Submit Your Week 5 Music HERE
Added 2025-01-30 19:48:09 +0000 UTCYour goal this week was to write in the major key and feature b2 OR VI (aka V/ii), and also use at least one other non-diatonic note. Here's my submission (note, this is not what I demonstrated in the lesson, I started over!).
C - Fm - C - C [I - iv - I - I ] (x2)
That is a major tonic chord but I've lowered any instances of the 6th. Even though I'm thinking "Mixolydian b6," that entire scale isn't present.
Db/F - G - C - C [bII - V - I - I] (x2)
I'm thinking of that Db chord (bII) as a nepolitan cadence in major, I briefly play some notes of C Phrygian. Also that C chord I do kinda a sus4 thingy. Next...
G - - A7 - - F - Fm - C - - [V - VI (aka V/ii) - IV - iv - I] (x2)
REPEAT ALL (i kept it looping so you can try playing leads over it if you like)
In those sections, we introduce the VI chord (aka V/ii) which in essence raises the root of our key. It "should" lead to Dm7 but it also resolves well to the IV as we hear.
If you like the way this sounds, you might like the song "Halfway to the Moon" by Phish. There's a lot of the same vibes going on here, and it's totally worth anaylzing that song to see if you can figure out what's going on in the major key.
Comments
OK, here we go... Cmaj7 - Fmaj7#11 Amin - G - Bb - C A7 - Emin - G7 - C I incorporated the C# in the A7 as a secondary dominant leading to E minor and my additional note borrowing was the Bb major chord as a backdoor resolution. I tried to keep just a couple of "magic chords" as opposed to beating it over the head. Also please forgive my improvisation at the end, after a month of perfectly placing dots in a piano scroll I just figured I could improvise a fantastic line but no, that requires practice too! :). I really like this a jam track to practice major soling along with, I always play minor and minor blues. REVERSE UNO! - I want to head some of you killer players jam over the first half of this! https://drive.google.com/file/d/1EpF-3UugGs3KSxuh2aLXVRv5LzoxHozv/view?usp=sharing
Aaron Shemon
2025-02-03 23:30:20 +0000 UTCMy submission below! It is in A major. Progression is: Intro: A - Asus4 (x4) I - I Verse: A - Asus4 (x4) - Fmaj7 - G6 - A - Asus4 - A - Asus4 I - I - bVI - bVII I - I - I - I Interlude: C - Bb - A (x2) bIII - bII - I Verse: A - Asus4 (x4) - Fmaj7 - G6 - A - Asus4 - A - Asus4 I - I - bVI - bVII I - I - I - I Ending/Outro: A - A7 - A6 - A (descending part) x2 I - I - I - I E - D - A V - IV - I https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/ijgzwslvbxzjkslnrylxl/Let-It-Go_Signals-Week-5.mp3?rlkey=e04j72r287l2u2cenvpyxy0gl&dl=0 Cheers!
Scott
2025-02-03 22:27:28 +0000 UTCThanks, ExcellentHummingbird.
Sole Brick
2025-02-03 17:50:28 +0000 UTC@Znernicus - That's a good point about trouble hearing the C as the tonic. I think I made the mistake of not keeping the tonal center/focus on C. I think despite my best efforts of writing in C Maj I actually ended up writing in D Maj - this theory application is slippery stuff. Thanks for the feedback, very helpful!
Eric Kirwan
2025-02-03 16:56:14 +0000 UTCWe've been missing out then, cool stuff! It has kind of a contemporary Japanese vibe to it with all the chord movements and extensions, which I really dig.
ExcellentHummingbird
2025-02-03 13:41:56 +0000 UTCI like it, and don't worry about not sounding "weird" enough. Sounds a bit like exotic blues rock to me, you don't hear that often. :)
ExcellentHummingbird
2025-02-03 13:37:20 +0000 UTCLove it! And yeah those spicy notes are really addicting, especially when woven in smooth like that.
ExcellentHummingbird
2025-02-03 13:33:37 +0000 UTCThis sounds awesome. if you told me this was Eddie Vedders latest single I’d believe you…
Scott
2025-02-03 04:10:18 +0000 UTCThank you brother!
MindStorM
2025-02-03 02:54:58 +0000 UTCIt sounds so natural and your singing is awesome! I do have a hard time hearing the C as the tonic though since we keep resolving back to D major, but it all sounds great regardless
Znernicus
2025-02-03 02:38:10 +0000 UTCNice use of the altered scale!
Znernicus
2025-02-03 02:35:05 +0000 UTCSeems we had similar ideas this week, trying to combine b2 and #4. Nice playing through these tricky scales!
Znernicus
2025-02-03 02:33:20 +0000 UTCabsolutely beautiful and smooth chord progression!
Lionel Pöffel
2025-02-02 21:44:21 +0000 UTCHi All - here's what I came up with this week... Chord Progression = II(lyd) - I - V - V7/ii Melody that features the b2 & #4 https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/yqu87u0xtxisewx854lqu/MMM_Week-5.aif?rlkey=azlv5s3kb02nxueskt4i7t60j&st=2w6x5az2&dl=0 For anyone interested, here's the approach I took when writing this week. I tried really hard to do a lot of it on paper before even touching a keyboard or guitar. I started in the key of C Major, then flatted the 2nd (D - Db) and raised the 4th (F - F#). I wrote a "random" melody drawing from these notes… C, Db, D, E, F#, G, A, B When I was writing I made sure the MELODY included the b2 and #4. This is what I came up with… D-one D-day A-i C-went C-for C-a A-walk B-saw B-you G-come Db-out Db-of Db-the Db-car A-park D-i D-tried A-to C-run C-a/C-way A-from B-your B-wav/G-ing Db-hand Db-it Db-beck/A-oned D-don’t F#-tell D-me C-my C-heart’s E-brok/C-en B-e/B-rased G-you Db-from Db-my Db-con/A-cious D-every/F#-one D-will C-know C-your E-tongue C-is B-jok/G-ing G-don’t Db-drag Db-me Db-a/Db-round From there I tried to reverse engineer a CHORD PROGRESSION that “fit” the melody. I came up with… II(lyd) - I - V - V7/ii for voicings on the chord progression I did this… Bass - root note Guitar 1 - power chords Guitar 2 - triads - most inverted
Eric Kirwan
2025-02-02 21:08:44 +0000 UTCThank you! Using an augmented chord to a diminished chord in a kind of predominant to dominant-like fashion sounds neat to me
MindStorM
2025-02-02 20:14:02 +0000 UTCReally smooth connections with your chord progressions! I love that stuff. Trying to make really neat and intricate movements with chords that are usually not easily connected sound seamless
MindStorM
2025-02-02 20:10:58 +0000 UTCYeah, I love how you're not shying away from augmented and diminished.
Lionel Pöffel
2025-02-02 20:02:55 +0000 UTCI like it. Mine is even more standard...
Lionel Pöffel
2025-02-02 19:27:00 +0000 UTCHi there, coming late to the party. Saw the mails about the masterclass but had no time to follow... until now. This week I binge-watched all the lessons. Intend to post-do the assignments (lesson 1 I actually managed to do before starting to work on week 5). So here my attempt: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/x8yog3ft0f6lj8h0w9uj2/Masterclass_ModalMixture_2025-Major-b2-V7-ii-chromatic.mp3?rlkey=ea9ki9vo74g90q8tpchb2y3a7&dl=0 Chords: Intro: Something quartic (sorry, could't resist). Technically it could be something like Fsus4 (omit 5/ add b7,#9) Cmaj7 F(add6) (3x) Cmaj7 G7 Chorus: Cmaj7 Fmaj7 Cmaj7 (3x) Dm7 G7 Cmaj7 C7 Fmaj6 G7 Cmaj7 Fmaj6 A7 Dm7 G7 Cmaj7 F Fm Am7 A7 Dm7 G7 Cmaj7 Bridge: Am7 G#° Am D F Fm C Cmaj6 Dm7 G7 C F 2x Chorus Outro: Abmaj Bbmaj Cmaj Things got a bit tense time-wise. I might have missed one or two things to correct. And sorry for the 10s silence at the end (had some settings trouble).
Lionel Pöffel
2025-02-02 19:23:36 +0000 UTCLove that pedal note riff.
Sole Brick
2025-02-02 18:58:13 +0000 UTCExcellent, as always. Love that exotic sound. And the outro. Superb.
Sole Brick
2025-02-02 18:53:04 +0000 UTCBit of a shorter piece this week but I enjoyed putting this together. (On listening back to it, it probably could have done with being a bit longer to set the scene more with chord progression. But give it a few listens and it'll grow, I'm sure) Starts off with a simple slide intro and straight into it. To be honest, I thought it needed some kind of intro but wasn’t sure what. The slide seemed sufficient. The drums are basic, just a couple of loops from online cobbled together, but they suffice, I think. I’ve gone with E Mixolydian and thrown in an F (borrowed from Phrygian), Caug (borrowed from Mixolydian b6). And I think there’s a C in the Esus add9(#5) chord too. Hope my theory’s correct 🫤 I used a bit of Mixolydian, Pentatonic, Phrygian Dominant Pentatonic (love that scale) and added a 6th descending progression at the end. Chords , E | E7 | E6sus(add9) | Esus add9(#5) x2 E | B7 | A | F#m | F | B7 | E E | E7 | E6sus(add9) | Esus add9(#5) x2 E | Caug | A | F#m | F | B7 C#m7 x2 A | B7 | E https://drive.google.com/file/d/1-MRLriePuDjgmbVgge8-JRm-2itjnkAD/view?usp=sharing Hope I made the grade, Jake! 🤞 (Edit: On listening to the other guys' submissions, I don't think I went weird enough! Some brilliant sounds coming from them.)
Sole Brick
2025-02-02 18:04:07 +0000 UTChttps://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/cilzjqa90dbqm8jl0xal4/Lesson5MajorlyWeird.mp3?rlkey=exjysxy413wyff6otius5cwou&st=ypogczhp&dl=0 While experimenting this week I stumbled across Lydian Dominant, but then I ended up morphing between this and Phrygian Dominant and found some really interesting exotic sounds. A fun consequence of mixing these is that it allowed me to use a major triad built off the tritone! I decided to skip on the keyboards this week and focus entirely on playing the scales on the guitar. Key of Db Db intro Db Abm D Db Db Bm Gbm Db Db Abm D Db Db Bm G Db x2 Bm7 Gbm Db D Db Bm7 G Db Db#11 x2 Db outro
Znernicus
2025-02-02 05:37:47 +0000 UTCLets say Monday Night! If you're late though you can email it to me directly
Jake Lizzio
2025-01-31 21:41:13 +0000 UTCJake, what's the target "due date" on this one?
Scott
2025-01-31 20:52:33 +0000 UTCThanks, MS! 😁🤘😎
Jay Goemmer
2025-01-31 01:49:10 +0000 UTCReally cool submission! Digging C section a lot!
MindStorM
2025-01-31 01:23:04 +0000 UTC“Kolkata” (Calcutta) “A” SECTION | A | Bb | A | Bb | A | Bb | C | / | I bII (3x) … bIII (borrowed from Phrygian) “B” SECTION (Mario cadence) | F | G | A | / | (2x) bVI bVII I “C” SECTION | Adim | Em | Adim | Em | Adim | Em | Gsus2 | / | Idim v (3x) … bVII (borrowed from Mixolydian) (REPEAT “A” SECTION) The C in the recurring riff melody over the A chord in the “A” Section should clash with the C#, but I think it sounds fine. In the “C” Section, #4 (Lydian) occurs in Adim, and b7 (Mixolydian) occurs in Em (v) and Gsus2. All synths: Roland ZENOLOGY, drum sounds: Addictive Drums 2 (Studio Rock, Reel Machines libraries = Simmons SDS kit, Tape 808 Processed). Backing track roughed out with Jammer Pro 6 (now available as Bandora). Guitars: none this week, sorry guitar gurus. I substituted sitar solos instead. 😱🤣😎 https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/lvplyqz4pi2fffbmsy72q/Kolkata-Calcutta-Week-5-Jan-2025.mp3?rlkey=zyu4ooszqdawg4lwrhjincitm&st=4i6dxsar&dl=0
Jay Goemmer
2025-01-31 01:08:41 +0000 UTCThank you so much! I was hoping to give off that relieving "ahhhh" effect once we got back home to B major :D
MindStorM
2025-01-31 00:37:55 +0000 UTCDream Theater vibes with this one! What a journey!
MindStorM
2025-01-31 00:37:19 +0000 UTCLove it! Especially the augmented/diminished resolution at the end feels super satisfying.
ExcellentHummingbird
2025-01-30 23:02:28 +0000 UTCHere we go! I usually struggle a bit with writing in Major without sounding cheesy, so my goal this week was to dirty it up a bit. :) I wanted something more dark, eerie and relentless while still firmly focusing on a major tonic. The piece is in C Lydian as well as C Phrygian Dominant, mostly using the #4 and b2 to get away from the Major happiness, as well as other stylistic elements. There's not a lot going on in terms of harmony and chords, but some buildup and repetition is what the song ended up demanding. Can't fit every idea inside the 2 minute time frame! Link and chords: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1riW7JEunNW9mzRQxYLrUr8a-ol2KxKMW/view?usp=sharing C - D - Bm - C (x4) C -- Db -- C -- Db C - D - Bm - C (x2) C -- Db -- C -- Db (x2) C - D - Bm - C (x2) I - II - vii - I (x4) I -- bII -- I -- bII I - II - vii - I (x2) I -- bII -- I -- bII (x2) I - II - vii - I (x2)
ExcellentHummingbird
2025-01-30 22:54:24 +0000 UTCHere's my submission! These have all been so much fun and challenging! The tune is in B major key in 6/8. It starts in B Ionian and then using the VI chord to serve as the V/II to a C# major chord, I used the B# (I think it's B# in this case) altered scale to end up in B Lydian to incorporate that #4. Then I find my way back to B Ionian using that C# major chord as a fifth to go back to F# and make it a sus4 chord and then regular F# before going back to B Ionian. I then use a B augmented chord to use B Ionian #5 over, then a A# diminished chord with a A# diminished arpeggio to ultimately end back up in B Ionian. The progression is like this: B-E-F# (B Ionian) B-E-G# (B# altered on G#) C#-B-C#-F#sus-F# (B Lydian resolving back to B Ionian) B-E-B+, A#dim B I'm excited to hear everyone else's submissions! https://drive.google.com/file/d/15KARbknwURt5FA-ayaxi7WTmFOGrcg3I/view?usp=sharing
MindStorM
2025-01-30 20:46:22 +0000 UTCWOO YEAH
Captain Byte
2025-01-30 19:52:21 +0000 UTC
