This DIMINISHED Chord Trick Is Mindblowing!

►► Download my ''Chord Dictionary Guide'' to get beautiful chord voicings to try: 🎁
→ www.ambientguitaracademy.com/...
In this video, I'm going to show you how to use a single diminished chord and resolve it to almost anywhere!
It works very well to modulate to distant keys in a smooth ways or to put musical emphasis on certain chords.
Most people don't know how to use diminished chords well, because diminished chords have a tense sound. They don't know where that chord should resolve or how to insert it in a progression.
The reality is that a diminished chord can resolve to SO many places and there's an easy trick to remember all the places where that chord can lead you. That's what I'm teaching in this lesson.
Let's dive in!
__________
► Full list of the pedals and gear I use to make music (these Sweetwater affiliate links support my work at no extra cost to you. Thank you! 😊)
- Singular Sound Aeros Looper Gold Edition (get 10% off by entering ANTOINE10 at checkout): www.singularsound.com/product...
- Strymon BigSky: sweetwater.sjv.io/rQqBPR
- Strymon Timeline: sweetwater.sjv.io/JzvW0R
- Strymon El Capistan: sweetwater.sjv.io/4PxqY9
- Strymon Ola: sweetwater.sjv.io/21LJ6O
- Strymon Iridium: sweetwater.sjv.io/zN5O2M
- Mission Engineering VM Pro: sweetwater.sjv.io/6eQD4N
- EHX Micro POG: sweetwater.sjv.io/eK5jjZ
- EHX Mel9: sweetwater.sjv.io/m5J1NM
- TC Electronic Polytune: sweetwater.sjv.io/PyvnnM
- Vox AC15 with Alnico Blue speaker: sweetwater.sjv.io/QyvEE9
- eBow Plus: sweetwater.sjv.io/4PxMoo
- Mogami Gold Cables: sweetwater.sjv.io/XYvKBg
- George L’s Patch Cables: sweetwater.sjv.io/OrvWjA
- Arturia Keylab 88: sweetwater.sjv.io/ZQvR51
- Arturia Keylab 49: sweetwater.sjv.io/AW1537
- Focusrite Scarlett 18i8: sweetwater.sjv.io/AW155J
- Shure SM57: sweetwater.sjv.io/VmvddJ
- Shure SM7B: sweetwater.sjv.io/XYvE5y
- Sennheiser MKE 600: sweetwater.sjv.io/0ZMzBY
- Yamaha HS8 Studio Monitors: sweetwater.sjv.io/OrvELK
- Voodoo Lab Pedal Power 4x4: sweetwater.sjv.io/R5NED2
- Sennheiser HD280 Pro: sweetwater.sjv.io/4PxMBL
- Pedaltrain Classic Pro: sweetwater.sjv.io/NkvEYP
- Cubase Artist: sweetwater.sjv.io/Y9vKkK
- Strymon BigSky Plugin: sweetwater.sjv.io/m5J1ky
► My Online Courses: ambientguitaracademy.com/
► My Studio Albums : monochromeseasons.bandcamp.com

[@swazti8630]

I'm only 3 and a half minutes in and i got to say this is gold.

[@slydogtom]

You’re a most generous man, Antoine. Here’s to a first class educator, right guys!

[@jstnxprsn]

Thanks man. That's the most useful lesson on diminished chords I've ever seen.

[@jacobscanlon9311]

This is unbelievably valuable information for those who aren’t ready to masterclass theory, you just saved hundreds of thousands of hours worldwide.

[@jimmym.5798]

Best lesson on dimnished chords ever!

[@mitchellhaller7190]

Very usefully lesson on diminished chords. You explain the material very clearly. Much thanks.

[@bidbinary]

Your video is great! Barry Harris blew my mind with this information. Anyone who wants a deeper dive into this should look into Barry Harris’ teachings.

[@user-en1lg3yp6f]

Thank you Antoine. Not only for the VERY clear & useful explanation of what diminished chords are good for, but for the free Chord Dictionary Guide. I've been searching for some beautiful chord progressions, and you show up and give me 16 of them!

[@AntoineMichaudGuitar]

It's my absolute pleasure. Glad I can be of value 😊

[@nokomisnichols]

Pure genius. It can be confusing though especially since I dont read music or know any theory. I've played by ear for nearly 40 years. I see the value of reading music and theory now. Wish I would've learned at the age of 14. now I'm 53. Excellent lesson brother.

[@jimmcdougall9973]

I’ve just turned 60 and in the same boat. This has been a valuable lesson.

[@jkool6672]

NEVER too late...it will come if you work a bit.

[@belindadrake5487]

@jimmdougall It’s never too late, as long as you work at it; l’m not going into theory; l’m a working muso, & l teach. Because l can read & know my theory, since l started at 5!! Jazz , Classical ( Beethoven rocks! 👊🏾😃) l met a guy in his 60s while l was gigging, & he wanted desperately now that he was ‘free’. At 80, l found out he took up the tub ( acoustic bass); & ended up playing in a band at 80!! Last l heard ( 12 months ago say, he was still playing!). )You go for it! You CAN do it my friend! 🎸👊🏾✨😈

[@jimmcdougall9973]

@@belindadrake5487 My father was a concert pianist, and as the first child I was expected to follow in his footsteps. I had piano lessons from the age of 4 till I was 10 years old. I gave it up. Just wasn’t for me. But took up the guitar at age 14, and within three months seasoned guitarists were asking me “how do you do that?” I have played in bands/rock outfits for most of my life. Somewhere along the way, I forgot the basics. Videos like this have helped turn back the clock and start afresh. But to be honest, I no longer have the aspirations I had as a younger me. It’s just for my own pleasure now.

[@Decranz-sb7pg]

Wow! What a great teacher you are, makes it fun to explore and learn more! Happy for your sharing!🤩

[@Chimp_No_1]

Really appreciated ! Thank you for sharing !

[@bryancroad2063]

Nice, getting into the Barry Harris / Pat Martino concepts!

[@NateBuker]

This is really amazing! I was stunned by the single fret note changes off of a diminished chord created such diverse mood invocations! You are the best, Antione! Thank you!

[@slatebook2384]

best voicing on guitar for diminished chords

[@chilekwak.chilekwaii4960]

Indeed mindblowing! The best explanation on diminished chord usage. The best in my world. I never understood how people just said, I can throw in a diminished chord in there in my progression without explaining what informs their choice of doing that. This? I will never forgot nor be on the Trial and error mode

[@RecordProducerRob]

Incredibly valuable information. Thank you

[@dominiekdr]

Thank you Antoine! This is extremely well explained and useful! :)

[@AntoineMichaudGuitar]

Glad it was helpful!

[@dougshankle7946]

REally clear and concise lesson. Thank you!

[@CousinOlivier]

Nice and crystal clear demonstration. Very interesting. Thank you Antoine.

[@seanfitzpatrick7878]

Awesome lesson. I've always used my ear to figure out a modulation using a diminished chord, and sometimes it takes a while before I get something I like. This is going to significantly reduce the time it takes to figure it out. With a little practice, I've started doing it on the fly. Thank you so much for this.

[@davidlegalley1161]

Great deal of useful information in this lesson Antoine! Thank you for sharing this.

[@wchphoto]

Very clear instructions on dim chord usage. I'm just discovering chord substitutions and ii-V-I usage. This video adds a lot to my understanding! Thank you! And thanks for the Chord Dictionary Guide!

[@colinjackson3662]

Thank you Antoine, so simple and usable without having to think too much .., plus with a very easy, movable/slideable dim chord shape with potential to use open 'e's in appropriate or capo'd keys. Much appreciated 🙏

[@papie5151]

This video erased years of confusion on diminished chord resolution. I couldn't quite understand when I'd hear that one diminished chord can resolve to four different chords. Thank you.

[@samuil_maxim]

The best lesson i've seen lately. Bravo...!!!!

[@1tigercat2]

Always a great lesson. Thank you, it really helps

[@freddyfender1331]

That was Mindblowing! Thanks

[@Stboser]

What an awesome lesson!

[@briandwi2504]

I'm glad that I watched this! Really useful and very well explained. Thanks very much.

[@muddycube-theboringytchann9036]

Wonderful lesson and presentation!

[@andremelo_82]

Great lesson!

[@analogblues9606]

Awesome video! Thank you Antoine!

[@AgungDimasIrawan]

finally i love diminished chord...thnx dude

[@commanderdawson3773]

Great lesson...Thank you

[@stevenjaywalters]

Very cool. Thank you Antoine.

[@QBRX]

Thanks Antoine...great stuff!

[@wyntrader]

Since a long time I was using the diminished chord to go or slip to a next chord. But YOU give to me the full explanation to now better use this so nice trick. Thanks.

[@burkecarroll3927]

Thanks man. I use that all the time but had no clue the theory behind it. I’m usually so deep in sonic process I glaze over the breakdown of notes harmonies. Thanks for the energetic class professor. Rock on

[@andrewhertzberg6889]

Really well done. Thank you.

[@PeterKertesz2013]

Really clear explanation, thank you. Subscribed

[@haraldliesk9410]

very good explanation!! Thnak you so much!!

[@chrissturley823]

Very cool. Thanks for the video

[@Edward-st5qm]

Thanks Antoine, I am 62 years old , So this is a hobby that I am learning

[@ARCHDEACONMUSIC]

One of the BEST explanations I've ever seen on how to use a diminished chord! Thanks! :)

[@carstenbornscheuer255]

Seeeehr Aufschlussreich und informativ. Das bring einen weiter nach vorne. 👍👍👍

[@petercontarino646]

Very cool. Thanks for posting this!

[@bennysan101]

Great lesson on dim chords, and very clearly explained. I now understand how to use use & when to use them! Thank U!!!

[@Sarah-yd8th]

Really helpful

[@scooterfoust4361]

Great stuff... thanks so much! This helps "diminish" the mystery of diminished chords.

[@ReidGraves]

Wow; this was well thought out and a very useful lesson.

[@danobrien3601]

Finally I understand how to use diminished chords .. BIG THANKS

[@seviswitzerland3470]

Very good explenation, thank you !

[@brucewales5965]

Great stuff! And thanks for minimizing left hand gestures!

[@sanoysuelto]

Thank you Maestro !!!!

[@gu9008]

Great lesson thanks

[@rainchaser5389]

Thank you for such great videos.

[@derekhuntingtonmarti]

I knew this trick but wasn't using it much, so it was cool to see you present in a simple way sticking to basic chord shapes that gets people using it and playing around with it rather than stumbling over more complicated theory. Thanks. That's the best approach b/c you've got to play this stuff and get it in your ear as well as something you can think about quickly, then you can refine it with more voicings and better voice-leading and also expand on its uses.

[@AntoineMichaudGuitar]

Absolutely!

[@RobRice-so5nv]

That's amazing!

[@Jinjer13]

terrific job!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! warm greetings from a german musician > subbed

[@joev4483]

Wow! Thank you!!!

[@JamesW225]

Great lesson

[@DerekRose_aka_DJ]

Great lesson! Thank you for this info, it gives me a lot more options than just the usual shared-key pivot chords for changing keys.

[@DaveMarket]

Thanks. Been playing for decades and never put this together

[@WickBeavers]

Excellent lesson, thanks! Gotta get it home and onto my guitar.

[@geraldhuot6302]

That was great Antoine! Merci mon amie!

[@calixohiggins9843]

Very cool man!

[@user-ef3bn6pe1d]

Oooo my god.... that's really blowing my mind... Thank you bro!))

[@josezavala-garcia1183]

Thanks a lot! You just explained the type of chords that give me that "certain" feeling, like that new Beatles song. Right on man! 👍

[@Stephen-zx4uf]

Thanks so much!

[@jm100573]

That's what we like ! Thanks a Lot Antoine, it's so exciting to learn new things and They are so usefull .... Merci Beaucoup !!

[@robertbeaulieu9151]

Merci Antoine! Trop cool tes explications qui nous révèlent les trucs des compositeurs. J'entends les Beatles un peu partout dans tes exemples. Surprenant le système!

[@rj595]

Got yourself a sub! Thanks for the chord chart 🤘🏼

[@user-ck3xz5bw6m]

Thank you🙏👍

[@garymcaleer6112]

Good exercise and tools for creativity.

[@OneMinuteMeds]

USEFUL! Thank you. Truly mind-blowing. I I suspect this movement to other chords applies to many chords too.

[@didierklein1328]

Génial, je n’avais jamais pensé à résoudre par rapport à une autre note que la plus grave.

[@MizzLeone]

Salut d’Ottawa! Merci Antoine pour la belle lesson!! 💫💫

[@AntoineMichaudGuitar]

Ça fait plaisir!

[@bengrillet]

Excellent video, really well presented and informative - congratulations. I enjoyed the enthusiasm and learned something new. Now a subscriber.

[@turtletracks7657]

Awesome!

[@GlobalOrbital]

Merci Antione!!!

[@petesimmonds8846]

Superb mon brave!

[@derekbiggerstaff]

They all feel right because any note in a diminished chord can be the tonic. Same applies to the augmented.

[@Poekoe1975]

Awesome man, that, to me as selftaught/play by ear kind of guitarplayer, makes alot of sense. Thanks man

[@zzzyxwv]

Brilliant 👌👍

[@1man1guitarletsgo]

You _do_ hear a lot of diminished chords in popular music, but they're often momentary passing chords. Learning what they sound like, it's possible to pick them out when learning songs. I don't read music, and I see the diminished scale in terms of fret positions as "play, one, miss two, repeat". Incidentally, an _augmented_ scale would be "play one, miss three, repeat".

[@davidturnage3467]

That is cool AF!

[@HaryTone]

Brother, you are the best!! ; )

[@petrusjakobson9697]

Thanks🌹🙏

[@EddieSlowhands]

GREAT VIDEO ANTOINE ! AS ALWAYS ! SUPER USE OF A NORMALLY LITTLE USED CHORD SO THANKS FOR SHARING THIS SUPER LESSON MY FRIEND. BEST REGARDS . . . EDDIE IN THE U.K.

[@hammingus]

Great explanation! Because the Diminished Chord(s) contain the Tritone of the Dominant (e.g. G7 in the Key of C containing the interval B to F (a.k.a F to B both being Tritones) it can function as the Dominant Chord that leads to the Tonic. So in other words, a Major or Minor I chord (Tonic) can be approached by it‘s Dominant (Vth) chord or by a Diminished Chord build on its Major 7th (as shown here) or on its Perfect 4th or on its Major 2nd as well as on its b6th. Or to stay within the example, C could be approached by G7, Bdim, Ddim, Fdim, or Abdim., right?

[@marcsullivan7987]

Yes. Except those “4” diminished chords are really all the same chord. Any one is equally valid as the root. Naming them is arbitrary, but often the note in the bass is assigned the name.

[@hammingus]

​@@marcsullivan7987 Yes, you're absolutely right. I'm not picky about the naming at all, I just think it can be helpful to memorize not only the note before the landing chord as being where the diminished chord occurs, but also the other 3 intervals (which as you said are always one or a multiple of minor thirds apart). I often heard the notion that the diminished chord can be found on the Dominant's 3rd, which of course is the same as the note before the landing Chord. SO just different ways to look at it. Great lesson.

[@valcrist7428]

LOL. You're funny. After watching this, you opened up a topic which is more complicated than this. It means you already know this even before you watched it. But why? To show off?

[@derekhuntingtonmarti]

The 4-7 tritone you mention is the reason this diminished chord trick works. The simultaneous resolution of p4 down to M3 and M7 up to root (in C: F to E and B to C) is what does it, this changes that tritone interval to M3/m6, and like you mention, it happens both when resolving G7 to C or Bdim7 to C. In the dim7 resolution, you also get Ab resolving to G, and the D could resolve to either C or E (or even stay on D to make it an add9 or M9 chord if you want something weirder sounding). Thanks for mentioning that - I was trying to remember why this works. Also you can do Bdim7 - G7 - C as a longer resolution. The dim7 chord differs from the V7 by only one note so (using the A string root drop2 voicing for dim7 he sticks to here) pull of that Ab to open G (or slide it down in other keys) and there you go. He does discuss how diminished chord works in this resolution using any inversion (and how the inversions are all played with the same shape on guitar since the intervals between chord tones are all m3). He only uses one voicing/shape for the dim7 chord - drop2 with root on A string - but if you apply this to other voicings you have a lot of possibilities here.

[@hammingus]

@@valcrist7428 My apologize, I did not mean to show off. I just tried to contemplate to what was explained here very well indeed. I think it can be of practical benefiit to memorize all 4 scale degrees (VII, II, IV, bVI) that the diminished chord can be build upon. Very good video!

[@plainsroamer405]

Thanks you 🙏

[@plainsroamer405]

This is honestly one of the most useful guitar/music lessons I've ever watched on YT

[@elmolewis9123]

Of all my years of playing, never heard this one. 👍👍

[@sbbudj]

Good stuff

[@mcrp_]

Yesterday I saw a video about this technique in relation to wes Montgomery soloing progressions

[@tonybragg1676]

Reflections from glasses gone countdown!!🤣🤣 That is great!! Great tutorial as well (as always)

[@paulmoran3482]

Interesting 🎼🎸👍

[@beatxt]

This is great stuff. George Harrison dropped subtle diminished chords in quite a lot, both in his Beatles and solo songs. See also 10CC!

[@tonymccormick21]

KZbin has lots of good stuff but a lot of it covers the areas ( caged? Triads? Pentatonic?) but this was different and good

[@kylew706]

Yess my friend

[@JaysenDubois22]

très pertinent :) !!!