Thanks for this - I always thought about getting Mapping Tonal Harmony for my iPad or Mac, but it always looked too intimidating and complex. Coming from a strong classical (baroque/rococo) background, I’ve been trying to learn modern jazz harmony, but it’s a real struggle on my own - and this app always looked like a perfect example of why I can’t understand it! Looking forward to part 2. Hoping this will help my career take that next evolutionary step!
Compared to classical (European) harmony, jazz harmony appears too restricted and too formulaic. Now, I do love some jazz music, but most certainly jazz harmonies limit the final product from creating feelings that classical harmonies can. Have you ever heard a jazz song that is heroic, or positively romantic, daring, sublime, patriotic, very uplifting, etc.? Such songs do not exist in jazz. Jazz harmonisations intrude too much, and sedate those sentiments, then deliver something else; a Coke instead of wine, or a hamburger instead of a steak. Jazz is an American product, comes from the American culture that forcibly processes old sentiments (harmonies) and sedates them beyond recognition to be more palatable for the local audience.
I don't get it. The chords in the tonic are I-bIIIb-VI??? First of all what do you mean by chords? These are the degrees of the tonic. The degrees are I - III- V (major tonic) and I - bIII- V (minor tonic). Could you give me an explanation? You are doing a great work and I hope you could help me understand your thinking! Thank you in advance!
@@mDecksMusic Thank you, but could you please me explain to me, why the tonic includes I- bIII-VI? What is your thinking? I really want to understand! The tonic includes I-III (or bIII)- V. Thank you in advance!
The bIII is a tonic chord in minor. Imagine you are in C minor. Cm is the i. The relative major is Eb (the bIII). If you were in Eb major, the vi is C minor (both tonic chords). But since you are in C minor the Eb is a bIII. Cm is to Eb as Am is to C. Also the Am is a tonic in C major because it is almost a C major. Am7 is A C E G. It does not contain the leading tone (B) or the subdominant F
@@mDecksMusic You are great and I am going to buy your cources, as I begin to understand your thinking! I appreciate the time you spent with me and I am grateful also! If you could answer one more question: The bIII in Cm is augmented with a natural B, how do you optimize this in the map? Furthermore why at 2.52 in the tonic map the VI is VIo? It isn't a diminished chord, it's a major chord. The tonal map is also interactive? You press any key on a virtual piano that's included in the map and new chords are displayed? It's an app for Windows, or Android also? Could you please make every app you create for Windows also? I teach in a classroom coloborating with other colleagues from all the country (Greece) and almost every one of them has a pc! If you would do that, we all be grateful!!!Thank you very much one more time!!!
You should watch our symbolism in Mapping Tonal Harmony Pro video ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-pAq_SPRC08Y.html I think it will clear some things up for you. The way we notate roman numerals and why we did it like that. We label the VI as a bVI (in the symbolism's video we explain it in detail)
That could work, the problem with the A on a Dm chord in the key of C minor is that it will make the song sound modal rather than tonal. Plus, the Dm7 would function as the related ii of the V7 chord G7 which, in C minor, works better as a G7b9 (that b9 is an Ab). Just try playing Dm7 to G7(9) to Cm6 (it sounds off) But play Dm7b5 to G7b9 to Cm6 and now it sounds amazing!
@@mDecksMusic Thanks for the reply. Do you mind listing out the exact notes? Not clear on the notation used here. For example, Dm7 (assume that would be d, f, a natural, c)
Sure, the ii in a minor key usually precedes the V7b9. In C minor the V7b9 is G B D F Ab. The related ii (Dm7b5) is D F Ab C. That Ab in the Dm7b5 carries better into the b9 (Ab) of the V chord G7b9
The bIII+ is available as an option, sure. Right-click (or tap and hold on iOS) on the bIII and you'll see all the available chord-chordscale pairings.
I'm kinda lost and hopefully you could help me get this. Around 1:26 when you construct the triads around the notes in C, Cm(+ Cm Harmonic + Cm Melodic). It is my understanding that in order to build chords for Major or minor scales you can follow the "formula": Major: M, m, m, M, 7, m, m° minor: m, m°, M, m, m, M, 7 Now comes my confution since every part of the chords put in the circle make sense except the ones inside like: G7 and Bb. I mean following the formula for the chords that are built in a minor scale shouldn't we have inside the chords: Gm and Bb7 ???? Thanks in advance for anybody's time.
Take any of the 3 minor scale (melodic, harmonic, natural) and stack 3rds on top of each note using notes from the scale. Now on harmonic minor for example, there's a G7 chord.
It is a G7 when you look at the seventh chord. G B D F in the key of C major. The G triad is in there too but we are considering 7th chords most of the time.
@@mDecksMusic ok, thanks. I realize your focus is more towards the advanced end of theory; perhaps if my grasp of it was more on par, it would be obvious to me, but I can't make out why that interval specifically was selected to be 'upgraded' to a 7 chord. I didn't notice any other position in the dominant or sub-dominant group treated similarly. That is, notwithstanding when the app is switched to jazz mode, anyway. Forgive my ignorance, but I would appreciate a better understanding of your reasoning for upgrading the V to a V7. Was there an objective reason to do so, or was it done more out of subjectivity/aesthetics? Thanks for your time..
The bII is similar to the Neapolitan 6th chord. It’s a transformation of the IV chord from the minor mode with a raised 5th (which is actually reinterpreted as the root) it doesn’t come from the melodic or the harmonic minor
I only happened upon your offerings earlier this spring and I’m blown away by how functional and sensible this all is. So wish this had existed when I was an undergrad (and even for theory review in grad school for that matter!) when I was so overwhelmed by functional harmony. 😅 Amazing program and concepts! Thank you for creating this wonderful product.
Mapping Tonal Harmony is an essential app for anyone interested in or studying music, and is a great tool for songwriting. And these videos will get you up to speed quickly.
@@mDecksMusic yes I saw that, question, in your view, if I get the PDF version (given that I cannot use the app), how useful is in your view the PDF version vs having the app? thank you very much
The pdf has two sets of maps (jazz and classical/pop/rock/etc). And you can view them functionally, and/or in any key, at a basic level and at an advanced level. It is useful to study and learn how harmony works. But there's now play-along feature
Hello, I've watched the 3 videos explaining the map and I don't think you mentioned the case of the "Majorization" of a minor chord (or the opposite phenomenon that I call "minorization of a Major chord) . Did I miss something? For instance, in a simple progression like I III IV iv (used in the song Creep by Radiohead), the III chord is Major although it "should" be minor. How do you analyze that with your map? Do you consider it a secondary function chord? (It seems a bit weird to me to analyse it this way in that example). Obviously, there are many other examples of the use of the III chord, as well as the II chord, the bvi or vii chords and probably others.
The III is usually a secondary dominant ( even when in triadic form) but the II7 is a very often used function. I understand that it is very useful to think about majorizing a chord, but in the context of tonality it isn’t seen that often. Having said that, we have plenty of chords that you can change to major 7 or dominants but keep the same functional designation (like the VII7, the VIImaj7, etc)
Too bad there is no translation of the subtitles in your videos because the apparent simplicity of your software is completely spoiled by the fact that I do not understand what you are explaining ... A function of translating the subtitles c is a minimum in 2021, isn't it? So it will be without me .. And many others I think ..
@@mDecksMusic thx for the responce. French language primary. I understand a little but it's too fast in the video. No Support for translation on chrome PC app and Android and iPad. the function translate original subtitles into French is there but it does not work ..
Thanks MTHP 9 is a great tool, i am really enjoying using it to learn and practice. i am confused on one point though: the location of the i diminished chord at the bottom of the circle ( if the circle were oriented to the key of C, in the Gb/ F# position) all the other locations make sense to me but i dim ( C, Eb, Gb) is not the same as Gb , right? what am i missing? the same question applied to the vii dim chord inside the circle ( the minor side of things). thanks for any help
Yes, that's the only chord that is "out-of-place" if you will. It is so often used to approach the I that we decided to put it in the tonic region in the opposite side of the circle. (Similar to what we did with the Neapolitan 6th chord, which is actually a subdominant, but almost always precedes the V)
