From Simple to Complex Harmony - New York State of Mind

[@malcolmlund7938]

You have an awesome approach to teaching these concepts - starting with the skeleton and explaining how we add harmonic devices to make it more rich… well done! I wish my classical theory profs from 35 years ago had used your method. Thanks!

[@lucasloaiza2468]

WOW!!! You're a great teacher. I like that you don't take extra time to overexplain things! I'm getting towards an intermediate grasp of music theory and this is exactly the practical sort of stuff that I need. Subbed

[@jeffreykasbohm7685]

That was great man!! Finally an explanation that makes snese (especially for a non reader )

[@RealWorldMusicTheory]

Thanks ☺️

[@zemiret]

Absolutely brilliant. As a self learner on piano (and different instruments) this is exactly what I need! Making sense of some particular examples, while at the same time providing the general rules and guidance on how the underlying theory works. It will be way more enjoyable now to learn to play this than just remember the chords not knowing what they mean in the context. Thank you so much!

[@munsonHOF]

I am learning guitar and this is the very first video I have seen that explains and teaches chord melodies in such an interesting, understandable and inspiring way. Thank you!!!

[@edanlaron5552]

This is brilliant! Brilliant brilliant explanation. I learned so much just from this one video. And the triton-substotition completely blew my mind

[@RealWorldMusicTheory]

Wow, thank you so much for your enthusiastic feedback! It means a lot to me

[@rcanoli99]

Outstanding lesson, I've loved this song since BJ released it. For me that Bb "backdoor" progression makes this song unique in pop music. It's so unexpected but fits perfectly with the mood of the song... I didn't quite follow the theory on why that Bb works so well there but I'll keep at it. Thanks again!

[@RealWorldMusicTheory]

Thanks ☺️ That backdoor dominant always adds some extra shine. To gear some more examples of it in pop music, you can watch my separate video on the backdoor progression.

[@LeoThomMusic]

Love this video man. Thank u 🙏

[@srow4302]

This is really fantastic. Amazing job !

[@RealWorldMusicTheory]

Thanks 😊

[@DamoOne]

Brilliant. Love this, thanks.

[@omerosmanoglu660]

What great content you have here. Thanks, man.

[@massimilianosedola4626]

Thanks Matthias for all your love, passion and kindness for your support to all of us 🙏

[@RealWorldMusicTheory]

🥰

[@connied3133]

This was a wonderful explanation of how to go about adding the fifths before the next chord change. The a ddition of the tri tone substitute cleared that up for me as well. Thank you for all the tips, and the clear and concise explanations as well. Looking forward to learning more.

[@Bob1Mack]

Matthias, I have been looking for an introduction to this for years! Thank you!

[@nathanbodily6062]

I sincerely appreciate your knowledge on the subject of harmony, keep at it!

[@andrewwright6893]

Absolutely brilliant lesson. Nice one thanks you. What a tune

[@pierresiry1039]

Wow! You made senses out of changes and progressions. Now it's all clear. Thank you so much.

[@anggadamara4677]

you're the Best, sir! Thank you so much! Anyway, I took music theory in a high school in Iowa, I did learnt the tonic, supertonic, but the teacher didn't really applicate the use of it in "reality" (playing music). Basically, I only learnt "the theory". Just like when we learn a foreign language but we only focus on grammar and don't speak it out. It's nice to see your video, thanks a lot! Keep up your good work, Sir! GBU!

[@roywilliams7883]

I didn't even notice this vid is 20 minute long, love it

[@Moog_us]

This is so well done dude thank you

[@sefton7424]

Great video

[@RealWorldMusicTheory]

Thanks!

[@igniss777]

Veeery helpful and clear lesson, thanks a lot for this vid!!

[@david10101961]

Very good explanations, as you point out ultimately it all comes down to the symmetry inherent in the circle of fifths. I was secretly hoping that you were going to take NYSoM from BJ's original chords to something more jazz-oriented. I won't post a link to an example of what I mean as 'jazz-oriented', as it was obviously not what you were intending. In my humble opinion this is an excellent starting point for somebody who knows their way around a keyboard but is looking to start composing chord-based harmonies.

[@fictitiousproductions]

WOW WOW WOW!! What a great music communicator you are! Came across your video when trying to learn this song and it was Amazingly helpful not only to help remember the song but great theory explanation helping with my song writing riffing. Thank you very much!

[@87048]

thanks for the video. i appreciate it VERY much! very helpful!

[@stephenb4164]

Excellent work and thank you as you explain it all so clearly. Stephen

[@scotth8084]

I’m a little late to the game here. But thank you. Thank you. Thank you. In one video you’ve taken 4-5 concepts I’ve always understood in theory and shown them in context so I can hear how they work together. Amazing.

[@RealWorldMusicTheory]

Thanks for your wonderful feedback. Glad I could help 😊

[@eljuno01]

Very nicely presented. After many years playing guitar, I am happy to add these concepts to my toolbox. Thank you for sharing.

[@mikegates40]

Thanks for an excellent lesson !

[@RealWorldMusicTheory]

My pleasure!

[@idancefromtheheart]

Oh I cannot wait to return to the keys thanks to you

[@RealWorldMusicTheory]

If I could inspire a return to the keys, it was already worth recording thia video 🙏

[@shourovsarker7262]

Thnx..u r the best...

[@muhammadzameer691]

Nice Technic to improve music

[@HiItsCal]

Nice just subbed!!

[@quezquez3084]

This is the great. Thanks!

[@RealWorldMusicTheory]

Glad it was helpful!

[@ParsevalMusic]

very gooood

[@nathan7265]

This is great. I’m looking forward to more soon. Please remember to tell us when you do major 7s and add9s!

[@RealWorldMusicTheory]

Oh yeah. I’m adding maj7 and 9s instinctively almost everywhere. Early in my career I had to learn to deliberately play simple triads 😂.

[@alessioscardina1849]

Great video and that's very easy to follow the logic behind the chord progression... I have only one question why do you use Dm7 instead of a D7 ? If i understood correctly you were talking about Dorian scale ? But where is the root of the Dorian scale you were talking about ? I m bit lost

[@RealWorldMusicTheory]

Thanks :). As for the Dm7 instead of D7: The Dm7 and the following G7 have the same notes from the key of C major. A whole ii-V-I progression of Dm7 G7 Cmaj7 is in the key of C major. This is why I use it. I try to give an alternative explanation in the video when I say that you precede a tonic chord (like a major 7 chord Cmaj7) with a dominant major chord a fifth above (G7), while you precede a dominant chord (like G7) with a minor 7 chord a fifth above (Dm7). If that explanation confuses you, just forget about it and think in terms of ii-V progressions that belong to the same key :D. You could indeed use D7 here instead of Dm7. But the effect is that of moving from the key of G major (D7) to the key of C major (G7), which to my ear is a little too much. By using Dm7 I still have the chord a fifth above G7, but I do not overwhelm the listener with an additional key change. Does that help understand the Dm7? Feel free to ask further, so I can explain :)

[@rcanoli99]

@@RealWorldMusicTheory Yes indeed great explanation. I thought I understood the Dm7 as the Dorian of C (the original tonic) but maybe that's not the right way to think of it? Anyway I love your style of teaching and learned so much about this beautiful, wonderful song that I've loved since BJ released it in the 70s. thanks!

[@xus75]

What happened to the Gm7 chord that was played at the beginning, in the 1st verse?

[@RealWorldMusicTheory]

I assume you mean the Gm7 as oart of the cadence leading to F. That’s when he precedes the preceding dominant with another chord (a Dorian chord in that case). I mention how you could also do this move on all the other dominants. However, overdoing it might strain the listening capabilities if your audience. Let me know if I misunderstood your question or if I missed a chord elsewhere!

[@tomjoad6993]

Where do you add in the extra chords? For instance, if C is played on each beat of the first measure then Am is played on each beat of the second measure, and you wanted to add in Bm7 and E7, which beats would they be played on?

[@RealWorldMusicTheory]

Good question! If you insert two chords (like Bm7 and E7) you would do that on 3 and 4. if you insert just one chord (e.g. E7) you usually do that on 3. So you always put the chords in the second half of the bar.

[@EspMaster]

secondary dominance

[@RealWorldMusicTheory]

💡

[@valeyard00]

your explanation of Bb7 is wrong because he fills in with 2 chords there, Fm leading into Bb7

[@RealWorldMusicTheory]

Oh nice catch. Then it’s an even more pronounced backdoor progression using the full ii V. So the explanation seems to be right, I just missed the preceding Dorian. Thanks for the nudge 😊

[@markbra]

Backdoor prog. he he he he...

[@RealWorldMusicTheory]

Funny name, great concept. I have two other videos particularly on that backdoor 🤪

[@howtodoitdude1662]

Do you really think Billy analyzes his music this way? Or is he just naturally talented as a composer?

[@RealWorldMusicTheory]

Of course I cannot tell. But I would guess that he learned at least some of the tricks I discuss here and Kater internalized them so much, that he doesn’t consciously think about them while composing. Yet even he will have moments in which the intuition gets stuck and I’m sure he knows his music theory to maneuver himself out of a dead end. However Billy does it, the music theory tricks we extract - whether he used them consciously or not - help us understand why his music works and feels a certain way. And that is important for getting better at our own writing 😊

[@danielasmiles1]

Hi can I reach you by email?

[@RealWorldMusicTheory]

You can. What’s it about? You could also simply go to my RealWorldMusicTheory.com and leave your email there - I can contact you then. I do offer music theory coaching programs and I’m also happy to help with single sessions.

[@someoneelse293]

pretty sure the skeleton chords ("one of the most common progressions in pop") are the ones ed sheeren got sued by marvin gaye's estate for using... ed won

[@RealWorldMusicTheory]

Yeah, can’t rellycopyright that 😂. But if you pair it with a hooky melody, you might be able to claim the combination.

[@stephenward2743]

Hey man, I mean this in the nicest way possible but don't you think in a video all about needing to use your ears shouldnt you be striving for good audio quality? because frankly the audio is pretty bad and its a major distraction

[@RealWorldMusicTheory]

Yeah, thanks. I’m sorry for the not yet tuned piano and the bad audio quality. I will use my condenser next time and get the piano tuned. This time it was just: either make the video or wait another month - so I decided to just do it that way. But thanks for your honest feedback!

[@stephenward2743]

@@RealWorldMusicTheory that makes sense, good to know you have plans for improvement too 😁

[@randallmattice7215]

I love your explanations, but the piano....is slightly out of tune...

[@RealWorldMusicTheory]

Yeah, I’m sorry about that - I know. Tuning is already planned.