Piano Chord Progressions: The MysteriousTri-Tone Chord Substitution

[DICACIO1]

much too complicated for most students. teach it more simple :)

in any Major scale, play the 1st note and then play the neighboring note up 1 key. but play that neighboring note as a dominant 7 or altered chord. It will resolve nicely "chromatically" downward into the major 1 chord

tell the students to use it like a 5 chord :D

try it on this progression

7, 3, 6, 2, 5,1, 4, 6, 2, 5(use it here),1

[DICACIO1]

OMG its the infamous "devil's chord"... what are you teaching these people?! LOL :p

[pll89]

...it's odd because once you do the substitution from G7 to a Db7 then the third of G (B) becomes a seventh..but it's no longer B it's now a Cb (since the minor 7th of Db is Cb..)..guh maybe i'm over complicating things since Cb and B sounds the same.

[goodguy4329]

thank you sir!!...looks like you have had an awesome experience with jazz in ur life time...i wish to have the same!!...ill keep in touch!!!

[iSkylla]

Did you say the circle of 4ths at 3:37? Or am I just going crazy?

[Voodomania]

@iSkylla Yes, he did. The "circle of 4ths" is the "circle of 5ths" only the other way around.

[58gpr]

thanks for this video! You never stop learning! :)

[jrmagrelis]

the sbstitution is the 5b, for example, C chord is Gb, D is Ab and so on...

[pll89]

In my opinion you shouldn't be worried about the 3rd and 7th when figuring out the tri-tone sub of a dominant chord..the easiest way to know what the tri-tone substitution of a dominant chord is is by knowing the tri-tone interval of the root note of the dominant chord and there you go. I just think that trying to concentrate also with the 3rd and 7th just makes it more complicated to figure it out but that's just me. Nonetheless good video

[saclark9781]

Thanks for explaining this!!

[wtcultra]

Just Cool

[pyannaguy]

With all due respect to the technical aspects - one can cut through the theory a bit and just try landing a half step higher than the target or destination chord and slide down to it. It works all over the place, especially in Bluesy or other stock progressions.

A little process of elimination and experimentation and you can find the instances where it DOESN'T work. Tons of half-step or chromaticism jazzes things up - just don't stay on the rare "avoid" note or chord for too long.

[Jeemo88]

@pyannaguy

Not in every instance. In this case he's just moving a 5-1 progression, so that rule is very true... but when you start using passing chords (say 1-2-3, 2-5-1, 1-6-2-5) and you substitute Tri-Tone chords instead of the regular passing chords... lol you get some crazy ideas. 

Just spend a day messing around and see what you get, not every time it'll be pretty, but not every time it'll be ugly... oh and WORD OF WARNING- don't just try it live first... lol disastrous results... haha

[pyannaguy]

@Jeemo88 You're right, of course, but sometimes a little over-simplification can help the person who feels confronted with a too much complexity and is trying to get a grip. Agreed, though: mine WAS an over-simplification. Hey, I don't know if you're sort of old, like me, (enough to remember) but I liked the comment down the column a little ways about "The Addams Family Theme." I have to run out the door in a minute and can't test it, but in my foggy memory, it sounds about right.

[moredoughnuts01]

@pyannaguy I see the point you make, but I think it's important to note that the tri-tone substitution is really most useful for ending chords, modulating, and climaxes during solo breaks or at the end of phrases. It's not a technique that you can just throw anywhere, like you mentioned.

[pyannaguy]

@moredoughnuts01 True, and like I said: mine was an over-simplification to make the point, but I find that the half-step down-slide gets used more than tri-tones. Think of the classic jazzy sound of a Blues turnaround like I-VI-II-V and back to the 1 (all big Dominant chords) each being preceded by a big jazzy Dominant chord a half-step above. The only tri-tone is from the V back to the #1 (then the 1) but all those half-steps sound equally big and Jazzy.

Apples & oranges? Maybe.

[DABEAST229]

ugh why iz tritone so hard

[draculauploader]

These chords are called also nopolitan ex in the key of C the Db major chord. The only difference is that the Db is coming AFTER the V (Gmaj) and not before like in classic harmony did.zAlso we can add a major 7th tho that chord....

[luigiperso]

this guy (duane shinn) makes quality instructional videos, there's some used ones on ebay

[luigiperso]

@Staaanky , watch the video again, this guy does not say that they are just slide chords. And even if he did, let's compare his explanation with yours: he actually sat at the piano and made a video and explained, while you just wrote 'they became so much more!'. It's like comparing a penny to 100 dollars.

[7P47]

wow really helpful.....i really like your tutorials

[ABisopht]

you've just solved my problem. I wish i could shake your hand- Thank you!

[MrIdonotknowwhoIam]

The simpsons theme uses tri-tone.

[guitars2112]

the tritone substitution just means 2 dominant seventh chords that share the same (enharmonic) tritone interval.

[luigiperso]

@guitars2112 , that's just the bare theoretical explanation. It says nothing about the actual function of the chord in a progression, or why it resolves to the root a semitone lower

[mdcorreia]

Thank you for the video, I think it was great!

[mangualc]

i dont think of it as tri tone...i just go down six half steps...which is the same as 3 whole steps...i just find it easier

[Mr0Smith0Guitarist]

I agree with some of the comments criticizing the semantics of your video, however I still found it extremely helpful and very useful. I understoood it very well, and it helped to be able to visualize the concept. I feel very confident using this now.

[timlalala]

I'd read about + listened out for tritone substitutions, and pretty much understood them, but only in a theoretical sense, i'd been trying to put it into context, and you've explained and applied tritone substitutions very well!

[LordHines420]

my dad calls tritones "adams family" music. a good way of thinking about it. lol

[SymbolicCup]

You're not actually substituting the chords here, you're adding them - Db would have to substitute for G, not follow G. Tritone substitutions are usually used in ii-V-I progressions, which then become ii-bII-I.

[whiskey1099]

Great lesson,still alittle confused,,about the switch,

[HunterHunter88]

Thanks. I only had to watch it 3 times lol

[mahoutsukaitai]

same here.. but thanks to him.. this would be useful xD