Lesson by Camilo Velandia

DIMINISHED TRIADS

Diminished harmony plays a big role on music today. It's very big on hard rock music, classical music, jazz, and even pop and R&B.  A lot of people avoid studying diminished harmony because they believe it is unmusical to their style of music, but the truth is that once studied, one can cover a lot of ground with it (not to mention it also has a unique, interesting sound).

Diminished triads are very easy to hear and understand because they are each a minor third from the next.  Let's take a look at three chromatic notes and their arpeggios:

                            C                             Eb (D#)                         Gb (F#)                A
                            Db (C#)                   E                                   G                         A# (Bb)
                            D                             F                                   G# (Ab)                B

As you can see, just three different arpeggios already give us all 12 notes.  In other words, you only have to memorize three different diminished scales and you've got them all! The diminished triads are the easiest and most obvious way to imply diminished harmony.  Players like Yngwie Malmsteen can be recognized simply because of his use of this scale.

DIMINISHED SCALE

Now that you've gotten familiar with the sound of the diminished  triads, it's time to move on. There are two different types of diminished scales.

The Whole-Half Diminished : The whole-half diminished is played over a diminished chord.
The Half-Whole Diminished : The half-whole diminished is played over a dominant chord.


The Whole-Half Diminished

The whole-half diminished is sometimes also known as the full diminished scale.  It's called the whole-half diminished because it starts with a whole step and then is followed by a half step. Here are the three diminished scales:

                    1                 9                 #9                   11               #11                  #5                 13             7
                     C                D             Eb(D#)                F                Gb(F#)          G#(Ab)             A              B
                 Db(C#)        D#(Eb)            E                 F#(Gb)              G                   A              A#(Bb)         C
                    D                E                 F                     G               G# (Ab)         A#(Bb)             B          C#(Db)


Those are the three whole-half diminished scales.  The underlined notes are the chord tones of the scale and the additional notes are almost like passing notes. As you can see, the formula for the scale is W-H-W-H-W-H-W.  Notice that since this scale is symmetrical, and it is the same every minor third.  Because it is symmetrical, this means C diminished is exactly the same as Eb diminished, and the same as Gb, and the same as A diminished.   The same applies for the others too.  If you have a diminished chord that has the notes C, F#, A, and Eb, then the chord could be the diminished chord of any of those roots. 

Major Triads on Diminished Harmony

One of the most interesting ways to imply diminished harmony is by using major triads within the diminished scale.  If you look carefully at the diminished scale, you can see that there are four different major triads inside the scale.  Let's take a look:


                     C                D             Eb(D#)                F                Gb(F#)          G#(Ab)             A              B


Look closely at the diminished scale above. What four major triads do you see?

D major triad     -       Triad from the 9th
F major triad     -       Triad from the 11th
G#(Ab) major triad - Triad from the #5(b13)
B major triad    -       Triad from the major 7th.

Implying one or more of the triads above over a diminished chord gives you a very exotic sound.  Try playing each triad in ascending motion through the diminished chord.

The Half-Whole Diminished

The half-whole diminished is sometimes known as the diminished dominant.  It can be played over a V chord in the same way you would play an altered scale. Here are the three diminished scales:

                    1                 b9              #9                3                  #11                   5                  13                 b7                                     C            Db(C#)        D#(Eb)            E                 F#(Gb)              G                  A              A#(Bb)
                 C#(Db)           D                E                 F                   G                G# (Ab)         A#(Bb)             B        
                     D            Eb(D#)           F              Gb(F#)          G#(Ab)               A                   B                             C



    Those are the three half-whole diminished scales.  I didn't underline any chord tones because in a way, every note in this scale is a chord tone. As you can see, the formula for the scale is H-W-H-W-H-W-H. 

Major Triads on Diminished Dominant Harmony

Just like the full diminished scale, the diminished dominant also has four major triads that can be used to imply its sound. Let's take a look:

                     C            Db(C#)        D#(Eb)            E                 F#(Gb)              G                  A              A#(Bb)


Look closely at the diminished dominant scale above. What four major triads do you see?

C major triad      -       Triad from the root
Eb major triad     -       Triad from the #9
Gb major triad    -       Triad from the #11
A major triad    -         Triad from the major 13th.

Implying one or more of the triads above over a diminished chord gives you a very exotic sound.  Try playing each triad in ascending motion through the diminished chord.