I was gonna say something similar. I have no background in music whatsoever but the video is so entertaining that I feel like I’ve know music my whole life
I've been singing for most of my life but all the chord references and everything just are total gibberish to my ears. I WANT to understand them, but I completely am lost at all of it and I don't even know where to start.
@@JimTheFly I´m 36 and I just startet learning about all these things cause I discoverd a year ago that music production can be a very satisfying hobby for myself. So If you are interested in learning I can recommend the following vids as a starting point: The basics simplified: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-rgaTLrZGlk0.html The basics but different and more detailed: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-mdEcLQ_RQPY.html + Part 2 + 3 And there are tons of cool guys and girls on YT who teach you all the things in music theory and production. In some cases they could teach me more in 10-30 minutes than my music teacher was able to teach in 5 years of private lessons in my childhood/youth. If you need more recommendations feel free to ask.
I played piano all my life literally since 3 and was the church organist for 15 years. This is like a foreign language to me. But it all makes perfect sense if you’re a total music nerd.
I went down the RU-vid rabbit hole. I don't play an instrument, or know how to read music, and I have no clue what he is talking about, but somehow I find it very interesting?
A Costa Living - Right?! I listened all the way through and I was interested and fascinated how music can take us on a journey and make us feel “some sort of way”
I know a guy who has an unusual singing style. He sings folk songs mostly from Britain. I think I've just understood what he is doing. This video explains it so well, but I'll watch it again just to be sure.
I'm amazed that Celine could perform at all so soon after such loss. After my wife died it took half a year before I could play my piano again, it was more emotion that I could bear, so I am truly amazed she got that far through her performance before yielding to the overwhelming power of her music. Peace. And today is the anniversary of my wife's death.
I can understand why she had to stop. She lost the love of her life and she didn't want to be by herself anymore. I'm sure she truly felt those lyrics. Music is so powerful
She also lost her brother just 2 days later! It reminds me of Teddy Roosevelt, whose mom & wife died on the same day. It's the series of losses that make you feel so alone. You feel like EVERYONE has left you & if they haven't left yet, they're going to soon. I remember a time after my dad, my last family member, died, when a couple of people who tried to help me in dealing with the estate also died. I actually felt cursed. I warned friends to stay away b/c anyone who comes near me dies. I know that's crazy talk, but that's how it felt. The number it does on you when you have a loss & then you lose the people who could help you through that loss does make you have irrational thoughts & fear you will always be alone, esp. if you have people & circumstances working against you. I had no idea this happened to Celine. Her music used to give me such hope & inspiration. She has a number of uplifting songs, esp. "That's the Way It Is" (my fave) & "A New Day Has Come." Also, interestingly, that song, "Gonna stand by your side now. Gonna wipe all your tears away. You'll be safe in my arms now. And I know I can make you believe again," is a song I used to sing to MYSELF. Because I know that if you leave you, then you have nothing left. So you've got to come back to yourself, again and again, as months turn into years & years turn into decades, even when it seems hopeless, even as you age & realize you are fatter, older, more tired, & more cynical & are way past your prime & wonder how you can possibly be attractive to someone now, even when you wonder why you are still alone & you don't know how to change that, until you believe again,- even knowing that that day may never come.
This is not something I would normally share, especially with complete strangers on the internet. But here goes. My father requested, in his will, that the slow movement from Schubert's String Quintet in C major be played at his funeral. We assembled a group of musicians and I played the first cello part. Personally I have long regarded this as the most beautiful piece of music ever written. It plumbs depths of emotion like nothing else I have ever heard. And here's the funny thing: I poured my heart and soul into that performance, but somehow, never let my own personal grief in, until the final chord - at which moment I broke down. How would I be honouring my father if I lost it during the performance itself? So I just immersed myself in the music, forgot who I was, and gave it the best that I could. I don't think it was any better than I could do on any other day, and I doubt that Celine hit her high note any more spectacularly than she usually does. The point I'm making, like Adam's mum, is that during the performance, you can't afford to feel the emotion in the music. What's important is to communicate that emotion to the listener.
Tony Prochazka....Yes, I understand what you and Adam mean about not letting your emotional response to the music prevent you from performing the music, whether that be by singing or playing an instrument. I am not a trained singer but love singing. My mother majored in piano and minored in voice...or maybe the other way 'round, when she was in a university way back in the late 1940's. So I was raised with music in the house. ( I'm now 69 and my vocal chords are not a limber as they used to be; if that is how to explain it ?? ), but so many times when I have been singing along with a song that is very emotional to me I will choke up and even start crying and I then cannot sing anymore. I realized long ago this need to separate oneself emotionally enough from the song in order to sing it properly. I have heard Celine sing this song on the radio but to see her perform it and see the energy that she puts into the key change and hitting that high note, and with such incredible power and control, and on perfect pitch... is unbelievable!!! Adam, I thoroughly enjoyed this video; my first time to watch one of your's. You have my thanks...and a sub.
23:26 “She’s singing “All By Myself”, a song whose structure is specifically designed to feel the thought of not being alone. Imagine living this catharsis night after night on that stage for years, living the story of ritualistically calling out to the heavens and demanding to not be alone anymore. And through the sheer physical power of your voice and the technique that you have developed on your instrument (and a clever key change or two), the world around you acquiesces and bends to your will. Until one night, it doesn’t.” Man, those are some powerful words right there. Couldn’t have explained it better.
It doesn't matter that I know this sentence is coming. Every time I watch this essay completely, I can't avoid getting teary. Ironically, I don't know if I feel sadness, anger at the injustice, awe at her power, and the masterful arrangement, or maybe all of it. I hope Celine knows how powerful and human of a moment she gave us. Reality intruding through the veil of a performance to remind us of that even masters like Celine can be overwhelmed, thus reinforcing our shared humanity.
I used to work at her show in Vegas, and got so tired of listening to what I considered overblown, overwrought, overproduced bombastic B.S every night...but as this video reminds me, you just can't deny her amazing vocal ability --nor her professionalism in taking to the stage with a broken heart! I remember another show she did, right after her father died --she was late coming on, and people in the audience complained about what a diva she was because of it. I guess we tend to forget that these artists are human like the rest of us. Much respect to Celine for her amazing talent and work ethic.
"...overblown, overwrought, overproduced bombastic B.S." Well, I think you summed that up very nicely! There was a time when singers just... sang. But now, it seems that everybody has jumped on the Whitney Houston bandwagon of overblown vocal show-off. Yes!-- Hit every note you can hit, whether it's in the song or not! YES!-- Show how long you can hold a note, even if the audience dies of boredom while waiting for you to run out of air!!! That isn't "singing"; it's just show-off CRAP. And it's high time to call it down.
I would assume too that a lot is overdone in Vegas because it’s become that or always has been in Vegas. People pay big for this but there are real people behind it all. People want to feel that the singer actually feels the lyrics and experienced it as we do when we relate to specific songs. Overdone to some, perfect for most.
She lost her husband, and singing about being all by herself no doubt was a trigger for emotions, besides the effort she always puts in to make her singing outstanding, it pulls emotion from any singer who feels the lyrics.
That is true. It makes me very sad because not only had she lost her husband, she was also robbed of her health. My dad worked with her and said she had to get a shot every night to go through the show. They angled the stage at the Caesar's palace just so they could get the perfect look on her... she was wearing heels for all those concerts, 20 nights in a row, year after year. It's fcking awful. Now they pretend that she has some kind of genetic condition that just popped out of nowhere and made unable to move properly... riiiight
Just to add a bit more of details - René Angélil, Céline’s husband had died on January 14, 2016, which is barely a month prior to that performance. And her brother Daniel died two days later…
When Celine just stopped, trying to hold it together despite the fact she just lost the love of her life, breaks my heart every time. Even if you can't feel the emotion of the song, you'd have to be dead inside to not feel the emotion of Celine and the loss of her husband, the father of her children. This is a pretty powerful song for those of us who feel alone in this world. The chords and lyrics hit a place inside a person that says, "I know what you're feeling because I feel it too." and though you still feel all by yourself at least you can know that you're not only one that feels that way.
@@ShinerCCC Can't deny that it might be a good thing. The pain of losing someone you love can be so great you wish you were dead so you don't have to feel it anymore. Well, at least that is what I feel; everybody is different though.
@@JustTanya. The prerequisite to that is loving someone, and I currently don't. And can't, because I'm depressed and no longer experience emotion. It should be a relief, but...
@@ShinerCCC Depression is an emotion. Depression actually has multiple emotions. Those of us who suffer from depression, suicidal tendencies, all different forms of abuse, etc. will try shut down so that we stop feeling. But it never truly goes away, it just transforms into different types of emotions. We all at some point have lost a loved one. It could be parents, grandparents, other family members, friends, even pets. We cover it up as well as we can so that others can't see so that we don't have to explain it each and every time. But you can't hide it from yourself. It's there, whether you choose to acknowledge it is your prerogative but not everyone is shut down. There are many who can see what Celine is feeling, knowing what she had just gone through and pull that pain of loss from our own lives and empathize with her. But it's okay if others can't empathize with that loss. Like I said, everybody is different.
Yes, her husband, her manager, her number one cheerleader, the reason she was even on that stage, who's always been by her in her career, even before they fell in love.... That had to be really hard...
On January 14, 2016, Celine Deon’s long time husband and manager died of throat cancer. 2 days later, her brother also died of cancer. Febuary 3rd was the first time Deon returned to performing at her Los Vegas residency after these dual tragedies in her life. She sang “All By Myself,” a song who’s structure is specifically designed to feel the thought of not being alone. Imagine living this, night after night, on that stage for years, living the story of calling out to the heavens, and demanding to not be alone anymore, and through the sheer physical power of your voice, the world around you bends to your will... until one night, it doesn’t. Same energy as the key change, dude.
Seriously. My mom was brutal in her assessment of each Miss America Pageant finalist. “Oh she’s a dog!”, “Homely as a Hedge Fence, that one”, “no wonder her family farm didn’t have a tractor. Didn’t need one - they just hitched her to the plow”, and my personal favorite……“Built like a brick shithouse, which would be fine if she played for the Rams”
The pause for Celine was deeply emotional as she was still vulnerable, in profound grief over the loss of her beloved husband, Rene and the words moved her . ❤😢❤
That quote!!! "Music makes you feel feelings, lyrics make you think thoughts, songs make you feel thoughts." That's groundbreaking stuff man. Great video friend, thank you!
@@medievalpepper1832No. It makes you think thoughts and memories that have feelings attached to them. But it doesn't make you think feelings. You feel feelings.
"If you'd like to hear more of the conversation that I had with my mom on all of this" you know your life has peaked when many thousands of people are genuinely interested in the rest of a conversation you've had with your mum haha
This young man explains music theory in such a clear way that someone who hasn't had that much music theory can understand it. Like it and Celine of course!
My music theory is really basic in comparison even though I started learning piano at age 7 so most of the terminology went over my head however the changes in the musical notes and sounds didn’t
She holds the 4 over basically a 4 minor, then the root chord changes to a half step higher which makes the 4 she's holding suddenly a major 3rd of the new chord. Tons of key changes happen in songs in the middle, on choruses, and of course, the ending chorus to take it to a little higher level of intensity. First time you hear a song do that, it can really have a nice impact.
@@creamydistortion the truth is Clarence, was not competent nor comfortable in various keys......thus, the modulations. BUT, it's only rock & roll.....
@@m.g.4060 The '4' to which @TruthSurge is referring is the 4th step of the key. In this case, with the key being G major, the 4th step of G major is ordinarily a C (1-G, 2-A, 3-B, 4-C), and the chord based on the 4th step of G major would ordinarily be C major (C-E-G, the notes found in a G major scale). However, a composer or arranger could substitute the C major chord for a C minor chord (C-Eb-G instead of C-E-G; and note that Eb is not in a G major scale) Got that? (Try that on a keyboard so you can hear the difference). So I believe that @TruthSurge is just saying that, in this case, Dion is holding the note of C, the 4th step in a G major scale, over a C minor chord (C-Eb-G). Now, regarding @TruthSurge's statement about suddenly becoming the major 3rd of a new chord? Well, try holding or singing that C when playing that C minor chord, C-Eb-G. after that, raise the G note a half-step in that chord to an Ab. You now have an Ab major chord, Ab-C-Eb. Yes, if you merely raise the G to an Ab a half a step, the chord on the keyboard will look like C-Eb-Ab. But the C note is no longer the root or '1' of the chord, it's the 3rd, as an Ab chord in its root/basic or 1st position is Ab-C-Eb. The root of a chord and the third of a chord have different feels and functions. The root of a chord has a weight and sense of finality. The 3rd of a chord, not so much. It's why you rarely hear songs ending on the 3rd of a chord. So singing or playing a C when you're playing C minor or C major underneath it has a sense of finality. Playing or singing a C over an Ab major chord. And notice even the difference in sound/feel when you shift or invert the order in which the notes are played. If you play Ab-C-Eb, what is called root position, which is when you play the chord with the root of the chord on the bottom, the chord will have a sense of weight. But if you shift the Ab and put it on top, playing C-Eb-Ab, that sense of finality is no longer quite there. Then shift again and play Eb-Ab-C. This is known as the 2nd inversion. So if a composer wants to let the audience really know that the song is over in the most obvious way possible, he or she will end it on the root chord of the key, with the note being the root of the chord. End a song in G major on a G major chord with the final note a 'G'. I hope this helps a bit.
The minute you mentioned Rachmaninov’s 2nd, I realized why I love All By Myself. Rachmaninov’s Second piano Concerto is, in my opinion, the most beautiful piece of music ever written.
"She's singing all by herself and then the band comes in, and she's not alone anymore" Feels like the most caveman musical idea, ugug more people play not alone anymore. But man, it hits hard.
Same concept in any song with the word "stop" in it, the music frequently drops for a couple of beats and also a lot of songs with "up" or "down" will go that direction in either pitch and/or dynamic. A lot of those little literal lyrics-to-music associations exist and they're pretty effective if a little cheesy sometimes.
@@adafrost6276 No "stop!" in music has ever beaten Electric Six's "Stop!...Continue!" in Improper Dancing. Apparently they've done it live and played another song before the continue.
Celine Dion received an honorary doctorate from Berklee College of Music this year. I watched her speech for the graduation ceremony last week. You can tell she put a lot of thought into the message she delivered to the students. It was humble yet inspirational.
People in STEM (like me) need to watch this and learn to appreciate the incredible complexity and education needed to attain such a deep analytic understanding of musical theory. A PhD in music takes the same effort as. Phd in Engineering
Adam, as a very amateur musician and student in my 40's, I mean this as the highest possible compliment: Your content is so meaty and dense that I can only watch one video a day because of the amount of thought and digestion required afterward. Thanks very much for supplying the world with interesting and intense knowledge. :)
I'm a retired professional opera singer. I got through music theory, only because ear training and sight singing was 50% of the grade. And I'm not a fan of post 1980 pop music. But I finally clicked on this video out of curiosity. WOW! Such great insights! If Adam Neely had been my teacher, I would likely have developed a love for theory. Can't wait to show this to my voice students!
108% over taken music theory and a music college and this was so much more fulfilling- his teaching outside western theory taking with his mother referring to books and his passion do more than my voice teachers or instrument teachers to deepen my understanding and love of the arts.
I have a similar story. Ear training, sight singing and dictation was always so much easier than the written work and the composition. I'm sure glad I excelled in half of it!
I’m a huge Celine fan. She had just lost her husband, Rene. There’s also a story about when she was recording this song about how David Foster told Celine if she couldn’t hit that high note that Whitney who was recording near her at the time could hit the note. Celine pushed through and hit the note. 😃
I was at this performance -- my mother bought plane ticket, booked hotel room, and had us seats to this (her 1st performance since losing her husband) ...it was magical ( i hate using that word, but it works here) -- the crowd (including us) went biserk at this rendition of All By Myself -- i feel comfortable speaking for the entire audience when I say that there is no doubt she was singing this song to someone -- it was not us -- BRAVA, Celine!
I didn't know she had lost her husband and her brother. I started crying when those headlines showed up on the screen and suddenly immediately understand why she broke down that day.
I cried a little in the beginning, and occasionally during it. Then I immediately restarted the video, and when swing her stop and I understand what's happening, I go into fully weeping mode and have to pull over in my car. All by myself.
yup! love the fact that David Foster surprised Celine with the high note WHILE RECORDING and she just smashed it. serious talent from everyone involved.
@@jebbiejoober Watch David Foster The Hitman Returns concert video. He has Shanice sing it and during the beginning he talks about how difficult it was for Celine Dion to sing it.
Adam's mom breaking down the mechanics of it all was my favorite. Specially that moment at 12:24 where she convinces me that the whole "slappin' da chest" theatrics weren't just for show. Cool video.
Yes that was interesting to learn. Not a gimmick. Anything I've read over the decades about her indicates she takes care of her voice, ie. only room temperature bottled water in the green room, never refrigerated. Most of the good talents in sports and entertainment typically have coaches so they can have a long career, not a short lucky break.
“It’s a very athletic exercise...” That is the same thing Diana Damrau said about retiring from singing the Queen of the Night in The Magic Flute. There is a sheer physicality to that kind of performacne. It’s like how ballet looks so elegant and graceful but actually requires almost unimaginable strength and coordination. That’s what the best singers do with their voices.
I keep coming back to this video, not because I'm a musician, I don't even understand 80% of what's being said. The story telling however and the emotional power of this video is just something else. Very well done!
OMG! All this quality content right here for me for free! I used to study music before the internet and it was nothing like this. Thank you Thank you Thank you
Truly. This is a perfect example of how this medium can educate more efficiently than traditional methods. It’s multimedia at every turn, the video itself is a narrative- this is so. well. done.
@@chinmeysway Yes! Everyone who has room in their budget, please donate if you can, but the point of free content is that it's free, so if you can't, please don't worry about it. ^^
It's fun because you start like 'what do I care Celine is tearing up, get to that juicy theory´ and by the end you're tearing up with Celine wondering how could she not break down singing that
“If you are belting just to show off.... you’ll get the applause and these people doesn’t know any better. But If you want to be true just like Dion’s... there’s a whole body involvement in it that comes from knowing what the emotion really feels like”
I lost my father in 2021. I regularly perform a song he wrote with his brother at my gigs, it’s a song about finding love despite being hurt in the past, letting someone into your life before you lose them. It takes a lot for me to not choke up during it.
This entire video was waaaay above my head. I loved playing clarinet in middle and high school. I took private lessons and practiced two hours a day when I got home from school on my own initiative. But I NEVER understood music theory. I tried to learn by taking a music theory class in high school, but I still just couldn’t grasp it. I have so much respect for these artists who not only sound nice when they sing or play instrument, they truly understand WHY it sounds so good! Thanks for trying to help me “get it”. I’ll just say that what I get is how much I’m in awe of you who DO “get it”! 😀
@gilbert godfrey Both diminished 4th and b6 are correct pieces of jargon and have actual practical applications in music though. Let's consider a C melodic minor scale for instance. The notes are C, D, Eb, F, G, A, and B. If you consider the distance that separates the 3rd (Eb) from the 7th (B), you would have an ascending augmented 5th. Now if you inverse it and look at the distance between the 7th and the 3rd (still ascending), you wouldn't consider this interval a major 3rd, or rewrite the Eb to a D#, would you? It would definitely be a diminished 4th. As to the b6, he's not referring to the interval but the degree within the key. I understand the confusion, given that the degrees are indeed based upon intervallic relationships to the root. In the key of C major, C is the first degree, D is the second, etc. up until A (natural), which is the sixth. But if you play the sixth degree down a half step, you would find yourself on the b6. In other words, if you play a C and then play a Ab above, you're playing a minor 6th, but if you're playing a Ab chord in a C context (major, minor or else), you're playing the b6. Note than as you pointed out (kinda), this is irrespective of sheet music notation accidentals (b or #). A D major chord in the key of F# would still be called a b6, even if its root is D natural.
Don't underestimate yourself Dawn. You probably understand a lot more than you think you do. Part of the trick is to realise its not about all the different pieces (technical bits) - its about putting it all together as a whole. And you don't have to absorb every last detail to do that. Just knowing major is bright and wonderous and makes you feel alive and hopeful and minor conjures feelings of sadness and reflection is a huge staring point especially if you realise they are two sides of the same musical coin. Music is intellectual and emotional at the same time. You have alternately felt goose bumps on your skin and a tear in your eye listening to music yes? Have a listen to this Edith Piaf track - "la hymn a l amour" - and have a box of tissues at the ready. A WHOLE box. You'll get the drift. Especially listen to the orchestral and vocal backings. They are as awesome as her singing. And it is in French and you cant understand a word YET you will FEEL and understand EVERYTHING about what she is saying in the song - and what is explained by Adam in this video will be take shape in your mind. THATS MUSIC -the greatest of all the art forms. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-sgBldNsK-xw.html&ab_channel=EdithPiafOfficiel
Same here, has to be because I'm a lot older. For some reason a stayed through the whole thing. Now I'm about to find out what kind of major influence Ryan Reynolds put on Celine
Same here, but I thought she was overwhelmed with emotion because it was musically so overwhelming. Buttt it turns out two tragedies happened just before this show. Nevertheless interesting.
I am totally in love with music but like you am no expert and this video proves that alright. I was mesmerised by the whole thing. Adam your mum and cat are lovely too. Thanks for going through all of this with us but I think I'd have to watch the video a million times for it to sink in 😅
Rachmaninoff, Foster and Celine handle emotions very well no doubt, but you are no slouch, putting your mother here and seeing where the talent and wisdom comes from has been even more moving. Well done.
Wow, I'm amazed at Adam Neely's understanding of how specific notes and cords trigger emotions. Because my work in the voice over field, I'm always seeking to refine how my voice conveys emotion. Even though I'm not singing, I'm curious to see how I can apply these concepts. That's a new and fascinating journey for me, so thank you Adam for the food for thought and inspiration.
This is one of the best documentary pieces I have ever seen. I'm on my third time watching, and I'm just barely starting to feel like I have a grasp of the concepts here. I'm a documentary filmmaker myself, and this is so incredibly well executed that I'm taking notes not just from a musical standpoint but from a filmmaking perspective as well. This is top-tier work, and I'm thrilled to have found you, Adam. I think I've watched all of your videos multiple times through by now.
But also both her husband and brother died just a few weeks prior to the performance. Wouldn't "one of the best documentary pieces" perhaps lead with that pretty obvious reason why she would start crying after singing the words "don't want to be all by myself?"
@@seanmobley2610 no, not necessarily because the point of his noting of how powerful it is, is that even without her prior tragedy, it can make someone feel the same way she did, WITHOUT that tragedy. Not to mention, he talks about her tragedy at the end.
@@JohnSmith-oe5kx I hear you, but you also just sort of proved my point with your own comment. "She sings those words over and over." She's sung that song dozens of times, maybe more. She's sang those words probably hundreds of times. She didn't break down crying all the other performances during the key change. Why? Because even though it's a beautiful key change, she'd never sung it literally days after two of the most important loves in her life were taken from her. I'm not saying it's not a beautiful key change. I'm saying that to leave out a pretty key detail, her emotional state in that moment going into the song, is irresponsible if we're going to call this, as the OP does, a "documentary."
@@seanmobley2610 The video clearly states that it was her first performance of the song after the deaths of her family members, so I do not know what your issue is. She broke down after the key change, probably for the musical reasons so well explained in the video.
OMG I love that you're here!! The most random worlds together. Cool to know you enjoy music 😊👌 (in more of a nerdy way I mean, not just regular enjoyment of music haha).
I'm not a Celine Dion listener, but this is one of the best video on music (not only "music theory") I've ever seen. The knowledge, the analysis, the edit, the personal interpretation, the way Adam speaks... Everything is great. It's a sumptuous documentary. Thank you Adam for sharing your wisdom!
She got choked up because she had recently lost her husband a month prior, not necessarily the key change. It was a powerful moment because of the musical theory behind it, she’s sung this song a thousand times. But this time was a bit different. The song had a very real meaning for her. It was the first time she had performed since his death also.
It would be impossible for Celine to perform that song without feeling the emotion that it triggers. Even when she wanted to suppress the grief of her loss, the song released that flood of emotion in a way she couldn’t control. That demonstrates the power of music. It reaches us on a level beyond the emotional or physical.
Yes this is the reason. Combined with the powerful musicality of that particular part of the song, it overwhelmed her. It would overwhelm most people in that situation. It sure would me.
You watch an awesome Adam Neely video and, after that, catch a humble and heartfelt Mateus Asato comment. And people around me have a hard time understanding why I love music so much...
Highly recommend you check out Morissette Amon! Not to compare directly to Celine, but the things she can do with her voice are incredible, she's the first person I think of when someone refers to the voice as an instrument. Her radio performance of her song Akin Ka Na Lang is unforgettable.
I clicked, then I saw it's 27 minutes, and thought 'no way I'm gonna watch a 27 minutes video about a key change??!', but boy was I wrong - this is so amazing!! Thank you Adam
I did see that it is 27 minutes. I clicked on it just to find out what song this was about and then maybe watch it later. Watched it all through the end! ;-)
It’s amazing that there is science to back up what we feel. The makeup of Celine’s instrument, the physics of sine waves and mathematics converge to create a moment that is felt almost whole-body. And it’s fascinating that it could’ve been written without knowing the specific technique, just that it made the writer feel something. This video was so well done - thank you!
I'm not a musician, though a music-lover. What I am is a psychologist and theoretician of higher education. The skill with which Adam sucks into his thought progression anybody who is willing to listen -- and the teaching devices (both subtle and grotesque) that he employs are deployed with an artistic elegance that I have seen in only one other teacher. His name was Leonard Bernstein. Yes, Adam, I mean that.
That's a great comparison, and I agree, Adam's way of explaining music and his ability to make complex theory understandable on an emotional and instinctive level is very similar to Bernstein's. The only other music theory demonstrations I've seen that are well presented are the old PBS shows with Bernstein, sometimes accompanied by Glenn Gould.
@@DiZastur Thanks! You don't have to agree with my opinion, although I seriously meant what I said. The screen name is a nonsense word invented by my late father.
My apologies, I was a bit inebriated and didn't adequately evaluate what you had said. In fact I misread your remarks entirely. My condolences for the loss of your father.
It’s almost like Adam was machined into existence to create the best video essays. Seeing him continue to perfect his craft with each subsequent video is so satisfying as an audience member.
Floored. Completely. My first exposure to your content. Incredible. I have so much more appreciation for music theory. Wish this was available 20+ years ago when I was still in band.
Pop music's greatest theft was stealing ancient Greek scales called "modes". A ton of modern music is made from them. Miles Davis, John Coltrane and other jazz giants first used them, but modes have been used in dozens of hit songs since the 1950s in rock, pop, r&b and dance music.
Wow. All my life I listened to Celine Dion’s songs like I was on a leisure trip, enjoying myself and the quality of her voice. I’ve always respected Celine’s talent and state-of-the-art technique but your video made me understand THE TALENT she was gifted from the Gods and the amazing voice technique she is mastering. I am flabbergasted and will never listen to her songs the way I used to anymore. This was a master class of a video. Great job!
Obviously, it's a modal mixture common tone enharmonic double chromatic mediant modulation type situation. I can't believe I couldn't see that until now, and I feel silly now.
I no longer stumble over: A minor 7 flat 5 over G. Am7b5/G. Now what to DO with it is a really fun challenge outside this song and analysis. I'm playing around with various resolutions!
Omg minute 24 I was nearly in tears. You can see just how heartbroken she is. 😭 For as talented and powerful she is, she is still human. This video was a lot more than I thought it would be.
I definitely also cried at minute 24. "To express the emotion but not feel it," sometimes that barrier gets a little too thin and you just don't have the strength to hold it in place. Then you get a moment like that and everyone, including the performer and, apparently, the RU-vid viewers (😂), fully feeling the entire thing. Amazing.
I hear and feel it too; I see it....but looking at what you wrote' not understanding all the theory; can't read music; can't write it yet but after all the vocabulary....''key shifts'' up's and down's.....you did me! ''human'', human still;.......of all creatures on this planet- human!...we seldom cognize anything; we can't relate to as previous. so when I read ''For as talented and powerful she is, she is still human.'' it reflected to me; thet humanity is gifted; has been given 'TALENT' and thet inturn becomes 'Powerfull', if put into practice. She is a breather; with vocal chords; her bodily movements prime /fill thet next note! thankyou so!
This is not so much about Celine Dion as it is about music theory. She was a catalyst for the discussion. You could have chosen any topic and picked any singer, its the science! (And not the crap Faucci pushes.) Seriously, Celine Dion killed it there, but the meaning is more profound.
At the climactic moment, the song is in the happy key of G major and Dion is wailing that Eb - the epitome of sadness and wistfulness, a note that’s not even in the key of the song. And then out of nowhere the band suddenly blasts out a Cb major chord and - like a miracle - we smash cut to a completely different musical landscape in which the note she’s singing is the happiest and most optimistic note in the scale. No wonder it makes me cry. This video is probably my favourite piece of musical exposition on all of RU-vid, by the way. Thank you Adam.
Dear Adam, I just came to this video by chance - as a vocal coach, songwriter, pianist, singer and composition teacher it was a treasure to find you explaining emotions in music due to harmonics, creating emotions and not feeling them. This is finally a trustworthy explanation of what I have been teaching for 25 years. Emotions are muscular and combined with the right harmonic changes and tones a singer can have a massive impact on the listeners emotions. And there is anew phrase you quoted, that I will keep: Music makes you feel feelings, Lyrics make you think thoughts, Songs make you feel thoughts... Very very well done. Thank you for this.
Adam is the greatest teacher and content creator I can think of. His ability to take something complex and explain it in a way that goes beyond academic... he shared his emotional experience with this one.
Holy shit, yes whenever I've heard that Rachmaninoff piece I've always thought, whoever wrote All By Myself had based the tune directly on it. Didn't realise it was wholly a conscious move -- and never would've guessed the great Russian got the music cred. What a story!
When I heard Celine Dion and David Foster in one sentence, you had my attention. Two great artists! David Foster has been responsible for so many careers, Celine Dion being one of the greatest singers, he’s helped launch their careers.
The science of music chemistry is very fascinating. The lyrics and the notes chosen are what I call synergy. Emotional involvement is the byproduct. Getting those goosebumps is a pleasure all by itself.
One of my theory professors in college referred to the chromatic modulation as “the Bon Jovi” and to this day, almost 20 years later, my husband and I (we both sing in a professional chamber choir) still refer to them that way. (ie “this song has like 4 Bon Jovi’s, and it’s totally unnecessary”)
this video is amazing, i've rewatched it multiple times, I love it. but also, imagine singing so beautifully you make yourself emotional? that's such a wild concept.
When My husband passed away, I was singing in a choir competition in China. I found that singing helped me in so many ways. It always lifts my spirits!
I'm personally surprised it doesn't ever slide back while he's using it. If ever did that, it would have to have a locking mechanism to keep it out, or it would slide away from my fingers when I am playing energetically.
I don't understand even half of what you said. But I'm still totally enthralled. And some day I will understand all of it. You've inspired me to learn more. (And when I teach, anything at all, that is the greatest compliment anyone could ever give me.) BRAVO!!! Teach on!
When I was training as a singer those physical affectations really made a massive difference in how I sang and the strength of my voice. Tiny little tings can change everything immensely! Brilliant video!
in university our teacher called this modulation "the Celine Dion armageddon" modulation. it was one of three armageddon modulations, the Beethoven one (via dim7 chord) and the Schubert one (via german chord).
@thira lanup "armageddon modulation" is a modulation from one key to a key who is lower or higher by 1 semitone (for example from C major to Db major). because this two scales are very far from one another (in the circle of fifth) they tend modulating between them tend to be really dramatic. hence the term "armageddon".
@@whatqnavry unfortunately i don't remember the other examples they gave us.. but i'm quite sure you can find the schubert method in his song cycle "winterreise", he uses the german chord few times there.
What are you talking about. The original? Sung by a man in the lower octive? Why should she sing a whole step higher if that's not even within her range? Tried her hardest? She was flawless.
@@madduxregan got it. I'm just realizing how amazing she was. Her notes are so crisp no matter what key she sings in. It's ok if she sings it a step lower for this performance. Sometimes even the best of singers try to hit those high notes and the voice just says "not today". She knew her limits that day and slayed without hurting her voice. Respect!
It got in the news here at the time, because she’s basically our patron saint here in Quebec, and it was indeed a very powerful moment. It was the first show after the funeral (that’s what the caption says at 22:54). What a great analysis
@@butt.whytho it was because she normally expresses the emotion without directly feeling it. Performing so soon after those deaths, she couldn't NOT feel the emotion in the moment, and I don't know how anyone expected her not to
Man, I'm from Quebec and it's kind of hard to take Céline Dion seriously here with just how popular she's been. But god damn, she's incredibly talented. And you presented this incredible moment masterfully. Thank you! When it clicked that her performance was the first one after her husband/manager's death, I got goose bumps and started getting teary-eyed.
Her movements are such a beautiful representation of the power she must feel as these notes come through her. Think about what we feel hearing it, then imagine you can create that experience for others. Wow!
