7 SICK Chord Substitutions 

Man, Adam is such a great teacher.

You are the best piano teacher of RU-vid!

I haven't needed to rely on anything other than instinct for a few years now but it was an arduous 20+ year journey getting there and while trying to teach that skill to my students, I've encountered many challenges. The way that Adam explains these advanced concepts makes everything so simple, without taking away from the simultaneous beautiful complexity of the Music. It's such a genius way to reimagine how we view the Music while we're playing it. These videos will help many people to get into the habit of practicing all the right things and probably discovering many sounds that they've been hearing for years but had trouble replicating. Thank you for being such an invaluable piece of Music education!

This is GREAT!!! Beautiful options that open so many different paths and colours. Thank you Adam, your lessons are priceless!!!!

This helps so much. Now I know what to call, and how to formulate, some of the stuff I've been hearing in Bill Evans' and Herbie's playing for years. THANK YOU! And thanks for the pdf.!

Adam, yet another superb lesson where you show and explain what we need to know so we can take it from there to teach and expand on it ourselves. Please keep it up!

Ok, the hinge concept is something I've been doing without thinking about it for a long time, you just made it so simple... appreciate it!

Adam you’re a such good teacher because you show everything. The Music thank you for that. We pass away but the Music stays.

wonderful teaching Adam - clear and concise and love the way you enjoy it

Adam...the best teacher worldwide eveeeeerrrrr!!!..Thanks again Adam...this is Gold!!Pure Gold!!!!!!!

@9:37 Wow mind blown "Hinge" you've given me a new thoughtless perspective when playing. Im usually so focused on scales, the when the how the why chords go together which is very confusing and difficult to keep up with. But the hinge process you've explained is thoughtless and makes absolute since. Knowing that I can bring tension to a chord leading into another chord without thinking of complex scales is amazing.Thank you for opening my eyes.ive been playing for almost 20 years and this is the 1st time I've ever heard of this. BIG THANKS

I'm a guitar player and I love watching these videos. Can't do everything with regards to the notes of the full voicings played in these examples, but can mimic it and get the general idea.

I've been playing tons of voicings since the pandemic began, and am beginning to develop some minor fluency, but I always wondered about when or why to use tension tones and how to voice lead, but I'm now seeing that one can lead into whatever the next voicing is with tones from a half or whole step above or below any member of the next chord! This is a grand generalization of course, but seeing it this way is a game changer. I KNEW that there had to be a kind of principle behind this. The hinging idea is priceless! And all in the space of about 20 minutes! This will keep this Open Studio member busy for the next year.

I would have gave up music if it wasn't for you and another bunch of great musicians and teachers on this platform; thanks a lot, this is loads of precious and fascinating informations❤

Always learning something new from your channel Adam. Thanks for this. Even a new expression which I intend to use, " under-talked-about ".

This channel is pure GOLD!!! Thank you so much for sharing these priceless Knowledge

These breakdowns are SO important

This is my favourite lesson of yours so far.

What an amazing video i love that you guys upload everything with notes for profesional musicians thank u❤

Hinging…great explanation and concept. Thank you for everything!

I love this nerdy harmonic stuff,thanks Adam,getting a lot out of the vids,and courses.

14:19. Been playing for 37 years. Somehow I've missed out on the sound of the beautiful A9/C# passing chord (III major) in a 2 5. Thank you!!

Helpful as always. Always helpful. ALWAYS.

astonishingly good lesson - Thanks Adam (as always)

Fabulous stuff. All in one place. Thank you!

Super cool lesson, as always. Thx Adam! :)

I love your vids. You are a great teacher.

It's great to see you explaining this... I developed a solo/vocal accompaniment style of jazz/bossa/samba guitar-- and guitar in general-- for myself years ago... I did so because I had a hard time translating my understanding of scales/modes/voicings to a technical proficiency on my instrument... But my ears could hear, and my fingers could feel where harmonies and lead voicings wanted to go-- so I let them go there... I used a "box" approach to chords, alternating the movement of the "corners" (moving bass lines, and inner and outer voice movement) to the feel of the rhythm... Ultimately the movement of my harmonies and voicings did not align exactly with what I was hearing in my head-- and often did not necessarily "fit" on paper... But hence the beauty of music-- I just played; my instrument and the notes did the rest on their own... Things connected because they were there to connect; and the music itself did not express the same limitations or restrictions as the theories and pedagogies attached to it... Those were great days of playing... Finding freedom on an instrument allows you to play beyond your "skill"... I was never as good as many of the players I admired or played with; but music always showed me a path to the right things to play at the right times... Excellent video... It is inspiring; and it evokes good memories 🙏

Thank you for sharing these vids with us. 🙏

Thank you for the really cool lesson! After playing around and exploring some more, I also liked substituting the 6 with a 3dim (which is like the tritone substitute except with the root up a half step).

Great video again guys!

This is great. Adam you are the man

This is so well presented, and re-enforces the concept that there are no wrong notes. I am curious as to whether the egg is predating the chicken, it has always been my belief that the extensions, or hinge tones were a way to accommodate the melody while changing the underlying harmony, but the chronology is not important. Thank you for this concise lesson.

That was so helpful! Almost all the voicings work for guitar too. I’m really curious about what you used on the II and V chords. Great material. Thank you!

This video is absolute GOLD. The kind of useful secrets a self taught musician like myself is looking for. Thank you!

Very good lesson. Lovely voicings and voice leading.

Thanks Adam.. it's awesome !!!

Very useful information for guitarists as well. I'm digging it.

Beautiful indeed.

So amazing! 🫶🫶

Bro you killin me with the chords after the II and after the V they sound so good

Thank you Adam.

Thank you for your work man

beautiful!

Man, I love this nerdy stuff!

My jazz guitar taught me how to ‘decorate’ chords many years ago. This was almost identical to your explanation of hinging. He told me to listen the colours, explore different combinations and use these to create beautiful voice leading through the changes. These decorations then gave me loads of notes to use in soloing. I moved this onto piano myself as I only ever had classical lessons. It was only many years later that I came across modes and scale/ chord theory. While I’ve studied these thoroughly now, if I’m honest I still think in terms of decorations( hinging) when I’m improvising solos or comping. I suspect this may have been the thought process for many jazz players years ago. Thanks for all your hard work and keeping an old guy inspired to keep playing 👍

This is so beautiful and useful. As a guitar and bass player, this makes me wanna play piano again.

Man you are a great teacher especially how you explain it I’m not a jazz cat but I love these changes there beautiful thank you mark

The metronome sounds like slapping the lock shut on a guitar case. I like it. It is very obvious where the beats are. I've never heard anyone use this sound for a metronome before.

Thanks a lot Adam!

So lovely and useful - thanks, Adam! The whole time I was waiting for a resolution (tonic) harmony. Just conditioned, I guess!

Loving the Channel

This was an amazing video!!

I love this video. Unfortunately after watching it 7 times I have no idea what is going on. I will continue watching.

Thanks for your great expertise!

Love the videos

I got so much out of this, thank you so much

That's really cool BTW Adam I was on Thiago's Vitorio lesson you gave a couple of days ago I'm the Tritone sub guy questioner lol Thanks for one more great lesson!!!

the Beauty of this is that all these movements aren’t set in stone but we just incorporate what we like to hear ourselves into our own playing

Thankyou, excellent

Lolol!!! Absolutely got me at @9:05 looking for my coffee mug! Okay, might be an Irish coffee.

"You don't have to ask your mom about it... You don't have to get permission." haha thats great. very useful stuff, by the way, thank you for your posts!

Great material. I just subscribed.

Maaaaaaaan..exactly what i needed😂🎉

Very helpful video thanks my friend

Thanks for this wonderful exposition. As a guitar player I found this really enlightening, and I’m curious to know how you decide what voice things to use on the piano. Things seem to fall easily under your fingers… Is that something that really shapes the chords and extensions that you are playing, or do you have in mind something else which determines where your fingers fall?

This is great stuff

Fabulous!

As a seasoned bass player, I am mesmerized by your studies into chord progressions and reharmonization. Jazz is a wonderfully skilled, nutty and genius way to relax. It is only music. And then again, it is only Music!

Great stuff! This will be a lot of fun to practice. I'm using it on guitar. I like keyboard lessons like this, because they don't get bogged down with all the quirky guitar issues. Update: Yes, I rewatched and took notes. Very valuable exercise.

Man this is awesome

great video!

Bro, I just paused for at least 10 unexpected minutes on your first example to figure out what all the unlabeled stuff in there is and why it works. I knew you were gonna add some extras, but those tritone-subs were toastier than a Quiznos footlong. Thanks for rehashing an entire semester of harmony in 6 minutes. - Sincerely, A musically educated drummer

Real good info. You speak my language :)

Thx for this.

iii, VI, ii, V is good to resolve back to I that song form started with.

Great lesson, thank you! Can you explain this "hinging" more? Any guidlines for this with a singer? How about with non-dominant chords?

Thank you so much for this info. I get so much from your videos and am also a member of Open Studio and find it so beneficial. I have a question about these subs. When playing through a tune with a bass player, how do you communicate the substitution? Do you just play it over whatever bass note the bass player is playing? Hope they hear it and go with you? Work it out ahead of time? Or is this just for playing solo? I have always wondered. Thanks again. This information is great and I love that you put this stuff out!

Thanks!

Thank you Adam for this fun exploration and very clear explanation. May you please make a video about everything you don't want to explain at minute 5:00 ? :) I'm listening closely to organize those ideas but... Maybe a part 2 while using the same 1625 material discussed here? Thanks!

You don't have to ask your mom! Love it

I have no idea what he's talking about but it sounds good. Does the pdf have the exercises in other keys too?

The forth chord at 7:00, what voicing/substitution are you using? Btw, thank you so much for these videos, they’re great😊

Can someone explain me what is the chord between Gm7 and C7 in the 4th exercice ? It seems to be like a A over C# but I can’t explain where it goes from harmonically. It sounds great ! Thanks for this lesson

12:21 Ray Bryant's 'Girl Talk' popped up in my mind.

hey adam, thanks so much for the tutorial. i've got a little question though. can i apply these principles for every "minor to minor" chord change or specifically only to 3-6-2-5 turnarounds? is there some kind of mechanic behind this? thank a lot! manu

Bro, you are dangerous!!!

The "hinge" concept is interesting, did you talked about it in the past already ?

Revelatory !

I asked my sister the other day about the b3 diminished chord. She didn't want to talk about it. I said 'Exactly, nobody does'. Fun Stuff.

Can someone help me understand the parallel minor from above? Abmin wouldn't be in FMaj's parallel minor key... so I must be missing the idea. Thanks!

Great lesson for us aspiring pianist who know that slick “chromatic movements” are dope

Voice leading mastery

Cool!

Where did the 'hinge' terminology come from? Something original or elsewhere? I'd never heard of it before.

Do these substitutions work if you're playing in a combo with a guitarist or in a stage band?

also try out dim7 half step below (F#o7 - Gm7)

Ah. Inner melodies. I would like to throw "The Melody at Night, with You" into the arena. Jarrett is realizing your "nerdy harmonic stuff" in almost every song...

“Don’t have to ask your mom”…gets me every time 😂

the un-notated passing chords also contribute significantly to the motion