Chord Analysis

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

Topics:

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

Topics:

Train your ear with Bach's Prelude No. 1 in C Major — sight-singing, chord analysis & arpeggio breakdown in Bobby McFerrin style. 🎼✨ Bach's Prelude No. 1 in C Major is one of the most recognised pieces in classical piano — but what if you sang it instead of played it? In this lesson, Jason Zac takes inspiration from Bobby McFerrin's legendary Ave Maria performance to turn this beloved arpeggio study into the ultimate ear training workout. Rather than just reading and playing the notation, you'll learn to collapse each arpeggiated bar into a stacked chord, identify the harmony (D minor 7, G7, F major 7, and that mysterious diminished voicing nobody can name), and then sing each note back. This trains your intervals, voice leading awareness, register switching, and chord recognition all at once. This approach works for pianists, singers, and any music student who wants to genuinely HEAR what they're playing. We cover sight-singing technique, transcription thinking, harmonic analysis, and how to use Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier as a serious ear training resource — not just a piano study book. Throughout the lesson, Jason demonstrates how to use the piano as a reference, find the lowest or highest note first, name notes as scale degrees (1-2-3-4-5), and gradually move away from the instrument so your voice becomes the piano. You'll also explore voice leading between chords — like how F resolves down to E and E down to E♭ in parallel motion. Hit subscribe, ring the bell, and share this with a musician friend who's ready to take their listening skills to the next level! 🎹🎼 🏫 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 🎬 Compose with Dorian Mode & Chord Progressions - https://youtu.be/NCFZhIyG0Y8 🎯 Piano: Sing Harmony Over Chord Progressions - https://youtu.be/Mi_k69JLyGg 🔑 Melodic Arpeggios on Piano with Accents - https://youtu.be/DbL4DJnwIhA 💡 Connect Music Theory and Ear Training - https://youtu.be/f5Fs0VQe8Ps 📂 Jazz Lessons - Chords, Standards & Exercises - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrNNL05e9FT9ZCriHyNonJasffWWSCS_E ============================= 🎓 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: Ear Training with Bach 🎹 00:29 - Why Prelude No. 1 in C Major? 01:39 - The Bobby McFerrin Inspiration 🎤 02:02 - Three Options: Analyse, Play, or Train the Ear 02:40 - The Well-Tempered Clavier Book Recommendation 📖 03:30 - Notation Tools & Nathaniel School Resources 05:10 - Bar 1: The First C Major Stack 05:28 - Technique: Collapse the Arpeggio into a Chord 06:12 - Finding the Lowest & Highest Notes 06:57 - Singing the Arpeggio with Numbers (1-2-3-4-5) 07:15 - Using the Piano as an Assist 08:00 - Bar 2: C, D, A, D, F — D minor 7 over C 08:47 - Tricky Leaps in the Voice 09:12 - Bar 3: B, D, G, D, F — G7 over B Bass 09:55 - Bar 4: Back to D minor 7 10:03 - Stacking & Singing Four Bars Together 10:50 - Crossing an Octave and a Half 12:29 - A minor 7 Open Voicing with High C 13:10 - Range Challenges: Two Octaves and Beyond 13:51 - Making Notes on Tough Intervals 📝 14:13 - D, A, D, A, F# — Register Switching 14:44 - G Major & G Diminished 7th Voicing 15:54 - End of Page 1 Recap 16:14 - Page 2: C, G, C — The Tough 5th Chord 16:31 - F Major 7 with E Bass 17:01 - Revisiting D minor 7 and G7 17:32 - The Mysterious F# Diminished Chord 🤔 18:03 - Voice Leading: F → F# and E → E♭ in Parallel 19:49 - Putting Page 2 Together on Piano 21:16 - The Calando Ending: Slow Down & Soften 21:31 - Singing the Upper Notes When Range Gets Tough 22:02 - Why Bobby McFerrin’s Version is Superhuman 22:39 - The Final C Major Resolution 23:18 - Takeaways: You Don’t Have to Perform It 24:04 - Three Applications of Notation: Play, Sing, Transcribe 24:33 - These Aren’t Jazz Chords — Just Bach 24:43 - Final Practice Tips for Your Ear 🎯 25:35 - Outro: Thanks for Watching! 👋 💰 Donate on PayPal: https://geni.us/DonatePayPal 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Follow me on Instagram: https://instagram.com/jasonzac 📞 +917760456847 (Mobile & WhatsApp) 📧 Customised & Private Classes: music@nathanielschool.com 🎧 Listen to Jason Zac Music: https://riffs.jasonzacmusic.com/

Topics: