Augmented 4th and Diminished 5th

In this lesson we're looking at the evil-sounding Augmented 4th interval! This is one of the most distinctive intervals we can play. It is also known as a Diminished 5th - these are the same interval, but the context of the note in a piece of music determines which term you use.

Lesson aims

1. Play the Augmented 4th interval and familiarise yourself with the sound of it
2. Check out songs that use this interval (including The Simpsons theme, Black Sabbath - Black Sabbath, Purple Haze - Jimi Hendrix, and Danse Macabre)
3. See if you can find this interval in songs you know!

A Blues Scale

This is the A blues scale, with the Augmented 4th note marked in red. If you take away this note, the notes that are left (in blue) make the pentatonic scale.

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