaches to pitch, melody, and harmony.
When looking at voice leading and counterpoint, we REALLY like half-step resolutions. V7 - I has two half-step resolutions, and so does iib5-7 - I, but with the added mode-mixture (Chopin loved him some bVI). Also, we have the tonic in the chord, which really gives us a sense of wanting to resolve, like a pedal tone or anticipation.
I love the Plagal Cadence. My favorite use of this is in In My Life, Dm to A. Of course, the Beatles used this phenomenon a lot in their songs. Another favorite of mine is Across the Universe: Gm to D.
Yes, great chord, I sometimes use it myself, but sparingly. Tension is great. What also works when completing a measure of subdom is an augmented or dim7.
I'm not getting it... Okay, this chord is the negative equivalent of the dominant seven, which leads to the tonic. But shouldn't it then lead to the *negative equivalent* of the tonic, i.e. the tonic minor?
This is actually the first time it makes sense to me when someone explains negative harmony. I tried with Collier an some friends of him but because my english is limited it was nearly impossible to follow his explanations, and all the other videos just didn't make sense to me. Thank you!
That's like saying that we are ripping off whoever said a sentence first only by speaking. Nobody is "ripping off" anybody. That's just how western harmony works.
Negative harmony is an ass backwards way of describing harmony. This cadence is just a iv chord, borrowed from the parallel minor key. Negative harmony isn't actually helpful in explaining where cadences come from or how to use them. *flame me*
While I'm not a huge proponent of "negative harmony", which has become this often annoyingly vogue concept in theory right now, it *does* represent an interesting way of thinking about explaining some existing theory concepts in new ways. Consider that borrowing from parallel minor is, in essence, no better of an explanation than the negative harmony one. Likely the only reason you don't have a problem with the latter is because it is the more accepted one in the paradigm of tonal harmony thinking. But both models provide a working explanation for why these cadences work. Like a great deal of musical theory concepts, you don't *have* to use it. It explains some things and provides a framework for coming up with new ideas. If either of those things bother you, I'm not sure what to say.
To an extent I understand this critique. Consider that, without establishing an "undertone series" vis-a-vis Levy's works, that the notes in Fmin6 are well-aligned with an understood kind of chord substitution. Jazz players will regularly use the iidim7 of a key center to inject dominant 7th chords that are not in the key but imply the same resolution as V7 -> I. In this instance we have Fmin6, which we could spell from root to 6 as F Ab C D. By lowering the C one half step we are left with a fully diminished 7, Fdim7 (which is also Ddim7, is also Abdim7, etc). The more commonplace use case for a dim7 chord as a substitution for the V7 of the key is to *flat* a degree which then becomes the root of a new V7 chord - Db F Ab Cb (Db7) for example being a common substitution for G7. This case simply raises the target note a half-step - raises the B to a C - and produces Fmin6. It still leads the ear back to a C. Arguably one could raise any tone in the iidim7 to achieve a similar effect, just as we commonly lower a tone to create dom7 substitutions.
That attitude falls into the trap of assuming that traditional tonal music theory is the true or correct way of thinking about music, rather than a generally applicable system codified by Rameau, and later others, to broadly describe procedures they observed in music that was already being written. True, much music since then has taken tonal theory as a starting point--as law--which can give the illusion that music has 'evolved' into this ever-greater understanding of tonal harmony. To the contrary; it should go without saying that much of the music we study as prime examples of this or that harmonic innovation were breaking the commonly accepted rules (which, I would argue, should always be understood to be //rules of thumb//, not 'rules'). All of this is not because I'm a huge fan of relativism and wishy-washy 'every type of music is equally valid' nonsense; I just mean to suggest that there may be new frontiers opened to those who take a theory like negative harmony seriously, in which case it would absolutely be helpful in explaining that music someday.
Having learned music by ear, I've learned a bit of theory by default... and I mean... a bit. Of all the theory videos I've watched, this one has made the most sense, but I'm still flumoxed... I started out on piano as a kid, learned the major cleft enough to work out my lessons, and a Beethoven piece, then dad sold the piano... Life went on. Then I noticed guitar players got laid. As a young man... I wanted in on that, learned basic cowboy chords, got laid. But the music was in my soul, and I learned licks from records... and got quite good, good enough to make a living for 10 years... now, retired, I want to get back to my roots, play keys, learn to read, and music theory... Thank you for this... I will work on this with guitar, until a keyboard shows up in my life.
it does not sound so good. the purpose of chords is not to sound good. musical language has to do with the whole and the archtecture, not chords in isolation.
I just see this as "one of those chords that creates a little moment of anticipation for the next chord". I've never really thought that much about it.
Forget the complicated wheel.... How about this: Listeners of western music expect when they hear a tritone interval it will resolve (lead to) to the Tonic In C, that tritone interval is B/F. It resolves to E/C of the C-E-G chord Or you might use a 2nd tritone D/Ab which resolves to E/G of the C-E-G chord
Thank you! Your comment made this video make sense to me. It was like this guy was using calculus to explain an algebra problem. He isn't wrong, but let's at least start with the simpler, more basic explanation instead of the more advanced, complicated one.
@@mrstrypes This doesn't always make sense though. Any chord with the tritone B F will resolve to C (Db7, the tritone sub of the V7), but why D Ab? Bb7 will not be a strong resolution to C, so I don't think it's the tritone in the Fm6 that gives it the strong resolution. It's just that all the voice leading is the same as from the V7 chord but from the other direction. This is true of all chords inverted by negative harmony
@@billygarvey633 Not sure I understand negative harmony , but I think we agree. The main reason the 2nd tritone works is the Ab slides nicely into a G (half step) It resolves even stronger when you add the D-->E or D-->C . According to the negative wheel in the video the opposite of V7 is iidim7: G --> C B --> Ab D --> F F --> D So, while Fm is the opposite of G, the opposite of G7 is Ddim7 . This is all too much explanation to be helpful though. The essence of what happened was we swapped out one tritone (B-F) for another (D-Ab)
I feel like Fmin leads well to Cmaj just because of the Ab going down to G and F to E. It was nice to finally see a concise explanation of negative harmony, though.
This has the effect of creating the darker qualities found in Cm (in the above example) as a penultimate sound prior to resolving to a C major chord and key. A couple of things I studied in grad school (24 years ago---wow, LOL!) involved brightness and darkness in key relationships and closeness and distance of key centers. I was lucky enough to get to study the Lydian Chromatic Concept of Tonal Organization with George Russell who authored the book. I highly recommend it as text for explaining relationships in music, but won't go into the detail here, as it would take about an hour to really cover that. Suffice it to say that Russell's theory was that all Western music, including the examples played above, could be explained as a series of close to distant relationships. Any time a series of harmonies move in a flat direction in key signatures, there is a sense of "warming" or "darkening" or even "relaxing" that has been a factor in tonal music at least since Bach. Any time a series of harmonies move in a sharp direction, there is a "lift" or a "brightening" that happens. Witness a pop tune that moves along in C and at the last minute resolves to A. You'll feel this "lift." Witness another tune that starts in a minor key, goes to the parallel major, and then back to the minor, and you'll feel the "darkening" or even an emotion like sadness. The tune You from the movie Scrooge has this in its form towards the end of the song, and the emotional effect is very pronounced. So....what about the little Dm7b5 (or Fm6) chord? Well, like you said above, it's a borrowed chord from the parallel minor key. This is the "darkening" or melancholy that everyone's hearing. According to Russell this is also three Lydian Chromatic centers away on the flat side of the cycle of fifths. (Zero sharps and flats in C, but three flats in C minor.) This is a seriously large step down on that side of the cycle and the effect is very noticeable. Additionally, another person I studied with was William Thomas McKinley, who was my composition teacher. He said, "the strongest melodic movement in tonal music is movement by the half-step." With the progression Dm7-5 to C we have an Ab that resolves a half step downward to a G, an F that resolves downward to an E, and a D which can resolve both to an E and a C. The strong downward resolution of the half-steps is as strong as a leading tone B resolving to a C. But what makes it really "jump" or "lift", if you will, is the resolution at the last second to a major chord with the E in the third. This brings me back to Russell's theory. For a brief moment, we sound like we're going to end up in a dark key center of C minor, and instantaneously, the whole thing jumps (or lifts) to a key center that is three steps in the sharp direction on the cycle of fifths. It's the last minute sudden brightening that makes this little bit of music so satisfying. I Believe I Can Fly is one example of this device. (Some think that this tune was beaten to death in the '90s, but it works.) Two sounds, juxtaposed and an effect is heard and felt, and the emotional response of "ahhhhh!" is palpable with most people. Another more subtle example is At Seventeen. Listen to the verse in in one key, followed by the chorus in another, and finally back to the original key on the hook. Of course, I realize some folks think of this as a cliche', but it does work well, when used judiciously. The basic take-away from this long post? The melodic pull of the half-step in tonal music, and the relative brightness and darkness that is an effect of harmonic direction. Thanks for reading. Respectfully, PMH ua-cam.com/video/GIQn8pab8Vc/v-deo.html ua-cam.com/video/ESS0eKJpEZQ/v-deo.html ua-cam.com/video/dwk0Sh3id4w/v-deo.html
Short takeaway in general: sometimes you need to make a part sad in order to make the happy part seem even happier.
Light without darknes cannot be light, and darkness cannot be so either without the other.
Is major really happy tho
If it wasn't for sadness, Worzel Gummidge, how could we know what happiness was?
Kindof like how we are living through the results of sin and now that we know it's results we will be even happier in heaven than if we never knew because we have that contrast.
@@MrGeencie
But I have never sinned. Will this limit my happiness?
Piano: *falls over*
Jazz musician: that’s a dmaj9dim7sus(6)ivVii-d7
Lmao make this a meme please!
lol, true! :)
Hahaha this comment is perfection I swear
So freaking perfect!!😂😂😂
hehe, good one!
It's like putting salt in your cookie dough to highlight the sugar
Aw I really like that analogy
Thanks Pinkie Pie
I can't believe there are people still rping as pinkie pie
Oooooo that’s helpful to understanding good analogy
@@blipboop5594 you might not believe it, but there are a lot of people doing it. and I think we shouldn't judge they're just having fun :]
*Talks about quantum physics*
"To put it more simply.."
*Starts talking about string theory*
operationcwaI789789 lmfao
So anyway, I started blasting...
operationcwaI789789 Why com ehere if you dont understand basic notes?
It's not that complicated tbh. You shouldn't expect to be enlightened here if you don't have a grasp of musical notation.
Powerracer251 shut up lol
Please don't have background music when you give examples
It's because he's trying to copy Music with Myles.
Yeah which is a really good idea. Music with Miles (formerly Native Construct) really raised the bar with the Modal Interchange video. No doubt, that is the inspiration behind this - which I'm all for. The thing is, Miles incorporates the music into his examples so there is no clash with the background music whatsoever.
I totally agree. It is incredibly irritating and distracting. The use of a subversive trivialising background beat has all the fake bonhomie of piped music in a supermarket. This ghastly dumbing down has spread like contagion everywhere - in shops, concourses, banks - anywhere where people gather and wait. It insults the very intent of the thesis the man is presenting - a completely different sound world working towards a completely different intention - to distract rather than educate. It is the equivalent of the hyped up male or female who is already overstimulated sitting on a train or bus nodding their knees up and down to alleviate their inability to relax and re-distribute. Ok for them but does everyone else have to be distracted by it as well?
Please - re-record this interesting clip without the distraction of insidious beat and tinkly sounds - it is totally inappropriate and insulting.
you guys... forgive him... he don't want that *C O P Y R I G H T S T R I K E*
Well thank you. I didn't notice before and now it bothers me.
*Sees this in recommended*
*Clicks it*
*DOESN'T UNDERSTAND A DAMN THING BUT STILL WATCHES THE VIDEO*
Same. I'm a self taught guitarist so it went way over my head
@@andycopland3179 I have no background knowledge about all these technical terms, so throughout the video, I was either trying to make sense of things or completely confused.
@@morningsky8045 no, it isn't in my opinion. Music theory isn't really some stifle rules, it's more like a tool to use how you wish. I'm a self taught guitarist, too (except I had basic guitar lessons for like 3 months in which I learned how to play the pentatonic scale) and I thought for most of the time (like 9 years) that music theory will decrease my creativity. Actually knowing what you do (at least at a slightly more than basic level) can enhance your playing.
It's fun to get to know new stuff (like how chords behave with different notes and why), which chord progressions you like the most and how to use them or make them more exciting to you. I kinda became a whole new guitarist after beginning learning all this stuff.
Morning Sky your comment shows that you know nothing about theory. Theory is a tool to help you understand how music works. It doesnt tell you to play this or that. It only explains music
@@morningsky8045 ``to follow a set of rules is to stifle creativity`` thats what i was responding to
As someone who is a music theorist, I really appreciate you giving people accurate information and not oversimplifying so much as to be inaccurate or lazy. I did not learn anything new in this video necessarily, but it felt great to be taught something well on UA-cam. There are far too many channels that pump out sophistry. Thank you!
@TacoTacoTacoTaco You have a lot of good points. I don't subscribe to the negative harmony school myself although I recognize that it is possible to flip harmony across the dominant and recreate music which functions differently than what people have been traditionally raised. I've actually been experimenting heavily with alternative harmonic systems with varying levels of gravity, myself, and if you email me I would love to share it with you (anamericancomposer@gmail.com).
I don't view "negative harmony" as some sort of science but instead I recognize that it allows people to begin looking at harmony differently. Certainly, anyone with proper voicings and voice leading can make just about any chord a dominant of another chord, to greater or lesser success.
I don't teach negative harmony to my students. If they were to come across it, I would tell them that it is simply a different way of approaching function, which is really all it is.
My positive comment to the video maker was that he at least taught the concept correctly and didn't oversimplify terminology to make the typical intellectual popcorn that you see everywhere on UA-cam.
@TacoTacoTacoTaco You reference how Db, E and G can all serve as dominants (Bb can, as well). This is Bartók's axis theory. Why aren't you harpooning axis theory as pseudoscience? Isn't it also just another way of approaching harmony? (My alternative harmonic theory is loosely based on axis theory, incidentally.)
@TacoTacoTacoTaco Hey, no need to apologize. You should look at some of the videos on Signals Music Studio. I've torn him apart. And no, according to Batrók's theory any chord with a root based on a diminished seventh of the dominant (enharmonic spelling aside) will have more or less equivalent dominant function. G7-C, E7-C, Db7-C and Bb7-C all are fundamentally "V7-I".
There truly is a fluidity to harmony, though. If we apply this same logic to the secondary dominant we get [D, F, Ab, B] as secondary dominants. It follows logically, as, besides with B, all of these tones when approached with traditional harmony are generally followed by a dominant chord. The humorous thing to try, then is, when you create the tree of tertiary dominants: [A, C, Eb, F#]. So, C is a tertiary dominant of C!
Hello I am here to defend neg harmony. although this video doesn't really have anything to do with it. Also there is a looot of nonsense on music yt about it. But just to clarify, If a sound is "already explained" by theory, it doesn't mean negative harmony failed to come up with a new thing, because its main thing is the relational component of the two sounds it mirrored.
dont have to be a dick just a language barrier if you want to learn something be nice
speed up to 1.25 makes the video normal
Thank you
Too late for me, I saw your comment at the end of the video
Even 1.5 works fine
I actually watch almost everything at least in 1.25.
Jaja
"Make sure you put that Minor Seven Flat Five in there"!!! - Christina Aguilera
"I want people to remember me as a composer" - also Christina.
Every time I watch a video about music theory I understand less then last time.
😂😂😂 I feel you. I never know where I am on the dunning kruger curve!
That's it's man , then one day , you have a drink and schzam. Your miles davis
Bangla Desh
That is a great comment
Me too
How did i find this i don’t study music theory I’m so lost
A. Connor Parr help me
A. Connor Parr HELP
😂
The Friend of Many Squirrels
HELP URSELF!!!
If ur nterested, keep searching & researching. Eventually, u may bcum a Maestro!
BEST WISHEZ!!!
u2bmusicman of course it’s not rocket science, it’s music theory
This is the ending of 99% of all barbershop quartet songs
xTyr3x GHG almost every 60s psychedelic baroque pop song too
I think Babershop uses common tone seventh chords more than modal mixture at the end of songs.
Jazz hands! 👐
To mix things up, I like to add a 9th to it.
@Kristopher Chavez Agreed. My Dad was a rabid Barbershopper, SPEBSQSA, et al, and I don't think that chord was allowed in the old days.
When it’s someone’s birthday and you know how to play the piano 4:24
MY 3 YEARS OF MUSICAL LEARNING ON MY OWN = THIS VIDEO. THANKS.
I have always LOVED the sound of a ii half diminished 7 chord. I’m studying contemporary theory in college now so it’s fascinating that that correlates to the clock inversion of a V7. Great video.
hows it goin now?
This explains so much of what I find important in composing music, and what I take away from music that I love, written by other composers! You won't find a better, or more easy demonstration of the interactions between these two very important chord clusters. I play by ear. I cannot read music (or if I do, it will take me hours of time to get through it) so having these explanations laid out in front of me, makes it so much easier to grasp the relationship between these two beautiful chord structures in Western music. Now, imagine all of the other similar characteristics to be found in the dozens of other mixed scales of tones. Think about it long enough and it becomes mind-blowing! I have so much more to learn!!!
these notes provide mix emotions. like youre sad because the old man died in the movie but happy at the same time because he will not suffer anymore from his sickness.
Just so you know, the subdominant is called so because it is a fifth below the root, not because it leads to the dominant. It's the same with the mediant and submediant: the submediant is a third below the root
Yes, thank you. I really didn't want to have to be the one to make the correction.
Good post Hej.
Yeah, when he was speaking of chord functions it is more typical to say "pre-dominant". I have heard the two used interchangeably though.
Internet warrior to the rescue
sirduggins it really just depends on your teacher
3:15 thought that was Mahatma Gandhi for a second
I've always known this, but I never saw that very interesting "conversion chart" -- another nice way to see things.
Every barbershop quartet singer knows this chord, (as well as its incarnation as a rootless ninth in positions of III7, VI7 and II7), yet few know (or care) how to read music. However, we inevitably go one step further, especially if a fifth guy is walking by: replacing the root of iv6 with ITs fourth, creating a rootless bVII 9! Either the bass does it himself by jumping down from the root, or that fifth wheel walking by adds it below everyone else just to be cheeky (which is about the only time such intrusion is welcome). In any case, I find it intriguing that both the Bb9 and the Fm6 -- only one jump away from each other -- behave in exactly the same way as the amen chord.
It's definitely blue-collar, but as delicious as a good meat loaf.
@Sydney Bean Hey Sydney! I may be a little late on this response but I hope it helps. :) So the iv6 in C Major is Fmin6 (F Ab C D). You can add another voice at the bottom singing a Bb to make it a VII7add9 (Bb F Ab C D). This use of a secondary dominant chord is super common in jazz and is often referred to as a backdoor cadence (VII7add9 -> I). It makes use of modal interchange and borrows that Bb chord from the C minor scale. And, if you wanted to go the negative harmony route, you get a Bb7add9 chord by flipping a G7add9 (G B D F A) over the axis he talked about in the video. Hope this helps haha. It's tricky trying to explain the theory behind stuff like this. I couldn't tell you why this specific cadence works, but it does in certain contexts.
maybe it just adds a bit of sadness to a bright chord and then out of the sadness it resolves to a satisfying bittersweet conclusion
Yeah? Well then why not just pick any random minor chord?
Don't Miss The Panty Raid Because music isn’t binary.
Don't Miss The Panty Raid play C major, F# minor, C major. you’ll see why you don’t just pick any minor chord.
Gillian Omotoso not binary huh..? Explain this: ua-cam.com/video/AXhYgprPB9o/v-deo.html
I loved it when you said "to put it even *more* simply," and then explained and summarized buy didn't over-summarize!
SUCH CHORD, MUCH NICE, VERY SOUND
WOW
Yes!!!!!!!!!
Boys I found a 'memer'
When I posted this comment the title was "WHY DOES THIS CHORD SOUNDS SO GOOD?"
I don’t understand anything in the video so I very much relate to this comment
Its attractive just because it has a sentimental effect.
The background drums and music are highly annoying!
It actually sounds heartwarming
For those arguing about music theory's effect on song writing:
A layman song writer: Let me play this chord to see how it sounds.
A music theorist song writer: I now need to create a sense of XX in my song so I must use chord YY.
A master falls somewhere in between.
Smitty McJob yup that’s me when i write haha
Oh cool, I'm in the "knows a little bit of music theory but not enough to use it effectively on the fly" zone so I guess that makes me a master
You're assuming that someone who understands music theory writes music like a robot. Theory knowledge simply gives you more tools in your bag, it doesn't inherently remove your creative and experimental freedom.
@@newpairofboots I highlighted the extremes and theorized that perfection sits in between. I did not make the assumption you described.
If you also believe that perfection sits in between the extremes then we agree.
@@smittymcjob2582 The thing is - someone with great theory knowledge could be the person who writes music by experimenting with chords, and someone lacking theory knowledge could write music using formulas. It's not really a sliding scale like you described, especially because there are so many more ways that songwriting happens. Sometimes the song feels like it writes itself, or you feel inspiration from another composer. Or sometimes what you write might even be an accident. Or sometimes you may dream of melodies and lyrics. There is no perfect way of songwriting, and even if there was it's not a linear sliding scale between merely two (of probably thousands of) mentalities/tactics for writing.
I thought I knew a lot about music... until I found your channel! You're blowing my mind! :)
Tune in next week when we discuss Miserable Happiness.
Alan Watts would applaud what you've done here with this vid. The connection to everything is made clear -- through music.
"The Meaning of Happiness" - I've read that too !
4:18 this melody sounds like happy birthday to you niice!
I have next to no idea what is going on here. There is just enough for me to be fascinated by. Thank you!
Was only here to hear what minor chords actually sound like being played
Mindfucked by Einstein's crazy music theory lesson instead
Almost everything went over my head but I still watched it and I hope one day I'll be able to understand this fully.....
The minor vi is actually a rootless dominant 7 chord in fact 4 different dominant seven chords. Play the chord over the V (G) and listen. Also play notes min 3 away still work E,G,Bb or Db half-diminished chords are minor sixth chords with sixth in the bass. Rootless voicings are something that defy classical notating.
Wait what?
I really like that you display the music and the sound when you say minor scale, mixolydian etc. Really good learning tool to get a feeling for the sound and how its is written.
Great explanation, thank you. For what it's worth, I appreciate the slower speaking pace, as some of these concepts take a (long) while to fully grasp. Thanks again!
There are places I remember
all my life, though some have changed.
Learning the piano, my first introduction to the minor 4th was in The Entertainer by Scott Joplin, 18th measure. I was really young at the time and didn't know anything about music theory, but it's one of those things that reaches out and grabs you. Even without the vocabulary or the foundation to put it in context, there's something very important happening there. You just know it.
So, let's simplify this: The V7 (G7) chord has a stronger tendency to resolve than a V (G) chord because of the 7th. The 7th (F) is a tritone (b5th) away from the third (B). That tritone screams out for resolution. In the same way, the iv6 (Fm6) chord contains a tritone: Ab vs D. This b5th relationship demands resolution as well, and this tension is resolved the same way but from a subdominant function.
excellent way to explain this.
Cool
Holy shit, music graduate here - you just blew my mind at 5:58. I went into this a bit skeptically but that was amazing. Thank you.
As cool as negative harmony is, it is simply a theory, not a scientifically proven fact of music. I've spent plenty of time studying negative harmony and ultimately my conclusion is that's just a neat trick to do if you want a different route in a chord progression. However, when analyzing music, I would never, ever state that the reason a chord is what it is is due to negative harmony. It makes analyzing music more complicated, which is why we traditionally stick to using modal interchange as an explanation.
I have a slight problem with how you explained the chord in context to modal interchange. You described its origin, which certainly helps, but you did not describe how or why it sounds good other than "modal interchange". You later explained why it sounds good, but it was in the context of negative harmony. The reason the chord sounds good is due to voice leading. Let's take a look at why the voice leading works:
In the F-6 chord (in the key of C major), the F resolves down to E, the Ab resolves down to G, the C stays where it is, and the D can resolve down to C or up to E. That's the most basic explanation, and rightfully how it should have been explained in the first place. Functionally, it works as modal interchange. Theoretically, it works as negative harmony. Traditionally, it works as voice leading. Nothing more.
Great comment. The theory seems interesting, but ultimately a little too abstract to be practical. It reminded me of an old article about "architect astronauts" that was pretty funny
www.joelonsoftware.com/2001/04/21/dont-let-architecture-astronauts-scare-you/
I think he explained the subject with "negative harmony" to make it sound more interesting and appealing, so he gets more views, even when there is a much simpler explanation.
That’s what makes music so awesome, different ways to explain the same thing.
OMG please tell me what u think are some "scientifically" "proven" "facts" of music, I don't even know which words to put air quotes around here.
@@briandaurelle1013 There aren't really any scientifically proven facts, except for why fifths, thirds, fourths, and all of the intervals sound relatively consonant to our ears. Everything else is just theories created through observation.
Very impressed that 815,000+ have watched this. I wonder how many were interested but have no background to understand what in blazes this lad is explaining.
Well...I tried...but...
You deserve more of everything on this platform
We deserve a train on this platform - I've been waiting here for two hours
Finally... I have wondered about negative harmony and watched videos about it before, but it never got through to me. You, however, made it click. Thanks :)
I think talking about negative harmony is overcomplicating it, the chord just sounds good because it has stronger voice leading back to the tonic. It's like using the V7 chord instead of v in a minor key (G7 instead of G- in C-).
It has good voice leading because it's the negative equivalent of a V7 chord, which is famously used for it's good voice leading.
Thank you. It drives me bananas when someone comes up with a convoluted technical explanation for something that is easily and simply perceivable.
The more technical explanation isn’t necessarily over complicating things, it’s nice for those who enjoy studying theory and want a deeper understanding of it. He provides a simple explanation as well for those who aren’t really interested in a more complex explanation.
@@Boneless_Chuck "therefore"? Whatever leads a musician to facility and understanding is worthwhile, every mind works in it's own way
But that statement is wrong. It doesn't have stronger voice leading, it has the exact same voice leading (interval-wise) just flipped around the axis of the fifth. Similar sound, but darker feeling.
I do love the phrase "IIm7b5 is the darker sibling, or the minor mirrored reflection, of the V7". Thanks so much for this video, very interesting.
Tonic is what I add to my gin, and right about now I could use one.
Same here
Count me in as well, please😂
I like how you played the lento of the chopin nocturne at start and end of the video...just how it comes at the beginning and the end of the actual piece.
Dang, this video inspired me at the wrong time. (Midnight) :(((
3:16 am for me..... (oops lmao)
4:18 am now and the birds have started chirping... I've started getting used to sleeping to that sound lol. wHoOpS
With the 'basics' that was explained it essentially just shows the 6th degree of the tonic major is being flattened which would also be known as harmonic major and just borrows from that. I don't think it needs excessive explanations like this video but it is very informative.
I swear i heard this chord from the beginning in Last Christmas.
Excellent explanation, if a little fast. Thank you. The mirroring was completely new to me.
Very well explained!! Thanks a lot
Short and concise. Very well said
Thank you! Wonderfully explained!
That's why In My Life of The Beatles sounds so charming😊
F#deconstructed9th flatchested4th with augmentedbreast11th is my most favourite 🤟
With a diminished responsibility
It’s crazy the amount of stuff the average human doesn’t know. Great video, awesome content!
0:53 Sounds like...the beginning of the best part of Giorno's theme.........
I would say it sounds like josuke's theme
It's more like Josuke's piano
Hey m@n what you're explaining here is just Stellar IMO
I understood so much stuffs just watching your vid ...things that i was guessing by ear 4 years in my music which actually gravitate around Neo-Soul/Jazz Fusion/New-Funk
Im so glad i found your channel ...finally some Music Theory which make sense the context of real music applications
Man, you really have some quality content here! I came to your channel via the feroe islands video, and when I looked ad your number of subs, I assumed that it was 976K, but now I look again, it is only 976. I don't say this often, but I honestly think you deserve that 1 million views (I for sure know worse channels that have that many subs). I can just imagine the time and research you put into this. The script is amazing and very informative. Only point is that the audio quality is a bit low, but that is probably only noticeable since the rest is such high quality, especially for your first video's on the channel! Keep up the great work and your channel will blow up!
This means more than a million views :) Thank you!
that minor iv is so simple yet so effective
Negative harmony seems like a bit of a stretch, only because most people do not listen to music in this way. If we all grew up with listening to serialistic music, then maybe this theory would be more practical.
However, this does not mean people should not explore the concept of negative harmony and play with the moods that it creates. I think it could be a highly effective tool, and probably help push society into internalizing different approaches to pitch, melody, and harmony.
When looking at voice leading and counterpoint, we REALLY like half-step resolutions. V7 - I has two half-step resolutions, and so does iib5-7 - I, but with the added mode-mixture (Chopin loved him some bVI). Also, we have the tonic in the chord, which really gives us a sense of wanting to resolve, like a pedal tone or anticipation.
Please redo this video without the drum track in the background.
cbmira01yt dammit I didn’t notice it (somehow) till you said that 😂
Becca Aaaa Same
Dim 7th is the most beautiful-sounding
chord to my ear by far.
3:36 E minor: (visably sweating)
Calebe V.A. I don’t get. It why would Em be sweating?
@@Jordan-ll5eq There's a pretty big argument going on whether E minor is tonic or dominant. It works as both... And neither... It's weird.
Calebe V.A. E phrygian?
Well done! Concise and informative.
4:22 that moment you listen happy birthday
I love the Plagal Cadence. My favorite use of this is in In My Life, Dm to A. Of course, the Beatles used this phenomenon a lot in their songs. Another favorite of mine is Across the Universe: Gm to D.
Finaly got it
Music is a mix of science and emotion. Nothing is more powerful than that.
It sounds nice because it’s like releasing something 🤣 a perfect ending
EXCELLENT!!!! As a composer I LOVE THIS!
Wow, this is fascinating!!!
Yes, great chord, I sometimes use it myself, but sparingly.
Tension is great. What also works when completing a measure of subdom is an augmented or dim7.
I'm not getting it... Okay, this chord is the negative equivalent of the dominant seven, which leads to the tonic. But shouldn't it then lead to the *negative equivalent* of the tonic, i.e. the tonic minor?
The minor has the same tonic. C major and C minor both have C as their tonic.
This is actually the first time it makes sense to me when someone explains negative harmony. I tried with Collier an some friends of him but because my english is limited it was nearly impossible to follow his explanations, and all the other videos just didn't make sense to me. Thank you!
been in a school orchestra for four years and have been learning the piano for one year and *i still didn’t understand a damn thing*
Kwadens knowing how to play music and music theory are different things :) I too, understood nothing
@@gojoubabee Did nothing as special as a school orchestra, but practicing for a year and same here guys :)
I think the chord right before the "money chord" is much more pleasing. It sounds so perfect 🤩
Huh, to think that the Beatles’ “Yesterday” is basically ripping off Chopin second Nocturne.
That's like saying that we are ripping off whoever said a sentence first only by speaking. Nobody is "ripping off" anybody. That's just how western harmony works.
That's an incredible explanation. Never thought of it that way!
Negative harmony is an ass backwards way of describing harmony. This cadence is just a iv chord, borrowed from the parallel minor key. Negative harmony isn't actually helpful in explaining where cadences come from or how to use them. *flame me*
While I'm not a huge proponent of "negative harmony", which has become this often annoyingly vogue concept in theory right now, it *does* represent an interesting way of thinking about explaining some existing theory concepts in new ways. Consider that borrowing from parallel minor is, in essence, no better of an explanation than the negative harmony one. Likely the only reason you don't have a problem with the latter is because it is the more accepted one in the paradigm of tonal harmony thinking. But both models provide a working explanation for why these cadences work. Like a great deal of musical theory concepts, you don't *have* to use it. It explains some things and provides a framework for coming up with new ideas. If either of those things bother you, I'm not sure what to say.
To an extent I understand this critique. Consider that, without establishing an "undertone series" vis-a-vis Levy's works, that the notes in Fmin6 are well-aligned with an understood kind of chord substitution. Jazz players will regularly use the iidim7 of a key center to inject dominant 7th chords that are not in the key but imply the same resolution as V7 -> I.
In this instance we have Fmin6, which we could spell from root to 6 as F Ab C D. By lowering the C one half step we are left with a fully diminished 7, Fdim7 (which is also Ddim7, is also Abdim7, etc). The more commonplace use case for a dim7 chord as a substitution for the V7 of the key is to *flat* a degree which then becomes the root of a new V7 chord - Db F Ab Cb (Db7) for example being a common substitution for G7. This case simply raises the target note a half-step - raises the B to a C - and produces Fmin6. It still leads the ear back to a C. Arguably one could raise any tone in the iidim7 to achieve a similar effect, just as we commonly lower a tone to create dom7 substitutions.
This chord progression even already has a name in music theory: the Minor Plagal Cadence.
That attitude falls into the trap of assuming that traditional tonal music theory is the true or correct way of thinking about music, rather than a generally applicable system codified by Rameau, and later others, to broadly describe procedures they observed in music that was already being written. True, much music since then has taken tonal theory as a starting point--as law--which can give the illusion that music has 'evolved' into this ever-greater understanding of tonal harmony. To the contrary; it should go without saying that much of the music we study as prime examples of this or that harmonic innovation were breaking the commonly accepted rules (which, I would argue, should always be understood to be //rules of thumb//, not 'rules'). All of this is not because I'm a huge fan of relativism and wishy-washy 'every type of music is equally valid' nonsense; I just mean to suggest that there may be new frontiers opened to those who take a theory like negative harmony seriously, in which case it would absolutely be helpful in explaining that music someday.
I argue that IV- functions like V7sus4 b9
Thanks for the video. You've given me some new ideas !
Is this the secret chord that David played?
Having learned music by ear, I've learned a bit of theory by default... and I mean... a bit.
Of all the theory videos I've watched, this one has made the most sense, but I'm still flumoxed...
I started out on piano as a kid, learned the major cleft enough to work out my lessons, and a Beethoven piece, then dad sold the piano...
Life went on. Then I noticed guitar players got laid. As a young man... I wanted in on that, learned basic cowboy chords, got laid. But the music was in my soul, and I learned licks from records... and got quite good, good enough to make a living for 10 years... now, retired, I want to get back to my roots, play keys, learn to read, and music theory...
Thank you for this... I will work on this with guitar, until a keyboard shows up in my life.
Can’t follow this because of the background music!
Wonderful. More please!!
0:13
That is demonic art
(Captions)
Wait I think he said: that is the money chord
WE WANT A 10
HOURS VERSION OF CHORDS LIKE THIS
Too bad different musical examples were not given so we can actually hear why this”sounds so good”.
it does not sound so good. the purpose of chords is not to sound good. musical language has to do with the whole and the archtecture, not chords in isolation.
I just see this as "one of those chords that creates a little moment of anticipation for the next chord". I've never really thought that much about it.
Forget the complicated wheel....
How about this: Listeners of western music expect when they hear a tritone interval it will resolve (lead to) to the Tonic
In C, that tritone interval is B/F. It resolves to E/C of the C-E-G chord
Or you might use a 2nd tritone D/Ab which resolves to E/G of the C-E-G chord
Thank you! Your comment made this video make sense to me. It was like this guy was using calculus to explain an algebra problem. He isn't wrong, but let's at least start with the simpler, more basic explanation instead of the more advanced, complicated one.
@@mrstrypes This doesn't always make sense though. Any chord with the tritone B F will resolve to C (Db7, the tritone sub of the V7), but why D Ab? Bb7 will not be a strong resolution to C, so I don't think it's the tritone in the Fm6 that gives it the strong resolution. It's just that all the voice leading is the same as from the V7 chord but from the other direction. This is true of all chords inverted by negative harmony
@@billygarvey633 Right on. Thanks!
@@billygarvey633 Not sure I understand negative harmony , but I think we agree. The main reason the 2nd tritone works is the Ab slides nicely into a G (half step) It resolves even stronger when you add the D-->E or D-->C .
According to the negative wheel in the video the opposite of V7 is iidim7:
G --> C
B --> Ab
D --> F
F --> D
So, while Fm is the opposite of G, the opposite of G7 is Ddim7 .
This is all too much explanation to be helpful though. The essence of what happened was we swapped out one tritone (B-F) for another (D-Ab)
Bb7 IS a strong resolution to CMaj, FWIW.
Watched this video 3 times, still haven't got the idea what negative harmony is. But the melody sounds nice so I kept watching.
This is like explaining how an engine works to a guy (like me) who doesn't know what a car is...
Im a Fan of A Chord. Such a Versatile chord for All music
I mean it sounds pretty good I guess
I feel like Fmin leads well to Cmaj just because of the Ab going down to G and F to E.
It was nice to finally see a concise explanation of negative harmony, though.
I didn't understand a thing from what he has just said.
Hugh Jones hahahahahaah
This has the effect of creating the darker qualities found in Cm (in the above example) as a penultimate sound prior to resolving to a C major chord and key. A couple of things I studied in grad school (24 years ago---wow, LOL!) involved brightness and darkness in key relationships and closeness and distance of key centers. I was lucky enough to get to study the Lydian Chromatic Concept of Tonal Organization with George Russell who authored the book. I highly recommend it as text for explaining relationships in music, but won't go into the detail here, as it would take about an hour to really cover that. Suffice it to say that Russell's theory was that all Western music, including the examples played above, could be explained as a series of close to distant relationships. Any time a series of harmonies move in a flat direction in key signatures, there is a sense of "warming" or "darkening" or even "relaxing" that has been a factor in tonal music at least since Bach. Any time a series of harmonies move in a sharp direction, there is a "lift" or a "brightening" that happens. Witness a pop tune that moves along in C and at the last minute resolves to A. You'll feel this "lift." Witness another tune that starts in a minor key, goes to the parallel major, and then back to the minor, and you'll feel the "darkening" or even an emotion like sadness. The tune You from the movie Scrooge has this in its form towards the end of the song, and the emotional effect is very pronounced.
So....what about the little Dm7b5 (or Fm6) chord? Well, like you said above, it's a borrowed chord from the parallel minor key. This is the "darkening" or melancholy that everyone's hearing. According to Russell this is also three Lydian Chromatic centers away on the flat side of the cycle of fifths. (Zero sharps and flats in C, but three flats in C minor.) This is a seriously large step down on that side of the cycle and the effect is very noticeable. Additionally, another person I studied with was William Thomas McKinley, who was my composition teacher. He said, "the strongest melodic movement in tonal music is movement by the half-step." With the progression Dm7-5 to C we have an Ab that resolves a half step downward to a G, an F that resolves downward to an E, and a D which can resolve both to an E and a C. The strong downward resolution of the half-steps is as strong as a leading tone B resolving to a C. But what makes it really "jump" or "lift", if you will, is the resolution at the last second to a major chord with the E in the third. This brings me back to Russell's theory. For a brief moment, we sound like we're going to end up in a dark key center of C minor, and instantaneously, the whole thing jumps (or lifts) to a key center that is three steps in the sharp direction on the cycle of fifths. It's the last minute sudden brightening that makes this little bit of music so satisfying. I Believe I Can Fly is one example of this device. (Some think that this tune was beaten to death in the '90s, but it works.) Two sounds, juxtaposed and an effect is heard and felt, and the emotional response of "ahhhhh!" is palpable with most people. Another more subtle example is At Seventeen. Listen to the verse in in one key, followed by the chorus in another, and finally back to the original key on the hook. Of course, I realize some folks think of this as a cliche', but it does work well, when used judiciously.
The basic take-away from this long post? The melodic pull of the half-step in tonal music, and the relative brightness and darkness that is an effect of harmonic direction.
Thanks for reading.
Respectfully,
PMH
ua-cam.com/video/GIQn8pab8Vc/v-deo.html
ua-cam.com/video/ESS0eKJpEZQ/v-deo.html
ua-cam.com/video/dwk0Sh3id4w/v-deo.html