The power of the dim chord

[@gavcanflip]

At first I was afraid, I was petrified

[@Loogia]

Kept thinking i could never live without you by my side

[@fairgrowfreestyles]

Lol

[@PepitosMusic]

@@Loogia but then I spent so many nights thinking how you did me wrong

[@horaceapple346]

@@PepitosMusic but I grew strong

[@ARSZLB]

@@horaceapple346 AND I LEARNED HOW TO GET ALONG

[@clif_plays]

I love how it can sound almost over dramatic in some cases, when you really want to make a transition feel emotional

[@SeanORaigh]

If you want an emotional transition, avoid this chord like the plague.

[@MrAFK495]

​@@SeanORaigh why?

[@yeasstt]

​@@SeanORaigh bro does not listen to classical or jazz Diminished chords are extremely useful for creating emotional progressions. They build up a lot of tension which can easily be resolved (Bach's Toccata and Fugue in D Minor uses a Diminished chords for this exact purpose near the start of the piece) which can help make a dark atmosphere. Similarly, diminished runs are one of the most useful ways to change keys, as you can do something like a downwards Bdim arpeggio, which resolves to an AMaj7 chord. Now you've modulated from C to either A or D. Alternatively, you can raise the dim7 up to a b7 to get a m7b5 chord, which is an incredible chord that is used a lot in many styles of music

[@itslogeyyy]

​@@MrAFK495 Sean is the plague 😹

[@priamdavid4827]

I wouldn’t say it’s underrated - just not typically used in pop 😂

[@goo9262]

Someone knows... thank you

[@SilverChak]

I thought the same

[@kiingxsulief8336]

sooooo underrated?

[@priamdavid4827]

Honestly , if I start searching enough I’ll probably have 100s of pop songs between the 1950s-2000s that utilized this chord

[@raphaelisaac7479]

thank you.

[@pappyprimetime7510]

Damn, I was underrating that chord all my life. Now I will give it a fair rating

[@Hacks536]

Which is? (Drumroll)

[@cerebrummaximus3762]

Which is? (drumroll)

[@pappyprimetime7510]

@@cerebrummaximus3762 8.23

[@cerebrummaximus3762]

@@pappyprimetime7510 Cheers, mate - that's a neat rating you got there

[@HeavenlyBridegroomMusic]

😆

[@AAARREUUUGHHHH]

The E flat just hit perfectly

[@Cr3reeper]

KZbin asked me to rate ur comment and i said other and funny 💀

[@VICKERY-]

Also what I was thinking

[@lemonaid-ice]

Gm major thoooooo

[@lemonaid-ice]

Gb major thooooo

[@3_ormorecharacters]

the a was just beautiful tho

[@scarbotheblacksheep9520]

My theory textbook called this "the secret lives of chords."

[@mariusvangent5390]

What’s it called?

[@KthW]

Remind me

[@scarbotheblacksheep9520]

@@mariusvangent5390 Theory for Today's Musician: First Edition by Ralph Turek

[@chinossynthesizer705]

I have to learn music theory in high school help me

[@gabharri910]

​@@chinossynthesizer705 It's not that bad. It just depends on if it's actual, relevant theory or just outdated figured bass notations.

[@greenflare3125]

Jazz community: yeah... underrated...👀

[@Unexplained65]

me irl

[@AmeeliaK]

Don't tell Beethoven that the diminished chord is underrated... 😂

[@ikwenmusic]

half of the time beethoven is using a diminished chord lol

[@maxfuster5602]

I had a teacher once say that “diminished is the soup that binds it all together”

[@srensaaby6455]

This has always been my favorite chord ever since i discovered it at uni, the incomplete dominant with a small 9th and the 5th in the base. Musicgasm. It's great to see it finally get some love ^^

[@texanfrog1750]

shutup I don't know why people are getting angry. I was annoyed cause this person's acting like it's such a big deal but it's just a diminished chord. Also wtf is a musicgasm

[@thespectralarrow8879]

@@texanfrog1750 wtf is your problem man

[@j.rohmann3199]

​@@texanfrog1750 what wrong? Jealous that someone knows more than you?

[@christloen4077]

@@texanfrog1750 what's yo problem

[@pihermoso11]

I learned the diminished chord at the start of the pandemic.. What I've discovered is that there is an embedded dominant 7th chord in it, example: F#dim has a D7 chord in it, I saw this in using the 3 bottom strings of the guitar.. Augmented chord also has an embedded minor addM7 chord in it, exampled AAug has a Dm+M7 in it

[@willsayler4607]

I learned this THIS MORNING in my music theory class, kinda spooky that this video shows up right now

[@chandlerh2511]

The world is a simulation and you are the main character

[@MrDrProfJMF]

Big bro- I mean Google is always watching

[@HeavenlyBridegroomMusic]

They are testing you to see if you were playing attention in class. 😆

[@Mopsie]

That’s probability for ya

[@zacksguitarhacks6390]

Microphones bro

[@sleepyhead757]

please make more shorts like this!! this is the kind of practical knowledge that’s transformative with songwriting. ur a goat!

[@NoteSmoking]

You can also drop any one of those notes by a half-step and you’ll end up with 4 dominant chords. Another great way to transition.

[@ValkyRiver]

This is more a property of 12-TET rather than the diminished seventh chord itself. In 19-TET, for example, the diminished chord is not fully symmetrical. kzbin.info/www/bejne/gmndnISmacqappI

[@2m7b5]

All four inversions of a dim7 chord are also just four different rootless 7b9 chords.

[@SushikiIIer]

This was a really good explanation of both building a dim chord easily and using it as a passing tone.

[@friendofphi]

This is perfect content for my level of music theory.

[@carlosprieto7617]

Clearly

[@darius4405]

@@carlosprieto7617 you’re a piano and guitar master wow so smart. Is that what you want to hear?

[@santannanavoz849]

We use a lot of that chord here in Brasil, at samba, chorinho, mpb...it's a really Beautiful chord

[@arthurhtbk6596]

So this freaking guy managed to put on the internet a minute long introduction to the Barry Harris harmonic system that is intelligible to total beginners. Amazing

[@mywifeishot1986]

For reals

[@cyanhallows7809]

Not really 6th diminished tbh

[@alexbougiemusic]

This isn’t the Barry Harris harmonic system. It’s just how diminished chords work.

[@cyanhallows7809]

@@alexbougiemusic Exactly!!!!!!!!!! People will like anything. Morons

[@surgrus4367]

@@alexbougiemusic Barry Harris think he something

[@rosesareblue610]

The chord change to Eb hit different

[@bsykesbeats4013]

That's just cuz of the voicing he's using. He's using the same dim voicing going to all these chords. You could rearrange the voicing so that they all sound that way.

[@cactusowo1835]

Ah yes, the chord that I hear everyday listening to bach ^^

[@goo9262]

Basically any classical music lol

[@Ace-dv5ce]

Liszt Liszt Liszt Liszt Liszt Liszt Liszt Likes diminished

[@cactusowo1835]

@@goo9262 I guess nobody uses it in pop music in this context :P You can tell it lacks of colour

[@ivansoto9723]

​​​@@cactusowo1835 In the right context and voicing, it can sound very colorful. It and the half diminished chord, sometimes in inversion too, can be found in a lot of Kpop and Jpop. It's all about the chords that come before and after, and even more importantly, how you voice them and voice lead them.

[@cactusowo1835]

@@ivansoto9723I guess jpop and kpop have them, but the very little time i listened to western pop has literally none

[@xyzyzx1253]

Barry Harris sixth diminished scale fully explained by Robbie Barnarby on KZbin fully covers the depth of the diminished chord and its uses! This is just the start of a journey into the core of how all modern jazz harmony works :)

[@nyominator6437]

Super underrated, music devs might need to nerf it if people discover it’s true potential

[@zachary963]

Lol

[@jacobsongs]

We love your content Andrew.Thank you for sharing this, this a GEM!

[@seanspartan2023]

I liked your progression: b⁰7 -> Cm -> b⁰7 -> Eb maj Thx for the tip!

[@fairgrowfreestyles]

Def hear that Bdim7th in a lot of “drill” beats - thanks for the upload - your content is very helpful - and your expressive, creative talent is tremendous - please keep it going - peace ✌🏾- I will be def making an audio sketch this afternoon with this chord and transition. - by the sounds of it - will try - Bdim7th - Cm - Bdim7th- Gbm - Bdim7th - Ebm- had a very sombre “drill” beat vibe on first impression - thanks again 🙏🏾

[@Crazy_Cane]

You gotta let me hear this man

[@sabres_fan7467]

Nobody is using diminished chords in drill beats lmao. It’s just minor chords

[@fairgrowfreestyles]

@@sabres_fan7467 yeah you must know everything about music theory and audio composition so laugh at others who have sincere aspirations to learn / your life must be perfect. Oh wait prob not, considering your watching Andrew huang uploads and making comments that help stroke your ego - maybe 🤔 not then I guess … appreciate your input - keep it up, it will get you to where you should be in life

[@ivansoto9723]

​@@fairgrowfreestyles Brodie wasn't even trying to hurt your feelings my man. He was just telling you that the sauce wasn't diminished chords. Stop crying and writing brick walls lol.

[@fairgrowfreestyles]

@@ivansoto9723 lol

[@Neosyass]

We use this type of chord a lot in jazz music ! Tbh it sounds great with a certain musical ambience 😄

[@m0ment219]

Anything not usually used in pop is "underrated".

[@matotuHELL]

Awesome. You make it so simple, explain it so clearly.

[@earlgrey11]

And it’s the most awesome chord in Toccata by Bach!!

[@MusicalSleepingCatOfficial]

Agreed ;)

[@lawrencetaylor4101]

Poor Johann. Chuck never wrote Roll Over Bach.

[@joshuaadams5335]

The chord you’re talking about it’s even more spicy than a normal fully diminished chord because it also has a pedal playing the tonic of the next chord the diminished chord resolves to! Super spicy dissonance all around.

[@quackistan]

thank you Andrew I am going to use this in my music content

[@BradTorresHTX]

If you think about the diminished 7th as the top four notes of a 7(b9), it kind of explains why these resolutions work so well. It’s just V-I or V-i with a dominant 7(b9) to tonic in various inversions. So, when you resolve to Eb, for instance, you’re not playing “Bdim7” but Ddim7 which is enharmonic, and it’s functioning as a dominant function of the Eb tonic, like a Bb7(b9).🤘🏼

[@bassalchemist]

This is great. Crying shame we can't save these into favorites.

[@Justin.Franks]

You can also go to a major chord _down_ a half step from any of the notes. Try Bdim7 -> Bb -> G. Especially with the top note walking up (Ab -> Bb -> B).

[@goldbergmatan6264]

That was great ! Please more like this!

[@ya9thelatinogringo]

I just discovered the diminished barre chord 2 days ago, it’s great

[@misterrelatable3049]

Damn that chord goes realll well with a nice jazz blues rhythm These chords make an amazing blues rhythm; 4/4 F7|Bb7|F7|(repeat previous chord)| Bb7|Bdim7|F7|(Repeat previous chord) |F7 D7|Gmi7 C7|| Each chord is worth 4 beats except for the last 4.

[@alexanderpiano1506]

Glad to see you sharing these techniques. I’ve played a lot of Chopin and this technique is used everywhere.

[@quizzically_ambiguous]

fun fact! this is the main motif for the Marvel series "Jessica Jones" :)

[@dontgotocollege5232]

If you start a song on a diminished chord it adds intrigue from the get go

[@ekyo_stuff]

never been this early lmao

[@tsukinokazegashi5104]

omg, this was so helpful, I needed something that could transition well to a key change in a piece I'm composing!! thanks a lot :D

[@annosayu]

I feel like they have a strong melancholic/nostalgic vibe, as I can remember, "love like you" uses those at the start at least

[@leonp.2171]

woah very cool tip thanks

[@nickreid5613]

Bach did this quite often. He would finish what we call a “perfect cadence”. A prime example is his prelude in C BWV 540

[@jdb6026]

Yassss loved using these transitions when I used to write songs.

[@docarii]

Oh no, It's the forbidden triple tri-tone!!!

[@BerakObama]

Not a lot of people know this but Jacob collier invented music theory

[@squeemdweem]

that's so cool!

[@danthompson5797]

Awesome man. I've been using diminished chords for years to resolve things but I didn't know that there was a hard rule about one up from any of the notes. You're the first person I have ever learned music theory from and I'm pretty good myself. I feel kind of sad that it's time for me to step off my throne as a genius and let somebody else take over. But this might also mean a new chapter for me too which is probably a good thing.

[@mandybee1990]

Oh my GOSH YASSSSS!!!!! So good, thank you for this video!!!! 😍😍😍😍😍😍

[@infamouscha]

Wow, that’s explained very well. Especially how you can use those notes to build off and transition into another chord.

[@williamwong2706]

Diminished or diminished 7th chord are often used in Christian Gospel Hymn / Church music, so it's basically adds the tension and power from those dim chords before resolving to the first root of the scale. For example: F - F#dim 7 - resolving to C in G bass note - G7b9 - back to C

[@abreebee]

The Grimm Troupe theme from Hollow Knight uses TONS of diminished 7ths. I learned the song on piano because it sounded so cool, but also unintentionally learned a ton of music theory.

[@samsaw11]

Man that’s actually so crazy that I didn’t understand any of it.

[@vehemore]

you're amazing Andrew

[@CW19941]

Those diminished chords and notes sound cool on a piano and also cool on guitar🤟🏻used a lot in metal and rock songs

[@fonfsx]

For those who may be asking why this resolves to a lot of chords, it's simple: the inversions of a diminished chord are the chord itself. So, in practice, there's only three different diminished chords: C°, C#°/Db° and D°. D#°/Eb° is also the first inversion of C°. And so on.

[@TheDontCheat]

As a pianist who enjoys playing jazz I must say it’s hard finding a tune without an diminished chord further more the diminished scale is closer to overused than overlooked

[@Kaptinkumar]

Damn I was hoping he’d just play a C major chord or something😂

[@Calakapepe]

Thank you for doing something real lol So many videos are like "This chord is amazing! Ebmb7! oh its gorgeous!...." ignoring that most people wont differentiate it from the same chord transposed lol

[@venceremosallende422]

Now play the diminished, lower one of the notes by a half step and play the rest like the diminished, and boom, you got a 7th chord on your hand which allows you to modulate into the according tonic

[@sebastianciuru8181]

thank you very much Andrew ;) you are a hero

[@MrAndrewCreech]

You got 12 notes in the Universe. Then Momma Whole Tone Scale, and Poppa Whole Tone scale. They had 3 kids, the diminished 7th chords. All other chords are derived from the 3 children, making up families. RIP Barry Harris.

[@corystajduhar]

I use this technique all of the time as a passing chord. It is especially nice as a half-step passing chord to a minor chord.

[@freegogehr6791]

My gosh, that's frickin awesome

[@maxx42069]

andrew with the hoodie is highly underrated

[@facundo_sanchez]

It adds tension and begs you to go down to the base note in the scale. That's actually really used commonly, just not in popular music today

[@williamwong2706]

Especially in gospel / church music

[@zachary963]

Diminished chords and chromaticism reinvigorated my love for music. I like to suggest diminished chords in my guitar playing by just playing a tritone (the tritone relationship between the root and the flat fifth of a diminished chord is what gives it its flavor and power) and then resolving the tritone. Fun fact: diminished chords are like dominant chords but without the root. G7: G B D F B-: B D F

[@PrinceWesterburg]

Flatten any note in a Dim7 and you have the root note of the newly formed Dom7 ;)

[@JordieFilip]

I like your fancy words magic man

[@JollyRanchersGrandma]

Diminished chords always sounded so cool to me when I was younger learning piano

[@amsbeats841]

Tri-tones!! I do this all the time spot on! If you wanna get to a new key, this is how!

[@leviapplepie]

Livng With Determination (Iwatodai Station)- Persona 3 is a great example of this

[@jack_evoniuk]

Part of the reason for this is that the dim7 chord is, like the augmented triad, symmetric, so any of the constituent notes can be considered the root.

[@Ikkitsune]

I make lots of quick loops and most of it uses diminished chords. I just love it that much and I feel happy it got acknowledged here.

[@DustinPlatt]

I prefer the Cm7b13 with a DM9 chord. You need 4 hands but Goro plays it beautifully.

[@DisapprovingShinji]

This was so interesting! I didn't understand a single word you said 🤠👍🏻

[@Valleyplant]

It’s cool because there are only 3 different dimished chords instead of the 12 (24 actually) keys you can normally play chords in

[@bubbles13244]

A diminish 7th chord is used in concert band type songs a lot. Our band teacher would stress about the importance of having them in the progression of the song

[@myeXtofu]

THIS IS THE MELODY IM TRYNA PUT INTO MY SONGS TOT

[@dylexzerrealondevilla9655]

Oh Thank you very much. This can help me greatly with writing songs

[@cocique]

i thought you were about to make a major 7th chord 😂😂😂 but youre right, diminished chords are super underrated, especially when used for tritone substitution or modulation in the circle of fifths! you pass the test👍🏻

[@remistarlight8485]

Love it!

[@torre4102]

thats my absolute favorite chord, its SOOOO versatile

[@wellesleyminto9388]

Learning a lot from you Andrew 😮😮 thanks a lot ❤️❤️

[@alexandersvibing7777]

I tried a transition with this chord and it worked perfectly 👌 tysm

[@granddaddy_funk]

Omg this guy discovered a new chord. Oh wait now I remember music theory 1

[@TheGreatEllie125]

Sometimes I hear diminished chords in some kpop songs. it's a neat chord

[@scronx]

Besides the augmented and diminished chords, don't miss the augminished and demented ones.

[@channel21gcdn-tv]

Super underrated most common leading tone!!!! That's crazy bro!!!!!!

[@saravranic]

Yeaah I love and use that chord often in key transitions

[@ignazachenbach5406]

Don't forget about common-tone diminished-seventh chords, Andy. It's not really “functional” per se, but it lets you add more color to an otherwise bland progression.

[@KRBadolato]

It works so well because of that b5. The b5 moves to resolve every time. I use flatted 5th in solos to create glides and tension. Kinda how I also bend min 3rds to maj 3rds in minor pentatonic over major blues chords. I learned that trick from BB King and Buddy Guy.

[@JunkyZice]

yoooo this info is fire ty

[@AiyetoroFeligrus]

Suddenly youve been showing up in my shorts ngl I miss watching all your content its been FOREVER since Ive last really watched you 🤔 not sure why I stopped honestly

[@zacksguitarhacks6390]

It really sound best when u make a melody the leading voice that ascends or descends into the root of the key ur modulating to.

[@haze_lee]

i was just searching how they do those transition chords, thanks for this

[@ivansoto9723]

Secondary Dominants (bonus for alterations) Diminished chords are just dominants without the root.

[@nxxynx5039]

I'd say usb-B cords are kinda underrated

[@BenJamminBader]

Excellent tip!!

[@a-listercrowley2737]

Dude! Thanks 😊 🙏

[@ALF8892]

I use minor seven flat five alot with ease but never found a good use for diminished seven. Thank you