What really irks me in all of these "western CPP educated" analysis of Andalusian cadence is missing the obvious -- that it's just IV-III-bII-im on the Phrygian scale.
Yeah, this has always been my favorite after playing a piano piece with it. I also love it in a blues context when you nail that blue note on the flat VI chord so you turn it into a dominant chord and have that minatory half step tritone descent
Other great examples are Del Shannon's "Runaway", The Stray Cats' "Stray Cat Strut", The Beach Boys' "Good Vibrations", The Turtles' "Happy Together", and The Ventures' "Walk Don't Run". One of my favorites is the doo-wop chord progression.
@@tymime seems like the dominant was replaced by a Neapolitan chord. I think it's usually used as a subdominant chord though, it nicely sets up the V7. On the other hand, it can be used as a tritone substitution to V7, so there's that.
I would like to mention that in Flamenco music, the music of Andalucia, A major (from your example) would be the tonic, therefore the progression would not revert to Dm but resolve in Amaj. The scale would be the flamenco scale,a modified Phrygian major (or dominant, if you like) with varying 3rd and 7th degrees. In other musical styles it is true it resolves back to the minor (here Dmin as the tonic) but that very fact then makes it less Andalucian! Many thanks for all the wonderful videos!!
Am I the only one who finds these videos not only instructive, clarifying and amazing, but also adorable and sweet? Srsly, 12tone has one of the nicest sounding narrating voices out there, so fresh and welcoming, and uses such relatable imagery (like when he says it's "unsettling, like the brightness of the major triads is lying to me somehow" - that was sooo well expressed ❤️)! The little elephants and nerdy aesthetic in general is so freakin cute ✨ the whole video production of this channel is so satisfying.
Awesome! I learned to play the classical guitar via flamenco music, so the Andalusian cadence holds a special place in my heart. Speaking of the Andalusian cadence and the Phrygian mode (6:00), I've actually always thought of the basic cadence as a mix between iv, III, II, I progression in Phrygian as well as the i, VII, VI, V in minor you describe. That last major chord actually makes the cadence work really well with a harmonic minor scale as well-which actually feels more like a Phrygian dominant scale to me, rooted in that last major chord. Edit: I'd actually like to add another variation of this progression that I love, and it's the Andalusian cadence with the two middle chords switched, so i, VI, VII, V or Dm, B♭, C, A in this case. That one actually feels more like it's harmonic minor rather than Phrygian, because I feel like it doesn't resolve so strongly to the last major chord. A good example of this one is Gerudo Valley from Ocarina of Time.
@@jessehammer123 Aight, but if They* have a male voice I’m gonna assume it’s a Dude, no offense just keeping it simple. We are living in confusing times.
I think the key to why looping this works so well is that it floats so seamlessly between the Phrygian (with the occational major 3rd) and Aeolian. A lot of Spanish music, (which is heavily influenced by Arab music) lets you interpret the V as the root if you want. The cadence is the perfect bridge between Arab scales and western functional harmony!
i called this the rasputin progression for years without knowing that it had a name, nice to see it does and that it's so theoretically / musically rich
From a flamenco perspective, this is an oddly backwards analysis. The tonal center is A and the functional harmony is the Flat II (Bb) to A Phrygian cadence. The D minor is a common substitution for Bb and the C is often played as a C9 - treated as, a B flat with a C in the bass. The melody one would create over this cadence would center on the Bb harmony until it resolves to the A. It's also common to have passing secondary dominants (e.g. - Dm - G7 - C9 - F7 - Bb - A) which is recognizable as a pretty common chain of II-VI-I's.
Honestly, I've been stuck in a composing block for a few weeks now, and hopefully this gives me the extra inspiration I need to get some ideas made. Thank you, 12Tone!
The andalucian cadence can be compared to the ancient greek tetrachord, the most common of which has the same interval structure (E D C B). Further comparisons: in turkish pop they would use the andalucian cadence but with a minor chord in the end (Am G F Em) and often with an added b9 on Em.
For me, the tonic of this cadence is what you call the fifth. I think that's because andalusian music usually uses the frigian scale, not minor, so the A major chord in this case sounds more resting to me. I may be crazy, but I'm from Spain so my point of view shouldn't be totally wrong (or maybe I'm crazy and this is all a simulation).
I’ve heard music that use this exact same scale where sometimes the major chord is the tonic and where the 1 minor is the tonic. Both sound good I think it just depends on stuff like the player and complimenting melodies. I personally prefer when the major feels home
When I first was studying chords and stuff, this cadence always felt like it needed to resolve the the minor tonic, but when I studied modal music (and lots of Phrygian-ish metal riffs), the same cadence, played the exact same way, felt resolved in the fifth degree. I think expectations is part of what makes it work, it's confusing, but you can even "change mentally" the tonic, and perceive the same cadence with different tonic in a short time.
In this exmaple, the a maj chord you are refering to is more of a dominant chord and the fact you are from Spain doesn't emphasize your argument. To my mind, even by not borrowing the V chord (the A maj chord) from the harmonic minor scale in the key of D, the dominant-tonic relationship stays intact, though less forceful. On a side note, the phrygian mode is a minor scale, so there is no c# making the v chord a maj/dominant chord. Another commenter points out that the phrygian dominant mode derived from d harmonic minor is rather used, which seems more likely. Still i don't think it developed that way (people thinking of scales/modes and then create some sound). However, it's perfectly fine you feel the way you feel, since it's music, right? But your arguments are kind of a stretch.
Malte Pries They are not a stretch. In flamenco, this V chord is not a V chord, it is I. It’s called the flamenco mode, which to sum up is phrygian with varying third (and seventh) scale degree. This is a worldwide recognized theory. An Andalusian cadence (which IMO is not really what this video describes but let’s use it for this discussion) can exist in a piece that is in a minor key, in which case the V interpretation is correct. It could also perfectly well be in a piece in flamenco mode, which makes it the I. Being Spanish, the second interpretation came to mind first for them.
An awesome flamenco cadence that has seen extended use in modern music and deservedly so, other notable examples are Sultans Of Swing, 50 Ways To Leave Your Lover, Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood and countless others
I always hear the old Blind Man spiritual whenever I hear this cadence, and I'm surprised I've never seen it brought up before. Also, glad you brought up minor iv at the end there with the anti-andalusian cadence. Minor iv to I is one of my own favorite chord progressions, and it always reminds me of Thomas Tallis's third mode psalm, the one used in RVW's famous Fantasia. (I think that goes like I iv I V) IV iv I is incredibly good as well, so soothing.
How am I finding this video just now? Ive been a lifelong fan of Spanish and flamenco music and got into learning music theory specifically to understand it better. Recognizing the Andalusian cadence is so much fun because it is present literally everywhere. Thank you for this video!
as per the comment around 4:45 , it's that series of three ascending majors a whole apart in strawberry fields that gives it part of it's most exceptional moment.
thank you for this great video! this one has been my favourite for years and when listening closely, you can hear it EVERYWHERE - be it as little accents (sometimes only bass or melody movements) or as a main theme of whole songs (hit the road jack).
Pink Floyd's Us and Them uses in a really nice way something similar to what you described as the minor plagal cadence. The song uses the same kind of progression but with suspended chords wich makes the mode really ambiguous and mysterious. This video was really enlightening in term of functional harmony, thanks a lot for producing this kind of quality content !
The Andalusian cadence is like snowboarding down the hill on a snowy afternoon in the mountains. One song that uses the scale is the unrelased track Hard Times by the Jetzons. The song recorded in 1982 and it was released in the late 2000s. Brad Buxer did direct the music and composed for the Sonic 3 game with Michael Jackson who is his musical director and keyboardist for the Dangerous Tour. If you played Sonic 3's Ice Cap Zone you can listen to the difference.
This is one of my favorites too, up there with Im-bVII-IV-Im. I like replacing the bVI with its relative minor IVm sometimes. Or just sticking a bVI-V into the middle of anything ever because this progression is awesome.
My all time favorite chord progression is a circle of fifths/fourths progression. Take the 2nd half of the organ solo from Burn by Deep Purple for example. It sounds very baroque-y and I absolutely love it.
My favorite chord progression isn't actually a whole chord progression, but rather two chords which tend to work well in a number of chord progressions: V-ii. I think the reason why it sounds so cool to me is you are both moving from a dominant chord to a subdominant chord and moving from a major chord to a minor chord. It's a fakeout that moves the song in a darker, moodier direction while still holding onto a lot of tension, and I just absolutely love the way it sounds. For a great example of this in action, check out "With Any Sort of Certainty" by Streetlight Manifesto. The second part of the chorus ends on G and the third part begins on Dm. (It's actually a bVII-iv in that song since it's in A minor, but it's the same principle.)
Also my favorite. Godly. All progressions based off of this are godly as well. Classic 1mi, 7M, 6M, 7M (All among the watchtower, stairway to heaven) is perfect as well. The 1mi to 5M is just too classic. So many great unbeatable progressions coming from this. Personally, I don’t think it gets any better. Such a distinct, strong, and multidimensional cadence.
Thank you very much! This progression popped in my head some moths ago in arpeggios (g-e♭-c-g-e♭-c-f-d-b♭-f-d-b♭ etc.) and I tried to look for it on the internet and didn't find a lot, and then you posted this video and it was just great! Also, in the idea of an "anti-Andalusian cadence" you actually hit a very strong duality between the major and minor scale - if you reflect one scale so that the first note becomes the fifth and the fifth becomes the first note but all the intervals stay the same you get the other, the tonic chord stays tonic but flips its quality and all the other chords' places get reflected with the tonic as a pivot and flip quality as well. Also, the idea of lowering the 6th (or the 3rd of the 4 chord) is essentially dual to the idea of raising the 7th (or the 3rd of the 5 chord) to make a leading tone, and makes a dual leading tone which is the flat 6th. You can also see this way that the harmonic major scale is dual to the harmonic minor scale and that if you add a flat 6th (or the second step of the scale) to the 4 chord you get a dual dominant 7th (which is of course a 6th chord).
In regards to an anti-Andalusian, the Elliott Smith song Coast to Coast does a lot of alternating between I and bVI, before moving into I, II, III, IV (all major and unflattened) for the chorus, and then resolving that back to the start using bVI, bVII, I. By making all of the cadential movement clearly based in the parallel minor (bVI to I as a sort of pseudo-plagal, and bVI-bVII-I for big cadences), the straight ascent of major scale major chords doesn’t “feel” like you’re just rising through the major scale. It feels like you’re trying to push through to the bVI. So it’s an example of using all major to push up into a minor sound.
There one other use of the Andalusian cadence you missed! And that’s the drop the i chord entirely and treat the V as the tonic. You hear it that way in a lot of Spanish and Balkan folk music. This reframes the progression as iv-bIII-bII-I, which you can think of as a Phrygian progression with a Picardy third. And you can also derive my favorite scale from it this way, the Phrygian Dominant mode!
I did not expect this progression to be your favorite. Interesting. I usually think of the "Andalusian Cadence" as just a particular lament bass progression since it's almost always used as a repeating figure when people mention it rather than being a proper cadence. I wish we would just refer to it as an Andalusian progression. The term "cadence" is getting really stretched these days. Anyways, I find the interpretation of the Andalusian progression as being iv-bIII-bII-I to be really interesting.
In flamenco it is indeed used a lot as a cadence but especially because flamenco guitarists in a lot of styles tend to think of, say, E as the tonal center rather than Am, which is why the Phrygian scale sounds flamenco-ish. Also, flamenco players tend to use open strings to give the chords an extended quality
Another variation that would be worth mentioning is the "classical version" of this progression: i v6 iv6 V. In A minor: Am Em/G Dm/F E. The Dm/F can also be Fmaj7 or you can use Fmaj7, then Dm/F (the Fmaj7 would actually function as a suspension). You could also replace the Dm/F with augmented 6th. Seth Monahan made an interesting video about the "lament bass" that is basically the same as the Andalusian cadence - it also includes some interesting chromatic variations of the progression. Definitely worth checking out.
The way I was taught this in my tonal harmony class (fairly recently, actually) is the the bVII and bVI are borrowed from the minor scale, keeping their functionality. So, for example, Dmin C Bb A7 Dmin would still be T D T D T, holding its syntax. Beethoven and Mozart would often do this, replacing ii and IV with iiø7 and iv to add harmonic flavour.
Great progression, and versatile. Change all four chords to major (D C Bb A) and you get Bachman Turner Overdrive's "Roll on Down the Highway." Then alternate the major chords with sus4, and you get The Who's "Pinball Wizard."
7:00 That new "opposite of Andalusian progression" sounds to me like one of the songs of the videogame Rayman (1995). Song name is "Harmony" but it also sounds in "The Band Awakens" which for some versions of the game both are in the same track (the latter after the former).
I found this progression by accident. I am surprised that you didn't analyze from melodic minor perspective, because that's how I found it, the minor descending but ends with raised bVII.. But hey, we're the same as it's also my favorite progression of all time. It's so versatile, I can use it on anything melodic!
At 2:52 the full first page before he turns over. a pause here might be nice. At 5:00 is the second full page up to the Mario Cadence At 6:56 page three At 8:08 Inverted Andalusian cadence
I think part of the andalusian cadence's darkness, even when put into major, is that it's almost pulling a lament bass in the root notes. It's not exactly a lament bass but I think the same qualities get across.
The thing that makes a chord minor is the minor third relationship between first and third, in this case D and F. The VI chord includes the same relationship between its third and fifth, the same notes. In minor scales the VII chord can have dominant function (because of the leading tone from the third of each, here E to F). So from a certain perspective the Andalusian Progression is simply Tonic-Dominant-Tonic-Dominant with a walk down the scale in the bass (minor line cliche).
It's basically: "iv bIII bII I" which is a minor 4th, flat 3rd, flat 2nd, major root. So in the key of C, it'd be: Fm-Eb-Db-C. In the key of D, it'd be: Gm F Eb D. Etc.
I always tend to make the last chord minor, and sometimes just do the chord names as a bass riff while vamping on top of it. I learnt this from my mum a while ago and we would both improvise on the same piano as I was growing up. I love this cadence too!
Whaaaaaaaaat. I've been playing the Andalusian cadence for years, whenever I'm jamming on the piano with vocalist friends freestyling in the background. And never realized there was a name for it. That's cool.
My favourite version of the Anti-lusian cadence is [I bII bIII iv], or more specifically [I7add4 bII bIII iv bIIM7]. I just love the bII in a major key. It sounds so mysterious and works well to guide both away from and back to the tonic. Also, the bIII in major is strange but cool.
I've used a i III64 VI v (or according to the key: Cm Eb/Bb Ab Gm) before. I liked substituting the VII with the second inversion III. I don't know why I liked this better, but I did, and it provides me (as a bass player) opportunity to actually hit the root of the III chord when I get board with the progression to make things feel a little more optimistic while still enjoying the walk down the rest of the time.
Then there's what I like to call the "Icelandic Cadence", Em, (Em,) D, C, very often combined with melody notes like B, A, C, B. Much favoured by Sigur Ros, Olafur Arnalds and other great Icelandic musicians.
For me, the Andalusian cadence is to the Aeolian scale, what the 1-b7-4-5 cadence is to the Ionian scale. Playing both of these cadences almost exclusively in my Hispanic church, almost ever Coro or Hymn follows these chords. One major difference however is that for the Ionian scale, when you START a chorus you lead with a subtonic into 4-5 and then cycle up the 4ths thru a 3-6-2-5 then you get back to the 1. With the Aeolian scale however, you lead with modulating the 6m into 6M for greater directiveness and then cycle DOWN the 5ths with 2-5-1-4 and then you CLOSE the chorus with the model's respective 4-5, which is the 2-3-6 but to enhance the resolution we modulate the 3m into 3M to strengthen the resolution. Not sure what my point but it's certainly an observation lol
My favorite chord progressions are: D-E-C (IV-V-bIII in A major, which is kind of a weird modal interchange) D-E-F-G-A (the IV and V chords followed by the "Mario" cadence in A major) B-A-G-F (four major chords descending by M2) I-IVm6-I-IVm6 (in any key) G#m9-G with added 9 and #11 and Fm11-Emaj7#11 and its variant (Cm7b13-Emaj7#11).
I always find the v7 darker and the V7 in minor sadder. A minor dominant chord has a modal, pensive feel, whereas a major dominant chord resolving to minor makes the pull to minor so strong that it seems resolutely despondent.
Weird that you uploaded this today, because I was just talking about this progression with my co-workers! And I like all of the different versions you tried out. Don't think the Dorian version is very common. Generally, I think of any subset of i - bVII - bVI - V as 'counting' as part of the Andalusian cadence. The most common variations of it use a major i chord (I) or minor V (v). And I often go so far as to say that bVII - i (using the b7 to cadence) evokes it, because it's so opposed to Western common practice tactics. The usage of parallel fifths is also defining for the progression (I think you touched on it enough, I just wanted to emphasize it)! Yet another reason why it doesn't fit into Western common-practice period theory. I would even argue that it's just as prevalent in modern popular music as chord progressions from Western common practice.
To echo others, I think analyzing it as iv-III-II-I is more accurate for Flamenco. Flamenco tends to use phrygian AND phrygian dominant in parallel, so the tonic chord is major (phrygian dominant). The music tends to resolve on that chord, too, and does not bounce back to the iv.
My favorite chord progression is probably i-VII-IV-iv. I like the duality of power and sadness that the progression has along with the descending sound if you put the IV and iv chords in 1st inversion.
Rock guitarist here! A few things: 1. The first song that comes to mind with the Andalusian cadence is “Sultans of Swing” 2. The Andalusian cadence with tritone sub gives it a jazzy swing feel to me 3. I would call the anti-Andalusian cadence The Radiohead cadence
My favourite cadence, I don't know the names of cadences but it's a fairly common one, is the one that uses phrygian and goes 1 minor (or sometimes major) / 2 (flat) major / 3 major. Very simple and very effective. If you take a fourth "ghost" chord of the 4 minor as implied, in a way it could be seen as a reverse of the andalusian cadence going up it rather than down it (just whilst omitting the key chord). Indeed, some songs that make strong use of it play it that exact way - I've recently been getting into Alice in Chains and they use it a lot, with particularly their song Sludge Factory milking it in the verses and resolving to the implied other-key in the chorus. In my own work, I have constructed an album of songs around playing with it, and each one uses it in some kind of way key to how the song feels. I really love it, there's so much you can do with it.
For an opposite, how about Phish's "Tweezer Reprise"? That strikes me as a very cool, ascending variant of the the Andalusian cadence. It has one borrowed chord (a bIII, C major, if you were to analyze the progression as A mixolydian), and kinda of plays tricks with the ear by setting up satisfying resolutions without a sense of finality. Also, it lends itself to voice-leading that nearly constantly ascends, whilst resolving. The most beautiful quality is that as it resolves it propels the music forward, adding energy with every repetition. Fun stuff.
Here are some songs with Andalusian cadence in them: Jalebi Baby Everyday Normal Guy HandClap (its not obvious in the song but if you use the Andalusian chords it will sound good) Rasputin (the guitar part is Andalusian) For the Rest of My Life Havana - Camila Cabello I Will Survive Me and my Girls - Selena Gomez Snow The Product - Not Tonight (its in the middle of the song) Ela Ja Ta Louca Smooth Criminal - Michael Jackson Countdown 321 I will search for more if I find them in my musics. Im just listening to my songs and trying to find the Andalusiac cadence XD
A fun variation would be to have a I-IV-III-II progression in Phrygian mode (or a variant s.a. I-IV-I6-II) - it is a bit more laid back since it emphasises the 4rth degree. It's can definitely be the basis of a lot of interesting ostinato composition and improvisation, especially since it replaces downward motion by a semiton (ii-i) instead of the upward resolution of the leading tone, which sounds just as resolute. It's also fun because this is essentially the descending diatonic tetrachord from ancient greek music. Btw an interesting more general topic is modulation in a modal setting.
Great video. Tons of great songs use this and it can have so many flavors depending on the setting. Kind of hit a speed bump for me when you referred to VII and VI as ‘flat 7 and flat 6’. They occur within the natural minor scale and I have always referred to those chords as ‘natural 7 and 6’ There is no flatting of anything required to get these notes/chords within the minor scale. Sometimes also ‘modal 7 & 6. Also, the substitution of the dominant 7th chord on VI we used to call a German sixth. Is that just antiquated terminology now?
One variant I came up with is this one: i7-iv-iiidim7-bIIM9-i. It has similar bass movement despite not having the 7/6/5 chords. I call it the Sonoran Cadence, because I live in the Sonoran desert (and the Andalusian Cadence is named after its region of origin).
At 3:01 I would probably assign subdominant function to the VI chord, since it sounds kinda like iv6/5 going to V in a Phrygian half cadence. In fact, many songs with this structure have the fifth of the VI chord pass by the subdominant before going to the dominant (or staying on the subdominant as the 7th of the dominant chord), further emphasizing this.
1:07 Or what I like to do: V7. Not as happy as major and not as sad as minor, and a beautiful tension to resolve back, thus adding to its dominant function. At least, that's how I view it. 3:52 Et voila. Comme ça :) 5:09 as in Paul Johnson - Get Get Down (1999).... Down da da da down down down down da da da down....
Hit the road, Jack.
Also Seven Nation Army (and Sweet Dreams).
Bach's famous Toccata and Fugue too: th-cam.com/video/SGKfqSJbeAg/w-d-xo.html
And don't you come back
I don't bother chasin' mice around, I slink through the alley....
@@SirFranex No more, no more, no more
Your favourite cadence is Andalusian cadence, and one of your favourite scales is the Phrygian scale. Let me guess.... You like flamenco xD
I hope this isn't the start of a flame nco war.
Mea Dish why
oh my god
flamenco metal would fucking rock
What really irks me in all of these "western CPP educated" analysis of Andalusian cadence is missing the obvious -- that it's just IV-III-bII-im on the Phrygian scale.
@@QuikVidGuy Rodrigo y Gabriela ...
Yeah, this has always been my favorite after playing a piano piece with it. I also love it in a blues context when you nail that blue note on the flat VI chord so you turn it into a dominant chord and have that minatory half step tritone descent
hit the road Jack
Minato...
Hit the road jack, and don't you come back no more no more no more no more, hit the road jack, and don't ya come back no more.
Other great examples are Del Shannon's "Runaway", The Stray Cats' "Stray Cat Strut", The Beach Boys' "Good Vibrations", The Turtles' "Happy Together", and The Ventures' "Walk Don't Run".
One of my favorites is the doo-wop chord progression.
How about this?: Dm C Bb Eb7 Dm
Beware my Love
@@tymime seems like the dominant was replaced by a Neapolitan chord. I think it's usually used as a subdominant chord though, it nicely sets up the V7. On the other hand, it can be used as a tritone substitution to V7, so there's that.
Jeezus, I love doo-wop more than any person should legally be able to. Haha
I’m gonna write a doom metal song using the Andalusian Cadence now.
Please do and post it somewhere so we can hear it because it sounds like a neat idea!
@@franlovelsimic8421
Also an overused one, but still neat, haha.
Make it a doom metal tango.
@@Carewolf
Doom metal polka. XD
N.I.B.?
I would like to mention that in Flamenco music, the music of Andalucia, A major (from your example) would be the tonic, therefore the progression would not revert to Dm but resolve in Amaj. The scale would be the flamenco scale,a modified Phrygian major (or dominant, if you like) with varying 3rd and 7th degrees. In other musical styles it is true it resolves back to the minor (here Dmin as the tonic) but that very fact then makes it less Andalucian! Many thanks for all the wonderful videos!!
Fun fact; I Will Survive takes an Andalusian Cadence and throws an extra chord between each one. Am Dm G CM7 FM7 Bm7b5 Esus E7
ryan moran wouldn’t that be the circle of Fifths... just with an extra Esus chord?
@@Latinobull33 Yeah, seems like it.
That's indeed a cycle of 5ths, same as "you never give me your money" by the Beatles, "autumn leaves" to name just 2 :)
That just sounds like 'Autumn Leaves' with extra steps
If you change the Fm7 and to F#m7b5, remove the Esus, change Bm7b5 to B7 and turn E7 into Em7 then you get the autumn leaves progression
Am I the only one who finds these videos not only instructive, clarifying and amazing, but also adorable and sweet? Srsly, 12tone has one of the nicest sounding narrating voices out there, so fresh and welcoming, and uses such relatable imagery (like when he says it's "unsettling, like the brightness of the major triads is lying to me somehow" - that was sooo well expressed ❤️)!
The little elephants and nerdy aesthetic in general is so freakin cute ✨ the whole video production of this channel is so satisfying.
Pops up in Big band, swing, electro swing, its even in fairly odd parents theme song.
I never noticed it in the Fairly OddParents theme until now.
Ozzie Castava I know, right?
When? The part where Timmy turns Vicky into a bunch of different things?
Yeah I was thinking electro swing for like the whole video
@@safwannizam2932 no in the chorus “odd parents, fairly odd parents! Wands and wings floating crowny things”
The Andalusian cadence has always been one of my favorite chord progressions ever since hearing it in swing music
found it thru hit the road jack and is you is or is you aint my baby
Awesome! I learned to play the classical guitar via flamenco music, so the Andalusian cadence holds a special place in my heart. Speaking of the Andalusian cadence and the Phrygian mode (6:00), I've actually always thought of the basic cadence as a mix between iv, III, II, I progression in Phrygian as well as the i, VII, VI, V in minor you describe. That last major chord actually makes the cadence work really well with a harmonic minor scale as well-which actually feels more like a Phrygian dominant scale to me, rooted in that last major chord.
Edit: I'd actually like to add another variation of this progression that I love, and it's the Andalusian cadence with the two middle chords switched, so i, VI, VII, V or Dm, B♭, C, A in this case. That one actually feels more like it's harmonic minor rather than Phrygian, because I feel like it doesn't resolve so strongly to the last major chord. A good example of this one is Gerudo Valley from Ocarina of Time.
My mind cant comprehend you being left handed, but draws the intro logo using right hand
New drinking game: take a shot every time they describe the definition of functional harmony or the nature of the overtones of a note.
I agree it’s kind of funny how often he says that definition verbatim, but it’s really only once per video
Got drunk a lot quicker than I expected
He* lol
@@sotis1756 Read Cory’s Twitter bio. Their pronouns are they/them. Not he/him.
@@jessehammer123 Aight, but if They* have a male voice I’m gonna assume it’s a Dude, no offense just keeping it simple. We are living in confusing times.
I think the key to why looping this works so well is that it floats so seamlessly between the Phrygian (with the occational major 3rd) and Aeolian. A lot of Spanish music, (which is heavily influenced by Arab music) lets you interpret the V as the root if you want. The cadence is the perfect bridge between Arab scales and western functional harmony!
i called this the rasputin progression for years without knowing that it had a name, nice to see it does and that it's so theoretically / musically rich
From a flamenco perspective, this is an oddly backwards analysis. The tonal center is A and the functional harmony is the Flat II (Bb) to A Phrygian cadence. The D minor is a common substitution for Bb and the C is often played as a C9 - treated as, a B flat with a C in the bass. The melody one would create over this cadence would center on the Bb harmony until it resolves to the A. It's also common to have passing secondary dominants (e.g. - Dm - G7 - C9 - F7 - Bb - A) which is recognizable as a pretty common chain of II-VI-I's.
It's one of my favorite chord progressions and didn't know it had a name.
Thank you!
Honestly, I've been stuck in a composing block for a few weeks now, and hopefully this gives me the extra inspiration I need to get some ideas made. Thank you, 12Tone!
The andalucian cadence can be compared to the ancient greek tetrachord, the most common of which has the same interval structure (E D C B). Further comparisons: in turkish pop they would use the andalucian cadence but with a minor chord in the end (Am G F Em) and often with an added b9 on Em.
Talking Heads' wonderful song "Stay Up Late" uses the all-major version of the cadence. It's really staccato and dramatic and it works really well
For me, the tonic of this cadence is what you call the fifth. I think that's because andalusian music usually uses the frigian scale, not minor, so the A major chord in this case sounds more resting to me. I may be crazy, but I'm from Spain so my point of view shouldn't be totally wrong (or maybe I'm crazy and this is all a simulation).
I’ve heard music that use this exact same scale where sometimes the major chord is the tonic and where the 1 minor is the tonic. Both sound good I think it just depends on stuff like the player and complimenting melodies. I personally prefer when the major feels home
Yeah it's called the Phrygian dominant mode which is the fifth mode of harmonic minor
When I first was studying chords and stuff, this cadence always felt like it needed to resolve the the minor tonic, but when I studied modal music (and lots of Phrygian-ish metal riffs), the same cadence, played the exact same way, felt resolved in the fifth degree. I think expectations is part of what makes it work, it's confusing, but you can even "change mentally" the tonic, and perceive the same cadence with different tonic in a short time.
In this exmaple, the a maj chord you are refering to is more of a dominant chord and the fact you are from Spain doesn't emphasize your argument. To my mind, even by not borrowing the V chord (the A maj chord) from the harmonic minor scale in the key of D, the dominant-tonic relationship stays intact, though less forceful. On a side note, the phrygian mode is a minor scale, so there is no c# making the v chord a maj/dominant chord. Another commenter points out that the phrygian dominant mode derived from d harmonic minor is rather used, which seems more likely. Still i don't think it developed that way (people thinking of scales/modes and then create some sound). However, it's perfectly fine you feel the way you feel, since it's music, right? But your arguments are kind of a stretch.
Malte Pries They are not a stretch. In flamenco, this V chord is not a V chord, it is I. It’s called the flamenco mode, which to sum up is phrygian with varying third (and seventh) scale degree. This is a worldwide recognized theory. An Andalusian cadence (which IMO is not really what this video describes but let’s use it for this discussion) can exist in a piece that is in a minor key, in which case the V interpretation is correct. It could also perfectly well be in a piece in flamenco mode, which makes it the I. Being Spanish, the second interpretation came to mind first for them.
An awesome flamenco cadence that has seen extended use in modern music and deservedly so, other notable examples are Sultans Of Swing, 50 Ways To Leave Your Lover, Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood and countless others
I always hear the old Blind Man spiritual whenever I hear this cadence, and I'm surprised I've never seen it brought up before.
Also, glad you brought up minor iv at the end there with the anti-andalusian cadence. Minor iv to I is one of my own favorite chord progressions, and it always reminds me of Thomas Tallis's third mode psalm, the one used in RVW's famous Fantasia. (I think that goes like I iv I V)
IV iv I is incredibly good as well, so soothing.
Hey, cool pfp ;)
How am I finding this video just now? Ive been a lifelong fan of Spanish and flamenco music and got into learning music theory specifically to understand it better. Recognizing the Andalusian cadence is so much fun because it is present literally everywhere. Thank you for this video!
as per the comment around 4:45 , it's that series of three ascending majors a whole apart in strawberry fields that gives it part of it's most exceptional moment.
BECAUSE I AM UN
*_C H I E N_*
ANDALUSIA...n cadence
Pixies reference
Glaceon Studios r/ihavereddit
@@beatrix-persephone r/imbannedfromreddit
r/sad
Sunny afternoon by the kinks is my favourite use of this
An Andalusian cadence without 7b is also the chord progression of "Sweet Dreams", "Seven Nation Army" and tons of other pop songs
thank you for this great video! this one has been my favourite for years and when listening closely, you can hear it EVERYWHERE - be it as little accents (sometimes only bass or melody movements) or as a main theme of whole songs (hit the road jack).
Pink Floyd's Us and Them uses in a really nice way something similar to what you described as the minor plagal cadence. The song uses the same kind of progression but with suspended chords wich makes the mode really ambiguous and mysterious.
This video was really enlightening in term of functional harmony, thanks a lot for producing this kind of quality content !
The Andalusian cadence is like snowboarding down the hill on a snowy afternoon in the mountains. One song that uses the scale is the unrelased track Hard Times by the Jetzons. The song recorded in 1982 and it was released in the late 2000s. Brad Buxer did direct the music and composed for the Sonic 3 game with Michael Jackson who is his musical director and keyboardist for the Dangerous Tour. If you played Sonic 3's Ice Cap Zone you can listen to the difference.
This is one of my favorites too, up there with Im-bVII-IV-Im. I like replacing the bVI with its relative minor IVm sometimes. Or just sticking a bVI-V into the middle of anything ever because this progression is awesome.
My all time favorite chord progression is a circle of fifths/fourths progression. Take the 2nd half of the organ solo from Burn by Deep Purple for example. It sounds very baroque-y and I absolutely love it.
My favorite chord progression isn't actually a whole chord progression, but rather two chords which tend to work well in a number of chord progressions: V-ii. I think the reason why it sounds so cool to me is you are both moving from a dominant chord to a subdominant chord and moving from a major chord to a minor chord. It's a fakeout that moves the song in a darker, moodier direction while still holding onto a lot of tension, and I just absolutely love the way it sounds.
For a great example of this in action, check out "With Any Sort of Certainty" by Streetlight Manifesto. The second part of the chorus ends on G and the third part begins on Dm. (It's actually a bVII-iv in that song since it's in A minor, but it's the same principle.)
How is it the same principle when harmonic functions are different?
@@valarinan7723 Well, it sounds the same, and it's really that specific sound that I like about it.
*We’re the Sultans of Swing*
The Sacred Swing Sultanate
Also my favorite. Godly. All progressions based off of this are godly as well. Classic 1mi, 7M, 6M, 7M (All among the watchtower, stairway to heaven) is perfect as well. The 1mi to 5M is just too classic. So many great unbeatable progressions coming from this. Personally, I don’t think it gets any better. Such a distinct, strong, and multidimensional cadence.
Thank you very much! This progression popped in my head some moths ago in arpeggios (g-e♭-c-g-e♭-c-f-d-b♭-f-d-b♭ etc.) and I tried to look for it on the internet and didn't find a lot, and then you posted this video and it was just great!
Also, in the idea of an "anti-Andalusian cadence" you actually hit a very strong duality between the major and minor scale - if you reflect one scale so that the first note becomes the fifth and the fifth becomes the first note but all the intervals stay the same you get the other, the tonic chord stays tonic but flips its quality and all the other chords' places get reflected with the tonic as a pivot and flip quality as well. Also, the idea of lowering the 6th (or the 3rd of the 4 chord) is essentially dual to the idea of raising the 7th (or the 3rd of the 5 chord) to make a leading tone, and makes a dual leading tone which is the flat 6th. You can also see this way that the harmonic major scale is dual to the harmonic minor scale and that if you add a flat 6th (or the second step of the scale) to the 4 chord you get a dual dominant 7th (which is of course a 6th chord).
In regards to an anti-Andalusian, the Elliott Smith song Coast to Coast does a lot of alternating between I and bVI, before moving into I, II, III, IV (all major and unflattened) for the chorus, and then resolving that back to the start using bVI, bVII, I. By making all of the cadential movement clearly based in the parallel minor (bVI to I as a sort of pseudo-plagal, and bVI-bVII-I for big cadences), the straight ascent of major scale major chords doesn’t “feel” like you’re just rising through the major scale. It feels like you’re trying to push through to the bVI. So it’s an example of using all major to push up into a minor sound.
There one other use of the Andalusian cadence you missed! And that’s the drop the i chord entirely and treat the V as the tonic. You hear it that way in a lot of Spanish and Balkan folk music. This reframes the progression as iv-bIII-bII-I, which you can think of as a Phrygian progression with a Picardy third. And you can also derive my favorite scale from it this way, the Phrygian Dominant mode!
ii-V-I *_J A Z Z_*
BMaj7-D7-GMaj7-B♭7-E♭Maj7-Am7-D7
GMaj7-B♭7-E♭Maj7-F♯7-BMaj7-Fm7-B♭7
E♭Maj7-Am7-D7-GMaj7-C♯m7-F♯7
BMaj7-Fm7-B♭7-E♭Maj7-C♯m7-F♯7 *_J A Z Z_*
Bluemon Stepping up the game there. Giant cadence boy. Keep it running like a train buddy.
@@EchoHeo Let's keep the lyrics flowing:
Giant Steps is fast
*broke* ii-V-I
*woke* II-v6-Ib6
*the lick*
12 tone videos
*uses manuscript paper*
:
:
* draws pictures on manuscript paper*
I did not expect this progression to be your favorite. Interesting.
I usually think of the "Andalusian Cadence" as just a particular lament bass progression since it's almost always used as a repeating figure when people mention it rather than being a proper cadence. I wish we would just refer to it as an Andalusian progression. The term "cadence" is getting really stretched these days.
Anyways, I find the interpretation of the Andalusian progression as being iv-bIII-bII-I to be really interesting.
In flamenco it is indeed used a lot as a cadence but especially because flamenco guitarists in a lot of styles tend to think of, say, E as the tonal center rather than Am, which is why the Phrygian scale sounds flamenco-ish. Also, flamenco players tend to use open strings to give the chords an extended quality
Another variation that would be worth mentioning is the "classical version" of this progression: i v6 iv6 V. In A minor: Am Em/G Dm/F E. The Dm/F can also be Fmaj7 or you can use Fmaj7, then Dm/F (the Fmaj7 would actually function as a suspension). You could also replace the Dm/F with augmented 6th. Seth Monahan made an interesting video about the "lament bass" that is basically the same as the Andalusian cadence - it also includes some interesting chromatic variations of the progression. Definitely worth checking out.
Speaking of parallel major chords: Bachman-Turner Overdrive - Roll on down the highway: D-C-Bb-A7sus4-A7 repeat.
The way I was taught this in my tonal harmony class (fairly recently, actually) is the the bVII and bVI are borrowed from the minor scale, keeping their functionality. So, for example, Dmin C Bb A7 Dmin would still be T D T D T, holding its syntax. Beethoven and Mozart would often do this, replacing ii and IV with iiø7 and iv to add harmonic flavour.
The Spanish flamenco has a special magic that you never can find anywhere else.
..hit the road Jack
Being a guitar player I love the simple Em - D/F# - G with the ascending bassline. Chord progressions that ascends are usually my favorites.
Great progression, and versatile. Change all four chords to major (D C Bb A) and you get Bachman Turner Overdrive's "Roll on Down the Highway." Then alternate the major chords with sus4, and you get The Who's "Pinball Wizard."
7:00 That new "opposite of Andalusian progression" sounds to me like one of the songs of the videogame Rayman (1995). Song name is "Harmony" but it also sounds in "The Band Awakens" which for some versions of the game both are in the same track (the latter after the former).
I found this progression by accident. I am surprised that you didn't analyze from melodic minor perspective, because that's how I found it, the minor descending but ends with raised bVII..
But hey, we're the same as it's also my favorite progression of all time. It's so versatile, I can use it on anything melodic!
At 2:52 the full first page before he turns over.
a pause here might be nice.
At 5:00 is the second full page
up to the Mario Cadence
At 6:56 page three
At 8:08 Inverted Andalusian cadence
I think part of the andalusian cadence's darkness, even when put into major, is that it's almost pulling a lament bass in the root notes. It's not exactly a lament bass but I think the same qualities get across.
The thing that makes a chord minor is the minor third relationship between first and third, in this case D and F. The VI chord includes the same relationship between its third and fifth, the same notes. In minor scales the VII chord can have dominant function (because of the leading tone from the third of each, here E to F). So from a certain perspective the Andalusian Progression is simply Tonic-Dominant-Tonic-Dominant with a walk down the scale in the bass (minor line cliche).
Man, you deserve a lot of respect for that amazing and free content, that really helps a lot in knowledge
It's basically: "iv bIII bII I" which is a minor 4th, flat 3rd, flat 2nd, major root. So in the key of C, it'd be: Fm-Eb-Db-C. In the key of D, it'd be: Gm F Eb D. Etc.
I always tend to make the last chord minor, and sometimes just do the chord names as a bass riff while vamping on top of it. I learnt this from my mum a while ago and we would both improvise on the same piano as I was growing up. I love this cadence too!
Whaaaaaaaaat. I've been playing the Andalusian cadence for years, whenever I'm jamming on the piano with vocalist friends freestyling in the background. And never realized there was a name for it. That's cool.
Aka “walk don’t run”
Anti-Lydian cadence is almost “Spanish Bombs” by the Clash
Anti lydia?
You mentioned the Phrygian scale, which is awesome because Phrygian scales (and Spanish Phrygian in particular) are my favorite
Awesome ..I've just jumped on board ...and wow ..thank you.
A variation I often play is, in Am: Am-Am/G-FM7(which is like Am/F)-E(7)
Best progression ever! Another nice variant is the i - bVII - bVI - I (like in Van McCoy's African Symphony).
My favourite version of the Anti-lusian cadence is [I bII bIII iv], or more specifically [I7add4 bII bIII iv bIIM7]. I just love the bII in a major key. It sounds so mysterious and works well to guide both away from and back to the tonic. Also, the bIII in major is strange but cool.
I've used a i III64 VI v (or according to the key: Cm Eb/Bb Ab Gm) before. I liked substituting the VII with the second inversion III. I don't know why I liked this better, but I did, and it provides me (as a bass player) opportunity to actually hit the root of the III chord when I get board with the progression to make things feel a little more optimistic while still enjoying the walk down the rest of the time.
This cadence is part of all my life, I'm andaluz and this progression is just impossible to forget ever......
Then there's what I like to call the "Icelandic Cadence", Em, (Em,) D, C, very often combined with melody notes like B, A, C, B. Much favoured by Sigur Ros, Olafur Arnalds and other great Icelandic musicians.
For me, the Andalusian cadence is to the Aeolian scale, what the 1-b7-4-5 cadence is to the Ionian scale. Playing both of these cadences almost exclusively in my Hispanic church, almost ever Coro or Hymn follows these chords. One major difference however is that for the Ionian scale, when you START a chorus you lead with a subtonic into 4-5 and then cycle up the 4ths thru a 3-6-2-5 then you get back to the 1.
With the Aeolian scale however, you lead with modulating the 6m into 6M for greater directiveness and then cycle DOWN the 5ths with 2-5-1-4 and then you CLOSE the chorus with the model's respective 4-5, which is the 2-3-6 but to enhance the resolution we modulate the 3m into 3M to strengthen the resolution.
Not sure what my point but it's certainly an observation lol
Sultans of Swing
If only one, then this one.
I just got a shiver in the dark.
Mea Dish it’s a-raining in the park
But meantime
Your videos are amazing!
My favorite chord progressions are:
D-E-C (IV-V-bIII in A major, which is kind of a weird modal interchange)
D-E-F-G-A (the IV and V chords followed by the "Mario" cadence in A major)
B-A-G-F (four major chords descending by M2)
I-IVm6-I-IVm6 (in any key)
G#m9-G with added 9 and #11
and Fm11-Emaj7#11 and its variant (Cm7b13-Emaj7#11).
Love the way you explain music!
You get a shiver in the dark,
It's raining in the park, but meantime..
My fav chord progression is the Canon in D (idk if it has a name) and variations of it. I could listen to it for hours too :D
I wrote a riff over Andalusian cadence four days ago and you've made a video today
I always find the v7 darker and the V7 in minor sadder. A minor dominant chord has a modal, pensive feel, whereas a major dominant chord resolving to minor makes the pull to minor so strong that it seems resolutely despondent.
What is a minor dominant chord
@@carlito6038 v (Gm in C major, Em in A minor)
Been messing with the ‘anti - Andalusian’ progression so nice with maj&min7’s 💯
Weird that you uploaded this today, because I was just talking about this progression with my co-workers! And I like all of the different versions you tried out. Don't think the Dorian version is very common. Generally, I think of any subset of i - bVII - bVI - V as 'counting' as part of the Andalusian cadence. The most common variations of it use a major i chord (I) or minor V (v). And I often go so far as to say that bVII - i (using the b7 to cadence) evokes it, because it's so opposed to Western common practice tactics. The usage of parallel fifths is also defining for the progression (I think you touched on it enough, I just wanted to emphasize it)! Yet another reason why it doesn't fit into Western common-practice period theory. I would even argue that it's just as prevalent in modern popular music as chord progressions from Western common practice.
I am star struck by your clarity of expression as usual. Other commenters not so much.
thank you for all the alternative ideas i'm gonna go have fun with them !!
Well done lesson. Thanks.
To echo others, I think analyzing it as iv-III-II-I is more accurate for Flamenco. Flamenco tends to use phrygian AND phrygian dominant in parallel, so the tonic chord is major (phrygian dominant). The music tends to resolve on that chord, too, and does not bounce back to the iv.
My favorite chord progression is probably i-VII-IV-iv. I like the duality of power and sadness that the progression has along with the descending sound if you put the IV and iv chords in 1st inversion.
Rock guitarist here! A few things:
1. The first song that comes to mind with the Andalusian cadence is “Sultans of Swing”
2. The Andalusian cadence with tritone sub gives it a jazzy swing feel to me
3. I would call the anti-Andalusian cadence The Radiohead cadence
My favourite cadence, I don't know the names of cadences but it's a fairly common one, is the one that uses phrygian and goes 1 minor (or sometimes major) / 2 (flat) major / 3 major. Very simple and very effective. If you take a fourth "ghost" chord of the 4 minor as implied, in a way it could be seen as a reverse of the andalusian cadence going up it rather than down it (just whilst omitting the key chord). Indeed, some songs that make strong use of it play it that exact way - I've recently been getting into Alice in Chains and they use it a lot, with particularly their song Sludge Factory milking it in the verses and resolving to the implied other-key in the chorus. In my own work, I have constructed an album of songs around playing with it, and each one uses it in some kind of way key to how the song feels. I really love it, there's so much you can do with it.
For an opposite, how about Phish's "Tweezer Reprise"?
That strikes me as a very cool, ascending variant of the the Andalusian cadence.
It has one borrowed chord (a bIII, C major, if you were to analyze the progression as A mixolydian), and kinda of plays tricks with the ear by setting up satisfying resolutions without a sense of finality.
Also, it lends itself to voice-leading that nearly constantly ascends, whilst resolving. The most beautiful quality is that as it resolves it propels the music forward, adding energy with every repetition.
Fun stuff.
My favourite cadence is Andalusian cadence and I love Phrygian dominant . I like Latin a bit but my love for metal comes from this
Here are some songs with Andalusian cadence in them:
Jalebi Baby
Everyday Normal Guy
HandClap (its not obvious in the song but if you use the Andalusian chords it will sound good)
Rasputin (the guitar part is Andalusian)
For the Rest of My Life
Havana - Camila Cabello
I Will Survive
Me and my Girls - Selena Gomez
Snow The Product - Not Tonight (its in the middle of the song)
Ela Ja Ta Louca
Smooth Criminal - Michael Jackson
Countdown 321
I will search for more if I find them in my musics. Im just listening to my songs and trying to find the Andalusiac cadence XD
How could u forget hit the road jack
Stray Cat Strut: verse (Cm Andalusian Cadence) and chorus (Fm Andalusian Cadence).
It's also in Sultans of Swing by Dire Straits.
Thank you
IV, IVm, I
Hell yeah, I love minor plagal cadences.
Radiohead - Creep
*IVmaj9add6, IVm6, Imaj9add6 for extra sauce
NOOOOWWWWW MY BABYS DANCIN'
But she's dancin with another man :'(
@@MarsWien Hell yeah
A fun variation would be to have a I-IV-III-II progression in Phrygian mode (or a variant s.a. I-IV-I6-II) - it is a bit more laid back since it emphasises the 4rth degree. It's can definitely be the basis of a lot of interesting ostinato composition and improvisation, especially since it replaces downward motion by a semiton (ii-i) instead of the upward resolution of the leading tone, which sounds just as resolute.
It's also fun because this is essentially the descending diatonic tetrachord from ancient greek music.
Btw an interesting more general topic is modulation in a modal setting.
Im so pleased I found your channel, really great work!
Great video. Tons of great songs use this and it can have so many flavors depending on the setting.
Kind of hit a speed bump for me when you referred to VII and VI as ‘flat 7 and flat 6’. They occur within the natural minor scale and I have always referred to those chords as ‘natural 7 and 6’ There is no flatting of anything required to get these notes/chords within the minor scale. Sometimes also ‘modal 7 & 6.
Also, the substitution of the dominant 7th chord on VI we used to call a German sixth. Is that just antiquated terminology now?
I would love to see a video on some of the most difficult to play pieces of music on different instruments.
It’s one of the best progressions! It’s ALL over Blue Öyster Cult songs
One variant I came up with is this one: i7-iv-iiidim7-bIIM9-i. It has similar bass movement despite not having the 7/6/5 chords. I call it the Sonoran Cadence, because I live in the Sonoran desert (and the Andalusian Cadence is named after its region of origin).
It's almost like a mode of the Andalusian Cadence, if that makes sense.
At 3:01 I would probably assign subdominant function to the VI chord, since it sounds kinda like iv6/5 going to V in a Phrygian half cadence. In fact, many songs with this structure have the fifth of the VI chord pass by the subdominant before going to the dominant (or staying on the subdominant as the 7th of the dominant chord), further emphasizing this.
1:07 Or what I like to do: V7. Not as happy as major and not as sad as minor, and a beautiful tension to resolve back, thus adding to its dominant function. At least, that's how I view it.
3:52 Et voila. Comme ça :)
5:09 as in Paul Johnson - Get Get Down (1999).... Down da da da down down down down da da da down....