Uploaded March 2018 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
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Free online guitar lessons for beginners, intermediate, and advanced players. Located in Crystal Lake, Jake Lizzio provides free jam tracks and video lessons for guitar players, as well as music theory videos and other music education content.
The Chord Progression Codex is NOW AVAILABLE! https://shorturl.at/bouLV
Subscribe to my patreon to help support this channel: patreon.com/signalsmusicstudio
Thank you all for 30k subscribers! I'm legit astonished. I hope to make stuff you can all enjoy and learn from!
My pro theory + songwriting course bit.ly/2J2Nctn
Enroll in my Rhythm Training Course at ANY price! bit.ly/3wDacU4
twitter.com/signals_music
facebook.com/signalsmusicstudio
signalsmusicstudio.com
Free online guitar lessons for beginners, intermediate, and advanced players. Located in Crystal Lake, Jake Lizzio provides free jam tracks and video lessons for guitar players, as well as music theory videos and other music education content.
![Getting Started with Harmonic Minor-Leads and Jamming [GUITAR LESSON / MUSIC THEORY]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/UkGIfrdMgTA/mqdefault.jpg "Getting Started with Harmonic Minor-Leads and Jamming [GUITAR LESSON / MUSIC THEORY]
The Chord Progression Codex is NOW AVAILABLE! https://shorturl.at/bouLV
My pro theory + songwriting course https://bit.ly/2J2Nctn
Enroll in my Rhythm Training Course at ANY price! https://bit.ly/3wDacU4
Play to Chusss Jam Track! https://bit.ly/2J7muK7
My Patreon: https://bit.ly/2m3WNkD
Scale + Chord PDF: https://bit.ly/2NzqVkd
There is a lot to talk about with Harmonic Minor but we have to start somewhere! It is a great exotic sounding scale and I suggest you begin by getting familiar with the shape on guitar (or your instrument of choice) and also start to try recognizing the unique feeling it provides.
From there, we can begin our next lesson, which will be writing chords in Harmonic Minor, which will lead us into writing actual songs in different genres.
https://www.twitter.com/signals_music
https://www.facebook.com/signalsmusicstudio
https://www.signalsmusicstudio.com
Free online guitar lessons for beginners, intermediate, and advanced players. Located in Crystal Lake, Jake Lizzio provides free jam tracks and video lessons for guitar players, as well as music theory videos and other music education content.
Table of Contents:
00:00 Intro
01:23 What is Harmonic Minor?
02:57 Scale Shapes
04:02 Improv Practice Tips
07:58 Wrapping Up")
![How To Arrange Chords into BEAUTIFUL 4-PART HARMONIES [Music Theory - Voice Leading]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/UkatcvIuF4U/mqdefault.jpg "How To Arrange Chords into BEAUTIFUL 4-PART HARMONIES [Music Theory - Voice Leading]
Learn more about voice leading and chord progressions in the Chord Progression Codex, my book! https://tinyurl.com/yytbhyvh
My Pro Songwriting+Theory Course: https://tinyurl.com/yv7uxjre
My Patreon: https://bit.ly/3gE4sSL
Writing a 4 part harmony can be very difficult if you dont understand the basic principles behind voice leading and arrangement. There are countless rules one must follow to emulate the stylings of Bach, Mozart, and Beethoven. But these rules are not needed just to arrange a simple progression! This video goes through the fundamental concepts of harmony and arrangment without getting into the weeds of clefs, notation, and actual rules.
By the end of the lesson, you should be able to arrange any chord progression for other instruments, and hopefully get new insight into the sorts of complex harmonies that can exist within a chord progression.
Thank you to my Patreon Supporters for all their help and kind words. They deserve as much credit for this channel as I do!
Read this lesson as a blog instead: http://signalsmusic.studio/lessons/voice-leading
TAKE NOTE:
The arrangement I make in this video at the end violates several golden rules. For one, it includes parallel fifths (parallel motion that occurs a perfect fifth apart). As a teacher who lives in the year 2022, I dont want you to burden yourself with these rules unless youre trying to sound like music from the common practice era, or unless youre trying to pass tests in music school (or if youre just really curious).
On Parallel Motion: If both voices are moving together in the same interval class, its parallel. If one voice moves up a m3 while the other moves up a M3, those are both THIRDS. The motion is parallel. If one voice moves up a m3 while the other moves up a fourth, those are no longer the same interval class (thirds and fourths), and would not be called parallel motion, but instead would be called similar motion.
Professional arrangement and orchestration takes many more skills than just learning to voice lead. A real arranger/composer will keep in mind the range of the instrument and has to notate music in different clefs. Arrangers also take note of the tonal qualities of instruments and exploit their frequency spectrum to either blend well together or clash and sound juxtaposed.
So this lesson wont turn you into a pro arranger - but it WILL get you writing your first 3 and 4 part harmonies and I think its a great start to composing more advanced harmony. I highly advise you combine this lesson with my last lesson on harmony, found here https://youtu.be/8lCf7q_VPHA
I also suggest you consider how many more options you will have when writing your voices if you are comfortable with your diatonic seventh chords, inversions, and secondary dominants.
Seventh Chords: https://youtu.be/3JizNRwHYNY
Inverted Chords: https://youtu.be/LFN-eKved_8
Secondary Dominants: https://youtu.be/py4HaueW50Q
If you know all this stuff, youll know exactly how I wrote this arrangement!
https://youtu.be/EC_Fvs3TEj4
Also, I said at 17:50ish that there is only one way to play that E7 on guitar. But there is another....
00:00 Intro
01:51 Basic Concepts
06:15 Arranging in 3 voices
10:50 Why the V become V7
13:10 Arranging in 4 voices
16:20 Make It Into MUSIC!
19:41 Outro")
![How To Easily Recognize Chords- Alternate Chord Names [Songwriting / Composition / Ear Training]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/Vqf75tl6aBA/mqdefault.jpg "How To Easily Recognize Chords- Alternate Chord Names [Songwriting / Composition / Ear Training]
The Chord Progression Codex is NOW AVAILABLE! https://shorturl.at/bouLV
My pro theory + songwriting course https://bit.ly/2J2Nctn
Enroll in my Rhythm Training Course at ANY price! https://bit.ly/3wDacU4
Give your chords alternate names that describe their feeling. Doing this helps you identify them quicker, and makes composing much easier.
Skip to the Chord Associations at 03:03
Like this video? Thank my Patreon subscribers for sponsoring these lessons! Theyre the reason you dont see ads or sponsorships in the middle of my videos. You can join them here:
www.patreon.com/signalsmusicstudio
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https://www.signalsmusicstudio.com
Free online guitar lessons for beginners, intermediate, and advanced players. Located in Crystal Lake, Jake Lizzio provides free jam tracks and video lessons for guitar players, as well as music theory videos and other music education content.")
![Intro to Modulations and Key Changes [SONGWRITING - MUSIC THEORY]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/Vxac3hHrxg8/mqdefault.jpg "Intro to Modulations and Key Changes [SONGWRITING - MUSIC THEORY]
My Complete Theory and Songwriting course is NOW OUT! https://bit.ly/38fs0sx My Patreon: https://patreon.com/signalsmusicstudio
Get the Ultimate Modal Poster! https://teespring.com/signals-ultimate-modal-poster
This video is an introduction to modulations and key changes. We explore many examples of modulations you’ve probably heard before, some which are direct transpositions up from their original key, and others that are more complex.
Key changes can be as simple or as difficult as you want them to be. At their heart, they make things sound different, so it can be an effective trick for extending the usability of a section to prevent it being bland, or to brighten it up or darken it by lifting it up or down respectively.
The following lessons are HIGHLY recommended if you are confused by anything in this video.
Writing in Major Keys: https://youtu.be/M8eItITv8QA
Writing in Minor Keys: https://youtu.be/j-j4g0ktPGw
The Dominant Chord and Secondary Dominant Chords: https://youtu.be/py4HaueW50Q
Borrowed Chords: https://youtu.be/7IdttvJSedg
Annoying Enharmonic footnote- In this video I refer to the keys of G# major and C# major which are theoretical keys. If I were to write this music out, I would certainly choose a key signature like Ab major and Db major, since double sharps (and B sharps) are a pain for me.
However, when referring to a key, the context is important- when we are transposing up from C a half step, we are literally sharping everything in the key of C, and it is helpful to think of that as C# Major. It is not, in my opinion, helpful to NOTATE it like that, which is why I included the key signatures of traditional keys and not the goofy ones with double sharps and what not. I’m only writing this because I know that by saying the words “G# Major” I’m going to receive an influx of comments saying that G# major is not a key, and if you decide to comment on me being wrong for that Im going to call you pedantic and annoying :)
LINKS TO SONGS WITH KEY CHANGES + TIME STAMPS (Links not working as intended- click link then skip to time stamp mentioned!)
Half Step Modulations:
Michael Jackson- Man In The Mirror 2:52
https://youtu.be/BbnV1x7cHjs?t=170
Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell – Ain’t No Mountain High Enough 1:34
https://youtu.be/Xz-UvQYAmbg?t=90
Whole Step Modulations:
The Temptations- My Girl 1:44
https://youtu.be/C_CSjcm-z1w?t=94
Whitney Houston- I Wanna Dance With Somebody 3:37
https://youtu.be/eH3giaIzONA?t=202
Didn’t mention this one in the video, but Whitney again with an incredible wholestep change in I Will Always Love You 3:10
https://youtu.be/3JWTaaS7LdU?t=167
Me – Come Back Home 2:41
https://youtu.be/bHwwJihitl0?t=140
Larger Modulations:
Mr. Big- To Be With You 2:28
https://youtu.be/L6-uJLteKek?t=131
Celine Dion – My Heart Will Go On 3:24
https://youtu.be/AjnJDBHmN18?t=204
Bon Jovi- Livin’ On A Prayer 3:24
https://youtu.be/lDK9QqIzhwk?t=194
Parallel Major/Minor shift-
While My Guitar Gently Weeps (between choruses and verses)
https://youtu.be/bI8P6ZSHSvE
Parallel Mixolydian/Dorian:
The Beatles – Norweigan Wood (between choruses and verses) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y_V6y1ZCg_8
Neighbor Key change-
Twenty One Pilots- House Of Gold (Between Verses and Choruses)
https://youtu.be/mDyxykpYeu8
Honorable Mentions:
The Supremes- I Hear A Symphony
https://youtu.be/zcylDkRw7dg
John Coltrane- Giant Steps
https://youtu.be/30FTr6G53VU
Bonnie Tyler – Total Eclipse Of The Heart
https://youtu.be/lcOxhH8N3Bo
Toni Braxton – Unbreak My Heart
https://youtu.be/p2Rch6WvPJE
I had to film this video FIVE times before I could start editing it. It was a disaster, first two times the audio was wrecked due to an intermittent low frequency hum that mysteriously started and went away. Third video I forgot to record an entire section (my fault for not working off a script). Fourth time the video was totally out of focus. Finally the fifth time I got it. It was a lot of wasted time and effort and was basically a lot of failure. The only reason I was able to get it right and not rush it out the door is cause my AMAZING PATREON SUPPORTERS are patient enough to fund these lessons and I don’t have to rely on appeasing the youtube algorithm by posting every week whether my videos are in focus or not!
So a big thank you to them, especially the following folks:
Joe Buote
Nick White
Patrick Ryan
Christopher Swanson
John Arnold
Jon Reddish
Brandon Combs
Sebastian
Morgan M.
Lord of the Chords
Billyshes
Phillip Sharp
Don Watters
Bradley Bower
Marek Pawlowski
Linas Orentas
This video has been reuploaded since I made a mistake in the first version- I accidentally thought Livin On A Prayer modulated up a half step (thats why its in that section of the video). Stupid mistake, should have double checked! Its why the editing is a bit wonky there :P
Also this video has been copyright claimed by like 7 companies before it even went live, I find that simultaneously entertaining and disappointing.")
![These 3 Chords will Make Them Cry - Minor Plagal Cadence [Songwriting Lesson]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/YEadIDOBpuA/mqdefault.jpg "These 3 Chords will Make Them Cry - Minor Plagal Cadence [Songwriting Lesson]
The Chord Progression Codex is NOW AVAILABLE! https://shorturl.at/bouLV
My pro theory + songwriting course https://bit.ly/2J2Nctn
Enroll in my Rhythm Training Course at ANY price! https://bit.ly/3wDacU4
To begin our song writing lessons, we will explore the basics of diatonic chords, and learn how the minor plagal cadence functions. Also we explore several examples of the minor plagal (iv - I) in popular music. Mixing major and minor is sometimes a no-no but it can work to your benefit!
Like this video? Thank my Patreon subscribers for sponsoring these lessons! Theyre the reason you dont see ads or sponsorships in the middle of my videos. You can join them here:
www.patreon.com/signalsmusicstudio
https://www.twitter.com/signals_music
https://www.facebook.com/signalsmusicstudio
https://www.signalsmusicstudio.com
Free online guitar lessons for beginners, intermediate, and advanced players. Located in Crystal Lake, Jake Lizzio provides free jam tracks and video lessons for guitar players, as well as music theory videos and other music education content.")
