Harmony
Explores chord building voicings progressions cadences dominant ideas extensions inversions and functional awareness Students learn to understand and apply harmonic movement confidently
Browse every lesson in Harmony
- How to Improvise on Piano With Just Two Notes (Over Two Chords)
- Make the Piano a Drum: Two Chords, 5 Rhythm Patterns (Piano Inversion Practice)
- How to End Any Song on Piano (5-Chord Ending Lick)
- Play the Whole Circle of Fifths in Every Inversion (Piano Rhythm Workout, Part 2)
- Upper Structure Chords on Piano: Every 7th, 9th & 6/9 From One Trick
- Every Major & Minor Piano Chord in Root Position + 2 Inversions (Circle of Fifths Practice, Part 1)
- Play Chords and Melody in One Hand: Passing Tones on Piano
- Ways to Shift Chords on Time (Piano Inversion Practice)
- How to Play Dolly Parton's Here You Come Again on Piano - Slash Chords Made Easy, in 3 Keys
- Tritone Substitution Explained: One Shape, Two Dominant Chords
- How to Play Piano Fills Between Chords (Octaves + Modern Pop Voicings)
- The Two-Note Trick That Plays an Entire 12-Bar Blues (+ 3 Blues Licks) | How to Play Blues Piano
- Stop Playing 1-5-8 In Your Left Hand — Do This Instead (Pop Piano)
- 72 Chord Inversions. One Note. (Piano)
- Shell Voicings on Piano: Why C7 and F#7 Are the Same Two Keys (Tritone Substitution)
- One Chord, Many Scales: How Scales Are Born From Chords (Music Theory)
- Jazz Piano Chords: The Voicing Exercise That Teaches Every 7th Chord and Its Tritone Sub
- 🎹 Pyramid Sets & The Crunch — E7 Piano Workout Pt 4
- How Scales Are Born From Chords (1 Chord, 2 Chords, 3 Chords)
- Dominant 7th Workout Part 3: Essential Piano Skills #piano #musictheory #pianolessons
- Learn All 72 Piano Chord Inversions With ONE Exercise (Pivot Note Drill)
- 10 Piano Exercises on ONE Chord (E7) — Dominant Seventh Chords Explained
- Carnatic Ragas Meet Western Chords: A Piano Tutorial
- One Shape, 12 Bass Notes – Massive Piano Chord Voicings (Neo-Soul Quartal Trick)
- Find Every Chord That Fits Any Melody Note
- 🎹 Decode the Diminished 7th: Music's Sneakiest Chord Trick
- 🎼 13 Ways To End A Song (Twinkle Twinkle Cadences!)
- Beyond V–I: 8 Piano Cadences That Change How Music Ends
- The Gospel Cadence, Double Dominant & More – Twinkle Twinkle Reimagined on Piano
- The Chord That Goes Everywhere | Diminished 7th Explained
- Every Chord Formula, Every Inversion, Every Speed Level — One Workout
- Make Any Progression Sound Epic With This Relative Minor Swap
- Major relative minor
- I Tried Singing Bach's Prelude in C — Here's What I Learned
- 7th Chords Made Easy: Cascade, Legato & Staccato Drills
- Can You Learn Piano From Uptown Funk? (A Song With NO Piano in It)
- 🎹 Learn Piano From A Song With NO Piano — Uptown Funk D Dorian Explained!
- Build Real Hand Independence: Left Hand Melody on Piano
- Stop Memorizing Chords: Use This 2-Note Trick Instead
- Floating Power Chords: 5 Left-Hand Piano Patterns for Rock, Blues & Folk
- Piano Chord Inversions Tutorial: Smooth Chord Changes
- This Piano Triplet Exercise Will Reshape Your Rhythmic Vocabulary
- Fix Your Muddy Left Hand With Quintal Voicings on Piano
- The Missing Chord Skill Most Piano Students Don't Have
- Piano Broken Chords: The 2 Patterns Every Player Needs
- Turn 3 Notes Into Endless Musical Ideas (Pendulum Piano Exercise)
- Why Can't I Hear the Missing Note in These Chords? (Ear Training)
- How to Sing Harmony While Playing Piano - Build Your Musicianship
- 6 Chord Playing Mistakes Every Piano Student Makes
- Learn to Accompany Singers on Piano with Perfect Chord Inversions
- 5 Country Guitar Patterns Every Piano Player Should Know
- Nail All 24 Major & Minor Chords With This Chromatic Inversion Exercise
- How to Train Your Ear With Reverse Intervals (Piano Tutorial)
- Melodic Piano Arpeggios With Accent Patterns & Chord Progressions (Advanced)
- Play Melody AND Chords Together in One Hand (Complete Piano Tutorial)
- 3 Melodies to Master Piano Timing & Groove (Anticipation & Delay)
- 5 Hand Independence Exercises Every Piano Player Needs
- How to Read Chord Charts Like a Pro Musician (Complete Tutorial)
- Improve Piano Hand Independence: Stride, Oom-Pah & Arpeggio Patterns
- Play Christmas Songs on Piano | Beginner Accompaniment Techniques for 5 Holiday Carols
- Single Note, Endless Chords: The Ultimate Harmonization Tutorial for Piano
- It Came Upon the Midnight Clear in ALL 12 Keys - Christmas Piano Tutorial
- Piano Left-Hand Harmony: 9th Chords, Walking Bass & Diatonic Thirds
- How to Finger Piano Chords Correctly: Triads, Inversions & Voice Leading
- Complete Finger Exercise for Scales & Modes (Both Hands, Daily Piano Routine)
- Voicing Chords Made Easy on Piano Using Major & Minor Thirds
- Chord Voicing for Beginners: Colourful Piano Chords Using Fifths
- Piano Hand Independence Exercise with Funky Bass 𝄢 & Chords 𝄞
- All 21 Modes Explained: Major, Melodic Minor & Harmonic Minor (With Chords)
- Chord + Melody in One Hand: Improvise & Reharmonize on Piano (Beginner-Friendly)
- Master Every Interval on the Piano — 2 at a Time
- Practice Every Scale Using Major-Minor Chord Pairs
- 5 Essential Rhythm Techniques for Pop Chord Progressions on Piano
- Piano Workout: 2 Chords, All Inversions & Modal Hexatonic Scales
- Passing Chords Made Easy: Transform Your Piano Progressions Step by Step
- Play Wednesday's Theme on Piano With One Simple Technique
- Piano Rhythm Lesson: Master Semiquavers & Triplets (Lock Your Timing)
- How to Choose the Right Chord for Each Mode: Ionian, Mixolydian & Lydian
- Intervals Made Easy: Major Thirds, Minor Thirds & Their Families
- How to Play “Bella Ciao” on Piano: Beginner to Advanced
- How to Use “Wrong” Notes Creatively (Music Theory)
- How to Use Quartal Chords on Piano: Scales, Modes & Songs
- 5 Piano Techniques I Use ALL the Time for Fills & Embellishments 🎹
- The Simple Trick to Mastering Major Chords and Inversions on Piano
- Why Blues & Pentatonic Scales Work Over Almost EVERYTHING (and How to Use Them)
- Piano Arpeggios Over EVERY Beat Division (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
- Play Melody AND Chords in One Hand on Piano (Yes, It's Possible)
- Triads Aren't Just 3 Notes! Learn to Sing Any Chord Shape by Ear
- 10 Chord Progressions That Changed Music Forever (Piano)
- Triads Aren’t JUST Thirds❗️ Piano Voicing with All Intervals 🎹
- Rowan Atkinson’s Hidden Gem? The Thin Blue Line Theme on Piano (Howard Goodall)
- Voice Leading Explained: Why Every Musician Needs It
- Practice Major Scales with CHORDS: Creative Piano Scale Exercise (Part 2)
- Practice Major Scales WITH Chords: Ascending & Descending Piano Exercise
- 5 Powerful Ear Training Secrets to Hear Chords Better
- Play 5 of the Greatest Guitar Intros on Piano (Both Hands, Notated)
- 6 Easy Tricks to Make ONE Piano Chord Last a Long Time (Major or Minor)
- A Simple Gospel-Blues Piano Exercise for All 12 Keys
- 5 Piano Techniques I Use MOST Often (Spread Voicings, Bluesy Riffs & More)
- Complete Left-Hand Control on Piano: Rhythm Patterns & Arpeggios (Part 1)
- Improvise Using the Dominant 7th Chord With 5 Types of Scales (Piano)
- The Most Crystal-Clear Sound in Music: 9th Chords on Piano (5 Left-Hand Patterns)
- 3 Circle of Fifths Harmony Workouts for Every Musician (Piano)
- Master the Major-to-Relative-Minor Shift Using Piano Arpeggios in 6/8
- 5 Elegant Piano Voicing Techniques for Any Chord Progression
- The Harmony Exercise That Drills Every Chord on the Piano
- Understanding 7th Chords: Easy Music Theory for Every Chord Family
- Practice Sixteenth Notes & Improve Your Music Theory (Piano Exercise)
- vi-ii-V-I in Major & Minor on Piano: Hear How the Emotion Changes
- How to Name ANY Chord on Piano (Triads, 7ths & Extensions)
- Color Your Piano Chords With Ringing Notes (Sus2, M6, Add4 & 7ths)
- Ear Training: How to Listen to Clusters of Chords Easily (Cadences & Circle of Fifths)
- 5 Simple Ways to Make Your Chords Colourful without Extensions
- Extend Major, Minor & Dominant 7th Chords Using Voicings & Jazz Harmony
- 5 Beautiful Piano Chord Fills to End Any Rhythm Pattern
- Piano Accompaniment Checklist: How to Prepare a Song Before a Concert
- Practice Every Musical Interval Using Power Chords on Piano
- Piano Ballad Accompaniment: Passing Bass Notes Between Chords (Smooth Left Hand)
- Piano Ballad Accompaniment: Ghost Notes in the Left Hand (Part 2)
- Piano Ballad Accompaniment: Block Chords, Broken Chords & Arpeggios (Creep Progression)
- Beginner's Guide to Chord Inversions: Step-by-Step Piano Lesson
- The All-In-One Harmonic Workout: Sing & Play Chords to Train Your Ear
- A Healthy Reality Check for Figuring Out Chords by Ear (Harmonic Ear Training)
- How to Play "Linus and Lucy" on Piano – Full Tutorial (Including Solos)
- How to Play "Fairytale of New York" on Piano (Complete Tutorial in 30 Minutes)
- Sing & Play 10 Christmas Carols on Piano (Part 2)
- Sing & Play 10 Christmas Carols on Piano (Part 1)
- When a Child Is Born (Boney M.) — Complete Piano Tutorial Part 2
- 10 Easy Christmas Songs in 3/4 Time for Piano (3 Left-Hand Patterns)
- When a Child Is Born (Boney M.) — Complete Piano Tutorial Part 1
- How to Practice ANY Melody, Progression, Riff or Lick in All 12 Keys (Piano)
- The Simplest Left-Hand Notes for Solo Piano (Works on Almost Any Song)
- Master All Your Piano Chord Inversions Starting From a Pivot Note
- Compose & Improvise Better Melodies Using Scale & Chord Tones (Piano)
- How to Play the Ghostbusters Theme on Piano (Easy Tutorial)
- How to Play The Addams Family Theme on Piano
- How to Play the Halloween Theme on Piano (John Carpenter)
- Stop Struggling With “Thriller” on Piano (Michael Jackson, Hands-On Breakdown)
- All the Scary Chords & Progressions You Should Know (Steal This Dark Sound)
- Learn Old School Rock Piano With a Familiar Chord Pattern
- Rock 'n' Roll Piano Basics: Walking Bass Line & Blues Rock Groove
- How to Accompany a Singer, Choir or Band on Piano (or Yourself)
- How to Play Disco & Dance Piano: Left-Hand Bass + Syncopated Right Hand
- How to Connect ANY Musical Note With ANOTHER Using a Chord (ChordTrees)
- Ascending & Descending Scale Practice With 3 Slash Chords (Two-Hand Workout)
- One Minor Chord, Many Progressions on Piano (Pivot & Floating Notes)
- Hear Every Note in Any Chord & Inversion: Interval Ear Training for Piano
- Must-Know Chords for Writing in Minor Keys (Make Minor Progressions Sound Pro)
- Build Triads & 7th Chords on Piano Using the Simplest Intervals
- Practise Chords Using ALL Note Values Around the Circle of Fifths (Part 3)
- Minor Chords With Inversions Around the Circle of Fifths (Salsa Groove, Part 2)
- Make Chord Practice Fun With the Circle of Fifths (Part 1)
- Use SIMPLE Triads to Play COMPLEX Piano Chords: Jazz Extensions (Part 3)
- 2 Broken Chord Patterns You Can Use ANYWHERE (Both Hands, Piano)
- How to Use Simple Triads to Play COMPLEX Piano Chords (Modal Harmony Part 2)
- Customise Your Piano Arpeggios Using Accents (Make Any Pattern Yours)
- Use SIMPLE Triads to Play COMPLEX Piano Chords: 7th Chords (Part 1)
- Simple but Effective Piano Improvisation Using Chord Tones as Pillars
- Explore the Y-Axis of Music With ALL Intervals & Scales Using a Simple Chord Progression
- How to Play 9, 11 and 13 Chords on Piano (Extended Harmony)
- Conquer Major, Minor & Diminished Triads and Their Inversions on Piano
- How to Smoothly Shift Between 7th Chords on Piano (3 Easy Voicings)
- A Few Things You Might NOT Know About Dominant 7th Chords (Piano)
- A Simple Way to Practise & Improvise Thirds on ANY Scale (Piano)
- Whole Tone Scale Exercise: Accents, Time Signatures & 7#5/7b5 Chords
- Piano Arpeggios, Chord Inversions & Hand Independence in ONE Exercise
- Salsa Piano Workout for Both Hands: Tresillo Bass + Melody on Top
- Chaotic Piano Arpeggios: Make Any Chord Flow Over "What a Wonderful World"
- Ask Me Anything: Theory, Ear Training, Production & Piano Answered (Part 1)
- Play Piano Arpeggios With Character: Add Emotion & Dynamics
- Practice Piano Like Never Before: "Roadhouse Blues" With Cool Rhythmic Twists
- Form Any Scale From 3 Perspectives: Major, Natural Minor & Modal Family
- Endless Piano Improvisation From Just One Beat & Two Notes
- Do You Really Need Chord Inversions to Play Piano? (The Honest Answer)
- The Incredible World of Reggae Piano: Multiple Patterns to Nail the Groove
- 10 Things You Need to Know as a Music Producer
- Practise Any Piano Exercise You Know Across ALL Time Signatures
- How to Improvise on Piano Using Accented Phrases
- Advanced Piano Comping Patterns to Conquer Rhythm (Part 3)
- 5 Left-Hand Ballad Arpeggio Patterns for Beautiful Solo Piano
- Play 4 Genres on Piano: Reggae, Funk, Rock & Disco Grooves (Part 2)
- Add Passing Bass Movement Between Piano Chords Using Just 2 Triads
- Funky Dorian Piano Groove: Master the Off-Beats (Part 1)
- How to Practice Chord Inversions Using the Circle of 5ths (Piano)
- 5 Ways to Make a Basic Chord Progression Sound Beautiful
- What to Play BETWEEN Chords on Piano: Arpeggio Fillers for Accompaniment
- Laufey "From the Start": Intervallic Breakdown of Its Richer Chords (Piano)
- Simple but Beautiful Piano Arpeggios to Serve Any Melody
- How to Compose With the Dorian Mode: Brave, Epic Chord Progressions
- A Simple Method to Play Folk Music on Piano (5 Accompaniment Techniques)
- One Piano Exercise for Scales, Intervals & Chords (E Minor, Both Hands)
- Chords & Inversions on Piano: Surprising Facts Every Player Should Know
- The Two-Hand Piano Scale & Chord Exercise (Speed Up Your Practice)
- How to Play Slash Chords With Purpose on Piano (5 Pro Ways)
- How to Play “Auld Lang Syne” in 12 Keys & 12 Genres - Solo Piano Arrangement Tutorial
- How to Sing & Play "Go Tell It on the Mountain" (Christmas Piano Accompaniment)
- How to Play Christmas Songs in Blues Style on Piano (2 Easy Left-Hand Patterns)
- Play Feliz Navidad in 5 Genres on Piano (Flamenco, Reggae, Blues & More)
- How to Name EXTENDED Chords Correctly (Music Theory Part 2)
- How to Name All Those FANCY Chords (Complete Piano Theory)
- Practice Chord Inversions With Secondary Dominants for Richer Piano Harmony
- The 5 Pillars of Piano Accompaniment for ANY Genre
- Make Any Chord Flow: Tritone Inversions With Hybrid Arpeggio Patterns (Piano)
- Make One Piano Chord Sound Beautiful: Thirds, Cadences, Extensions & Voicings
- 5 Rock & Pop Piano Melodies to Train Both Hands
- Future-Proof Steps to Solo Piano Arrangements (Play Any Song on Your Own)
- The Ultimate Piano Workout to Speed Up Theory & Train Your Ear
- Do These 10 Things BEFORE Playing Chords for a Song on Piano
- How to Develop a Natural Instinct for Chords (Music Theory & Ear Training)
- 5 Useful Exercises to Practice a Chord With an Extra Note (Piano)
- 2 Techniques to Harmonize Any Melody on Piano (Chord Trees & Cadences)
- How to Survive ANY Song: Harmonise a Melody by Ear (What a Wonderful World)
- How to Transpose to Any Key, Scale, Mode & Chord Progression on Piano
- What a Wonderful World Piano: Jazz Arpeggios With Extensions & Slash Chords
- 26 Ear Training Exercises to Hear Chords Better on Piano
- Harmonic Ear Training: The Fastest Way to Hear Any Chord
- “It Is Well With My Soul” — Solo Piano Improvisation
- Piano Triads Beyond the Textbook: Slash Chords, Quartal & Quintal Voicings
- Arpeggios With Impact: Accent Beats to Groove in Any Time Signature (Piano)
- 3 Modern Piano Chord Voicings + Arpeggio Sets
- 5 Concepts You Must Know in 'Used to Be Young' by Miley Cyrus
- I Played "What a Wonderful World" in ALL 12 Keys (Solo Piano)
- Build Piano Hand Independence by SINGING (Timing Fix + Ear Training)
- Rock Piano Power Chords With Accents (Hand Independence Workout)
- 5 Things You Must Know About "Yellow" by Coldplay (Piano Breakdown)
- Country Piano Walk-Ups & Walk-Downs: Stepwise Fills With Grace & Ghost Notes
- Play ANY Chord Progression in Every Key Using the Smoothest Inversions
- Train Both Hands With a Simple Chord Progression & Bass Line (Piano)
- What Should You Listen For in a Piece of Music? (Ear Training)
- The Chord Progression Behind 100s of Songs (Pachelbel's Canon)
- Chic's "Good Times" on Piano: Nail the Ultimate Disco Groove (Both Hands)
- 5 Piano Chord Voicings That Instantly Sound Richer (Spread, Slash, Add9, 7ths & Quartal)
- Get Your 🎵 Groove On With This 🎸 Bass Guitar Tutorial For Day Tripper 🎶
- Summer of ’69 Riff on Piano + Hand Independence
- How to Play “Stand By Me” — Bass Guitar Tutorial
- How to Play "Day Tripper" by The Beatles on Piano (Iconic Riff + Accompaniment)
- 5 Comping Piano Rhythm Patterns for Any Situation
- Play the Bass Line of "Money" by Pink Floyd on Piano (That Famous 7/4 Riff)
- The Top 5 Michael Jackson Bass Lines on Piano (Play Them Like a Pro)
- How to Play "Another One Bites the Dust" on Piano Like a Pro (Queen)
- Stand By Me Piano Tutorial: The Bass Line + Chords in 5 Accompaniment Styles
- How to Turn a Simple Melody Into a Complete Song (Piano Composition)
- Relative vs Parallel Minor on Piano: Two Ways to Unlock New Moods
- Blackbird Piano Tutorial (The Beatles): Learn Every Section, Note for Note
- How to Compose Original Chord Progressions on Piano (Songwriting Theory)
- How to Accompany Yourself on Piano: Beginner to Advanced ("In My Life", Beatles)
- The Daily Piano Chord Exercise: Climbing Inversions With Many Rhythm Patterns
- Slash Chords vs Inversions on Piano: The Difference That Makes Chords Richer
- One Mammoth Lesson: Major Scales (All 12 Keys), Circle of Fifths & Chord Inversions
- How to Train Your Harmonic Ear by Singing (Piano Ear Training)
- How to Figure Out Any Song's Chords by Ear: 5 Ear Training Strategies
- Master Piano Rhythm: Beat Displacement, Anticipation & Rhythmic Subtraction
- How to Forge a Strong Bond Between Melody & Chords (Composition Theory)
- How to Play Melody With 5 Left-Hand Chord Accompaniment Techniques on Piano
- Piano Hand Independence: Melody in the Right, Chord Patterns in the Left
- How to Play "The Longest Time" by Billy Joel (Detailed Solo Piano Arrangement)
- 5 Methods to Compose Chord Progressions Without a Scale (Piano)
- 5 Piano Accompaniment Techniques for Beginners (Singers & Producers)
- How to Play "Pasoori" on Piano – Full Tutorial, All Sections
- 5 Piano Accompaniment Styles for Christmas Songs & Carols
- Deck the Halls Piano Workout: How to Transpose, Choose Chords & Rhythm Patterns
- How to Arrange ANY Song for Solo Piano (Beginner to Full Sound)
- 15 of the Most Popular Chord Progressions on Piano (Major, Minor & Modal)
- How to Compose Epic Cinematic Piano Chord Progressions (5 Techniques)
- 3 Old-School Country Piano Rhythms for Easy Accompaniment
- Make Your Solo Piano Sound Full: Arpeggio Accompaniment Secrets
- 5 Methods Used by the Pros to Completely Transform ANY Song
- 8 Proven Strategies to Master Piano Hand Independence
- 5 Ways to Make Your Piano Arpeggios Sound Melodic & Soulful
- Reharmonize What a Friend We Have in Jesus on Piano (with Elisha Zimbeva)
- Reharmonize Hallelujah 10 Ways on Piano: Secondary Dominants & Tritone Subs (Part 3)
- How to Reharmonize "Hallelujah" 10 Ways (Part 2): Plagal Cadence & Country Walk-Ups
- Play & Sing Hallelujah on Piano + Reharmonize It 10 Ways (Part 1)
- How to Harmonize a Single Note With ALL Possible Chords (Theory)
- Half-Diminished vs Fully Diminished 7th Chords on Piano (The "Secret" Chords)
- A Unique Piano Arpeggio Pattern Using Just 2 Notes
- Every Minor Scale on Piano and the Emotion It Unlocks (Natural, Harmonic, Melodic & More)
- Neo-Classical Piano Breakdown: The Richer Harmony Inside a Rick Beato Lick
- Why You Should Play 4-Note Triads on Piano (5 Powerful Reasons)
- The 12-Bar Blues Bassline Every Piano Left Hand Needs to Learn
- How to ACTUALLY Play "See You Again" - Charlie Puth (Piano Tutorial)
- How to Actually Play In The End on Piano (Linkin Park)
- Folk Piano Arpeggios Part 2: Tresillo, Accented, Bluegrass, Baila & Triplets
- Folk Piano Arpeggios With Melodic Embellishments (Part 1)
- How to Play Bless the Broken Road on Piano (Rascal Flatts Tutorial)
- How to ACTUALLY Play Bohemian Rhapsody on Piano (Queen Tutorial)
- How to Actually Play "Someone Like You" by Adele (Piano Tutorial)
- Bass Line + Melody in Thirds: Build Serious Piano Hand Independence
- How to ACTUALLY Play Clocks on Piano (Coldplay Tutorial)
- How to ACTUALLY Play Imagine on Piano (John Lennon Tutorial)
- How to Actually Play "A Thousand Miles" by Vanessa Carlton (Piano Tutorial)
- How to ACTUALLY Play Don't Stop Believin' on Piano (Journey Tutorial)
- Read a Piano Rhythm & Improvise: Syncopation, Arpeggios & Broken Chords
- Play Rock Piano With an Indian Fusion Lick (4-Part Piano Tutorial)
- How to Play Rock Piano: Glam Rock Riff + Arpeggio Rhythm Patterns
- How to Play Rock Piano: Arpeggios With Accents (4-Part Tutorial)
- How to Play Rock Piano: Bass Riff With Pulse Chords (4-Part Tutorial)
- The Suspended Chord on Piano: Add Tension & Release for Richer Songs
- Suspended vs Add Chords vs Extensions (9, 11, 13) on Piano
- My Ideal 60-Minute Piano Practice Routine (Creative + Technical)
- Master Chord Inversions, Rhythm & Hand Independence in ONE Piano Exercise
- How to Build Chords for Any Melody on Piano (Cadences & Music Theory)
- ONE Melody, UNLIMITED Chord Progressions on Piano (Steal These)
- Building Chords & Progressions From the Major Scale (Easy Piano Theory)
- How to Make Piano Chords Sound Better: 8 Embellishment Techniques (Part 2)
- How to Play Piano Chords That Sound Full and Pro
- The Dominant 7th Chord on Piano: Ear Training, Theory & Songwriting (Part 2)
- The Dominant 7th Chord on Piano: 10 Ways to Use It (Part 1)
- 5 of the Best Left-Hand Piano Accompaniment Patterns
- Drone & Pedal Tone Chords on Piano: 5 Songwriting Moves
- How to Compose a Better Piano Melody (Part 1)
- God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen: Easy & Advanced Christmas Piano Tutorial
- "We Three Kings" Piano Tutorial: A Festive Carol You Can Actually Play
- "We Wish You a Merry Christmas" Piano Tutorial (Easy & Advanced Arrangements)
- Can One Scale Be Both Major AND Minor? The Harmony Trick That Unlocks New Colours
- How to Play "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" on Piano (Easy & Advanced Swing Blues)
- How to Play "Joy to the World" on Piano (Easy Folk-Style Christmas Tutorial)
- How to Make I V vi IV Sound Way More Exciting on Piano (5 Methods + Bonus)
- 10 Instant Melody-Writing Strategies for Pianists & Producers
- Build Long, Emotional Piano Progressions With the Circle of Fifths (Cadences Explained)
- Piano Runs & Fills That Make You Sound Pro (Using Arpeggios)
- ChordTrees: Build Any Chord From Any Root on Piano
- Master Triads & Seventh Chords Using Intervals (Piano Theory)
- The Advanced Tresillo Piano Challenge (Hand Independence + Inversions)
- When I'm Sixty-Four (The Beatles): Solo Piano Tutorial
- Improvise Over 7th Chords Using Pentatonic Scales (The Chord-Scale Trick)
- 10 Types of Cadences Explained (Theory, Ear Training & Piano)
- 5 Things You Didn't Know About the Harmonic Minor Scale (Piano Theory)
- Play the Modes on Piano Using Just ONE Chord (Major & Minor)
- 5 Fancy Piano Chord Hacks to Transform a Simple Triad
- 9 Chord Patterns Over a 7/4 Melody: A Piano Hand Independence Workout
- My Favourite Slash Chords on Piano (Instant Mystery & Power)
- My Favourite Piano Chords: The Minor 6th (Mystery, Power & Emotion)
- My FAVOURITE Piano Chords - 7sus4 (7 Suspended 4)
- My FAVOURITE Piano Chords - Diminished 7th (Dim 7)
- My Favourite Piano Chord: The 7#9 “Jimi” Chord (Instant Edgy, Bluesy Colour)
- My FAVOURITE Piano Chords - 9sus4 (11th)
- My FAVOURITE Piano Chords - Augmented 7th (7#5)
- My Favourite “Phat” Cluster Chords on Piano (Richer, Fuller Harmony Instantly)
- My FAVOURITE Piano Chords - 7b9 (7 flat 9)
- My Favourite Piano Chord: The Minor Major 7th (Mystery & Power)
- How to Play Those 4 Chords with FEELING on Piano (1-5-6-4 Progression)
- How to Use Secondary Dominant Chords to Write Colorful Music
- 10 Rhythm Patterns That Make Chord Inversions Easy
- How to Play Do-Re-Mi on Piano (The Sound of Music — Easy Tutorial)
- Piano Modes Made Easy: Instant Moods & Colours
- Make a Full Chord Progression From Just ONE Chord on Piano (Major & Minor)
- 🎵 Master the Circle of Fifths: Music Theory Made Easy | Complete Guide & Practical Examples 🎹
- Piano Chord Dynamics: Turn a Flat Progression Into an Emotional Rollercoaster
- Iconic Melodic Phrases on Piano Using Chord Inversions (Instantly Richer Lines)
- Chord Progressions From the Harmonic Minor Scale: Music Theory (Live)
- How to Play Piano Chords With Real Passion (Dynamics & Groove)
- Explore a Brave New World With Epic Minor Chord Progressions (Piano)
- Colouring the Tonic Minor for a Hopeful, Open-Ended Sound (Minor Progression, Part 5)
- The Dominant Chord on Piano: Extensions, Voicing & Tensions (4 of 6)
- Advanced Piano Chords Over Minor Progressions: Suspended & Quartal (3 of 6)
- Chord Substitutions & Jazz Tensions for Minor Chord Progressions (Piano)
- How to Write Beautiful Minor Chord Progressions on Piano
- Groovy Latin Piano Over the 2-5-1 Jazz Progression (16th-Note Pattern)
- How to Voice the 2-5-1 Jazz Chord Progression on Piano
- The 2-5-1 Jazz Piano Chord Progression Explained
- Chord Progressions Piano: Write Epic Ones with the Circle of Fifths
- The Mixolydian Cadence: Steal This Bright, Bluesy Piano Progression (bVII–IV–I)
- The Plagal Cadence on Piano: The 'Amen' Move That Adds Instant Emotion
- How to Play Hey Jude on Piano (The Beatles): Chords, Melody & Rhythm
- The Best Blues Piano Patterns for Both Hands (Swing & Charleston)
- 12 Bar Blues Piano for Beginners (Sing & Play Along)
- Amazing Grace Piano Tutorial: Spread Voicing Chords + Melody (Solo Arrangement)
- The Floating Fifth Chord: Emotional Solo Piano Harmony With Minimal Movement
- Learn ALL 12 Major & Minor Piano Chords (Triads) Using Intervals, Shapes & Theory
- The Easiest Way to Make Piano Chords More Complex (Spread Voicing)
- Make the Simplest Piano Chord Sound Unique (Power Chord to Rich Harmony)
- How to Make Left-Hand Piano Chords Sound HUGE
- How to Practice Piano Chords the RIGHT Way (Theory, Technique & Ear)
- Play Silent Night on Piano - Beginner Christmas Tutorial ❄️🎹
- How to Change Piano Chords Smoothly (5 Fixes for Fumbling Hands)
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Learn how to improvise on piano with just two notes and two chords: D minor and A7, with the pillar notes D and A, from your first whole note to enclosures, trills and triplets. Beginner to intermediate, with Jason Zac. Pick two chords, D minor and A7, and keep them pumping in the left hand. Then take just two notes, D and A, and let them be the pillars your melody always comes back to. That is the whole idea: land on a pillar, and everything you play around it sounds like it belongs. We build it one level at a time. Level 0 is the pillar notes in whole notes, half notes and off the beat. Then one note below (the leading tone), one down and one up, trills (including a more Indian trill), repeated cells and swing triplets, runs that connect the two pillars, and finally enclosures. Near the end there is a taste of a blues minor colour over the same two chords, and a way to practise it so you can compose your own little pieces. Play along with the chapters below, pause the video, and try each level before moving on. The same plan works in any minor key once you move the two pillars. 🏫 Courses, Workshops or Private lessons ➡️ https://forms.gle/fsbhFKSgJbZ5xZEr8 ============================= 📹 Our Video Courses (Everything for Life Bundle) ➡️ https://learn-music.nathanielschool.com/ 🎹 Piano Courses & Private Lessons ➡️ https://piano.nathanielschool.com ============================= ▶️ Related Lessons 🎹 Simple but Effective Piano Improvisation Using Chord Tones as Pillars ➡️ https://youtu.be/xEqm46HKrBw 🎼 Compose & Improvise Better Melodies Using Scale & Chord Tones (Piano) ➡️ https://youtu.be/h2K0ZqkZViw 🎵 5 Things You Didn't Know About the Harmonic Minor Scale (Piano Theory) ➡️ https://youtu.be/i7dU99lBWAk ============================= 🎓 Learn Music with Nathaniel School of Music & Jason Zac ➡️ https://nathanielschool.com 📚 All our YouTube lessons (1000+) by skill level, topic & genre ➡️ https://free-music-lessons.nathanielschool.com ============================= 00:00 - The two-chord performance 01:06 - The left hand: D minor and A7 03:09 - Level 0: the pillar notes D and A 05:03 - Level 1: one below 07:14 - Level 2: one down, one up 08:09 - Level 3: trills 09:31 - Level 4: repeat it, then triplets 10:28 - Level 5: connect the pillars 12:30 - Level 6: enclosures 13:14 - More notes, and a blues minor colour 14:52 - Putting it all together 16:20 - How to practise this ============================= 💰 Donate on PayPal ➡️ https://geni.us/DonatePayPal 📸 Instagram ➡️ https://instagram.com/jasonzac 📞 Call +91 98454 65411 · 💬 WhatsApp chat +91 77604 56847 📧 Customised & Private Lessons ➡️ music@nathanielschool.com 🎧 Listen to Jason Zac Music ➡️ https://riffs.jasonzacmusic.com/ #PianoLessons #PianoTutorial #MusicTheory #PianoImprovisation
Piano inversion practice with just two chords, F# major and C# major (the I and the V), shifted on time through every inversion, then put through five rhythm patterns: three rhythms and two bonus seven-hit rhythms. Beginner to intermediate, with Jason Zac. We start with the theory: why F# major has six sharps, and why F# and C# are the I and the V, neighbours on the circle of fifths. Then the shift: keep the common note, C#, and move the other two notes to the nearest shape, so every inversion pairs with its partner. Fingering, floating the inversions up and down, and taking the same shift round the whole circle of fifths (and in fourths). The left hand has two jobs: a carbon copy of the right-hand inversion, or the root of each chord, with the octave for weight. Then articulation (staccato, legato, the pedal) and splitting the hands so one keeps the pulse. Then the rhythms. Rhythm pattern 1 has three hits (two F# and one C#, or one F# and two C#). Rhythm pattern 2 has five hits, split 3 + 2 or 2 + 3, never 4 + 1. Rhythm pattern 3 is in sixteenths. The two bonus rhythms have seven hits, in quavers and then in sixteenths. The piano is a drum here: keep the hands different, like a drum kit or a tabla. 👉 Try it now: tap the pulse on your knee and clap rhythm pattern 1 before you play it. Then make a rhythm of your own and tag me on Instagram. 🔔 Subscribe: new full lessons every Thursday and Saturday, 9:30 pm IST. 🏫 Courses, Workshops or Private lessons ➡️ https://forms.gle/fsbhFKSgJbZ5xZEr8 ============================= 📹 Our Video Courses (Everything for Life Bundle) ➡️ https://learn-music.nathanielschool.com/ 🎹 Piano Courses & Private Lessons ➡️ https://piano.nathanielschool.com ============================= ▶️ Related Lessons 🎹 10 Rhythm Patterns That Make Chord Inversions Easy ➡️ https://youtu.be/DjPqzQqe_NY 🎼 How to Practice Chord Inversions Using the Circle of 5ths (Piano) ➡️ https://youtu.be/VwgRQNBq2uU 🎵 Every Major & Minor Piano Chord in Root Position + 2 Inversions (Circle of Fifths Practice, Part 1) ➡️ https://youtu.be/SOfunteeDXU 🎹 How to Change Piano Chords Smoothly (5 Fixes for Fumbling Hands) ➡️ https://youtu.be/YzFQFfvbIAw ============================= 🎓 Learn Music with Nathaniel School of Music & Jason Zac ➡️ https://nathanielschool.com 📚 All our YouTube lessons (1000+) by skill level, topic & genre ➡️ https://free-music-lessons.nathanielschool.com 🎛 More free music apps ➡️ https://apps.nathanielschool.com ============================= 00:00 - Two chords, two hands 00:29 - F♯ major: six sharps 01:29 - The I and the V 03:12 - The shift — keep the common note 05:05 - Fingering 05:33 - The next inversion + the left hand 06:49 - Articulation and the pedal 07:49 - The last inversion — and float it 08:56 - Round the circle of fifths 10:52 - Pair the shapes 11:53 - Rhythm pattern 1 15:46 - Rhythm pattern 2 18:20 - Rhythm pattern 3 — 16ths 20:12 - Any root and its fifth 20:28 - Bonus 1: seven hits in quavers 21:37 - Bonus 2: seven hits in 16ths 22:20 - The piano is a drum 23:14 - Your practice plan ============================= 💰 Donate on PayPal ➡️ https://geni.us/DonatePayPal 📸 Instagram ➡️ https://instagram.com/jasonzac 📞 Call +91 98454 65411 · 💬 WhatsApp chat +91 77604 56847 📧 Customised & Private Lessons ➡️ music@nathanielschool.com 🎧 Listen to Jason Zac Music ➡️ https://riffs.jasonzacmusic.com/ #PianoLessons #PianoTutorial #MusicTheory #ChordInversions
How to end a song on piano: the long cadence is a five-chord ending — G, D/F♯, E7, A7sus4 and D — played under one held D, six beats round. Use it as the last bar of almost any song in D, and see three cadences hiding in it: plagal, perfect and secondary dominant. 🔓 Want to play this in every key, at your own speed? You start by hearing it, then build it. The right hand plays B, A, G♯, G, F♯ — that is 6, 5, ♯4, 4, 3 in D major — and the left hand follows underneath in thirds. Then the D on top comes in as eighth notes, and the chords appear by themselves: G, D over F♯, E7, A7sus4, back home to D. Then the theory. G is the subdominant, D/F♯ is an inverted tonic, E7 is a secondary dominant (a dominant chord from outside the key that resolves to its fifth) and A7sus4 pulls magnetically home. You hear plagal (IV–I), perfect or authentic (V–I) and the secondary dominant in one cycle, and why the held D is a different note in every chord: the 5th, the root, the ♭7, the sus4, the root again. You also sing the top line and the bass, which turns it into an ear-training exercise as well. Then the fun: anticipation, swing, bass movement, a trill, the left hand keeping the pulse, a blues-scale lick to fill the bar (with no pedal), the same exercise in D♭ major, and a small Bohemian Rhapsody twist with G♯°7 and Em7. 🏫 Courses, Workshops or Private lessons ➡️ https://forms.gle/fsbhFKSgJbZ5xZEr8 📹 Everything for Life Bundle ➡️ https://learn-music.nathanielschool.com/ 🎹 Piano Courses ➡️ https://piano.nathanielschool.com ▶ Related lessons • The Plagal Cadence on Piano: The 'Amen' Move That Adds Instant Emotion: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ioscYupDYko • Beyond V–I: 8 Piano Cadences That Change How Music Ends: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t9Zdkdxd_HY • How to Use Secondary Dominant Chords to Write Colorful Music: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Do-FwFW2Eag • Slash Chords on Piano: Turn Plain Triads Into Moving Progressions: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MjkwbSe5Xuc • Blues Scale Piano Workout: Major & Minor Blues Scales: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p46g4HXjtj0 • Free practice apps: https://apps.nathanielschool.com 🎓 https://nathanielschool.com 📚 All 1000+ lessons ➡️ https://learning-portal.nathanielschool.com ⏱ CHAPTERS 00:00 - The Long Cadence — play it first 00:27 - Welcome — what’s in this lesson 01:54 - An ending for any song 02:21 - Three cadences in one cycle 02:45 - One note that never moves: D 03:18 - Right hand: B A G♯ G F♯ 03:47 - Left hand: thirds underneath 04:44 - Ear training: sing the top and the bass 05:55 - Add the D on top — eighth notes in 6 06:55 - The D in the left hand too 07:16 - Name the chords: G · D/F♯ · E7 · A7sus4 · D 07:58 - What each chord does 09:18 - Tension and resolution 09:30 - The D plays a different role in every chord 09:58 - Basic rhythm done — now have fun 10:13 - Don’t play the D too loudly 10:52 - Bass movement and swing 11:17 - Anticipation: 1 e & a 11:53 - Left hand keeps the pulse 12:58 - Add a trill 14:15 - Bass walk: F♯ G G♯ A in thirds 15:26 - Sixteenth-note feel 15:54 - The D on top — thicken it up 16:27 - More options: the ♭7, plain diatonic 17:13 - Left hand follows like a hawk 17:54 - Your spice — or the old faithful 18:07 - All 12 keys — try D♭ major 19:21 - Fill the bar: D major blues licks 21:19 - No pedal on the licks 21:42 - The Bohemian Rhapsody twist 22:21 - Practice app · subscribe · see you next time 💛 PayPal: https://geni.us/DonatePayPal 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jasonzac 💬 WhatsApp: +91 77604 56847 📧 music@nathanielschool.com #PianoLessons #PianoTutorial #MusicTheory #PianoCadence
Circle of fifths piano practice, rhythm workout: play every major and minor chord around the whole circle, in every inversion, with arpeggios, the tresillo and the son clave. Piano lesson with Jason Zac of Nathaniel School of Music. This is Part 2. Part 1 gave you the shape of every chord in root position, first inversion and second inversion. Now the rhythm comes in, and your two hands start sharing the beat. First, one chord through its inversions while the left hand holds a root or plays a pattern of its own: 1 hit against 4, 2 against 4, 3+1, 1+3, and only beats 2 and 4. Then three broken-chord orders: low-middle-high-middle, high-middle-low-middle and high-low-middle-low. Then the tresillo over a left-hand root and stride, so you have to find the root and the inversion at speed. After that, the journeys: the same shape from chord to chord (white-black-white, black-white-black), then the whole circle of fifths and the whole circle of fourths. The last two rhythms are a first-inversion circle with the modified tresillo and a second-inversion circle with the son clave over a stride. 🏫 Courses, Workshops or Private lessons ➡️ https://forms.gle/fsbhFKSgJbZ5xZEr8 📹 Everything for Life Bundle ➡️ https://learn-music.nathanielschool.com/ 🎹 Piano Courses ➡️ https://piano.nathanielschool.com ▶️ Related lessons & playlists Part 1: every major and minor chord in root position + 2 inversions ➡️ https://youtu.be/SOfunteeDXU Circle of Fifths (playlist) ➡️ https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT-FzWCgbLnhEXKrulYDxLQJ Triads That Move: Piano Rhythm Workout With Swing, Tresillo & Clave ➡️ https://youtu.be/CNsXfo9D9RE The Tresillo: Pop's Most-Used Piano Rhythm, Explained ➡️ https://youtu.be/knJebrulzRI 10 Rhythm Patterns That Make Chord Inversions Easy ➡️ https://youtu.be/DjPqzQqe_NY 🎡 Free Fifth Harmony circle of fifths app (24 modes, including the piano mode) ➡️ https://circle-of-fifths.nathanielschool.com 🎓 https://nathanielschool.com 📚 Free tutorials library ➡️ https://free-music-lessons.nathanielschool.com ⏱️ Chapters 00:00 - Intro 01:18 - One chord through its inversions 03:47 - Hand ratios: 1:4, 2:4, 3+1 06:04 - Arpeggios: three patterns 08:23 - Tresillo with stride 11:11 - Same-shape journeys 14:45 - The whole circle in fourths and fifths 16:47 - First inversion + modified tresillo 18:29 - Second inversion + son clave 20:17 - Wrap-up 💰 PayPal ➡️ https://geni.us/DonatePayPal 📸 Instagram ➡️ https://instagram.com/jasonzac 💬 WhatsApp ➡️ +91 77604 56847 ✉️ music@nathanielschool.com #PianoLessons #PianoTutorial #MusicTheory #PianoRhythm
Every seventh and ninth chord from one idea: keep the root in the left hand, go up a major or minor third, and play a triad or a seventh chord on top. Piano lesson with Jason Zac of Nathaniel School of Music. Major 7th = a minor triad a major third up (B minor over G). Dominant 7th = a diminished triad a major third up — and the whole blues (G7, C7, D7). Minor 7th = a major triad a minor third up. Then minor-major 7th, augmented, half-diminished and diminished. Ninths: a seventh chord a third up (B minor 7 over G = Gmaj9, B♭maj7 over G = Gm9). Dominant colours: G9, G7♭9, G7♯9. Beyond thirds: G6/9 and G13 from fourths. 🏫 Courses, Workshops or Private lessons ➡️ https://forms.gle/fsbhFKSgJbZ5xZEr8 📹 Everything for Life Bundle ➡️ https://learn-music.nathanielschool.com/ 🎹 Piano Courses ➡️ https://piano.nathanielschool.com ▶️ Related lessons Use SIMPLE Triads to Play COMPLEX Piano Chords: Jazz Extensions ➡️ https://youtu.be/sd7i44NVY3c Use SIMPLE Triads to Play COMPLEX Piano Chords: 7th Chords ➡️ https://youtu.be/1G6uZ0QRKN0 How to Play 9, 11 and 13 Chords on Piano ➡️ https://youtu.be/cX3wMi2jIA0 Quartal Voicings on Piano ➡️ https://youtu.be/S-_VtUP-Frc 🎓 https://nathanielschool.com 📚 Free tutorials library ➡️ https://free-music-lessons.nathanielschool.com ⏱️ Chapters 00:00 Opening performance 02:09 Major 7th 06:07 Dominant 7th 07:17 The blues ecosystem 09:21 Minor 7th 11:10 Minor-major 7th and augmented 11:51 Half-diminished and diminished 13:16 Ninths 14:23 Minor 9 and minor 11 15:24 Dominant colours 16:30 Beyond thirds - 4ths 18:09 The recipe 💰 PayPal ➡️ https://geni.us/DonatePayPal 📸 Instagram ➡️ https://instagram.com/jasonzac 💬 WhatsApp ➡️ +91 77604 56847 ✉️ music@nathanielschool.com #PianoLessons #PianoTutorial #MusicTheory #JazzPiano
Circle of fifths piano practice: learn every major and minor chord by its shape, in root position, first inversion and second inversion, with Jason Zac of Nathaniel School of Music. There are 24 piano chords, but they fall into just four hand shapes. The circle of fifths shows you which chords share a shape, so you learn them in groups instead of one at a time. In this lesson you go round the groups one by one: the all-white chords (C, F, G and their relative minors Dm, Am, Em), white-black-white (A, D, E and Cm, Fm, Gm), black-white-black (A♭, D♭, E♭ and C#m, F#m, G#m) and the six unique chords (F#, B, B♭ and E♭m, Bm, B♭m). Each group is played in root position first, with the root in the left hand and a rhythm of three short notes and one held note. Then every group again in first inversion (root on top) and second inversion (root in the middle), with the fingering I use for each shape. D and E in second inversion, for example, sit under the same hand. This is practice for your hands, not a theory talk. For the theory of the major and minor shapes, watch the lesson linked below first. Part 2 takes the same chords around the whole circle with arpeggios, the tresillo and the son clave. 🏫 Courses, Workshops or Private lessons ➡️ https://forms.gle/fsbhFKSgJbZ5xZEr8 📹 Everything for Life Bundle ➡️ https://learn-music.nathanielschool.com/ 🎹 Piano Courses ➡️ https://piano.nathanielschool.com ▶️ Related lessons & playlists Circle of Fifths (playlist) ➡️ https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT-FzWCgbLnhEXKrulYDxLQJ Learn ALL 12 Major & Minor Piano Chords (Triads) Using Intervals, Shapes & Theory ➡️ https://youtu.be/PAEz0Y82P1s How to Practice Chord Inversions Using the Circle of 5ths ➡️ https://youtu.be/VwgRQNBq2uU Make Chord Practice Fun With the Circle of Fifths (Part 1) ➡️ https://youtu.be/pu4mLLdZtYg 🎡 Free Fifth Harmony circle of fifths app (24 modes, including the piano mode) ➡️ https://circle-of-fifths.nathanielschool.com 🎓 https://nathanielschool.com 📚 Free tutorials library ➡️ https://free-music-lessons.nathanielschool.com ⏱️ Chapters 00:00 - Performance 00:10 - Intro 01:37 - Circle of fifths recap 06:31 - All-white major chords: C, F, G 08:57 - Relative minors: Am, Dm, Em 10:24 - White-black-white: A, D, E and Cm, Fm, Gm 12:09 - Black-white-black: Ab, Db, Eb and C#m, F#m, G#m 14:07 - The exclusive six: F#, B, Bb + Ebm, Bm, Bbm 16:31 - First inversion: root on top 21:39 - Second inversion: root in the middle 25:50 - Wrap-up and what’s next 💰 PayPal ➡️ https://geni.us/DonatePayPal 📸 Instagram ➡️ https://instagram.com/jasonzac 💬 WhatsApp ➡️ +91 77604 56847 ✉️ music@nathanielschool.com #PianoLessons #PianoTutorial #MusicTheory #CircleOfFifths
Play the chord and the melody with one hand: hold a triad, move only the top note a step above or a half step below, and come home. Piano lesson with Jason Zac of Nathaniel School of Music. We start on G major. The top note of a chord is the one the ear follows, so it becomes the melody. Step above in the scale, or slip a half step below — the half step below is a leading tone and pulls you back in; the half step above borrows the flat 6 from G minor and changes the colour. Then every inversion, both neighbours together, what the left hand does, a real song (London Bridge), all seven chords of G major, and rhythm in quavers, triplets and semiquavers. 🌳 Chord Trees (free) — melodies over any chords, with neighbour, enclosure and chromatic-approach ideas ➡️ https://chord-trees.nathanielschool.com/melody 🏫 Courses, Workshops or Private lessons ➡️ https://forms.gle/fsbhFKSgJbZ5xZEr8 📹 Everything for Life Bundle ➡️ https://learn-music.nathanielschool.com/ 🎹 Piano Courses ➡️ https://piano.nathanielschool.com ▶️ Related lessons Play Melody AND Chords in ONE Hand ➡️ https://youtu.be/uPi_uX1Y8GM How to Write a Melody on Piano Using Chord Tones ➡️ https://youtu.be/M6iwapB1iuA Compose & Improvise Better Melodies Using Scale & Chord Tones ➡️ https://youtu.be/h2K0ZqkZViw Iconic Melodic Phrases on Piano Using Chord Inversions ➡️ https://youtu.be/ws36zlXGmJQ 🎓 https://nathanielschool.com 📚 Free tutorials library ➡️ https://free-music-lessons.nathanielschool.com ⏱️ Chapters 00:00 Neighbour notes on one chord 00:27 Two jobs in one hand 01:00 The top note leads the melody 02:05 Upstairs and downstairs 03:35 G major and its three shapes 04:38 One step up: Pa Dha Pa 05:08 One step down, and the chromatic pull 06:19 First inversion: Sa Ni Sa 06:52 Second inversion 07:15 Both neighbours, with a groove 08:17 What the left hand does 08:47 Up and down in one figure 09:28 Real songs: London Bridge 09:47 Writing melodies that land on chord tones 10:23 Chord Trees: melodies over any chords 11:19 The seven chords of G major 12:28 Every chord in every inversion 13:13 The full drill on all seven chords 14:13 Rhythm in quavers 15:46 Rhythm in triplets 16:48 Rhythm in semiquavers 17:20 Practice material and wrap-up 💰 PayPal ➡️ https://geni.us/DonatePayPal 📸 Instagram ➡️ https://instagram.com/jasonzac 💬 WhatsApp ➡️ +91 77604 56847 ✉️ music@nathanielschool.com #PianoLessons #PianoTutorial #MusicTheory #PassingTones
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Piano inversion practice made musical: three drills to change any major or minor chord on time, with Jason Zac of Nathaniel School of Music. There are just 12 major and 12 minor chords. Master shifting between them with inversions and your creative brain is free for rhythm, melody and improvisation. In this lesson you learn three ways to shift chords — on time, and musically. Method 1 · The chord tree: take one note (F) and play the six major and minor chords that contain it — F, B♭, D♭, D minor, B♭ minor, F minor — with F on the bottom, in the middle and on top. Then go from four beats a chord to two, to one; sing the roots; hit and jump; and finally play with your eyes closed. Method 2 · Cadences: toggle 1 and 5 (the authentic, or perfect, cadence) and 1 and 4 (the plagal, or Amen, cadence) in C — major to major, major to minor, minor to minor and minor to major. Method 3 · Intervals: from C, go up an interval and back, then down the same interval and back — minor 2nd to major 7th, plus the tritone — keeping the notes the two chords share. 🏫 Courses, Workshops or Private lessons ➡️ https://forms.gle/fsbhFKSgJbZ5xZEr8 📹 Everything for Life Bundle ➡️ https://learn-music.nathanielschool.com/ 🎹 Piano Courses ➡️ https://piano.nathanielschool.com ▶️ Related lessons & playlists Piano Chord Voicings & Inversions (playlist) ➡️ https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT9ygtrGwGFmfyvMyGWH52EC Learn All 72 Piano Chord Inversions With ONE Exercise ➡️ https://youtu.be/w1SwhiI__Mo Find Every Chord That Fits Any Melody Note ➡️ https://youtu.be/JDkJp2Y0n48 10 Rhythm Patterns That Make Chord Inversions Easy ➡️ https://youtu.be/DjPqzQqe_NY 🌳 Free Chord Trees app ➡️ https://chord-trees.nathanielschool.com 🎓 https://nathanielschool.com 📚 Free tutorials library — search "inversions" ➡️ https://free-music-lessons.nathanielschool.com ⏱️ Chapters 00:00 Performance 00:11 Three ways to shift chords on time 02:27 Method 1: The chord tree — one note, six chords 04:43 F on the bottom — all six chords 07:03 F in the middle — 4, 2, then 1 beat 08:09 Sing the roots 08:45 F on top 09:10 Level up: pedal, hit and jump, eyes closed 11:20 Method 2: Cadences — authentic and plagal 14:34 Method 3: Intervals up and down 17:02 Thirds — the note that stays 19:12 Perfect 4th, 5th and the tritone 20:08 The flips — 5ths, 6ths and 7ths 21:26 Recap — three ways to master chord changes 💰 PayPal ➡️ https://geni.us/DonatePayPal 📸 Instagram ➡️ https://instagram.com/jasonzac 💬 WhatsApp ➡️ +91 77604 56847 ✉️ music@nathanielschool.com #PianoLessons #PianoTutorial #MusicTheory #ChordInversions
Learn Dolly Parton's Here You Come Again on piano — the intro riff, the bass line, every chord, and both key changes, from F# to G to Ab. This sounds like a simple pop song. It isn't. Most of the chords are sevenths, ninths and elevenths, and the whole song goes up a semitone — twice. So if you want to learn 2-5-1 progressions, slash chords and modulation from one song, this is a good one. We start with the intro riff. Your right hand holds an F# major chord and the thumb walks down — F#, F, Eb. Underneath, the left hand plays octaves: F#, Ab, Bb, B. The Ab isn't a chord. It's just the step that gets you to the Bb. The verse uses the same chords without the passing notes, then moves to Ebm7 and Abm7 — with the 7th in the bass — and two climbs over C#. The chorus is a 2-5-1 in A: Bm7, D/E, Amaj7, then G/A, the gospel 11th. Look at Bm7 and D/E. Your right hand doesn't move a single finger. Only the bass steps from B to E. That's the slash-chord rule — what's on the left of the slash goes in your right hand, the note on the right goes in your left. So Bm7 is really just D major over B. Then the song goes up to G, and up again to Ab for the outro. Nothing new to learn — the same shapes, a semitone higher. The one thing to watch: in G, the chorus starts on C minor instead of B minor. And if the licks aren't coming yet, just play through the chords. Here You Come Again was written by Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil, and recorded by Dolly Parton in 1977. 🏫 Courses, Workshops or Private lessons ➡️ https://forms.gle/fsbhFKSgJbZ5xZEr8 📹 Everything for Life Bundle ➡️ https://learn-music.nathanielschool.com/ 🎹 Piano Courses ➡️ https://piano.nathanielschool.com 📺 RELATED LESSONS How to Play Slash Chords With Purpose on Piano (5 Pro Ways) ➡️ https://youtu.be/4LtOItbMiW0 Slash Chords vs Inversions on Piano ➡️ https://youtu.be/UhO-cWQLC-k Use SIMPLE Triads to Play COMPLEX Piano Chords: 7th Chords (Part 1) ➡️ https://youtu.be/1G6uZ0QRKN0 The 2-5-1 Jazz Piano Chord Progression Explained ➡️ https://youtu.be/SAOjr5ejxbs How to Read Chord Charts Like a Pro Musician ➡️ https://youtu.be/4qHUtgJ7XoE 🎓 https://nathanielschool.com 📚 All 1000+ free lessons ➡️ https://free-music-lessons.nathanielschool.com ⏱ CHAPTERS 00:00 - Here You Come Again — performance 00:52 - Why this song: Dolly Parton’s scale changes 02:43 - F# major: six sharps, and one is E# 02:56 - The intro chord: F#, F#maj7/Bb, Bmaj9 03:35 - The intro in three levels 04:56 - Octaves: hold the hand like a divider 05:28 - The bass lick: C#, Eb, Ab, Eb, F# 06:32 - The whole intro, slowly 07:11 - The verse 07:43 - Ebm7, Abm7 and the lick 08:11 - B over C# and the first climb 09:08 - Verse 2 and the second climb 10:04 - The chorus: a 2-5-1 into A 11:14 - Into E major: slash chords galore 11:54 - F#7, A over B, and the whole chorus 12:34 - Up to G: the guitar part 13:38 - Em7, Am7 and C over D 14:03 - The guitar solo on piano 14:58 - The chorus in G 15:47 - C over Bb into Ab: the outro 16:54 - Wrap-up 💛 Support these free lessons (PayPal) ➡️ https://geni.us/DonatePayPal 📸 Instagram ➡️ https://instagram.com/jasonzac 💬 WhatsApp ➡️ +91 77604 56847 · https://wa.me/917760456847 📧 music@nathanielschool.com #PianoLessons #PianoTutorial #MusicTheory #DollyParton
Tritone substitution explained on the piano: one two-note shell voicing plays two dominant seventh chords. Keep F♯ and C in your right hand, move only the bass from D to A♭, and D7 becomes A♭7 — the jazz chord substitution behind countless ii–V–I progressions. In this lesson you start with a ii–V–I in C and hear what happens when D♭7 takes the place of G7. Then you build the shell voicing on D7 — the root and 5th in the left hand, the 3rd and ♭7 in the right — and see why those two notes are a tritone apart, whichever way round you play them. That is the whole trick: keep the same shell, change the bass, and the 3rd and ♭7 simply swap jobs. You practise it with a Charleston rhythm (then displaced), learn why it works for dominant 7th chords, and walk through all six shapes that cover the twelve dominants — with a tip for bass players on using the tritone as an ornament. To finish, you play the ii–V–I in G with A♭7 in place of D7. 🎹 Practise the tritone sub free in the Jazz Harmony Lab: https://jazz.nathanielschool.com/#tritone-sub 🏫 Courses, Workshops or Private lessons ➡️ https://forms.gle/fsbhFKSgJbZ5xZEr8 📹 Everything for Life Bundle ➡️ https://learn-music.nathanielschool.com/ 🎹 Piano Courses ➡️ https://piano.nathanielschool.com ▶ Related lessons • Shell Voicings on Piano: Why C7 and F#7 Are the Same Two Keys: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JxnZBXL-1PA • Jazz Piano Chords: The Voicing Exercise That Teaches Every 7th Chord and Its Tritone Sub: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sHLV3iA-56s • Reharmonize Hallelujah on Piano: Secondary Dominants & Tritone Subs (Part 3): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pLWdZDcQugs • Beyond V–I: 8 Piano Cadences That Change How Music Ends: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t9Zdkdxd_HY • Free practice apps: https://apps.nathanielschool.com 🎓 https://nathanielschool.com 📚 All 1000+ lessons ➡️ https://learning-portal.nathanielschool.com ⏱ CHAPTERS 00:00 - What is tritone substitution? One shape, two dominant chords 01:30 - The ii–V–I in C, and the D♭7 swap 02:24 - Shell voicings: building D7 03:25 - The 3rd and ♭7 are a tritone 03:44 - Same shell, new bass: D7 becomes A♭7 04:43 - The tritone workout: the Charleston rhythm 05:25 - Why it works: the 3rd and ♭7 swap jobs 05:58 - Six shapes for all twelve dominant chords 07:43 - The ii–V–I in G with the tritone sub 08:49 - More lessons: modulation and reharmonisation 09:25 - Recap 💛 PayPal: https://geni.us/DonatePayPal 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jasonzac 💬 WhatsApp: +91 77604 56847 📧 music@nathanielschool.com #PianoLessons #PianoTutorial #MusicTheory #JazzChords
How to play piano fills between chords — octave licks over modern pop voicings, in one two-bar exercise you can take to any key. Three rich chords in the right hand — Dmaj9, F♯m7(11) and E(add4) in A major — octaves in the left, and two beats at the end of the loop for a fill in octaves. You'll learn four octave licks, a triplet fill and a semiquaver fill, B minor as a filler chord, a second F♯ minor shape, and a voicing template that moves the whole exercise to A♭ major and any other key. 🏫 Courses, Workshops or Private lessons ➡️ https://forms.gle/fsbhFKSgJbZ5xZEr8 📹 Our Video Courses (Everything for Life Bundle) ➡️ https://learn-music.nathanielschool.com/ 🎹 Piano Courses & Private Lessons ➡️ https://piano.nathanielschool.com 🎛️ FREE PRACTICE TOOLS — no signup Runway — build fills, licks and runs over a chord ➡️ https://runway.nathanielschool.com Metronome with swing, triplets and semiquavers ➡️ https://metronome.nathanielschool.com ▶️ Related Lessons 🎹 Stop Playing 1-5-8 In Your Left Hand (Pop Piano) ➡️ https://youtu.be/XWGhJMxhcE4 🎹 5 Fancy Piano Chord Hacks to Transform a Simple Triad ➡️ https://youtu.be/qTkiqeE2jw0 🎓 Learn Music with Nathaniel School of Music & Jason Zac ➡️ https://nathanielschool.com 📚 All our YouTube lessons (1000+) by skill level, topic & genre ➡️ https://learning-portal.nathanielschool.com 🆓 Free tutorials website — every lesson sorted by topic and level ➡️ https://free-music-lessons.nathanielschool.com ⏱️ Chapters 00:00 Performance: modern pop voicings with octave fills 01:14 Welcome: a full workout — voicings, octaves, time feels 03:05 The chords in A major: D, F♯m, E 04:10 Left hand: the root and the octave 04:43 The E chord is a placeholder for the filler 05:23 Swap in B minor: a ii–V to E 05:40 Right hand: Dmaj9 voicing (5 7 9 3) 06:04 F♯m7(11): A B E A under one thumb 07:04 E(add4): A B E G♯ 08:31 Bm7 as a filler chord on beat 3 09:15 Ghost notes and swing in the left hand 10:13 The simple three-note version 11:22 Octave fills: Lick 1 (A B A E → F♯) 12:18 Lick 2 and Lick 3, with the pedal 13:30 Recovery: land back on beat 1 14:08 The new lick 14:23 Dotted notes, triplets and semiquavers 15:45 Lick 4: A B C♯ G♯ → F♯ 15:57 Put it all together 16:27 Recap and the alternate F♯m shape 17:31 Play the whole etude again 18:29 Voicing templates: key numbers vs chord numbers 20:14 Transpose to A♭ major 21:07 A♭ improvisation with octave fills 21:43 Practice it in all 12 keys 💰 Donate on PayPal ➡️ https://geni.us/DonatePayPal 📸 Instagram ➡️ https://instagram.com/jasonzac · the school ➡️ https://instagram.com/nathanielschool 📞 Call +91 98454 65411 · 💬 WhatsApp chat +91 77604 56847 📧 Customised & Private Lessons ➡️ music@nathanielschool.com #PianoLessons #PianoTutorial #MusicTheory #PianoFills
Learn how to play blues piano with just two notes in your right hand — shell voicings, the Charleston rhythm and both blues scales over a 12-bar blues in E, with Jason Zac of Nathaniel School of Music. 🎹 A dominant seventh chord has four notes, and you only need two of them. Keep the third and the flat seventh — the two notes that make it a dominant — and throw the root and the fifth away. Your left hand covers the root anyway, and as Jason puts it, the fifth "isn't adding that much unique harmonic flavour" in the right hand, so give it to the left and it widens the whole thing out. That pair is a shell voicing, and it is what blues and jazz pianists have always actually played. We start on C7 — E and B flat — and then take it to E for the rest of the lesson. E7 is D and G sharp. A7 is C sharp and G. B7 is D sharp and A. Every one of those is a tritone, and here is the part nobody tells you: a tritone is its own inversion. Turn a perfect fourth upside down and you get a fifth; turn a major third upside down and you get a minor sixth; turn a tritone upside down and you get another tritone. That is why 3–♭7 and ♭7–3 are the same shape, and why your hand barely moves all the way round a blues. Then the rhythm. The Charleston is two hits, swung, and there is a displaced version that starts late and lands on the three. Combine them — Jason's own preference is the displaced one first, then the normal one, which is everywhere in rock and roll. Left hand keeps a steady root and fifth underneath. And the gap the Charleston leaves is not empty space: it is where your solo goes. For the solo, two scales, and both are simpler than they sound. The major blues is just the major pentatonic with a flat third added. The minor blues is the minor pentatonic with the blue note. Then three licks: E B D E, the longer B D B B flat A G that fits over B7, A7 and E7 without changing a note, and the A–B flat–B turnaround — the four, the tritone and the five — that sends you round again. Finish with what Jason calls "some masala": slide the whole tritone voicing down chromatically. Do that from B7 and you land on E7, then A7 — because the three chords of an E blues sit on three touching pairs of keys. 🏫 Courses, Workshops or Private lessons ➡️ https://forms.gle/fsbhFKSgJbZ5xZEr8 📹 Everything for Life Bundle ➡️ https://learn-music.nathanielschool.com/ 🎹 Piano Courses ➡️ https://piano.nathanielschool.com ▶️ RELATED LESSONS One Left Hand Pattern. Both Blues Scales. ➡️ https://youtu.be/DNod4Pke5gE Blues Scale Piano Workout: Major & Minor Blues Scales ➡️ https://youtu.be/p46g4HXjtj0 10 Piano Exercises on ONE Chord (E7) ➡️ https://youtu.be/22fTJTAE9WI The 12-Bar Blues Bassline Every Piano Left Hand Needs ➡️ https://youtu.be/u8dWiosMZd4 The Best Blues Piano Patterns for Both Hands ➡️ https://youtu.be/0lWwA6Kr9Mc 🎛️ FREE PRACTICE TOOLS Metronome with swing + a Charleston mode ➡️ https://metronome.nathanielschool.com Jazz Lab — play the form back at yourself ➡️ https://jazz.nathanielschool.com 🎓 https://nathanielschool.com 📚 All 1000+ lessons ➡️ https://learning-portal.nathanielschool.com 🆓 Free tutorials website — every lesson sorted by topic and level ➡️ https://free-music-lessons.nathanielschool.com ⏱️ CHAPTERS 00:00 - Performance 00:27 - Lesson Preview: Blues Shell Improvisation 🎹 01:12 - Building C7 from 3 and b7 01:45 - Inverting the Shell: b7 and 3 01:55 - Expanding Shells with Chord Colours 02:18 - Creating Space for Right-Hand Improvisation 02:59 - The Left-Hand Root–Fifth Pattern 04:40 - Setting Up the 12-Bar Blues in E 06:55 - Shell Voicings in Both Inversions E7, A7 & B7 08:39 - Introducing the Charleston Rhythm 🥁 09:42 - The Displaced Charleston Pattern 10:18 - Combining Both Charleston Variations 11:50 - Passing, Walking and Ghost Bass Notes 12:22 - Using Rhythmic Gaps for Improvisation 12:33 - Lick 1: E–B–D–E 13:41 - Composing Licks from Blues Scales 15:12 - Lick 2: Sliding into B 15:58 - Turnaround Lick over B7–A7–E7 17:32 - Transposing the Pattern to Other Keys 17:55 - Lesson Recap: Shells, Rhythm and Licks 19:00 - Adding a Chromatic Downward Slide 19:40 - Final Practice Suggestions 💛 Support ➡️ https://geni.us/DonatePayPal 📸 Instagram ➡️ https://instagram.com/jasonzac 💬 WhatsApp ➡️ +91 77604 56847 ✉️ music@nathanielschool.com 🎧 Riffs ➡️ https://riffs.jasonzacmusic.com/ #PianoLessons #PianoTutorial #MusicTheory #BluesPiano
Piano left hand patterns that actually sound modern — swap the root-5-octave for 9ths and 10ths, and put two cluster shapes in the right hand. Full play-along lesson in E flat major. There's an app with playback so you can keep practising long after the video is over — you don't need to come back to this video at all. When students send me demo or audition material for the intermediate courses at our school, the left hand is almost always the same thing: root, five, octave. It's a decent pattern. It grooves. But it adds no harmonic flavour, because you're still just playing one, five and one. So in this lesson we fix exactly that. The left hand moves to open 9th voicings — a perfect fifth, then another perfect fifth, with no third in it at all — on A flat, B flat and C minor. Then the chord you land on takes a 10th instead: G minor, or E flat major if you want a happier ending. In the right hand there are two shapes, and each one grows from three notes to four to five. Shape one is D, E flat, B flat. Shape two is F, B flat, D. Over an A flat chord those notes become the 13th, the 9th and the sharp 11 — which is where the colour comes from. We cover the pedal, the dynamics, and how to count the semiquavers. 🎹 LEARN WITH US — https://nathanielschool.com Online piano and music theory, beginner to advanced. 📚 EVERYTHING FOR LIFE — https://learn-music.nathanielschool.com Our full video course bundle. 🆓 A THOUSAND FREE LESSONS — https://free-music-lessons.nathanielschool.com Sorted by topic, so you can go straight to what you're stuck on. CHAPTERS 00:00 - Performance 00:32 - Introduction & Soulful Pop Piano Preview 🎹 00:58 - Why Lower-Register Chords Sound Muddy 02:07 - Moving Beyond Root-Fifth-Octave 02:46 - Setting Up the Key of E Flat Major 03:40 - E Flat Major and Its Relative Minor 04:53 - Left-Hand Open Ninth Voicings 05:59 - The Four-Chord Progression 07:33 - Alternating G Minor and E Flat Major 08:04 - Pedalling Across Wide Intervals 🦶 08:36 - Reviewing the Left-Hand Progression 08:49 - Arpeggiating Right-Hand Shape 1 09:51 - Semiquavers Against Left-Hand Gaps 10:40 - Exploring Right-Hand Shape 2 11:34 - Using Dynamics to Shape Arpeggios 12:13 - Adding C to Shape 1 13:27 - Adding E Flat to Shape 2 14:15 - Alternative Four-Note Combinations 14:46 - Adding F or G to the Middle Voice 15:32 - Copying the Root at the Octave ☕ SUPPORT — https://www.paypal.me/jasonzac 📸 INSTAGRAM — https://www.instagram.com/nathanielschoolofmusic 💬 WHATSAPP — +91 96323 33288 ✉️ music@nathanielschool.com #LeftHandPiano #PopPiano #PianoVoicings
Full lesson: https://youtu.be/w1SwhiI__Mo Every major and minor chord, every inversion — 72 shapes — from one note. Keep D where it is, play the six chords that contain it (bottom, top, middle), then do the same on its tritone, A♭. Not one chord repeats. 36 of the 72 already, and the rest gets exponentially easier. 🌳 Chord Trees — every chord that has your note in it, free: https://chord-trees.nathanielschool.com 🎹 LEARN WITH US — live online lessons, Bangalore centres: https://nathanielschool.com 🛠 25+ free practice tools: https://apps.nathanielschool.com 💛 Support: https://geni.us/DonatePayPal · UPI jasonzac-1@okhdfcbank 📩 WhatsApp https://wa.me/917760456847 · Instagram https://instagram.com/jasonzac #Shorts #PianoChords #ChordInversions #PianoLessons #MusicTheory
The third and the seventh are all you need. In this jazz piano tutorial we build the shell voicing for a dominant 7th chord, discover that those two notes are a tritone — so the same two keys give you TWO chords — and take the whole thing round the circle of fifths with the Charleston rhythm. Most of us learn chords the regular way — all four notes, every inversion. Here we do the opposite. A shell is a smaller set of notes: you keep the ones that matter and leave the rest out. For a dominant 7th that is the 3rd and the flat 7th. The bass player has the root, and the fifth does nothing. C7 is C E G Bb. Drop the C and the G and you are left with E and Bb — and those two notes are a tritone, the one interval that turns into itself when you flip it. So the same two keys are also the 3rd and the flat 7th of F#7. Twelve dominant 7th chords collapse into six tritone pairs, and we practise them as pairs, counter-clockwise round the circle of fifths, with the two shells 3–b7 and b7–3 sliding down chromatically while the left hand takes the roots. Then the groove. Once the shell is in your hand the tensions are one step away — b9, 9, #9, even a #5 — and you can play licks over it (you will hear where I stole one from). We put the Charleston rhythm on the shell, then the displaced Charleston, then both at once, and finish with a hand-independence ladder: the left hand holds the Charleston while the right climbs from semibreves to minims to crotchets to the 2 and the 4 — plus the cascade, and the snaps and claps that take your hands off the keys and teach you to come back in. Get your keyboard out and play along. Every exercise transfers to any key. 🎹 LEARN WITH US Live online lessons, Bangalore centres and the Everything For Life bundle: https://nathanielschool.com Piano, guitar or vocals, any level — message us on WhatsApp and our course advisor will get back to you: https://wa.me/917760456847 ▶️ WATCH NEXT 🎹 Jazz Piano Chords: The Voicing Exercise That Teaches Every 7th Chord and Its Tritone Sub — https://youtu.be/sHLV3iA-56s 🎹 10 Piano Exercises on ONE Chord (E7) — Dominant Seventh Chords Explained — https://youtu.be/22fTJTAE9WI 🎶 The Subdivision Exercise That Makes One Chord Groove — https://youtu.be/v2wMT78ZAlg 🗂️ Chord Voicing & Inversions — https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT9ygtrGwGFmfyvMyGWH52EC 📚 Making Chord Practice FUN with Circle of Fifths — https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT-D6G1jDe18TFflopjjnxRG 🎶 Hand Independence — https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT-On4vodpAoZqTlWDCS5jv7 🛠 FREE PRACTICE TOOLS The Jazz Harmony Lab — dominant cycles, ii–V–I and altered voicings, free in the browser: https://jazz.nathanielschool.com Master Key — the diminished seventh laboratory, for dominant 7ths and tritone substitution: https://masterkey.nathanielschool.com Groove Metronome — for the Charleston and the displaced Charleston: https://metronome.nathanielschool.com 25+ free browser tools for rhythm, chords, inversions, notation and ear training: https://apps.nathanielschool.com 📚 All our YouTube lessons (1000+) sorted by level, topic and genre: https://free-music-lessons.nathanielschool.com ⏱ CHAPTERS 00:00 The regular way: four notes, four inversions 01:14 What a shell is 02:04 The dominant 7th: 1, 3, 5, flat 7 03:20 Why shells: pick and choose 04:41 Building the C7 shell 05:40 The 3rd and the flat 7th are a tritone 06:46 The first drill: semibreves over minims 07:15 Two shells: 3–b7 and b7–3 08:13 One shell, two chords: C7 = F#7 09:15 The six tritone pairs 10:40 Round the circle of fifths, counter-clockwise 12:58 Improvising on the shell 13:21 One step away: b9, 9, #9 and #5 15:04 Licks on the shell 16:01 The Charleston rhythm 16:54 The other Charleston: displaced 17:15 Both Charlestons together 18:27 The ladder: left hand holds, right hand climbs 19:33 The goal: right hand on the 2 and the 4 20:58 The cascade 22:15 Snap on the 2 and the 4 23:27 Clap at the four, then recover 24:46 In a nutshell 25:21 The app, the notes and the study guide 25:55 Thanks for watching 💛 SUPPORT THESE FREE LESSONS PayPal: https://paypal.me/jasonzac?locale.x=en_GB&country.x=IN UPI: jasonzac-1@okhdfcbank (Jason Zac) 📩 TALK TO US WhatsApp: https://wa.me/917760456847 Instagram: https://instagram.com/jasonzac · https://instagram.com/nathanielschool #ShellVoicings #TritoneSubstitution #JazzPiano
Take one note — D — and the six chords that contain it: D major, D minor, G major, G minor, B♭ major and B minor. One chord alone lets you imagine many scales. Two chords narrow it down. Three chords and the scale is obvious. That is how chord charts really work: you read chords and you interpret scales. Full lesson (all three rounds, the chart for every pair, all 12 keys): https://youtu.be/BYP9-thyDJU 🌳 Chord Trees — pick any note, see every chord that fits it, free in your browser: https://chord-trees.nathanielschool.com Comment CHORD TREES and I'll send you the link. 🏫 Courses, Workshops or Private lessons ➡️ https://forms.gle/fsbhFKSgJbZ5xZEr8 📹 Everything for Life Bundle ➡️ https://learn-music.nathanielschool.com/ 🎹 Piano Courses ➡️ https://piano.nathanielschool.com 🛠 25+ free practice tools ➡️ https://apps.nathanielschool.com 🎓 https://nathanielschool.com 📚 All 1000+ lessons ➡️ https://learning-portal.nathanielschool.com 💰 PayPal: https://geni.us/DonatePayPal 📞 +91 77604 56847 (WhatsApp) · 📧 music@nathanielschool.com · 📷 https://instagram.com/jasonzac #MusicTheory #PianoLessons #Scales #PianoChords
Shell voicings are the two notes that actually describe a chord — the 3rd and the 7th — and in this jazz piano tutorial we run them through one long 2-5-1 chord progression until every 7th chord type and its tritone substitute is under your hands. The right hand plays two notes and nothing else. The left hand takes the root and the fifth. That split is how most working pianists actually voice a 7th chord, and it leaves your right hand free to improvise. The progression is deliberately long: Am7, D7, Gmaj7, Cmaj7, F#m7b5, B7, Em7, E7 — a major 2-5-1 running straight into the relative minor's 2-5-1, then a secondary dominant to send you round again. Every chord falls a fifth, so one finger stays put and the other steps down a semitone or a tone. Play it twice and you will have played both arrangements of all eight chords — the complete shell vocabulary of the key — because the hand keeps descending into the other shape by itself. Then we add the things that make it music: singing the roots, the chord names and the shells; five rhythms including the Charleston and its displaced cousin; and tritone substitution, where the same right-hand shape serves two different dominants because the 7th of one is the 3rd of the other. 📘 STUDY GUIDE + PRACTICE APP The Companion has the whole exercise notated, the crown-note table, the five rhythm grids and a practice log for all twelve keys. The practice app plays it back at any tempo with a metronome, in every key, with the regular dominants or the tritone substitutions. 🎹 LEARN WITH US Live online lessons, Bangalore centres and the Everything For Life bundle: https://nathanielschool.com Piano, guitar or vocals, any level — message us on WhatsApp and our course advisor will get back to you: https://wa.me/917760456847 🛠 FREE PRACTICE TOOLS The Jazz Harmony Lab — major and minor ii–V–I, dominant cycles and altered voicings, free in the browser: https://jazz.nathanielschool.com Master Key — the diminished seventh laboratory, for dominant 7ths and tritone substitution: https://masterkey.nathanielschool.com Groove Metronome — for the Charleston and the five rhythms in this lesson: https://metronome.nathanielschool.com 25+ free browser tools for rhythm, chords, inversions, notation and ear training: https://apps.nathanielschool.com ⏱ CHAPTERS 00:00 Performance 00:10 The Eight-Chord Practice Progression 00:56 G Major and E Minor Key Signature 02:44 Right-Hand Shells and Left-Hand Support 04:17 Building an Am7 Open Voicing 04:38 Building a D7 Open Voicing 05:58 Connecting Am7 to D7 06:20 Circle-of-Fifths Voice Leading 06:50 Major ii–V–I: Am7–D7–Gmaj7 09:08 Minor ii–V–i in E Minor 09:34 Lap 2: Switching to 7–3 Shapes 10:10 E7 as a Secondary Dominant 11:02 Lap 1: Descending 3–7 Shapes 11:39 Singing Chord Names and Chord Tones 12:39 Singing the Right-Hand Shells 13:03 Singing the Chord Roots 🎧 13:42 Writing and Visualising Inversions 14:09 One-Finger Common-Tone Exercise 15:49 Rhythm 1: Blocks and Alternating Fifths 16:07 Rhythm 2: Cascading the Chord Tones 17:06 Rhythm 3: Salsa-Like Syncopation 18:46 Charleston Rhythm Pattern 19:03 Swinging the Shell Voicings 20:17 Broken-Chord Ensemble Rhythm 21:56 Tritone Substitution Explained 24:50 Final Practice Plan 💛 SUPPORT THESE FREE LESSONS PayPal: https://paypal.me/jasonzac?locale.x=en_GB&country.x=IN UPI: jasonzac-1@okhdfcbank (Jason Zac) 📩 TALK TO US WhatsApp: https://wa.me/917760456847 Instagram: https://instagram.com/jasonzac · https://instagram.com/nathanielschool #ShellVoicings #TritoneSubstitution #JazzPiano
Part 4 of our E7 piano workout series! Explore pyramid sets with accent groupings and the challenging 'crunch' exercise in contrary motion. 🎹 🎹 Take one chord and build ten gym-style piano workouts around it. In this practical lesson we use a single E7 (dominant seventh) chord and turn it into a full technique session that transfers to any chord you like. First we break down the E7 shape — root, major third, fifth and flat seventh — with sensible fingering for both hands and all four positions: root, first, second and third inversion. Then we run the ten drills: the inversion ladder, the siren, piano jumping jacks, the horn throw, the dead hang, the speed bag, the rope climb, the pyramid set, the crunch and a cool-down stretch. Along the way you'll practise arpeggios against block chords, alternating two-note patterns, tritone swaps between the third and flat seventh, finger-by-finger lifts, speed work with a bouncing wrist, hand-crossing and accent groupings in twos, threes, fives and sevens. This is for pianists who can build chords but want them to feel musical and coordinated. Get your piano out, start slow and try every workout on other chords around the circle of fifths — then tell us your favourite gesture for the horn throw in the comments. 🏫 Courses, Workshops or Private lessons ➡️ https://forms.gle/fsbhFKSgJbZ5xZEr8 ============================= 📹 Our Video Courses (Everything for Life Bundle) - https://learn-music.nathanielschool.com/ 🏡 Visit our Channel for more Tutorials & Performances - https://geni.us/NathanielYouTube ============================= ▶️ Related Videos & Playlists 📂 Improvise over ONE chord - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT9oizLJPiwwH_gvSH-IFu_V 📚 Making Chord Practice FUN with Circle of Fifths - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT-D6G1jDe18TFflopjjnxRG 🗂️ Chord Voicing & Inversions - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT9ygtrGwGFmfyvMyGWH52EC 📋 Arpeggios - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT-BCpTe-KKSdiKlAFMvYNsH 🎶 Hand Independence - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT-On4vodpAoZqTlWDCS5jv7 ============================= 🎓 Learn Music With Nathaniel School of Music & Jason Zac: https://nathanielschool.com 📚 All our YouTube lessons (1000+) categorised by skill level, topic & genre all in one place: https://free-music-lessons.nathanielschool.com 💰 Donate on PayPal: https://geni.us/DonatePayPal 👨👩👧👦 Follow me on Instagram: https://instagram.com/jasonzac 📞 Call +91 98454 65411 · 💬 WhatsApp chat +91 77604 56847 📧 Customised & Private Classes: music@nathanielschool.com 🎧 Listen to Jason Zac Music: https://riffs.jasonzacmusic.com/ #PianoLessons #PianoTutorial #MusicTheory #PianoChords #ChordInversions #PianoPractice
A chord is an unfinished scale. A triad gives you three notes; a scale needs seven. So the four notes you add are up to you — and that is where every scale comes from. In this lesson I build scales the unconventional way: not tone–tone–semitone, not from the modes, but from chords. One chord leaves four notes open to your imagination — D major alone gives you D major, D mixolydian, D lydian, D harmonic major, and it is also the dominant of G harmonic minor and G melodic minor. Two chords narrow it down to one or two notes: D major with G major gives you D major, D mixolydian, or G harmonic major if you make G the tonic; D major with G minor gives you the harmonic minors, melodic minors and harmonic majors; D major with B♭ major fits only one scale, and it is a beautiful one. Three chords and the scale is decided — D, G and B minor live in D major and in G major at the same time, and the functions simply swap. That is how chord charts work. You read chords and you interpret scales. You are not locked to a key signature — you let the chord, or the cadence, or the trio, dictate the scale. ✏️ Correction (05:45): I call the G minor triad “the fifth, or the dominant, of D Phrygian”. G is the FOURTH degree of D Phrygian (D E♭ F G A B♭ C) — the fifth is A — so G minor is the subdominant, the iv, of that scale. The very next sentence has it right: start from the chord and choose tonic, dominant or subdominant. Thanks to @aaditmodi1 for catching it. 📥 STUDY GUIDE + APP 🌳 CHORD TREES Pick a key and a scale and see every chord born from it — free in the browser: https://chord-trees.nathanielschool.com ▶️ WATCH NEXT Form ANY Scale in Music From 3 Perspectives: https://youtu.be/gunrSlNNiJU Major-Esque Scales You NEED To Know (Part 2): https://youtu.be/9aKo3JsXkMo Minor-Esque Scales Decoded (Part 3): https://youtu.be/_DbME-fKHiI Practice Every Scale on Piano Using Major-Minor Chord Pairs: https://youtu.be/kak4hvdjsY0 Play the Modes on Piano Using Just ONE Chord: https://youtu.be/GV3fAe9782o 🎹 LEARN WITH US Live online lessons, Bangalore centres and the Everything For Life bundle: https://nathanielschool.com 🛠 FREE PRACTICE TOOLS 25+ free browser tools for rhythm, chords, inversions, notation and ear training: https://apps.nathanielschool.com Chord Trees — every chord that fits any note: https://chord-trees.nathanielschool.com ⏱ CHAPTERS 00:00 - Performance 00:17 - Introduction: Building Scales Through Chords 🎹 00:44 - Six Major and Minor Triads Containing D 01:03 - A Triad as an Unfinished Scale 01:21 - How Two Chords Narrow the Choices 01:39 - How Three Chords Define a Scale 01:52 - Reading Chord Charts as Scale Information 02:20 - Letting Harmony Dictate the Scale 02:48 - Practice Setup at the Keyboard 03:18 - The D Chord Tree Explained 04:04 - Scales Supported by D Major 04:15 - D Major as Tonic or Dominant 04:25 - G Harmonic Minor and G Melodic Minor 05:20 - Exploring the G Minor Triad 06:00 - Dominant, Tonic and Subdominant Functions 06:27 - Bb Major Scale Possibilities 07:08 - Combining D Major and G Major 07:27 - Finding the Two Missing Notes 07:40 - D Major, D Mixolydian and Harmonic Major 08:30 - G Harmonic Major from Reinterpreted Chords 09:13 - Combining D Major and G Minor 09:28 - D7 Resolving to G Minor 10:00 - Unusual Two-Chord Scale Combinations 11:38 - D Major, G Major and B Minor 11:54 - Changing Functions in D Major and G Major 12:55 - D Minor, G Minor and Bb Major 13:35 - D Harmonic Minor or Natural Minor? 14:09 - Applying the Method to Improvisation and Composition 💛 SUPPORT THESE FREE LESSONS PayPal: https://paypal.me/jasonzac?locale.x=en_GB&country.x=IN UPI: jasonzac-1@okhdfcbank (Jason Zac) 📩 TALK TO US WhatsApp: https://wa.me/917760456847 Instagram: https://instagram.com/jasonzac · https://instagram.com/nathanielschool #ChordScales #PianoScales #MusicTheory
Part 3 of our Piano Gym series! We tackle the Speed Bag drill (eighth notes, triplets, semiquavers on E7♯) and the Rope Climb pattern. Practice along and level up your chord fluency. Watch part 4 for the pyramid sets breakdown! 🎹 Take one chord and build ten gym-style piano workouts around it. In this practical lesson we use a single E7 (dominant seventh) chord and turn it into a full technique session that transfers to any chord you like. First we break down the E7 shape — root, major third, fifth and flat seventh — with sensible fingering for both hands and all four positions: root, first, second and third inversion. Then we run the ten drills: the inversion ladder, the siren, piano jumping jacks, the horn throw, the dead hang, the speed bag, the rope climb, the pyramid set, the crunch and a cool-down stretch. Along the way you'll practise arpeggios against block chords, alternating two-note patterns, tritone swaps between the third and flat seventh, finger-by-finger lifts, speed work with a bouncing wrist, hand-crossing and accent groupings in twos, threes, fives and sevens. This is for pianists who can build chords but want them to feel musical and coordinated. Get your piano out, start slow and try every workout on other chords around the circle of fifths — then tell us your favourite gesture for the horn throw in the comments. 🏫 Courses, Workshops or Private lessons ➡️ https://forms.gle/fsbhFKSgJbZ5xZEr8 ============================= 📹 Our Video Courses (Everything for Life Bundle) - https://learn-music.nathanielschool.com/ 🏡 Visit our Channel for more Tutorials & Performances - https://geni.us/NathanielYouTube ============================= ▶️ Related Videos & Playlists 📂 Improvise over ONE chord - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT9oizLJPiwwH_gvSH-IFu_V 📚 Making Chord Practice FUN with Circle of Fifths - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT-D6G1jDe18TFflopjjnxRG 🗂️ Chord Voicing & Inversions - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT9ygtrGwGFmfyvMyGWH52EC 📋 Arpeggios - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT-BCpTe-KKSdiKlAFMvYNsH 🎶 Hand Independence - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT-On4vodpAoZqTlWDCS5jv7 ============================= 🎓 Learn Music With Nathaniel School of Music & Jason Zac: https://nathanielschool.com 📚 All our YouTube lessons (1000+) categorised by skill level, topic & genre all in one place: https://free-music-lessons.nathanielschool.com 💰 Donate on PayPal: https://geni.us/DonatePayPal 👨👩👧👦 Follow me on Instagram: https://instagram.com/jasonzac 📞 Call +91 98454 65411 · 💬 WhatsApp chat +91 77604 56847 📧 Customised & Private Classes: music@nathanielschool.com 🎧 Listen to Jason Zac Music: https://riffs.jasonzacmusic.com/ #PianoLessons #PianoTutorial #MusicTheory #PianoChords #ChordInversions #PianoPractice
Practice all 72 piano chord inversions — every major and minor triad, in every inversion — with one exercise. Piano chord inversions become automatic when you stop drilling them chord by chord and start anchoring one note. Here is the whole idea. There are 12 major chords and 12 minor chords — 24 chords, three positions each, so 72 shapes. Instead of learning them one at a time, take a single note like D and ask which triads contain it. A triad only has a root, a third and a fifth, so the answer is six chords: D is the root of D major and D minor, the fifth of G major and G minor, and the third of Bb major and B minor. Now keep D exactly where it is and play all six chords around it — first with D at the bottom, then on top, then in the middle. The note forces the right inversion on you every time, so you practise chord inversions without ever deciding which inversion to play. That is 18 shapes from one note. Put the roots in the left hand, try a carbon copy in both hands, run it in reverse, and sing the roots for ear training. Then the part that makes the whole thing finish: take the polar opposite of D — its tritone, Ab — and do the same six chords. Not one of them repeats. That is 36 of the 72 already, and from there every new anchor note repeats chords you own, so it gets exponentially faster. A week for the first 36, two days for the rest. This piano inversion practice is for players who know their basic chords but want inversions to feel natural in real music, not as an exercise. 🌳 Chord Trees - the free app I demo at 4:36. No signup, runs in your browser: https://chord-trees.nathanielschool.com Pick any note and it shows you the six triads that contain it, with every inversion laid out. 🏫 Courses, Workshops or Private lessons ➡️ https://forms.gle/fsbhFKSgJbZ5xZEr8 ============================= 📹 Our Video Courses (Everything for Life Bundle) - https://learn-music.nathanielschool.com/ 🏡 Visit our Channel for more Tutorials & Performances - https://geni.us/NathanielYouTube ============================= ▶️ Related Videos & Playlists 📂 Chord Voicing & Inversions - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT9ygtrGwGFmfyvMyGWH52EC 📚 Making Chord Practice FUN with Circle of Fifths - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT-D6G1jDe18TFflopjjnxRG 🗂️ Cadences & Chord Progressions - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT_sKjWd1c7K_S55cZ15jAKI 📋 Spread Chords (Open Voicing) - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT_K6G85ibBIRn4K63BDlbTE 🎶 Ear Training - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT-GHvpugWvYgEuLAL4f01ZK ============================= 🎓 Learn Music With Nathaniel School of Music & Jason Zac: https://nathanielschool.com 📚 All our YouTube lessons (1000+) categorised by skill level, topic & genre all in one place: https://free-music-lessons.nathanielschool.com ⏳ Chapter markers 00:00 - Performance 00:17 - Introduction: 72 Chord Shapes 🎹 00:31 - The Goal: Every Major & Minor Inversion 00:53 - Start With a Single Note (D) 01:04 - Which Triads Contain This Note? 01:14 - D as the Fifth: G Major & G Minor 01:43 - D as the Third: Bb Major & B Minor 02:11 - Working Out the Inversions 🔁 02:39 - Why Not Play Major to Minor First 02:49 - A Musical Order for the Six Chords 03:26 - Full Sweep With D at the Bottom 04:36 - Chord Trees App Overview 📱 06:21 - Anchoring the Note at the Bottom 06:31 - Carbon-Copy the Chords in the Left Hand 07:09 - Playing the Roots in the Left Hand 07:29 - Reverse Order Practice 07:46 - Anchoring the Note at the Top 07:58 - Choosing the Right Inversion Up Top 08:48 - Anchoring the Note in the Middle 09:06 - Recap: Bottom, Top & Middle Anchors 09:18 - How to Move Forward 10:29 - Taking It to All 72 Shapes 10:40 - Using the Tritone Anchor (D to Ab) 10:57 - Six Options for Ab / G# 12:18 - Getting to 36 Unique Shapes 12:39 - Any Tritone Pair Works 13:09 - Why the Rest Gets Exponentially Easier 13:58 - Applying This in Real Songs 14:08 - Study Guide & Chord Trees App 💰 Donate on PayPal: https://geni.us/DonatePayPal 👨👩👧👦 Follow me on Instagram: https://instagram.com/jasonzac 📞 Call +91 98454 65411 · 💬 WhatsApp chat +91 77604 56847 📧 Customised & Private Classes: music@nathanielschool.com 🎧 Listen to Jason Zac Music: https://riffs.jasonzacmusic.com/ #ChordInversions #PianoTriads #PianoExercises
Ten piano exercises, one chord, and nothing else. Everything in this lesson happens on E7 — and every single drill transfers to any dominant 7th you own. Treat it like a gym: same equipment, ten different movements. ✏️ Correction: at 1:44 I misspeak - a dominant 7th is 1, 3, 5, ♭7, so E7 is E, G#, B, D. 🎹 Take one chord and build ten gym-style piano workouts around it. In this practical lesson we use a single E7 (dominant seventh) chord and turn it into a full technique session that transfers to any chord you like. First we break down the E7 shape — root, major third, fifth and flat seventh — with sensible fingering for both hands and all four positions: root, first, second and third inversion. Then we run the ten drills: the inversion ladder, the siren, piano jumping jacks, the horn throw, the dead hang, the speed bag, the rope climb, the pyramid set, the crunch and a cool-down stretch. Along the way you'll practise arpeggios against block chords, alternating two-note patterns, tritone swaps between the third and flat seventh, finger-by-finger lifts, speed work with a bouncing wrist, hand-crossing and accent groupings in twos, threes, fives and sevens. This is for pianists who can build chords but want them to feel musical and coordinated. Get your piano out, start slow and try every workout on other chords around the circle of fifths — then tell us your favourite gesture for the horn throw in the comments. 🎛️ The Circle of Fifths app from 25:38 — Fifth Harmony. Free, no signup: https://circle-of-fifths.nathanielschool.com Try Foundations → Piano Mode → filter by Dominant 7th to see the white/black shape of all twelve. 🏫 Courses, Workshops or Private lessons ➡️ https://forms.gle/fsbhFKSgJbZ5xZEr8 ============================= 📹 Our Video Courses (Everything for Life Bundle) - https://learn-music.nathanielschool.com/ 🏡 Visit our Channel for more Tutorials & Performances - https://geni.us/NathanielYouTube ============================= ▶️ Related Videos & Playlists 📂 Improvise over ONE chord - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT9oizLJPiwwH_gvSH-IFu_V 📚 Making Chord Practice FUN with Circle of Fifths - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT-D6G1jDe18TFflopjjnxRG 🗂️ Chord Voicing & Inversions - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT9ygtrGwGFmfyvMyGWH52EC 📋 Arpeggios - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT-BCpTe-KKSdiKlAFMvYNsH 🎶 Hand Independence - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT-On4vodpAoZqTlWDCS5jv7 ============================= 🎓 Learn Music With Nathaniel School of Music & Jason Zac: https://nathanielschool.com 🎹 All 25 free practice apps: https://apps.nathanielschool.com 📚 All our YouTube lessons (1000+) categorised by skill level, topic & genre all in one place: https://free-music-lessons.nathanielschool.com ⏳ Chapter markers 00:00 - Performance 00:47 - Introduction: Gym Workouts for Piano 💪 00:57 - The One Chord: E7 01:39 - What Is a 7th Chord? 1, 3, 5, ♭7 02:01 - Fingering for Both Hands 🎹 02:24 - Building the Inversions with the Circle Trick 02:36 - Root, 1st, 2nd & 3rd Inversion Shapes 05:01 - Exercise 1: The Inversion Ladder 🪜 06:17 - Swapping Hands: Arpeggio vs Blocks 06:40 - Exercise 2: The Siren 🚨 06:59 - Alternating 3rd & ♭7th with Root & 5th 07:10 - Adding Pitch Bend for Fun 07:42 - Siren Through the Inversions 08:41 - Left-Hand Block Chord Challenge 09:13 - Exercise 3: Jumping Jacks 🤸 09:26 - Outer Notes vs Inner Notes 09:59 - Using Your Wrist to Swing It 11:09 - Exercise 4: The Horn Throw 📯 11:26 - Splitting Tritones Across the Hands 13:02 - Add a Gesture Between Jumps 14:45 - Exercise 5: The Dead Hang 16:07 - Two-Finger Patterns & Combinations 16:48 - Exercise 6: The Speed Bag ⚡ 17:33 - Bouncing the Wrist to Reduce Pain 18:19 - Exercise 7: The Rope Climb 🧗 18:46 - Expanding Across the Whole Piano 19:03 - Crossing Hands Over Each Other 19:26 - Exercise 8: The Pyramid Set 🔺 19:32 - Adding the Repeated E on Top 19:51 - Accents in Sets of 2 and 3 21:03 - Accents in Sets of 4, 5 and 7 22:31 - Exercise 9: The Crunch 22:48 - Hands Meeting from the Extremes 23:14 - Hands Meeting from the Extremes 23:42 - Exercise 10: The Stretch & Cool Down 🧘 24:02 - Inversion Toggle with Eyes Closed 25:30 - Taking It Around the Circle of Fifths 25:38 - The Circle of Fifths App 🎛️ 28:04 - Courses & Semesters at Our School 💰 Donate on PayPal: https://geni.us/DonatePayPal 👨👩👧👦 Follow me on Instagram: https://instagram.com/jasonzac 📞 Call +91 98454 65411 · 💬 WhatsApp chat +91 77604 56847 📧 Customised & Private Classes: music@nathanielschool.com 🎧 Listen to Jason Zac Music: https://riffs.jasonzacmusic.com/ #PianoLessons #PianoTutorial #MusicTheory #PianoChords #ChordInversions #PianoPractice
Learn how to harmonize any Melakarta raga on piano with Jason Zac of Nathaniel School of Music — turn 72 ragas into playable chords. 🌐 The app in this video — Melakarta Sphere, all 72 ragas in 3D, free, no signup: https://melakarta.nathanielschool.com Ever wondered how to harmonize a raga on piano? This lesson shows how the 72 Melakarta ragas are built and how to turn each one into playable chords. We walk through the logic behind the system: Sa and Pa stay fixed, the perfect fifth is always kept, and you choose from three Re, three Ga, two Ma — Shuddha Madhyama (the perfect fourth) and Prati Madhyama (the augmented/sharp fourth) — three Dha and three Ni. That simple maths gives every heptatonic scale under the sun. You'll see the twelve chakras (Indu, Netra, Agni, Veda, Bana, Rutu, Rishi, Vasu, Brahma, Disi, Rudra, Aditya) and hear how ragas map to Western modes: Kharaharapriya against Dorian and the Kafi thaat, Hanumatodi leaning Phrygian, and Mayamalavagowla (the 15th Melakarta), also called the double harmonic major. We also touch Harikambhoji (Mixolydian) and Charukesi (Mixolydian flat 6), then harmonize each raga into triads and seventh chords, including cluster and augmented shapes. This is for pianists who only know major and minor, and for Carnatic musicians curious about Western harmony. Play along, pick a raga, build its chords, and tell us your favourite in the comments. 🏫 Courses, Workshops or Private lessons ➡️ https://forms.gle/fsbhFKSgJbZ5xZEr8 ============================= 📹 Our Video Courses (Everything for Life Bundle) - https://learn-music.nathanielschool.com/ 🏡 Visit our Channel for more Tutorials & Performances - https://geni.us/NathanielYouTube ============================= ▶️ Related Videos & Playlists 📂 Indian Music Theory - Carnatic Ragas - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT-EsBVRojlfDQ078y6R438k 📚 Indian Classical Music - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT-uvkwcbt1C4RbIJ8t1n3vm 🗂️ The Major Scale Understood with ALL Intervals - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT-E6rHuGKoYQk_8-jOw3_Bh 📋 Minor Scales - Theory, Exercises & Compositions - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT_8KkjOUBofqzyhbgGkROE- 🎶 Cadences & Chord Progressions - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT_sKjWd1c7K_S55cZ15jAKI ============================= 🎓 Learn Music With Nathaniel School of Music & Jason Zac: https://nathanielschool.com 📚 All our YouTube lessons (1000+) categorised by skill level, topic & genre all in one place: https://free-music-lessons.nathanielschool.com ⏳ Chapter markers 00:00 - What Does It Mean to Harmonize a Scale? 🎹 00:33 - The Melakarta Concept in One Idea 00:44 - Why Sa and Pa Stay Fixed 00:56 - Augmented Fourth vs Diminished Fifth 01:09 - Keeping the Perfect Fifth 01:33 - What Harmonize Really Means 🎵 01:40 - Harmonizing for Collaboration 02:12 - Scaling from Triads to Seventh Chords 02:50 - Kharaharapriya ≈ Dorian & Kafi Thaat 03:03 - Melakarta as Heptatonic Thaats 03:52 - The Melakarta Sphere Mode 🌐 04:11 - Selecting Hanumatodi 04:27 - Janya Ragas Explained 04:37 - Playing the Scale with Tanpura 05:01 - Arohana, Avarohana & Both 05:15 - Swing Feature for Western Players 05:28 - Hanumatodi Sounds Phrygian 05:57 - Reading the Interval Labels 07:07 - Brain Mode: The Mind Map 07:46 - The Chakra Navigator 07:58 - Twelve Chakras Named 08:11 - Grid & Mandala Modes 08:36 - Indu Chakra: Kanakangi 09:52 - Building Re from C 10:39 - Building Ga: Diminished to Major Third 11:25 - Netra Chakra: Very Phrygian 11:37 - Agni Chakra: Middle Eastern Colour 11:46 - Veda Chakra: All Things Minor 13:02 - Mayamalavagowla = Double Harmonic Major 13:26 - Bana Chakra: Where the Major Lives 13:37 - Harikambhoji (Mixolydian) & Charukesi 13:43 - Charukesi: Mixolydian Flat 6 🎶 14:03 - Rutu Chakra 14:12 - The Prati Madhyama Hemisphere 14:38 - Rishi to Aditya Chakras 15:30 - Listen Mode: Sing a Raga 16:46 - Drills Mode for Swaras 16:54 - Stage Mode: Kritis & Sections 17:15 - Adjusting Tempo & Instruments 18:02 - Western Mode: Visualize the Scale 18:44 - Chords for Any Raga 🎹 20:05 - Inversions & Chord Colors 20:21 - Function: Tonic, Subdominant, Dominant 20:32 - Raga Fit & Janya Chord Options 22:08 - Tanpura, Talas & Practice Setup 23:30 - Wrapping Up: Harmonize Any Raga 💰 Donate on PayPal: https://geni.us/DonatePayPal 👨👩👧👦 Follow me on Instagram: https://instagram.com/jasonzac 📞 Call +91 98454 65411 · 💬 WhatsApp chat +91 77604 56847 📧 Customised & Private Classes: music@nathanielschool.com 🎧 Listen to Jason Zac Music: https://riffs.jasonzacmusic.com/ #MelakartaRagas #CarnaticMusic #PianoHarmony
Massive piano chord voicings from one shape: hold one right-hand shape and move 12 bass notes. One shape in your right hand. Twelve different chords. Your right hand never moves. This is the neo-soul voicing trick — hold a quartal shape (C-F-Bb) and walk the bass note through all twelve notes. The same three notes become a C7sus4, a Dbmaj13, a Gm11, an Ab6/9... twelve completely different chords with twelve different emotional colours, and you learned exactly one shape. Try it free — no signup: https://bassalchemy.nathanielschool.com We start with the quartal voicing — two stacked perfect fourths, C F Bb — the sound of McCoy Tyner, Herbie Hancock and modern neo-soul. Holding that shape and moving through all 12 bass notes gives you a C7sus4, a Dbmaj13, a Gm11, an Ab 6/9, an F/A add4 and more. Instead of stacking root-third-fifth, you form major ninth and minor eleventh chords from one simple shape. We also explore open-fifth shells and a minor-triad shell (F minor: F Ab C over shifting bass), plus suspended, diminished, augmented, tritone-cluster and seventh-shell shapes. Then we use it all as an ear-training drill — one voicing, 12 bass notes, guess what you hear. This is for pianists and composers who find complex chord names intimidating, and for newcomers who want to build harmony from one shape and add melody on top. Try each voicing, then comment with the bass note you liked best. 🏫 Courses, Workshops or Private lessons ➡️ https://forms.gle/fsbhFKSgJbZ5xZEr8 ============================= 📹 Our Video Courses (Everything for Life Bundle) - https://learn-music.nathanielschool.com/ 🏡 Visit our Channel for more Tutorials & Performances - https://geni.us/NathanielYouTube ============================= ▶️ Related Videos & Playlists 📂 Bass Lines on Piano - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT_bA-24IkQ31GFjbWaN5qf8 📚 Ear Training - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT-GHvpugWvYgEuLAL4f01ZK 🗂️ Chord Voicing & Inversions - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT9ygtrGwGFmfyvMyGWH52EC 📋 Spread Chords (Open Voicing) - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT_K6G85ibBIRn4K63BDlbTE 🎶 Slash Chords - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT9m1V-clgZIS6fP1M_YaYLt ============================= 🎓 Learn Music With Nathaniel School of Music & Jason Zac: https://nathanielschool.com 📚 All our YouTube lessons (1000+) categorised by skill level, topic & genre all in one place: https://free-music-lessons.nathanielschool.com ⏳ Chapter markers 💰 Donate on PayPal: https://geni.us/DonatePayPal 👨👩👧👦 Follow me on Instagram: https://instagram.com/jasonzac 📞 Call +91 98454 65411 · 💬 WhatsApp chat +91 77604 56847 📧 Customised & Private Classes: music@nathanielschool.com 🎧 Listen to Jason Zac Music: https://riffs.jasonzacmusic.com/ #PianoLessons #PianoTutorial #MusicTheory #QuartalVoicing #EarTraining #JazzPiano
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Learn how to harmonize any melody note on piano with Jason Zac of Nathaniel School of Music using the Chord Trees concept and app. Ever wondered what chords actually fit a melody note? This lesson introduces Chord Trees — a simple way to start from one note and find every chord that can harmonize it. Try the new free app here: https://chord-trees.nathanielschool.com/ 🎹 We begin with a single note like C and branch out to all the triads that contain it — C major and C minor (root), A minor and Ab major (C as the third), and F major and F minor (C as the perfect fifth). From there we look at how melodies land on important notes, using "Hey Jude" by the Beatles as an example. Then we open up the options: diatonic pop harmony, seventh chords, extended and borrowed chords, secondary dominants and tritone substitutions, plus fully chromatic progressions that respect voice leading, cadences, tension and resolution. We compare random harmonization, smart diatonic harmonize, and modal choices like Ionian, Aeolian, Mixolydian and Locrian — and even those outworldly cinematic chords a composer like Hans Zimmer might use. This is for pianists, guitarists, singers and producers who want to move past the same old progressions and understand how melody and chords find each other. Play along, export the MIDI to your DAW, and tell us your favourite chord branch in the comments! 🎶 🏫 Courses, Workshops or Private lessons ➡️ https://forms.gle/fsbhFKSgJbZ5xZEr8 ============================= 📹 Our Video Courses (Everything for Life Bundle) - https://learn-music.nathanielschool.com/ 🏡 Visit our Channel for more Tutorials & Performances - https://geni.us/NathanielYouTube ============================= ▶️ Related Videos & Playlists 📂 Cadences & Chord Progressions - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT_sKjWd1c7K_S55cZ15jAKI 📚 Chord Voicing & Inversions - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT9ygtrGwGFmfyvMyGWH52EC 🗂️ Mysterious Chord Connections - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT9bd7fnB4zMsgobcFj52N31 📋 Piano Improvisation Tutorials - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT-b9x0Hk6hTmgkFoRoHalH_ 🎶 Chord Coloring - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT89cBYbuTwaeB-ug5GA-juY ============================= 🎓 Learn Music With Nathaniel School of Music & Jason Zac: https://nathanielschool.com 📚 All our YouTube lessons (1000+) categorised by skill level, topic & genre all in one place: https://free-music-lessons.nathanielschool.com ⏳ Chapter markers 00:00 - Introduction: Harmonizing Any Melody 🎹 00:20 - Starting From a Single Note 00:59 - Landing Notes of a Melody 01:43 - Escaping Pop-Culture Progressions 02:11 - Writing It Down: Scales & Chord Lists 02:41 - The Chord Trees Concept 🌳 03:46 - One Note, Six Chords 05:09 - Introducing the Chord Trees App 08:49 - Cinematic, Outworldly Chords 🎬 09:35 - Exporting to Your DAW & MIDI 10:34 - Manual Mode: Pick Your Own Notes 11:05 - Arpeggio Cycles & Tempo Controls 12:50 - Diatonic Mode: The Pop Mode 13:32 - Random Notes Within A Major 13:54 - Guitar Shapes: Open, Bar & Alt 14:25 - Seventh Chord Mode 15:58 - Intermediate Mode: Every Chord Possible 😱 17:28 - Melody Mode: Amazing Grace & Ode to Joy 💰 Donate on PayPal: https://geni.us/DonatePayPal 👨👩👧👦 Follow me on Instagram: https://instagram.com/jasonzac 📞 Call +91 98454 65411 · 💬 WhatsApp chat +91 77604 56847 📧 Customised & Private Classes: music@nathanielschool.com 🎧 Listen to Jason Zac Music: https://riffs.jasonzacmusic.com/ #HarmonizeAMelody #PianoChords #MusicTheory
One chord shape, four names, endless possibilities. Learn how the diminished 7th chord hides dominant 7♭9 chords, tritone subs, and two powerful resolutions. Comment 'diminished' for a free practice tool! 🛠 FREE PRACTICE TOOL - Master Key, the Diminished Seventh Laboratory. Every diminished 7th, all four resolutions, in the browser. No signup, no subscription: https://masterkey.nathanielschool.com The diminished 7th chord is arguably the most powerful chord in music — one shape with endless resolutions. In this piano tutorial we break down its theory and turn it into two practical drills you can play today. We start with the formation: a diminished 7th is minor thirds stacked on top of each other, so every inversion is another diminished 7th. That means only three of them exist across all 12 keys — B/D/F/Ab are one family, and you move up chromatically for the rest. We also separate it from the minor seventh flat five (the ii chord in a 2-5-1 minor). Then we explore the leading-tone diminished cadence: B diminished 7th resolving to C major and to A minor (its relative minor), giving you many destinations from one source. You'll see how the same shape works as a rootless dominant, turning into E7♭9, Bb7♭9, G7♭9 and Db7♭9 — four chords from one diminished 7th. Drill one climbs up (dominant 7 → diminished 7 → major or minor); drill two climbs down (diminished 7 → dominant 7 → resolution). Ideal for pianists who know major and minor chords and want a versatile harmonic tool. 🏫 Courses, Workshops or Private lessons ➡️ https://forms.gle/fsbhFKSgJbZ5xZEr8 ============================= 📹 Our Video Courses (Everything for Life Bundle) - https://learn-music.nathanielschool.com/ 🏡 Visit our Channel for more Tutorials & Performances - https://geni.us/NathanielYouTube ============================= ▶️ Related Videos & Playlists 📂 Cadences & Chord Progressions - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT_sKjWd1c7K_S55cZ15jAKI 📚 Mysterious Chord Connections - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT9bd7fnB4zMsgobcFj52N31 🗂️ Jazz Lessons - Chords, Standards & Exercises - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT9ZCriHyNonJasffWWSCS_E 📋 Chord Voicing & Inversions - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT9ygtrGwGFmfyvMyGWH52EC 🎶 My Favourite Chords of All Time - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT_BXqRCVauDnJH7oHhIv-z7 ============================= 🎓 Learn Music With Nathaniel School of Music & Jason Zac: https://nathanielschool.com 📚 All our YouTube lessons (1000+) categorised by skill level, topic & genre all in one place: https://free-music-lessons.nathanielschool.com 💰 Donate on PayPal: https://geni.us/DonatePayPal 👨👩👧👦 Follow me on Instagram: https://instagram.com/jasonzac 📞 Call +91 98454 65411 · 💬 WhatsApp chat +91 77604 56847 📧 Customised & Private Classes: music@nathanielschool.com 🎧 Listen to Jason Zac Music: https://riffs.jasonzacmusic.com/ #PianoLessons #PianoTutorial #MusicTheory #DiminishedChords #PianoChords #Cadences
Ever wonder how composers make an ending feel epic, jazzy, or cinematic? We break down authentic, plagal, mixolydian, backdoor, and tritone sub cadences using Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. This is Part 2 of our Thirds Exercise series — comment CADENCE if you want the app with every cadence in every key. Cadences are how music ends a phrase with intention, and in this practical lesson we harmonise one familiar tune — Twinkle Twinkle Little Star in Ab major — with almost every cadence you'll ever use. This is pure piano application, not just theory on paper. We start with the authentic cadence (V-I), then strengthen it using a dominant 7th for that 4-to-3 resolution. Next comes the plagal or Amen cadence (IV-I) heard in church hymns, the darker minor plagal cadence that borrows from Mixolydian b6 (also called the Charukesi scale/raga), and the stacked major-four-then-minor-four ending loved in cinematic writing and pop ballads. From there we build three- and four-chord cadences: the IV-V-I gospel ending, the gospel 7sus4 (double) suspension, the double dominant or Mixolydian cadence using a secondary dominant (think Elton John and the Beatles), and the diatonic jazz ii-V-I tried on Happy Birthday. This is for pianists and composers who want their endings to sound deliberate across pop, gospel, jazz and film. Play along in Ab, sing the bass roots as we do, and tell us in the comments which cadence surprised you most. 🏫 Courses, Workshops or Private lessons ➡️ https://forms.gle/fsbhFKSgJbZ5xZEr8 🎹 Learn Cadences in one place - https://cadence.nathanielschool.com/ ============================= 📹 Our Video Courses (Everything for Life Bundle) - https://learn-music.nathanielschool.com/ 🏡 Visit our Channel for more Tutorials & Performances - https://geni.us/NathanielYouTube ============================= ▶️ Related Videos & Playlists 📂 Cadences & Chord Progressions - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT_sKjWd1c7K_S55cZ15jAKI 📚 Jazz Lessons - Chords, Standards & Exercises - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT9ZCriHyNonJasffWWSCS_E 🗂️ Sweet Chords - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT-C4gmfMXJi6nHcKPL3acYy 📋 Indian Music Theory - Carnatic Ragas - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT-EsBVRojlfDQ078y6R438k 🎶 Play Great Songs on Piano - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT8y1l2P68dI_DHadRyMgt3N ============================= 🎓 Learn Music With Nathaniel School of Music & Jason Zac: https://nathanielschool.com 📚 All our YouTube lessons (1000+) categorised by skill level, topic & genre all in one place: https://free-music-lessons.nathanielschool.com 💰 Donate on PayPal: https://geni.us/DonatePayPal 👨👩👧👦 Follow me on Instagram: https://instagram.com/jasonzac 📞 Call +91 98454 65411 · 💬 WhatsApp chat +91 77604 56847 📧 Customised & Private Classes: music@nathanielschool.com 🎧 Listen to Jason Zac Music: https://riffs.jasonzacmusic.com/ #PianoLessons #PianoTutorial #MusicTheory #Cadences #ChordProgressions #GospelPiano
Learn advanced piano cadences with Jason Zac of Nathaniel School of Music — tritone sub, backdoor, leading-tone diminished and more. This is Part 2 of the cadence series, where we move past the traditional cadences into resolutions that actually alter the sound of the scale and still bring you home peacefully. If you already know your authentic, plagal and 2-5-1 cadences, this is where things get colourful. We start with the leading-tone diminished cadence — a diminished 7th built on the major seventh degree that resolves to the tonic major, or deceptively to the relative minor (the 6 minor / da). Then we soften it with the leading-tone half-diminished, extend the jazz 2-5-1 into the 6-2-5-1 turnaround, and explore the mixolydian cadence down a tone for that R&B, soul and Michael Jackson colour. From there we play the backdoor cadence (bVII7 → I) heard in rock, grunge and gospel, the tritone substitution sliding chromatically into the tonic, the minor dominant for a Dorian feel, and the Neapolitan cadence Beethoven loved. We close with the "epic" bVI–bVII–I climb from film and video-game endings. This is for pianists who want to stop resolving 5-1 every time and hear how each cadence feels against a melody. Play along, train your ear, and tell us in the comments which one surprised you most. 🏫 Courses, Workshops or Private lessons ➡️ https://forms.gle/fsbhFKSgJbZ5xZEr8 🎹 Learn Cadences in one place - https://cadence.nathanielschool.com/ ============================= 📹 Our Video Courses (Everything for Life Bundle) - https://learn-music.nathanielschool.com/ 🏡 Visit our Channel for more Tutorials & Performances - https://geni.us/NathanielYouTube ============================= ▶️ Related Videos & Playlists 📂 Cadences & Chord Progressions - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT_sKjWd1c7K_S55cZ15jAKI 📚 Jazz Lessons - Chords, Standards & Exercises - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT9ZCriHyNonJasffWWSCS_E 🗂️ Ear Training - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT-GHvpugWvYgEuLAL4f01ZK 📋 Slash Chords - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT9m1V-clgZIS6fP1M_YaYLt 🎶 Mysterious Chord Connections - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT9bd7fnB4zMsgobcFj52N31 ============================= 🎓 Learn Music With Nathaniel School of Music & Jason Zac: https://nathanielschool.com 📚 All our YouTube lessons (1000+) categorised by skill level, topic & genre all in one place: https://free-music-lessons.nathanielschool.com ⏳ Chapter markers 00:00 - Performance 00:06 - Welcome Back to the Cadence Series 🎹 00:32 - Recap: The Traditional Cadences (Part 1) 00:53 - The Web App — Practise in Every Key 01:17 - Authentic Cadence 5-2-1 01:23 - Plagal Cadence 4-2-1 01:26 - Minor Plagal Cadence 01:32 - Three-Chord Option: 4-5-1 01:43 - The Mixolydian Cadence (bVII) 01:50 - Cinematic Option: Major to Minor iv 01:56 - The Gospel Cadence 5-7sus4 02:08 - Leading-Tone Diminished 7th Cadence 02:52 - Diminished 7th to the Relative Minor 03:24 - The Deceptive Cadence Explained 03:42 - Adding the Bass to the Diminished 04:00 - Leading-Tone Half-Diminished Cadence 🎼 04:30 - Revisiting the Jazz 2-5-1 04:41 - The Jazz Turnaround 6-2-5-1 05:17 - Ear Training with the Melody 👂 05:59 - The Mixolydian Cadence Down a Tone 06:19 - R&B, Soul & Michael Jackson Colour 06:35 - The Backdoor Cadence (bVII7 → I) 07:18 - Discovering the Tritone Substitution 07:33 - Building a Dominant on the Tritone 08:12 - Sliding Chromatically to the Tonic 08:32 - Tritone Sub — An Acquired Taste 08:38 - The Minor Dominant for a Dorian Feel 09:02 - Off the Scale and Back Again 09:14 - Covering the Tritone Sub for Stability 09:34 - One Final Cadence: The Epic Climb 10:01 - bVI – bVII – I Explained 10:26 - Queen, the Beatles & Rock Anthems 10:50 - Singing the Soprano Melody 11:11 - Choosing Your Scale & Inversion in the App 💰 Donate on PayPal: https://geni.us/DonatePayPal 👨👩👧👦 Follow me on Instagram: https://instagram.com/jasonzac 📞 Call +91 98454 65411 · 💬 WhatsApp chat +91 77604 56847 📧 Customised & Private Classes: music@nathanielschool.com 🎧 Listen to Jason Zac Music: https://riffs.jasonzacmusic.com/ #PianoCadences #BackdoorCadence #MusicTheory
Learn piano cadences explained on Twinkle Twinkle in Ab major with Jason Zac of Nathaniel School of Music — authentic, plagal and more. Cadences are how music ends a phrase with intention, and in this practical lesson we harmonise one familiar tune — Twinkle Twinkle Little Star in Ab major — with almost every cadence you'll ever use. This is pure piano application, not just theory on paper. We start with the authentic cadence (V-I), then strengthen it using a dominant 7th for that 4-to-3 resolution. Next comes the plagal or Amen cadence (IV-I) heard in church hymns, the darker minor plagal cadence that borrows from Mixolydian b6 (also called the Charukesi scale/raga), and the stacked major-four-then-minor-four ending loved in cinematic writing and pop ballads. From there we build three- and four-chord cadences: the IV-V-I gospel ending, the gospel 7sus4 (double) suspension, the double dominant or Mixolydian cadence using a secondary dominant (think Elton John and the Beatles), and the diatonic jazz ii-V-I tried on Happy Birthday. This is for pianists and composers who want their endings to sound deliberate across pop, gospel, jazz and film. Play along in Ab, sing the bass roots as we do, and tell us in the comments which cadence surprised you most. 🏫 Courses, Workshops or Private lessons ➡️ https://forms.gle/fsbhFKSgJbZ5xZEr8 🎹 Learn Cadences in one place - https://cadence.nathanielschool.com/ ============================= 📹 Our Video Courses (Everything for Life Bundle) - https://learn-music.nathanielschool.com/ 🏡 Visit our Channel for more Tutorials & Performances - https://geni.us/NathanielYouTube ============================= ▶️ Related Videos & Playlists 📂 Cadences & Chord Progressions - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT_sKjWd1c7K_S55cZ15jAKI 📚 Jazz Lessons - Chords, Standards & Exercises - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT9ZCriHyNonJasffWWSCS_E 🗂️ Sweet Chords - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT-C4gmfMXJi6nHcKPL3acYy 📋 Indian Music Theory - Carnatic Ragas - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT-EsBVRojlfDQ078y6R438k 🎶 Play Great Songs on Piano - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT8y1l2P68dI_DHadRyMgt3N ============================= 🎓 Learn Music With Nathaniel School of Music & Jason Zac: https://nathanielschool.com 📚 All our YouTube lessons (1000+) categorised by skill level, topic & genre all in one place: https://free-music-lessons.nathanielschool.com ⏳ Chapter markers 00:00 - Performance 00:37 - What Is a Cadence? 🎹 01:01 - Stable vs Unstable Chords 01:17 - How Many Chords Can a Cadence Have? 01:55 - Cadences as a Composer’s Tool 02:19 - Surprising the Listener with Harmony 02:32 - Twinkle Twinkle in Different Flavours 03:57 - The Goal: Twinkle in Ab Major 04:07 - Ab Major and Its Four Flats 04:19 - Playing the Tune 🎶 04:48 - Why We Change Keys Each Lesson 05:02 - A Free Cadence Practice App 📲 06:18 - Authentic Cadence: V to I 06:43 - Strengthening with a Dominant 7th 06:59 - The 4-to-3 Resolution Explained 07:19 - Plagal Cadence: The Amen Ending ⛪ 07:37 - Db Major 6th to Ab 07:57 - Minor Plagal Cadence 08:14 - Borrowing Mixolydian b6 (Charukesi) 08:39 - Stacking Major 4 and Minor 4 08:54 - Cinematic & Pop Ballad Endings 🎬 09:11 - Combining Plagal into Authentic (IV-V-I) 09:33 - Singing the Bass Roots 10:06 - The Gospel 7sus4 Suspension 10:16 - Double / Gospel Suspension Explained 10:41 - Root Moving Sa-Ni-Sa (Leading Tone) 11:00 - Organ & Orchestral Effect 11:15 - Emotion Change in the Cadence 11:35 - The Double Dominant (Mixolydian) Cadence 11:55 - V-of-V: Bb7 to Eb7 to Ab 12:27 - Secondary Dominant in Action 12:46 - The Jazz ii-V-I 13:21 - Testing It on Happy Birthday 🎂 13:36 - Rare & Unheard Cadences Preview 💰 Donate on PayPal: https://geni.us/DonatePayPal 👨👩👧👦 Follow me on Instagram: https://instagram.com/jasonzac 📞 Call +91 98454 65411 · 💬 WhatsApp chat +91 77604 56847 📧 Customised & Private Classes: music@nathanielschool.com 🎧 Listen to Jason Zac Music: https://riffs.jasonzacmusic.com/ #PianoCadences #GospelCadence #TwinkleTwinkle
Learn the diminished 7th chord on piano with Jason Zac of Nathaniel School of Music — resolutions, drills and the three-chord family. The diminished 7th chord is arguably the most powerful chord in music — one shape with endless resolutions. In this piano tutorial we break down its theory and turn it into two practical drills you can play today. We start with the formation: a diminished 7th is minor thirds stacked on top of each other, so every inversion is another diminished 7th. That means only three of them exist across all 12 keys — B/D/F/Ab are one family, and you move up chromatically for the rest. We also separate it from the minor seventh flat five (the ii chord in a 2-5-1 minor). Then we explore the leading-tone diminished cadence: B diminished 7th resolving to C major and to A minor (its relative minor), giving you many destinations from one source. You'll see how the same shape works as a rootless dominant, turning into E7♭9, Bb7♭9, G7♭9 and Db7♭9 — four chords from one diminished 7th. Drill one climbs up (dominant 7 → diminished 7 → major or minor); drill two climbs down (diminished 7 → dominant 7 → resolution). Ideal for pianists who know major and minor chords and want a versatile harmonic tool. 🏫 Courses, Workshops or Private lessons ➡️ https://forms.gle/fsbhFKSgJbZ5xZEr8 ============================= 📹 Our Video Courses (Everything for Life Bundle) - https://learn-music.nathanielschool.com/ 🏡 Visit our Channel for more Tutorials & Performances - https://geni.us/NathanielYouTube ============================= ▶️ Related Videos & Playlists 📂 Cadences & Chord Progressions - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT_sKjWd1c7K_S55cZ15jAKI 📚 Mysterious Chord Connections - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT9bd7fnB4zMsgobcFj52N31 🗂️ Jazz Lessons - Chords, Standards & Exercises - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT9ZCriHyNonJasffWWSCS_E 📋 Chord Voicing & Inversions - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT9ygtrGwGFmfyvMyGWH52EC 🎶 My Favourite Chords of All Time - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT_BXqRCVauDnJH7oHhIv-z7 ============================= 🎓 Learn Music With Nathaniel School of Music & Jason Zac: https://nathanielschool.com 📚 All our YouTube lessons (1000+) categorised by skill level, topic & genre all in one place: https://free-music-lessons.nathanielschool.com ⏳ Chapter markers 00:00 - What Is the Most Powerful Chord? 🎹 00:15 - Meet the Diminished 7th Chord 00:33 - Diminished 7th vs Minor 7th Flat 5 00:42 - One Shape, Endless Resolutions 01:11 - The Goal: Two Practice Drills 01:46 - Formation: Stacking Minor Thirds 01:55 - B Diminished 7th Broken Down 02:17 - The B/D/F/Ab Family 02:34 - Building All 12 Chromatically 03:10 - Voicing in the Top Register 03:18 - E Becomes E7♭9 🎶 03:54 - Write It Down and Play Along 04:09 - A Supporting App for Practic 04:22 - Resolving B°7 to C Major 05:10 - Resolving to the Relative Minor 05:30 - One Source, Many Destinations 05:42 - Cycling Through a Melody 06:25 - Leading Tone Diminished Cadence 06:33 - D°7 = B°7: Same Notes 06:59 - Resolving to Eb Major & C Minor 07:28 - G# Diminished 7th, Same Four Cousins 07:55 - It Spreads Like a Virus 🔥 08:06 - Drill 1: Climbing Up 08:25 - Starting from Bb7 08:34 - Move the Root Up a Half Step 09:05 - Trying It on C7 09:39 - Drill 2: Climbing Down 10:19 - C°7 → B7 → E Major or Minor 10:40 - Chords Beyond the Scale 11:13 - Barry Harris & Diminished Scales 11:35 - Recap: Three Ways to Use It 12:19 - Requests & App Access 💰 Donate on PayPal: https://geni.us/DonatePayPal 👨👩👧👦 Follow me on Instagram: https://instagram.com/jasonzac 📞 Call +91 98454 65411 · 💬 WhatsApp chat +91 77604 56847 📧 Customised & Private Classes: music@nathanielschool.com 🎧 Listen to Jason Zac Music: https://riffs.jasonzacmusic.com/ #Diminished7th #DiminishedChords #PianoChords
