Uploaded November 2020 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
CHECK OUT MY BOOKS
How To Really Play The Piano: billspianopages.com/how-to-really
Seven Studies in Pop Piano: billspianopages.com/seven-studies
An Introduction To Cocktail Piano: billspianopages.com/cocktail
The tritone has a bit of a bad reputation (“the devil in music” and all the rest of it) but in fact it’s a powerful and flexible interval that’s the driving force behind lots of everyday harmony. Tritones hide out in dominant and diminished seventh chords,, many scales and modes (in particular lydian mode, where it’s really important) plays a part in the blues and behaves differently in major and minor keys.
In this tutorial we look at what the tritone is, the many things it can do, and also dig into some fundamental music theory concepts like intervals and modes.
When you’ve finished watching, take a look at the benefits on offer on my Patreon page: patreon.com/billhilton
SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS
Facebook: fb.me/billhiltonpiano
Twitter: twitter.com/billhilton
Instagram: instagram.com/billhilton
00:00 Introduction
02:50 Tritones (and other intervals) explained
05:34 Instability: the source of the tritone’s power
07:17 The tritone driving 7 chords
11:05 Modulations and diminished chords
12:21 Tritones in the blues
12:55 The tritone substitution
15:20 Tritones in minor keys
15:51 What are modes?
17:13 Lydian mode and “magic seconds”
23:04 Wrapping up
CHECK OUT MY BOOKS
How To Really Play The Piano: billspianopages.com/how-to-really
Seven Studies in Pop Piano: billspianopages.com/seven-studies
An Introduction To Cocktail Piano: billspianopages.com/cocktail
The tritone has a bit of a bad reputation (“the devil in music” and all the rest of it) but in fact it’s a powerful and flexible interval that’s the driving force behind lots of everyday harmony. Tritones hide out in dominant and diminished seventh chords,, many scales and modes (in particular lydian mode, where it’s really important) plays a part in the blues and behaves differently in major and minor keys.
In this tutorial we look at what the tritone is, the many things it can do, and also dig into some fundamental music theory concepts like intervals and modes.
When you’ve finished watching, take a look at the benefits on offer on my Patreon page: patreon.com/billhilton
SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS
Facebook: fb.me/billhiltonpiano
Twitter: twitter.com/billhilton
Instagram: instagram.com/billhilton
00:00 Introduction
02:50 Tritones (and other intervals) explained
05:34 Instability: the source of the tritone’s power
07:17 The tritone driving 7 chords
11:05 Modulations and diminished chords
12:21 Tritones in the blues
12:55 The tritone substitution
15:20 Tritones in minor keys
15:51 What are modes?
17:13 Lydian mode and “magic seconds”
23:04 Wrapping up
