How to Use a ♭VII Chord in Your Music
♭VII Chords are a type of borrowed chord (a.k.a. modal mixture) that falls under a larger umbrella of chromatic harmony. Chromatic harmony refers…
Write Better Chord Progressions 4 Different Ways
Write better chord progressions: if you feel like your chord progressions are boring or aren’t expressing exactly what you want them to, try approaching harmonies from different perspectives. Often, the most helpful creative tool is just coming at a problem from a different angle. Here are 4 different ways to help you write better chord …
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Neapolitan Chord in “Enterprising Young Men” from Star Trek 2009
Neapolitan chords are a popular way to add some chromatic harmony flavor to your (most-often) minor chord progressions. They convey a sense of hopeful melancholy, as they are built off of a lowered 2nd scale step. That means that they have this darker feel to them than chords built from a regular 2nd scale step …
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Common-Tone Modulation in “Summer of ’69” by Bryan Adams
Common-tone modulation is the name of a specific way of changing keys in music, and if you want to change keys in a super dramatic and abrupt way, you can use this type of common-tone modulation. What this means is that the last chord in the old key that you’re coming from and the first …
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Secondary Dominant Chords: Don’t Know Why by Jesse Harris
How secondary dominant chords are used in “Don’t Know Why” by Jesse Harris to add color and forward momentum
Be Your Own Chord Progression Generator
Chord progressions describe the way the order of harmonies can influence the overall sound of a piece of music, and most people don’t know that there are different ways of looking at them. If you’re reading this, you might be aware of traditions founded in functional harmony (if you know anything about Roman numeral analysis, …
Chopin Waltz in A-Flat Major, Op. 69 No. 1: Analysis and Interpretation
The Chopin Waltz in A-flat Major, Op. 69 No. 1, is one of his most remembered works. The piece contains both a compelling backstory and haunting musical content. This post provides a brief history of how this waltz came to be a marker of a depressing moment in Chopin’s life and then interpretive performance suggestions …
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Christmas Carol Composition Contest 2021
Are you really vibing this Christmas season? Or maybe not, but you want to? Either way, this year I wanted to do something fun to connect with people around the world for Christmas, so I’m running a Christmas Carol Composition Contest. Winners will receive $50, $25, and $10 gift cards to Girl in Blue Music …
How to Make Your Chord Progressions More Interesting
Here’s how to make your chord progressions more interesting. One of the most freeing things you can learn as a musician is how to create your own chord progressions. This knowledge allows you to compose or improvise your own music or to interpret what’s going on in an already-existing piece of music. Of course, to …
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How to Learn a Song by Ear
How to learn a song by ear: do you find it overwhelming or just don’t know how to start? The easiest way to get started is to break the song down into smaller pieces and focus on each one at a time. I am a piano teacher who had to learn to learn music by …