u/Calordos_Zinferno

I've been listening and playing around with a piano piece in the key of D major, and there's a moment that sounds incredibly "heaven" and I'd love to understand why.

The progression sits on Gmaj7 (IVmaj7) for a while, then resolves down to D (I). But right before returning to Gmaj7, it briefly passes through E7/D and that fleeting moment has this floating, almost otherworldly quality that I can't stop listening to. It gets even better when it resolves to a Gadd9

Why does this work so well, and is there a name for what's happening here?