I've heard that functional hamony is a sort of playing/ compostional style, and I heard that Yngwie uses is, so I figured I'd give it a shot (the more the merrier :D this especially applies to music theory, lol)... But I'm having a bit of trouble wrapping my head around what it is, anyone out there know what it is and how it works, lol? And I was also wondering what makes a scale or chord Dominant, as I can't quite seem to find it...

Dominant usually means it contains a major 3rd and a flattened 7th.

Thanks for the fast reply. I think I should clarify a bit on the functionaly harmony. It says that we can change to a different chord and play in that key until the 'arrival' of that chord. Here's where i get confused: Let's say I'm playing something in A harmonic minor, and I have been playing in the A min. chord and I wanted to change to the G# dim. chord, would changing to that key mean I would play the same scale, just the Tonic would be the G# dim. chord?

I think this is where an understanding of modes would be helpful. Do you know how they work?

Ragnarok,

Yes it would you are not as confused as you think.


Atlas

I know a little bit about them, like what their names (Phyrygian, Aeolian, Lydian, etc.) and that they are the same notes played from a different tonic and interval pattern varies.... :/

Read up on the modes here.

Yeah well the 7th mode of the A Harmonic minor scale starts on that G# note and the scale is G#,A,B,C,D,E,F, G#. You would typically play that over a G#dim7 chord.

BTW The minor modes don't have proper names really except the Phrygian Dominant mode which is the 5th mode of the Harmonic minor scale.

Cheers Lektro, I forgot we had posted that actually. :D

K, thanks for the help :D