Here are all of the techniques Technique 1 - Relative Keys - 3:23 Technique 2 - Moving between parallel keys - 7:38 Technique 3 - Move up semi tone or whole tone (AKA “The Disney Key Change”) - 11:32 Technique 4 - Circle of 5ths (using dominant 5) - 13:48 Technique 5 - Using a “pivot chord” - 16:45
Thanks for doing this, George - I really appreciate it! Now that UA-cam has enabled the "chapters" feature (a godsend for tutorials like this) I'm going to embed these timestamps in the scrubber bar.
I've found a lot of music teachers don't explain what the Circle Of 5ths is actually used for. It's more of a case of "learn this because it's important" . You explained that in such a relevant way, thank you; it's refreshing!
Problem with the circle of fifths is that its used for almost everything, so it's overwhelming. I find that after learning the cirlce of fifths, everything else you learn is somewhat connected to it, so just staying persistent works
Thank God I found this video, dude. When I saw this, you asked about my knowledge and I knew not much about chords. I watched your 20min video about chords and I took like an hour to practice them, and I learned a LOT! God bless you man, keep it going.
Absolutely. We always looked about for some esoteric pivot ideology. In addition to hinging into another key from the diatonic keys, pivoting style one, I like how you explained pivoting style two - by altering one of the diatonics up or down a semitone and seeing where that might lead to and if you like how it sounds.
I can't even claim credit for the coinage, Raymond! I first heard it years ago, and I think it's pretty common currency among, e.g., session musicians.
Bill Hilton yeah it is! And the first time I heard it was on a Bon Jovi song Living on a Prayer, when the bass player (a very accomplished violinist too) said: “Then we are going to Disney it”. That was 1988!!! And he explained that it’s either a whole tone or semi to modulation. And once you know and watch a Disney movie, you hear it so often! And the interesting part I find is, and you explained that too, that for some reason it only works when there’s a bit of a pause or a sustain before modulating. What the neurological or psychological reason for that is, is beyond me. Perhaps that the old tonic and the new tonic are too close for the brain to realize it’s a root change??!! Do you know?
The "Festival di Sanremo" is an italian popular music festival. It's a week long and it's a very strong average italian tradition. Well... it's an ORGY of this kind of jumps. At the end of every song you can clearly feel the glicemy index of your blood increased
Thank you for sharing this, amazing guide which I really enjoyed. I was already familiar with using relative keys and the circle of fifths to go from one key to another, but it was enlightening to see other ways to "cheat" your way to other scales and make your music more interesting and less predictable.
Excellent teaching technique, with constant demonstrations! Make it understandable to the ears as well as what remains of the mathematical part of my brain!
I'll bear that in mind, Joyce, thanks! The great dilemma is that I'm a bit of a perfectionist when it comes to viewing myself playing (everything has to be "demonstration quality", if you see what I mean), so a little more playing means I have to do a LOT more practice of whatever I'm demonstrating. Still, I guess that would be good for me!
I can't play piano, nor any instrument really... well, I can whistle. Nevertheless, I want to understand music, and I don't often find resources which go into the technical detail I want. Subscribed, my friend!
Thanks Tom! One or two pretty notable composers (I'm thinking of Berlioz and Rousseau) managed without much in the way of instrument skill, so you can still do a lot with just the knowledge...
You can try fl studio or some other music software. I *think* fl studio is free as long as you don't use it to make money (commercial products) and you can't save "export" your songs in mp3. Not sure if you can save your songs. But if you're just interested in making music for practice, it's really good. Lots of free instruments that mimic their real world counterparts. You can write a whole orchestra if you're so inclined
@@tombackhouse9121 Unfortunately not, FL studio is not free unless you don't save any project. But it's not a big deal ! Use Cakewalk, it's the best free DAW you can find in my opinion. You'll have everything you want :). Be aware however that music needs investement. Time obviously : writing does not take 10 minutes. And money, a lot of money even if you use cakewalk, you'll still have to get decent VSTs (virtual instruments), and VSTs considered as classic can easily cost 500 € and they are not doing everything, they serve a particular purpose (VST for orchestral, for ambiant etc). Making it short, I've spent thousands of euros in music. If music becomes your passion, you'll hardly have the luxury of having other passions. Even eating xD.
A brillant theory listen......i learnt so much in such a short amount of time.....i feel a lot more comfortable about what am doing......the brillant thing about your videos you can see exactly what your doing whilst explaining the theory.....
Great video, man! You helped me wrap my head around modulations and, unexpectedly enough, made the circle of 5ths finally click for me (you have no idea how long I tried and failed 😂)
Bravo Sir! I've been trying to get my head around this for years. But I think I've finally grasped it and managed to write a piece that actually sounded like a song. Before this, I was able to make basic compositions with some harmony through pure trial and error. But it would take me months to do what I did last night in about 10 minutes. From this, to help those who are in the same shoes as I was, if there's anything I can say to help I don't think it was the key changing per se which held me back, instead more a neglect of knowing what scales are there for! Thanks again
@@BillHilton Interestingly, in attempting to go through the processes correctly, I have made the kind of song I personally wouldn't listen to and be proud to show (not to mention, by song I meant a short loop encompassing the essence of a full track, the integral parts) It sounds a bit too lovey-dovey for me though and wondered if that was because I was shy of minor keys?
@@C.D.J.Burton Maybe - keep experimenting! I do a lot of songwriting (well, less now than I used to) and find I tend to write four or five that are a bit weak, or flat-out terrible, for every one I really like. You have to see what comes out! I've got a tutorial on the songwriting process here - ua-cam.com/video/uUDqyPI1Hn4/v-deo.html - it's jazz-oriented, but it'll show you how I think about the subject, which I guess you might find useful...
@@BillHilton Ahh it's always good to know when even the pro's say they make questionable material. I bet it's still awesome though! Thanks for directing me to the other tutorial. I will check it out next!
A question that I have and that I hope some caring soul will answer. Related to the second method of modulation, which is changing between parallel keys, you say that we should hinge the key change off the dominant chord, but in the song Penny Lane by The Beatles, Paul McCartney changes key from B to Bm pivoting off of a G#m7 chord, which would be the minor 6th of the key of B and Bm, the best part is that it works like a charm! How and why does that work? Thanks in advance to the person who answers!!
Good question! It'll be about proximity - although the G#m7 isn't diatonic to the target key, its notes are either shared (the B) or within a semitone of diatonics. It's the sort of modulation where voicing *really* matters: if you play around with it you'll find it probably works really well in some voicings, but not in others. Does that help?
@@BillHilton Thanks man! I know what you mean but I can't fully wrap my head around it just yet. But I do understand what McCartney was doing there, in this particular example, because when he changes to Bm, the notes stay the same, and he only changes the bass, walking it down from B to G#, G and finally F#. Do you have any videos explaining this sort of modulation? Or can you recommend one if you yourself haven't made one yet? Thanks again Bill!! ✌🏼
This was very helpful. I’ve been playing by ear, mostly, all my life. Changing keys seamlessly has been a goal. I’ll subscribe and go through your channel. Thank you.
FANTASTIC,I FEARED EARLIER MODULATION VERY MUCH, NOW YOUR EASIEST AND FUN EXPLANATION CAUSED MY HEART PEACE AND JOY. MANY MANY THANKS AND HEARTIEST SALUTE,SIR. Arun dey
Thank you so much man. I needed to find this so badly...I'm a new-ish producer and haven't been able to figure out how to make more dynamic arrangements. I have a bunch of great sections but no idea where to go with them. I feel like I finally know enough theory for this video to unlock a lot of potential for me. Thanks again. Subbed
Yeah, this was really good! I am playing “Amazing Grace” for my upcoming recital and modulating from F Maj to G Maj and using the pivot chord technique (F->D/Fsus2 (?) so a sus chord FGD, then adding an F# to that chord-sounds great imo-then switching to a D chord upbeat, then into G Major!) Something like that! My first time applying this with my teacher’s help, but it opens up another world! Thanks for piloting that flight! 😅😘💚
Absolutely love this video. Tbh I cannot read music, do not understand the technical terms of music theory but I know music extremely well by ear. I was able to follow along to this video pretty well despite this and I must say that this was primarily thanks to fluency you have when it comes to teaching things. Amazing video and I am glad I came across this. We subscribed!
Remember to check out my books - How To Really Play The Piano, Seven Studies In Pop Piano and An Introduction To Cocktail Piano! Links here: www.billspianopages.com/how-to-really www.billspianopages.com/cocktail www.billspianopages.com/seven-studies
hey bill! first of all thank you so much for the lesson, it really helped me! i just have a little suggestion: that when you play the chords, it would be useful for us, students, to have shown on the screen wich degree your playing so we could learn better about the chord progressions youre playing. Apart from that, youre doing really good, you make everything sound really simple! Thank you again, youre making a great job!!! :)
Oh man! Within the Circle of 5ths technique, the usage of the flat 7 chord as a transition is just marvelous!! :D Thank you for taking time to share this!
Nice clear tutorial. Perhaps you could say something about how the harmonic rhythm affects the feeling of having modulated to a key or not. With the pivot tone used to modulate to the fifth, you've changed your 4 note progression (C a F G) into 3 (C a D), thus breaking the expected harmonic rhythm. It would seem if you could extend those 3 into 4, you'd feel more like you landed in the new key because of a consistent harmonic rhythm. I've had trouble finding information about this.
This just blew my mind. I’ve been playing piano for almost 13 years and have taken classes in middle school and college but this was revolutionary! I still don’t understand why the Am with flat A works to transition to A major or why flatting the E in Am works to transition to E major. What drives the key these changes lead to?
Excellent video! Thanks very much for this. It answered some questions I had and even answered a few questions I didn’t know I also needed the answer to. And yes I am a music theory geek :)
Thanks Chris - glad it was useful! Bear in mind that modulation is a pretty massive subject, so this is very much a taster rather than the whole deal. There's loads of other good stuff on the subject on UA-cam, so have a search around :)
Hey, great video. Would really like to see some more detailed explanation of the last section of the video where you are jumping between keys using alterations to chords.
This was interesting. A year ago my brain would have said, "I'm having none of this!" As I have gained a better knowledge of the musical landscape, much of this has begun to make sense. My biggest challenge is to integrate what my ears already know into what my brain can finally understand...a sort of "music Big Picture." Thanks for helping. I would recommend one thing... using the software that shows exactly which notes you are playing, either using a keyboard representation or a music staff graphic. It isn't always easy or intuitive to know which notes you are striking from moment to moment. HTH.
Glad you like it, Art! If you ever have any questions about any of this stuff, feel free to shoot them my way. Re: the virtual keyboard thing, I've agonised over this for a long time (pros: it's useful for seeing which notes I'm playing; cons: it encourages people to focus on "pressing the right note", which is only half the battle when playing the piano). Anyway, I'm playing around with ways of making it work now, so expect it to arrive in tutorials soon (as soon as this week IF I can get it to a point I'm happy with; if not, it'll be after Christmas).
really great video lots of info covered that I didn't no but so far you've been focusing on how chords modulate to different keys and what I'm interested in is how the melody itself is modulated, is there a pivot note in the scale that we can escape from it to another key because I've seen some kind of pattern in lots of songs, but I can't quiet grasp the idea behind it. it seems you're very experienced in the theory, I hope you can at least refer to me the terms to search for. and I think after the melody is established ,the harmony will follow
Hmmmm - good question. Usually it's a case of simply switching to the new scale. An easy way of doing that would be to use adjacent or shared notes: say, for example you're modulating from C major to Eb major, you could move from E natural (in C major) to Eb. Probably a good way of learning more is to listen to/play some piano music that contains modulations and see how various composers do it?
Hi Bill, very good and revealing and I was wondering if you have a script for this because there're few things that I still need to get my head round it also I can digest it better on my keyboard, I tend to be a bit slow at grasping new things like this you very wonderfuly reveal here, I really appreciate it, thanks a million for your time.
You can also move to a relative key more suddenly and noticeably by using a secondary dominant (something like I V/vi vi) which would fit into the pivot chord section, I guess.
Hmmmmmm…interesting. Given that the context sounds like a song rather than something like (eg) an orchestral work you probably need a fairly quick transition, but you could still do it quite smoothly by doing something like getting to a B major chord - non diatonic in A major, but close to the (diatonic) B minor, and use that as your modulation (because B is the V in E major…). It’ll be worth playing around with the exact shapes you use, as voicing and inversion can make the difference between a smooth modulation and bumpy one. Try it and let me know how you get on…!
Cheers for all of this Bill. Question for you: - Why is the circle of fifths referred to as resolving at 5 notes or a 5th below, where (on guitar anyway) it's easier to make it resolve UP a fourth?
Good question, Bob: basically because the dominant-tonic resolution is based on the first and fifth notes of the scale, and it's easier to think - in the abstract, away from an instrument - of resolving down five notes than up four. If you wanted to get geeky about it you think in terms of the harmonic series, where the second overtone of a note (which is where the diatonic scale gets its fifth) is a higher note than the original note, so, again, it's all about downwards motion. Of course, you can think in terms of going up a fourth (which, as you say, is usually easier on the guitar) but to avoid confusion and to reflect the underlying harmonic structures it makes more sense to encourage people to think in downwards terms. Short version: it's complicated, but it makes sense, honest...!
Is there any SW to assist with modulation? Ideally the SW should allow entering the last few chords before the point where modulation should start, setting the length in bars and beats for the modulation to happen, setting the target key and should then suggest different chord progressions / arpgeggios for the modulation.
You're going to think me a luddite, Erdöl, but I think the very best music technology you'll ever own is your brain. It takes a bit of training, but once trained will always come up with more imaginative and musical solution than any piece of software. That said, such an application may exist - or, just as likely, someone has created a macro for an application like Sibelius that does the job. However, I've not come across either. I'll let you know if I do!
VI will also work (it's major in minor keys) depending where you're going. It's the IV of the relative major, but you could also use it to get to the minor key built on the iii of the original key pretty easily, or its own major key. Does that help?
@@BillHilton Thanks very much for taking the time to answer! Ok that makes sense now. Ive watched alot of videos on modulating and this was the first one that put several methods in a cohesive video that stuck in my brain. Its raised a lot of questions also but really showed me some key ideas. thanks again.
@@Jeremyelrick You're welcome, Jeremy - shout if you ever need to discuss anything else. I'm sometimes a bit slow to reply (lots of messages...) but I always do eventually...!
Here are all of the techniques
Technique 1 - Relative Keys - 3:23
Technique 2 - Moving between parallel keys - 7:38
Technique 3 - Move up semi tone or whole tone (AKA “The Disney Key Change”) - 11:32
Technique 4 - Circle of 5ths (using dominant 5) - 13:48
Technique 5 - Using a “pivot chord” - 16:45
My hero!
Thanks!
Thanks for doing this, George - I really appreciate it! Now that UA-cam has enabled the "chapters" feature (a godsend for tutorials like this) I'm going to embed these timestamps in the scrubber bar.
I've found a lot of music teachers don't explain what the Circle Of 5ths is actually used for. It's more of a case of "learn this because it's important" . You explained that in such a relevant way, thank you; it's refreshing!
No problem - glad it helped!
Problem with the circle of fifths is that its used for almost everything, so it's overwhelming. I find that after learning the cirlce of fifths, everything else you learn is somewhat connected to it, so just staying persistent works
@@WilliamZhao why does nobody mention the circle of fourths? That aught to work right?
Agreed, nice to see someone explain its basic utility, finding out which chords resolve to which.
Thank God I found this video, dude. When I saw this, you asked about my knowledge and I knew not much about chords. I watched your 20min video about chords and I took like an hour to practice them, and I learned a LOT! God bless you man, keep it going.
this pivot thing with the additional alteration just hit me right in the face , thanks for that
You're welcome :)
Absolutely. We always looked about for some esoteric pivot ideology. In addition to hinging into another key from the diatonic keys, pivoting style one, I like how you explained pivoting style two - by altering one of the diatonics up or down a semitone and seeing where that might lead to and if you like how it sounds.
1. Moving b/w relative keys 2. Moving b/w parallels keys 3. Move up semi tone or whole tone 4. Circle of 5th 5. Use of pivot chord
This video is incredibly insightful, it has tied many concepts together for me. Thank you.
You're really welcome - glad it was helpful!
Man, I have watched TONS of videos on key changes, you explain it the best.
Amazing video ✨👏🏻 Thank you
Glad you liked it Ajay!
You took the words out of my mouth with moving up just a whole note or half note. The “Disney change!”.
I can't even claim credit for the coinage, Raymond! I first heard it years ago, and I think it's pretty common currency among, e.g., session musicians.
Bill Hilton yeah it is! And the first time I heard it was on a Bon Jovi song Living on a Prayer, when the bass player (a very accomplished violinist too) said: “Then we are going to Disney it”.
That was 1988!!! And he explained that it’s either a whole tone or semi to modulation. And once you know and watch a Disney movie, you hear it so often!
And the interesting part I find is, and you explained that too, that for some reason it only works when there’s a bit of a pause or a sustain before modulating. What the neurological or psychological reason for that is, is beyond me. Perhaps that the old tonic and the new tonic are too close for the brain to realize it’s a root change??!! Do you know?
The "Festival di Sanremo" is an italian popular music festival. It's a week long and it's a very strong average italian tradition. Well... it's an ORGY of this kind of jumps. At the end of every song you can clearly feel the glicemy index of your blood increased
Totally love the description ----- the 'disney key change'. Nice one!
Excellent explanation. Useful writing in roman numbers on the display. The best work done on modulation. Good explanation.....thank you.
No problem, Franco - glad you liked it!
Thank you for sharing this, amazing guide which I really enjoyed.
I was already familiar with using relative keys and the circle of fifths to go from one key to another, but it was enlightening to see other ways to "cheat" your way to other scales and make your music more interesting and less predictable.
This video is exactly what Ive been searching for for a long time
Glad it helped, Jeremy! I've also got a more recent one on a similar theme: ua-cam.com/video/7OaO88VAnOk/v-deo.html
Excellent teaching technique, with constant demonstrations! Make it understandable to the ears as well as what remains of the mathematical part of my brain!
You should play more often in your tutorials, like this one, it’s the most I’ve seen you play. It would help a lot. Thanks this is very helpful
I'll bear that in mind, Joyce, thanks! The great dilemma is that I'm a bit of a perfectionist when it comes to viewing myself playing (everything has to be "demonstration quality", if you see what I mean), so a little more playing means I have to do a LOT more practice of whatever I'm demonstrating. Still, I guess that would be good for me!
So much valuable information here for anyone who's self taught. Thank you so much!
Glad you enjoyed it!
I can't play piano, nor any instrument really... well, I can whistle. Nevertheless, I want to understand music, and I don't often find resources which go into the technical detail I want. Subscribed, my friend!
Thanks Tom! One or two pretty notable composers (I'm thinking of Berlioz and Rousseau) managed without much in the way of instrument skill, so you can still do a lot with just the knowledge...
@@BillHilton I honestly didn't know that! That's pretty encouraging
You can try fl studio or some other music software. I *think* fl studio is free as long as you don't use it to make money (commercial products) and you can't save "export" your songs in mp3. Not sure if you can save your songs. But if you're just interested in making music for practice, it's really good. Lots of free instruments that mimic their real world counterparts. You can write a whole orchestra if you're so inclined
@@tombackhouse9121 Unfortunately not, FL studio is not free unless you don't save any project. But it's not a big deal ! Use Cakewalk, it's the best free DAW you can find in my opinion. You'll have everything you want :). Be aware however that music needs investement. Time obviously : writing does not take 10 minutes. And money, a lot of money even if you use cakewalk, you'll still have to get decent VSTs (virtual instruments), and VSTs considered as classic can easily cost 500 € and they are not doing everything, they serve a particular purpose (VST for orchestral, for ambiant etc). Making it short, I've spent thousands of euros in music. If music becomes your passion, you'll hardly have the luxury of having other passions. Even eating xD.
Very helpful! Also I finally understand why we need circle of 5ths. Thank you so much!
You're welcome, Sofiya!
Dear Teacher: You made may Day, Your explanation is wonderfully clear, thank you very much Professor, for me……..you are the best
Thank you, Daniel! 😃
A brillant theory listen......i learnt so much in such a short amount of time.....i feel a lot more comfortable about what am doing......the brillant thing about your videos you can see exactly what your doing whilst explaining the theory.....
Thanks very much for the kind words, Amir - I'm glad it helped!
Wow.....this is the best lesson ever. Especially the circle of 5ths. Thank you
Great video, man! You helped me wrap my head around modulations and, unexpectedly enough, made the circle of 5ths finally click for me (you have no idea how long I tried and failed 😂)
😂 Glad it helped!
Bravo Sir!
I've been trying to get my head around this for years. But I think I've finally grasped it and managed to write a piece that actually sounded like a song.
Before this, I was able to make basic compositions with some harmony through pure trial and error. But it would take me months to do what I did last night in about 10 minutes.
From this, to help those who are in the same shoes as I was, if there's anything I can say to help I don't think it was the key changing per se which held me back, instead more a neglect of knowing what scales are there for!
Thanks again
You're very welcome! If you ever post any of your compositions online, feel free to share the link - I'll be interested to hear!
@@BillHilton Interestingly, in attempting to go through the processes correctly, I have made the kind of song I personally wouldn't listen to and be proud to show (not to mention, by song I meant a short loop encompassing the essence of a full track, the integral parts) It sounds a bit too lovey-dovey for me though and wondered if that was because I was shy of minor keys?
@@C.D.J.Burton Maybe - keep experimenting! I do a lot of songwriting (well, less now than I used to) and find I tend to write four or five that are a bit weak, or flat-out terrible, for every one I really like. You have to see what comes out! I've got a tutorial on the songwriting process here - ua-cam.com/video/uUDqyPI1Hn4/v-deo.html - it's jazz-oriented, but it'll show you how I think about the subject, which I guess you might find useful...
@@BillHilton Ahh it's always good to know when even the pro's say they make questionable material. I bet it's still awesome though! Thanks for directing me to the other tutorial. I will check it out next!
A question that I have and that I hope some caring soul will answer. Related to the second method of modulation, which is changing between parallel keys, you say that we should hinge the key change off the dominant chord, but in the song Penny Lane by The Beatles, Paul McCartney changes key from B to Bm pivoting off of a G#m7 chord, which would be the minor 6th of the key of B and Bm, the best part is that it works like a charm! How and why does that work? Thanks in advance to the person who answers!!
Good question! It'll be about proximity - although the G#m7 isn't diatonic to the target key, its notes are either shared (the B) or within a semitone of diatonics. It's the sort of modulation where voicing *really* matters: if you play around with it you'll find it probably works really well in some voicings, but not in others. Does that help?
@@BillHilton Thanks man! I know what you mean but I can't fully wrap my head around it just yet. But I do understand what McCartney was doing there, in this particular example, because when he changes to Bm, the notes stay the same, and he only changes the bass, walking it down from B to G#, G and finally F#. Do you have any videos explaining this sort of modulation? Or can you recommend one if you yourself haven't made one yet? Thanks again Bill!! ✌🏼
This was very helpful. I’ve been playing by ear, mostly, all my life. Changing keys seamlessly has been a goal. I’ll subscribe and go through your channel. Thank you.
My man deserves more credit,thank you so much
Thanks very much for the kind words, Avramy - you're welcome!
FANTASTIC,I FEARED EARLIER MODULATION VERY MUCH, NOW YOUR EASIEST AND FUN EXPLANATION CAUSED MY HEART PEACE AND JOY. MANY MANY THANKS AND HEARTIEST SALUTE,SIR. Arun dey
Thank you so much man. I needed to find this so badly...I'm a new-ish producer and haven't been able to figure out how to make more dynamic arrangements. I have a bunch of great sections but no idea where to go with them. I feel like I finally know enough theory for this video to unlock a lot of potential for me. Thanks again. Subbed
Glad I could help, Nick! If you need any guidance on where to go next with theoretical stuff, just give me a yell.
You are an AMAZING teacher and I appreciate you so much Bill!!!
Thanks Gabriel!
Thanks a lot for this lesson, especially on the use of pivot chords!
You're very welcome Mok!
Yeah, this was really good! I am playing “Amazing Grace” for my upcoming recital and modulating from F Maj to G Maj and using the pivot chord technique (F->D/Fsus2 (?) so a sus chord FGD, then adding an F# to that chord-sounds great imo-then switching to a D chord upbeat, then into G Major!) Something like that! My first time applying this with my teacher’s help, but it opens up another world! Thanks for piloting that flight! 😅😘💚
Excellent video and explanation
Beautifully Explained. thank you.
Glad you liked it, Ramesh - thanks for taking the time to say so!
some times the examples you make up to demonstrate are so beautiful, they are a source of inspiration!
great video! very educational and easy to understand and well produced. thank you.
No problem - thank you!
What a masterclass. Thank you for your generosity.
Brilliant tutorials Bill - Your teaching methods are ones I aspire too!
Absolutely love this video. Tbh I cannot read music, do not understand the technical terms of music theory but I know music extremely well by ear. I was able to follow along to this video pretty well despite this and I must say that this was primarily thanks to fluency you have when it comes to teaching things. Amazing video and I am glad I came across this. We subscribed!
The best things in life we sometimes stumble across, like an Aladdins cave. Thanks for this
You're welcome! Let me know if you're looking for any particular types of tutorials, or you have any suggestions/requests...
That was a great tutorial Bill. I think I'll get back to this video several times in the future.
Thanks for all the time working on these videos.
No problem Olivier - thanks very much indeed!
Such a great video I learned so much! Especially that circle of fiths technique very helpful👍
Remember to check out my books - How To Really Play The Piano, Seven Studies In Pop Piano and An Introduction To Cocktail Piano! Links here:
www.billspianopages.com/how-to-really
www.billspianopages.com/cocktail
www.billspianopages.com/seven-studies
Wish it was free...
Impeccable instruction!
So many puzzle pieces of theory suddenly found their place. I feel blown away right now.
I'm filled with gratitude. Thank you.
Thanks very much indeed - really glad it helped!
15:35 - He means Eb minor.
Yup - I certainly do. Thanks, and well spotted!
Brilliant, thank you!
You're very welcome!
You. Are. So. Helpful. Also, your piano is awesome!
Thanks Jaren - you're very welcome!
hey bill! first of all thank you so much for the lesson, it really helped me!
i just have a little suggestion: that when you play the chords, it would be useful for us, students, to have shown on the screen wich degree your playing so we could learn better about the chord progressions youre playing.
Apart from that, youre doing really good, you make everything sound really simple!
Thank you again, youre making a great job!!! :)
like what you did from 17:16 on...
Oh man! Within the Circle of 5ths technique, the usage of the flat 7 chord as a transition is just marvelous!! :D Thank you for taking time to share this!
Yes, 100s of years of music was writen using "only" that changes. Althouhg pivots are used as well alot.
Nice clear tutorial. Perhaps you could say something about how the harmonic rhythm affects the feeling of having modulated to a key or not. With the pivot tone used to modulate to the fifth, you've changed your 4 note progression (C a F G) into 3 (C a D), thus breaking the expected harmonic rhythm. It would seem if you could extend those 3 into 4, you'd feel more like you landed in the new key because of a consistent harmonic rhythm. I've had trouble finding information about this.
Jay Packard , did you ever find information on this?
Really nice video. Thanks for sharing.
This just blew my mind. I’ve been playing piano for almost 13 years and have taken classes in middle school and college but this was revolutionary! I still don’t understand why the Am with flat A works to transition to A major or why flatting the E in Am works to transition to E major. What drives the key these changes lead to?
Excellent video.
Glad you liked it Abraham!
Excellent video! Thanks very much for this. It answered some questions I had and even answered a few questions I didn’t know I also needed the answer to. And yes I am a music theory geek :)
Thanks Chris - glad it was useful! Bear in mind that modulation is a pretty massive subject, so this is very much a taster rather than the whole deal. There's loads of other good stuff on the subject on UA-cam, so have a search around :)
Hey, great video. Would really like to see some more detailed explanation of the last section of the video where you are jumping between keys using alterations to chords.
Awesome!!! Thank you.
You're welcome Andre!
This tutorial is amazing! Thank you!!!
You're welcome!
Very helpful! Thx!
Glad it helped Lars - you're welcome!
Outstanding lesson. Thanks very much. Really excellent.
Thanks Don - glad you liked it!
Clear explanation
Glad you think so - thanks!
This was interesting. A year ago my brain would have said, "I'm having none of this!" As I have gained a better knowledge of the musical landscape, much of this has begun to make sense. My biggest challenge is to integrate what my ears already know into what my brain can finally understand...a sort of "music Big Picture." Thanks for helping.
I would recommend one thing... using the software that shows exactly which notes you are playing, either using a keyboard representation or a music staff graphic. It isn't always easy or intuitive to know which notes you are striking from moment to moment. HTH.
Glad you like it, Art! If you ever have any questions about any of this stuff, feel free to shoot them my way. Re: the virtual keyboard thing, I've agonised over this for a long time (pros: it's useful for seeing which notes I'm playing; cons: it encourages people to focus on "pressing the right note", which is only half the battle when playing the piano). Anyway, I'm playing around with ways of making it work now, so expect it to arrive in tutorials soon (as soon as this week IF I can get it to a point I'm happy with; if not, it'll be after Christmas).
Good video. Thank you.
You're welcome!
Amazingly useful video!
fantastic video, thank you so much for the lesson!
Glad you liked it Magnus!
really great video lots of info covered that I didn't no but so far you've been focusing on how chords modulate to different keys and what I'm interested in is how the melody itself is modulated, is there a pivot note in the scale that we can escape from it to another key because I've seen some kind of pattern in lots of songs, but I can't quiet grasp the idea behind it.
it seems you're very experienced in the theory, I hope you can at least refer to me the terms to search for.
and I think after the melody is established ,the harmony will follow
Hmmmm - good question. Usually it's a case of simply switching to the new scale. An easy way of doing that would be to use adjacent or shared notes: say, for example you're modulating from C major to Eb major, you could move from E natural (in C major) to Eb. Probably a good way of learning more is to listen to/play some piano music that contains modulations and see how various composers do it?
@@BillHilton thanks a lot
Fantastic video
Thanks Yuri - glad you like it!
Thanks Bill.....Great stuff as always.
Awesome, helped me a lot!
Hey bill, great video!
I was shown a keyboard that can do this with out having to actually change key impressive!
Hi Bill, very good and revealing and I was wondering if you have a script for this because there're few things that I still need to get my head round it also I can digest it better on my keyboard, I tend to be a bit slow at grasping new things like this you very wonderfuly reveal here, I really appreciate it, thanks a million for your time.
You can also move to a relative key more suddenly and noticeably by using a secondary dominant (something like I V/vi vi) which would fit into the pivot chord section, I guess.
Good tip, Vladi - thanks very much!
Fantastic!
excellent simplified overview. ty bh
Helped me in my song. Thanks
Excellent
how could I move well from an A major verse to an e major chorus and set up the transition to E well? Thanks for the great video!
Hmmmmmm…interesting. Given that the context sounds like a song rather than something like (eg) an orchestral work you probably need a fairly quick transition, but you could still do it quite smoothly by doing something like getting to a B major chord - non diatonic in A major, but close to the (diatonic) B minor, and use that as your modulation (because B is the V in E major…). It’ll be worth playing around with the exact shapes you use, as voicing and inversion can make the difference between a smooth modulation and bumpy one. Try it and let me know how you get on…!
Thank you, this is much appreciated. I enjoy you teaching style.
Thank you
thanks for the video
You're welcome, Dave!
Very useful my dude😍😍loved your video....expecting more from you in the topic of changing keys...need to know in depth😍😍but this is simply awesome 😍👌👌
Thanks Sibi - glad you liked it!
secondary dominants are very useful to change keys
Brilliant, you are a great teacher! :D
Good video 👍
Thanks! Glad you liked it!
Great video!
Invaluable!
Thanks. This helps
Thanks William - glad to hear it!
Cheers for all of this Bill. Question for you: - Why is the circle of fifths referred to as resolving at 5 notes or a 5th below, where (on guitar anyway) it's easier to make it resolve UP a fourth?
Good question, Bob: basically because the dominant-tonic resolution is based on the first and fifth notes of the scale, and it's easier to think - in the abstract, away from an instrument - of resolving down five notes than up four. If you wanted to get geeky about it you think in terms of the harmonic series, where the second overtone of a note (which is where the diatonic scale gets its fifth) is a higher note than the original note, so, again, it's all about downwards motion. Of course, you can think in terms of going up a fourth (which, as you say, is usually easier on the guitar) but to avoid confusion and to reflect the underlying harmonic structures it makes more sense to encourage people to think in downwards terms. Short version: it's complicated, but it makes sense, honest...!
@@BillHilton 'A' level chemistry is more simple haha. Cheers Bill!
@@terryperring104 Ah well, I didn't even get GCSE! (Chemistry, that is. I got Music...!)
So great this lesson.. thx
Thank you. This is helpful.
No problem Samuel - glad to help!
Is there any SW to assist with modulation? Ideally the SW should allow entering the last few chords before the point where modulation should start, setting the length in bars and beats for the modulation to happen, setting the target key and should then suggest different chord progressions / arpgeggios for the modulation.
You're going to think me a luddite, Erdöl, but I think the very best music technology you'll ever own is your brain. It takes a bit of training, but once trained will always come up with more imaginative and musical solution than any piece of software. That said, such an application may exist - or, just as likely, someone has created a macro for an application like Sibelius that does the job. However, I've not come across either. I'll let you know if I do!
@@BillHilton I fully agree with u but I don't have time to learn & practice, I do however have ear and taste to chose from a series of options.
Very good video.
Btw, what is the piano that you are using? Is it a Nord? Thank you.
Yep, a Nord Piano 2, of 2012 vintage :)
Thanks for the great share...
Thank you so much
gosh i love this channel
May i know what piano and type are you using sir? I'm crushing on the sound🙏
Thank you! It’s a 2021 Nord Piano 2 😃
The third one's amazing
spear of justice bro
Thank you for this.
FYI: the link to the mentioned tutorial (@2:10) is not in the description (yet).
Ah, blast - sorry! Knew I'd forgotten something! I'll get that fixed right now - thanks very much for letting me know!
Hi, for technique 5 I understand to use the vi as a pivot if Im in a in major key but what chord should i use to pivot from a minor?
VI will also work (it's major in minor keys) depending where you're going. It's the IV of the relative major, but you could also use it to get to the minor key built on the iii of the original key pretty easily, or its own major key. Does that help?
@@BillHilton the first part makes sense to me - If I'm in A minor, I could use the VI (f major)to get to C but you lost me with the rest im afraid...
@@Jeremyelrick Sorry! To put in context, you could use it to get to Cm as well as C major - shared tones, quite a lot of proximity etc
@@BillHilton Thanks very much for taking the time to answer! Ok that makes sense now. Ive watched alot of videos on modulating and this was the first one that put several methods in a cohesive video that stuck in my brain. Its raised a lot of questions also but really showed me some key ideas. thanks again.
@@Jeremyelrick You're welcome, Jeremy - shout if you ever need to discuss anything else. I'm sometimes a bit slow to reply (lots of messages...) but I always do eventually...!
Great!
Thanks Mark!
Thank you!