Tritone Substitution: the one jazz piano trick you need to know
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- Опубликовано: 29 июн 2024
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Tritone Substitution is a reharmonisation technique that can be used to add harmonic interest and variety to a chord progression.
Tritone substitutions are also knows as substitute dominants or sub 5's so be aware that these 3 terms refer to the same thing.
This lesson will explain what tritone substitution is, why it works and how to apply it to a major 251 progression.
What Is A Tritone?
A tritone is an interval of 3 whole steps or 6 half steps on the piano. The tritone marks exactly half of the octave.
Here’s a few examples:
C to F# is a tritone.
D to Ab is a tritone
F to B is a tritone
You will be glad to hear that there are only 6 tritones that you need to learn. This is because tritones are symmetrical when inverted in the sense that you still have a tritone interval.
What Is Tritone Substitution?
Tritone substitution is when a dominant 7 chord is substituted for the dominant 7th chord a tritone away.
You might ask how is this possible?
The answer is because dominant chords that are a tritone apart share the same 3rd and 7th. Remember that the 3rd and 7th are what gives the chord it’s unique harmonic quality so therefore, chords that share the same 3rd and 7th are harmonically very similar.
Let’s look at an example:
The root of G7 is a tritone away from the root of Db7 which makes them tritone substitutes.
Let’s compare the notes of G7 and Db7:
G, B, D, F
Db, F, Ab, Cb
Db7 and G7 share the same 3rd and 7th notes but in reverse order.
It’s worth noting here that B (3rd of G7) and Cb (7th of Db7) are enharmonic equivalents, meaning that they are the exact same note but they are spelt or notated differently.
Tritone Substitution and the 251 Progression:
A tritone substitution is an easy way to add variety to a 251 progression.
In the key of C, a 251 progression contains the chords:
Dm7, G7 and Cmaj7.
The tritone substitution for the 5 chord G7 would be Db7.
G7 and Db7 share the same tritone interval which gives both chords their dominant quality and makes these two chords interchangeable.
All that changes is the bass note but this then has an effect on the extensions and alterations.
Why do we use tritone substitution?
To create very smooth voice leading in a 251 progression, the root of each chord moves down by a half step to resolution rather than moving by 5ths intervals.
Chromatic, step wise bass line movement
Access different scales and arpeggios for improvisation
Alternative ways to harmonize the melody to add dynamics and interest to your performance. 
Хобби
Maybe it’s me finally having the right level of caffeination or maybe this is simply the best explanation of tritone substitution I have ever found. Thank-you.
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I CAN PLAY JAZZ???? HELLO???? Thank you!! I've been learning piano for 10 years and never understood how they can make it sound so relaxing and non-classicy, AND i LITERALLY WATCHED ONLY 2 MINUTES SOMEWHERE IN THE MIDDLE OF THE VIDEO AND SUDDENLY I CAN PLAY JAZZ?? You're the GOAT.
For me this is the best explanation of tritone substitution. Thanks!
I saw dozens of videos about it, finnely I understand it. Thank you!
Best explanation of Tri Tone Substitution I've come across to date. Well done.
These are by far the best instructional videos I have come across . THANK YOU !!!!!!!!!!!
+Joseph Romeo Thanks Joseph. Find more free tutorials here: bit.ly/get-5-free-lessons - Lots of work goes into creating each lesson so I'm really happy to hear you are enjoying them! All the best, PianoGroove
Thanks Joseph, get 5 free lessons here if you haven't already: bit.ly/get-5-free-lessons - We put a lot of work into each lesson so it's great to hear that. All the best, PianoGroove
that's the fucking truth right there
There are certain qualities that make you so extraordinary good in teaching.
Above all your voice is very pleasant to listen to. You speak always in a very relaxed way. This makes it easy to listen to you. The accent that we hear (I don't know what it is, I guess it's an irish accept but I really don't know. I'm german by the way) sounds lovely and nice and makes you sympathetic and gives us the impression that you're a normal person that is down to earth. Your mind is very sharp. You know exactly what you're talking about and therefore you are able to pass this clarity and logic behind the music theory on. You emphasise exactly what is important with the intonation in your voice so we stay focused on the important things. The visual effects along with the notation of the notes and chords in the video is made with great precision.
You're the best teacher of jazz piano that I found in the Internet and I feel priviledged to know you and I'm glad that you have the talent to explain everything so well. I just can confirm what so many of your followers and students have written: You are really born to teach.
Finally the best lesson on the tritone sub I've seen. I also like that when moving from (functional) V to I, it can provide smooth chromatic motion in the bass.
Awesome.... enjoy Anthony! PianoGroove
Some people just have a knack for explaining things, and teaching in an "empathical" way.
These are the best. Thanks!
Dude...you made this so easy to understand. Thanks a billion.
Such a great tutorial. You made it so clear by keeping it 1 in the bass and 3, 7 / 7, 3 in the left. Exactly what I was missing to wrap my head around tritone substitution. Thanks man!!
Thanks man glad you enjoyed it! Cheers, PianoGroove
i really appreciate how much time he spends getting us used to the theory, and really letting it sink in how it works!
Superior vid. Great info, straight forward presentation and clear, simple explanations. Well done. Thanks a lot.
Clearly explained, what a great lesson. Thank you.
best tritone tutorial i've seen, thank you man
This is a world-class jazz lesson. Learned a ton in such a short time. Thank you!
The six people who gave this video a thumbs down leave me bewildered. They obviously have no idea about what jazz piano is about.
Another superb video explaining very clearly the principle with examples.
Thanks Paul :-) PianoGroove
sometimes the people who give the thumb down does not know what they're doing. Literally. There are many grades of attention. May be all these thumbs are without purpose
I agree with everyone else your instructional videos are the best! Your logic and concepts sink in so easily 👌
I just finished understanding the tritone substitution with this video, thanks so much, so clear!
Thank you for making a subject that was previously very complex seem so simple!
A very helpful lesson. Thank you.
Thanks, this is awesome man. Thank you, thank you very much for your time and for sharing your knowledge with us.
When I finish all your videos here, I'm gonna head to your website and purchase a subscription! You are an excellent teacher, Hayden! Thank you so much.
This is exactly what I needed! Thank you so much I really do appreciate it!!!
Excellent lesson...beautifully done and quite efficient! Thank you!
Excellent. Thanks. Clear, concise and simple explanations. Well done.
Excellent lesson. I see things more clearly now, thank you!
That intro is almost exactly the intro to Mas Que Nada by Sergio Mendes & Brasil 66. Very cool application!
Great lesson ! Thank you so much !
Thanks for this, the lesson was very easy to follow along with and understand
wow, tank you for the video.
this has brought enough clarity.
Excellent - a great sounding voicing with in context examples. Great teaching. Thanks.
Excellent lesson, best for me on tritones. Appreciate the double piano.
Thanks a lot. Great lesson.
This is an excellent lesson. It's very clear and understandable.
Love this video, great explanation. I've been struggling with this, now I just need to practice.
thank you!!!
the video is so benefit for me to understand tritone!
I teach guitar and bass for a living ! This is as logical and accessible an explanation as I’ve heard - brilliant 😄🙏
Really helpful!! Thank you very much!
Love this lesson! Thank you
Best of best lesson I have watched so far.
Thanks for this great lesson!
This is amazing. Thanks a lot!
Thank you! You made it easy.
So far, i had watched so many tutorial, yours is the best explanation. I super like your explanation including written as well on the description. Thank you. Reall help a lot for the amature.
+Abdul Hazim Thanks Abdul - I appreciate your comments :-)
great lesson.thanks.
Great lesson thank YOU so much
very nice thanks a lot
Very clear and informative.
Thanks for this great tutorial.
+Victor Law No problem Victor - glad you found it clear and informative.
Fantastic explanation! Totally clear and to the point with clear examples 👍👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏Thank you so much 👏
I keep seeing tritone substitution demonstrated with II, V, I progressions. Do they work with other progressions or do they become less reliable?
This is awesome. A simple explanation
AWESOME THANK YOU SO MUCH!!! MERRY XMAS!!!
Thank you! Excellent!
Really Helpful.
thanks...helpful
then substitute it into a major chord (instead of a dominant chord) then it will sound beatiful. Making it a flat 2 major. 2-b2major-1
example: Dminor7- Dbmajor7-Cmajor7 (instead of Dminor7-Db7-Cmajor7). It makes it sound more soulful and gives it more sense. while the root note is going down chromatically.
great idea for an outro of a song or atleast a bridge or something like that. u start with the Major IV chord going down chromatically to the I chord. example: Fmajor7 - Eminor7 - Ebmajor7 - Dminor7 - Dbmajor7 - Cmajor7
this is fun to just listen to it and play in the piano or guitar
i have some examples on my channel called ''it is what it is'' and ''peace of mind''
I live in other country, thanks for your help, you are the best!!!
Nice explanation of "The Jazz Piano Book" chapter 6. Keep up!
Спасибо Вам за техническое оформление занятия. Всё продумано для того , чтобы нам было понятно. С какой любовью, доброжелательностью Вы работаете с нами. И Вам любви ответной ....!
A CLEAN-CUT, CRISTAL CLEAR EXPLAINATION OF THE OF OLD-CALLED DEVIL'S INTERVAL. THANKS. GREETINGS FROM ARUBA.
thank you so much :D
Gostei muito do seu video, obrigado!
muito Bom! não falo inglês porém entendi tudo perfeitamente. Excelent teacher!! thank you.
hi there! i just have to say that you really did a great job with most of your instructional videos. Im new to playing piano/keyboard in a band, i have problems with comping in a band. So,I really hope that you can make a video on how to comp(accompany) on certain type of music such as funk, ballad, swing and etc which could be use when performing in a group. Really appreciated and thank you in advance! :)
+Mohammed Amir Esa - Hi Mohammed, yes no problem - i am working on some lessons on comping chords and rhythms. Stay tuned my friend! PianoGroove
Also for me this is the best explaination i've founded. At least the more easy to undestand the point. Then maybe is good to search some explaination in text to understand the details.
Thank you
YOU MAKE IT A PIECE OF CAKE. SO STRAIGHT FORWARD THANK YOU.
Thanks
good explenation
Thanks.. this is the best lesson on tritone I ve seen
Plsss sir, I really need ur help..
I've gotten d application of tritone in each key, but pls d kind way u play ur chord at d right hand, I don't understand... Plzzz
thanks
fantastic clarity thank god!! No usual youtube drivel.
Very good contet. Question: Is there always just one tritone substitution to a chord..i mean are there always just 2 dominat chords that share the 3 and 7?
Thanks for the work.
Really appreciated.
Greets
Thank you again! Just a question, please: is the tritone sub used only in the II V I progression, or elsewhere as well? And if yes -- where? Thanks!
Very clear and easy to follow. Is such substitution generally used outside of jazz?
+Darrien Ollivierre Hi Darrien, yes substitutions can be used in any type of music but jazz is where they are most common. Substitutions are generally used to add a fresh and interesting sound to basic chord progressions and are used to spice up old jazz standards. You can find some more advanced applications of tritone substitution on the PianoGroove website: bit.ly/jazz-piano-lessons Cheers, PianoGroove
What kind of chords play in your intro? What would you call that style of movement? Really like it.
+Jake2 Hi Jake, It's a 3-6-2-5-1 progression in C major - quite simple really, try these chords:
3 chord is E minor 'So What': LH: E & A RH: D, G & B
6 chord is A minor 9 closed position: LH: A RH: G, B, C, E
2 chord is D minor11 all stacked 3rds: LH: D, F & A RH: C, E & G
5 chord is G7#5#9: in both hands play: F, Bb, B, Eb
1 Chord is C major13: play this low down: LH: C, G RH: A, B, D & E (then run these notes up the keyboard)
Hope this helps - it's a rhodes piano sound too.
Cheers,
PianoGroove.
I noticed that you kept the right-hand notes the same, only moving the bass note for some of the examples, ending up with 7#9#5 chords. Is this common for tritone subs? When do you keep the upper voices and when do you change them to fit the tritone-sub chord?
Hello how to proper substitute a four note chord? I know with a dominant I can use any tone from it's diminished roots like (C Eflat Gflat A )making any of these notes a dominant can sub for it self right or I could use the flat 5 sub but could any one of em resolve to CEG besides the F7
Wow
Should you memorize the spelling of the enharmonic equivalents or just the shape is fine?
Congratulations!
What program do you use to show the keyboard with notes?
Hi Pablo - it's called Midiculous. All the best, PianoGroove
+PianoGroove Thank you very much! And one more time... Congratulations for the vídeos! Very good!!!
I love your videos! This is great! I have a few questions: when forming chords, 7ths in this video, I noticed that you omit the 5ths.
1. When forming a 7th (whether maj or dom) with the 5th omitted, is it still a 7th?
2. If you don't play the 7th and you play the 2nd, can you still call it a 9th?
3. Can a chord be called an 11th chord if you skip playing the 9th? Or do you need to play the whole stack somehow for it to earn that designation?
Thanks so much!
Hey there! I might be able to help a little here. If anyone finds anything incorrect feel free to chime in ;)
1. I would say yes. Simply because the 5th is the least important note in a chord (unless its altered of course). This is because whether you play 1 3 7 or 1 3 5 7, you can clearly make out what chord is being played. The 5th just makes it sound a little fuller. Also as far as I know, there is no notation for specifically leaving out the 5th.
2. Yes. However, you would write the 9th chord like so: C(add9) or C(add2). Otherwise writing C9 implies that the 7th is played as well.
3. Not to sure about this one. But if the sheet says to play an 11th chord, I would certainly try and play the 9th as well (otherwise, it might have been writing as C7(add11). This would also be the way to write down the chord if you specifically dont want the 9th.
Excellent explanation Janis!
To answer point 3..... Jazz chords are usually named by the highest extension, so if you had a C minor chord with the 11 but no 9, it would still be a C-11 - because the 11th is the highest extension.
However, if you don't play the 7th, chords do get different names as Janis mentioned. That's the important point to remember.
Another example would be a C chord with a 9 and a 13 but not a 7 - if the 7 is not present in this case it would be called C6/9 - (the 6 and the 13 is the same note) this can be used either as a major chord or to replace dominant 7th chords for a 'softer' sound.
But if the b7 was in there, the chord would be C13 which is a C7 chord with the 13 as the highest extension.
Hope this makes sense :-)
Wouldn’t it be easier to just think of the tritone substitution as being the dominant seventh rooted in the chromatic interval between II & I ?
Everyone interested in blues and jazz improvisation should know that the tritone interval built into the dominant seventh chord is the very basis of jazz harmony.
Changes by David Bowie uses a tonne of them.
can you explain the contiguous ii V in the next video? thank you!
+Faiha Farihah Hi Faiha, Yes sure I'll add it to the lesson schedule. Thanks, PianoGroove
Welcome. Thank you so much for considering my little request
A tritone interval is just a b5! So much easier to think about than 3 WS or just memorizing the six intervals.
How can Fmaj7 be major ,in the key of C major , if Bb isn’t in the key if C major?
Hello! I woud like to ask, this piano midi sowtwer is wich sovtwer, to learn me?
Great explanation, but all ii-V-I progressions? What are some examples of other substitutions? Are you only using this in place of the V-I cadence? Something is not quite clicking for me, I feel like there's more uses of this substitution but I'm not quite putting it together in my head...
The point is that anytime you have to play a 7 chord, you can substitute it with another 7 chord that is a tritone away. The surrounding chord progression does not matter.
I don't understand why all the complication of doing the tritone stuff when you can just call it a bII of some kind? I suppose it's a better term since there's multiple possibilities of II chords, but I only ever see the dominant subbed out, and never anything else.
is sunday morning by maroon 5 a 2-5-1 progression? Not really super relevant to this video but the progressions at the end reminded me of it
Yup, it is. But... it's in the key of F, but still played like a C major 2-5-1 progression. Weird.
EDIT: Actually it's Dm - G7 - Cmaj7. So not quite a 2-5-1.
TheOutrageousZwibak Dm G7 Cmaj7 IS 2-5-1
Yes yes I know, I quickly realized that afterwards. Note that my comment is a week old and that I'm very aware of the chords in the C major scale (C, Dm, Em, F, G, Am, B° and respectively Cmaj7, Dm7, Em7, Fmaj7, G7, Am7, Bhdim7)
Can I just check if there are any rules in choosing which chords to substitute within a song? Or I can just use substitute chords anywhere I like?
Hi Linda, the tritone substitutes I demonstrated in this lesson work great for any dominant chord. Some substitutions will sound better than other so just experiment and see what you find! Cheers, PianoGroove
Minut 13:21...Dm7 or Dm11?
All are ok. But how we can explain when it comes to key signature in tritones?
For ex: B natural in Db7
Remember if the dominant chord appears in the end (as a cadence chord), tritone subtitution will not functioned well
Tritone cadences are fucking brutal
I have a question. Isn't this substitution related to 6 neapolitan?
The Neapolitan 6th is an altered ii chord (actually diminished II chord) used by composers for effect in minor keys. It usually doesn't have a dominant 7th and therefore has no tritone. Also, it is usually found in first inversion (hence the baroque notation of "6"). It does have a root relationship of a tritone to the V chord, but it does not SUBSTITUTE for the V chord (at least not traditionally) and usually moves through V(7) to i (minor).
what kind of keyboard are you using?
+Khrisna Khristian Hi Khrisna, I'm using a Roland RD 700 NX. Thanks, PianoGroove
Price ? of complete Jazz lessons
+Jim Shelton Hi Jim, yes you can sign up to PianoGroove Pro from $29 per month: www.pianogroove.com/join/ - you can watch all of the introductions to the Pro lessons in the video library too: www.pianogroove.com/jazz-piano-lessons/ - Hope this helps. Cheers, PianoGroove :-)
hi, just wanted to know where your hq is
+kev moss - I'm based in Manchester, UK. Cheers, PianoGroove.